Introduction to Textile Preparation

Ashish gupta

Basic Textile Definitions Fibers = A smallest unit of textile materials. Usually classified by flexibility, fineness, and a ratio between length and diameter (L/D ratio) Natural Fibers = Fibers that come from animals (wool, silk etc.), plants (cotton, flax, hemp, jute etc.) or mineral material(asbestos). Synthetic Fibers = Man-made fibers or artificial fibers which is usually comes from chemical agents.
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Semi-synthetic Fibers = Fibers that comes from solutions of natural polymer or derivatives from the natural polymer (cellulose, protein etc.) Polymer = Macro molecules containing small chemical units (named Monomer)

Staple Fibers = Fibers from natural or synthetic fibers which were cut into short fibers. Normally, natural fibers are staple fibers (expected silk fibers). These fibers have 5-500 millimeters long. Filament Fibers = Fibers from natural or synthetic fibers which have infinite length. Silk Fibers are the only one natural fibers classified in this definition since their length between 700-1500 meters depending to their races.
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Yarns = The combinations of fibers using some twisting (Z and S twists) in order to make strong and stable yarns. Spun Yarns = The yarns that come form staple fibers. Filament Yarns = The yarns that come from filament fibers (mono-filaments and multifilaments) Fabrics = The products of weaving, knitting or non-woven processes. Normally, fabrics have a certain thickness and can withstand tear and tensile forces.
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Morphology of Textile Fibers 1. Crystalline Regions are the regions that cannot absorb water, humidity and dyestuff solutions but they are the part for fiber strength. 2. Non-Crystalline Regions or Amorphous regions are the regions that can absorb water, humidity and dyestuff therefore they can be dyed but they are a very weak part of the fibers.

3. Orientation of the Crystalline Regions alongside the fiber axis This property is very important in that it will increase the tensile strength of the fiber if it presents in the optimal quantity.
Crystalline

Amorphous

Void space
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Textile Preparation is the heart of the textile dyeing, printing and finishing processes because fibers, yarns or fabrics have many impurities (i.e. cotton wax, starch, lubricant, silk sericin, wool oil etc.) as a proverb Well begin is half done. From the experience, more than 60% of the faults from these factories come from preparation.

The Examples of preparation processes of cotton and its blends fabrics

100% Cotton fabrics

1. Singeing 2. Desizing (only for woven fabrics) 3. Scouring 4. Bleaching (only for pale or bright shades) 5. Mercerizing
6. Adding of Optical Brightening Agent
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100% Silk Fibers 1. Degumming (to get rid of non-fibrous materials (sericin)) 2. Bleaching (to make the goods whiter)

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100% Wool Fibers 1. Carbonising (to remove leave, bark and other parts of the plants from the wool fibers) 2. Scouring (to get rid of fat and oil from the fibers)
3. Bleaching (to make the fibers whiter)

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Singeing Process Singeing is a process that uses gas flame or hot plate in order to get rid of small fibers protruding (hairs) on the fabrics (these fibers normally come from spun yarns). Objectives: 1. To get rid of the small fibers 2. To make the fabrics smoother than before 3. To help the printing ink or dyestuff to make clearer marks on the fabrics 4. To improve rubbing fastness and washing fastness of the dyed or printed fabrics
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Singeing Process
The fabrics are passed over a heated copper plate or above a gas flame. The fiber ends burn off. The fabric is moved rapidly, and only the fiber ends are destroyed. Immediately after passing the flame, the fabric enters a water bath that puts out any remaining sparks. The burning characteristics of fibers must be taken into account when this process is applied, as heat-sensitive fibers melt, forming tiny balls on the surface of the fabric. These balls interfere with dye absorption, so that, as a general rule, heat sensitive fibers would be singed after dyeing or printing. Filament yarns do not require singeing, as there are no short fiber ends to project onto the surface of the fabric. Fabrics that are to be napped are not singed.
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Types of singeing machines

Plate singeing Roller singeing Gas/Flame singeing machine

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Plate singeing

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Roller Singeing

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Flame Singeing

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Singeing handout

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DESIZING

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Desizing process This will get rid of the starch or size covering the warp yarns using enzymes, oxidizing agent, or other chemicals and ensures levelness of the dyestuff or printing ink. If not taken out completely, it will affect washing and rubbing fastness of the fabrics.

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Where does starch come from?

Starch or Size is a material that help the weavers to ensure that their warp yarns are not broken or struggle with the reeds. Therefore these will lead to low productivity and high machine break-down rate.

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Desizing methods
Hydrolytic methods Rot steep Enzymatic steep Acid steep Oxidative methods Chlorine Chlorite Bromite

Rot steep
Oldest, cheapest, no special chemicals required Warm water 40degC, allowed to stand for 24h Micro-organisms, naturally present in water multiply and secrete starchliquefying (hydrolyzing) enzymes, which soubise the starch present in the size Disadvantages slow process, requires enormous space

ENZYMATIC DESIZING
Enzymatic desizing is the process of degrading starch size on cotton fabric using enzymes. Enzymes are living microorganisms, that catalyze chemical reaction in biological process. Enzymes are quite specific in their action on a particular substance.

Acid steep (Desizing)

Dilute sulphuric or hydrochloric acid (0.25% w/v), room temp, time 8-12h Hydrolysis of starch is an exothermic process increases temp of cloth hydrolysis increases Higher concentration hydrolyze the cellulose weakens cotton structure (can detect only after dyeing or printing)

OXIDATIVE DESIZING
In oxidative desizing ,the risk of damage to the cellulose fiber is very high. Thats why this process is used very rarely. Oxidative desizing uses potassium or sodium persulfate or sodium bromite as an oxidizing agent.

Bleaching

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Bleaching
To remove natural pectin ,wax ,protein ,coloring material and unwanted minerals from the fabric. Even manufactured fiber fabrics, especially those that have been heat-set, may become yellowed as a result of processing. Therefore, fabrics may require bleaching or whitening to prepare them for dyeing or printing or to produce a clear white fabric

To make the substrate uniformly absorbent through out its length and breadth. To make the substrate uniformly white for pure white finishes with optical brighteners or for subsequent dyeing, mercerizing etc Bleaches are chemical substances that oxidize colored compounds, removing the color. 29

Chemicals used
Hydrogen Peroxide (H202) Cotton, Silk, Wool, Jute, Sodium Hypo chloride (NaOCl) Cotton

Application
Most bleaches used by industry are either chlorine bleaches or peroxide bleaches. The peroxide bleaches, and particularly hydrogen peroxide bleaches, are used most frequently in commercial bleaching of greige goods, although for some fabrics other types of bleaches must be used. Mill processes include saturating the fabric with the bleaching agent, steaming it to effect the bleaching reaction, and washing the fabric thoroughly, usually with a dilute mineral acid to neutralize any residual alkali. This last step is called souring and in earlier times was done with buttermilk.

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Carbonization

Objective
Remove vegetable impurities such as plant stalks , seeds, motes and leaves often designated as burs.

Process
Wool is saturated with a weak solution of sulphuric acid or sometimes a solution of ammonium chloride and is then hydro extracted to remove excess liquor. Vegetable impurities will become so friable that when the wool is led through a machine which crushes and shakes it ,the disintegrated impurities easily separate from it.

Scouring

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Scouring
Objectives 1. To remove natural fat, wax, and oil materials containing in the fabrics without damaging the fibers 2. To accelerate dye and chemical absorption of the fabrics 3. To improve the handle of the goods (softer)

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Natural Impurities
Cotton may contain between 4 and 12% by weight of impurities in the form of waxes, proteins, pectins, ash, and miscellaneous substances such as pigments, hemicelluloses and reducing sugars. These impurities are removed from the fabric by scouring, since their hydrophobic nature negatively affects the enhancement of the fabrics wet ability and absorbency. Silk contains mainly silk gums. Wool contains wool fat and perspiration residues. Scouring removes waxes and destroys vegetable matter residues in cotton and cotton blend fabrics.

Scouring process
The scouring process employs sodium hydroxide or related causticizing agents such as sodium carbonate, potassium hydroxide or mixtures thereof. Generally an alkali stable surfactant(detergent) is added to the process to enhance solubilization of hydrophobic compounds and/or prevent their redeposition back on the fabric. The treatment is generally at a high temperature, 80"C - 100"C, employing strongly alkaline solutions of the scouring agent, e.g., pH 13-14 for 20-30 minutes. For silk and wool mild base like Sodium carbonate is used. Scouring was traditionally done in a kier vat, a large iron vessel in which the fabric was boiled in the alkaline solution. Economic considerations have largely caused this batch method to be replaced by continuous processes. The fabric can be passed over a series of rollers in a pad bath, so that it is repeatedly exposed to the scouring solution.

Degumming
Silk that contains sericin is called raw silk. The gummy substance affords protection during processing and so is usually retained until the yarn or fabric stage. It is removed by boiling the silk in a mildly alkaline solution. This process, called degumming, leaves the silk soft and lustrous, but it can reduce the weight of the silk by as much as 30 percent.

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DEGUMMING

http://www.wormspit.com/deg umming.htm

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Mercirization

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Objectives 1. To make the goods more luster because raw cotton fibers are ribbon-like. After this process, the fibers change to cylindrical shape resulting more evenness reflected light from the goods.

Before After 2. To improve dyeability of the goods about 5-10%.

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The change

Benefits Improve dye affinity and yield Improve breaking strength Improve dimensional stability Improve chemical reactivity Improve fabric smoothness Cover immature cotton fibers

Process
The treatment consists of immersing the yarn or fibre in a solution of sodium hydroxide (caustic soda) for short periods of time, usually less than four minutes. The material is then treated with water or acid to neutralize the sodium hydroxide. The material is held under tension during this stage, it is kept from shrinking appreciably; if no tension is applied, the material may shrink by as much as onefourth. Higher-quality cotton goods are usually mercerized; cloths so treated take brighter, longer-lasting colours from less dye.

Difference

Causticizing (alkali treatment):

Similar effects to mercerising can be achieved by the Causticizing process. Causticizing in comparison to mercerising is done without tension stress on the textile at temperatures between 10 C and 15 C. It gives a better handle than mercerized fabric.

Adding Optical Brightening Agent The process is to add special dyestuff into textile or paper to make them brighter when looking at black-light light bulb or natural sunlight. As the dyestuffs are colorless but using UV light to excite these dyes. They will reflect the light at the wavelength that human can see (i.e. blue, violet). So the goods look brighter and whiter.

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