Prickly pear peel powers wool dyeing

CAIRO — Microwave technology can turn prickly pear (Opuntia ficus-indica) peel waste into a high-performance natural dye for wool, with lower pollution and no synthetic mordants, according to a new study in open-access journal Scientific Reports.

The team reports that wool dyed with the peel extract under microwave irradiation reached “excellent” ultraviolet protection factor (UPF 50+) and up to 85% bacterial reduction, while producing wastewater with reduced biological and chemical oxygen demand compared to a conventional tannic-acid-assisted process.