Textile Chemical Processing of Textile fibres

Textile Processing at a Glance

Textile Chemical Processing (Preparatory Operations)
The fabric collected from various weaving setups, can not be used directly for
manufacturing various textile products. There are number of impurities present in
the fabric such as dust, dirt, oil stains, oil and waxes, starches or other sizing
materials, seed particles, and natural coloring materials. These impurities can be
classified as: I. Natural Impurities & II. Added Impurities

Natural Impurities :- Are generally presents in the natural fibres in the form of oil,
waxes, natural colour, vegetable matters ( such as leaves particles, Seed particles,
etc), Dust particles which are deposited on the sheep’s or goat’s hair.

Added Impurities:- These type of impurities are manually added to the yarn or
fibres during the manufacturing process to increase the efficiency of the weaving
process such as, Sizing materials (which includes starches, or polyvinyl alcohol are
applied on the surfaces of the yarn to reduces the breakage of yarn during the
weaving operation. Spin finishes are another example of the added impurities.
This type of impurities are generally added to synthetic yarns which contains
Antistatic agents and Lubricants. which reduces the statics charge buildup and
friction during the weaving operation.
These impurities make fabric hydrophobic in nature and limit the fabric for further
processing. The main objectives of preparatory treatments of textile materials are,
- To remove all the impurities, both naturals and those added during production
that may interfere in subsequent dyeing or finishing process.
- Improve the ability of the fibers to absorb water, dyes solutions and chemicals.
- Impart proper brightness or whiteness to fabrics according to need, especially
when brilliant or pastel shades are desired.

All of these impurities can not be removed by a single operations. It requires

sequence of operations, which is called Processing. All the operations before the
dyeing of fabrics are called Preparatory Process or Pretreatments.
These pretreatments includes Singeing, Desizing, Scouring, Souring, Bleaching
and Mercerizing. All of these Operations have the specific objectives and it is not
necessary to use all the operation to all the fabrics. It generally depends on the
type of fabrics, contains of the fabric and the end uses of the fabric.

1. Singeing
During the weaving operations, warp yarns pass though heild wires, and reed. It is
continuously under friction during weaving process. Due to continuous friction,
yarn develops hairiness. This hairiness is undesirable in the fabric and provides an
unpleasant feel to the fabric or garment.
The main objective of the Singeing is removal of protruding fibers from both sides
of fabric. For this purpose, the fabric is passed through singeing Machine under
tension. Fabric is passed over an open flame at a high to prevent scorching. Uneven
singeing leads to unleveled dyeing.
Singeing
2. De-sizing
Size are added during the weaving preparatory process. Main objective of the sizing
is to provide strength to the yarn. This improves the weaving efficiency by reducing
the yarn breakage. After the weaving is completed, the size material is undesirable
in the fabric and it makes the fabric stiff and hydrophobic in nature. The main
objective of the De-sizing is removal of starch from fabric. For this purpose, the
fabric is impregnated in the de-sizing bath and stored for 8-12 hrs. The
Impregnating bath contains required amount of enzyme, Wetting agent and Sodium
Chloride (NaCl). After this process, fabric is thoroughly washed with hot water.
In Enzyme application of De-sizing, the fabric padded with enzyme bath is then
passed through steam of 96-100°C temp. This is a rapid process in which De-sizing
process complete in less than one minute. The main advantage of De-sizing with
enzymes is that there is no risk of damaging the fibres. The process is an eco-
friendly and relatively expensive.
.

Desizing

.
1.4 Scouring
The yarn made of natural fibres contains natural oils and waxes. These oils and waxes
make fabric hydrophobic and do not allow dyes and chemicals to penetrate into the
fibre. The Scouring is a cleaning treatment in which oil, waxes and residual sizes are
removed from the fabric by the chemicals. After scouring the fabric becomes absorbent
in nature.
In this process, fabric is treated with strong alkali solution (5-10 gm/lit NaOH or mixture
of NaOH & Sodium Carbonate) close to or above the boiling temp. for 1-2 hours with hot
rinse and final cold rinse with acetic acid. The final rinse with acetic acid is also called
souring process.
 Scouring Process

There are two types of textile scouring processes –

1. Conventional scouring process:
• Kier boiling (discontinuous) scouring.
• Scouring in J or L box (continuous).
• Exhaust method

2. Special scouring process:

• Solvent scouring process.
• Vapor lock scouring proces
General recipe for scouring for Kier boiler process:

•Alkali (NaOH) - 2 to 5 gm per Litre.

•Soda ash - x gm per Litre to adjust PH (PH required for
scouring is 10.5).
•Wetting agent - 1 gm per Litre.
•Sequestering agent - 1 gm per Litre.
•Detergent - 1 to 2 gm per Litre.
•Temperature - 100 to 1250c.
•Time - 6 hours (close vessel) and 8 hours (open vessel)
•M : L - 1 : 10
Description and Working Principle of Scouring Process:

Kier boiler is a long mild steel or cast iron cylindrical vessel

provided with two perforated tube sheets (disc with a number of
holes). One is placed at the bottom and another is top. These discs
are connected by a number of tunes which carry the liquor from
the bottom compartment to the upper one. In the middle
compartment steam is passed. Thus the tubes carrying the liquor
are surrounded by steam which heats them.

The hot liquor from the multitublar heater is sprayed over the
cloth, packed in the kier, through a hollow perforated ring. The
liquid passes slowly over the packed cloth, collects below the false
bottom, from where it is pumped into the auxiliary heater by a
centrifugal pump and the cycle repeats.
Figure scouring process
1.5 Bleaching
After scouring process, the fabric is free from oils and waxes, however natural
colouring matter are still present in the fibre. If this colour is not removed at this
stage than it will be very difficult to attain the desired shade in dyeing process.
The main objective of the bleaching process is removal of natural coloring matter
and to make the fabric perfect white with minimum damage to 􀂿bres and within
the shortest possible time. Bleaching is generally carried out by oxidative process.
Some of the example of the Bleaching agents are: Sodium hypo chlorite, Sodium
chlorite and Hydrogen peroxide. Hydrogen peroxide is also called as “Universal
bleaching agent”. Since, it is a very mild bleaching agent, It is used for almost all
type of cotton, polyester/cotton blends and silk fabrics. Peroxide bleaching is
carried out generally near or above boiling temperature, under pressure, for one
hour or more. After bleaching, the fabric is thoroughly rinsed with slight amount
of basic solution to avoid formulation of insoluble salts of silicates. After
bleaching, fabric may be sold as perfect white cloth. For achieving perfect white
cloth, fabric is treated with Optical whitening Agents, such as Tinopal , Ranipol etc
and blueing agents such as Robin blue, Ujala etc.
 Bleaching

• Bleaching improves whiteness by removing natural coloration and

remaining trace impurities from the cotton; the degree of bleaching
necessary is determined by the required whiteness and absorbency.
Cotton being a vegetable fiber will be bleached using an oxidizing agent,
such as dilute sodium hypochlorite or dilute hydrogen peroxide. If the
fabric is to be dyed a deep shade, then lower levels of bleaching are
acceptable. However, for white bed sheets and medical applications, the
highest levels of whiteness and absorbency are essential.
• Reductive bleaching is also carried out, using sodium hydrosulphite.
Fibers like polyamide, polyacrylics and polyacetates can be bleached
using reductive bleaching technology.
• After scouring and bleaching, optical brightening agents (OBA), are
applied to make the textile material appear more white. These OBAs are
available in different tints such as blue, violet and red.
1.6 Mercerization
Mercerization process was invented by John Mercer. He was a young chemist. One
day, while he was filtering some chemical solution using cotton cloth, he observed
some changes in the cotton fabrics. He studied the changes in detail to standardize
the process.
In the Mercerization process, cotton fabric or yarn is treated with a cold
concentrated solution of sodium hydroxide for one minute or less. In this process
cotton fibers swell, untwist and their bean shaped cross section changes into a
round form. Mercerization improves the following properties of the cotton fabric.
-Strength would be increased to 15-25􀀈.
-Enhanced luster.
-Greater affinity to water, dyes and other chemical finishes.
- Shrinkage control in both the direction of the fabric.
 Mercerizing process

Mercerizing is the process to improve the luster, hand and other properties of cotton by
using strong caustic alkaline solution . In this process, it can be divided into three uses
that are dyeing printing, finishing and it also has been used in final appearance in
general.
Figure of Mercerizing process
Note: Fabric Mercerization
is Cheaper than double
Mercerization which
provides a softer hand
 DYEING PROCESS

Dyeing is the process of give color to fibers, yarn, or fabrics by using

natural or synthetic dye [1] . In this process it have involving three
principle process, that are retardation, migration and diffusion which
all this are chemical process. There are many type of dyeing that using
in textile wet processing such as cross dyeing, union dyeing and gel
dyeing. All of then has there own process to make the dyeing process
smoothly and produce a good quality of dyeing.
                   

Figure 6 : Type of a few color that use in dyeing process

Figure of dyeing process
 TEXTILE PRINTING

Textile printing is referred as localized dyeing. It is the application of

color in the form of a paste or ink to the surface of a fabric, in a
predetermined pattern. Printing designs onto already dyed fabric
is also possible. In properly printed fabrics the color is bonded
with the fiber, so as to resist washing and friction. Textile printing
is related to dyeing but, whereas in dyeing proper the whole
fabric is uniformly covered with one color, in printing one or more
colors are applied to it in certain parts only, and in sharply defined
patterns. In printing, wooden blocks, stencils, engraved plates,
rollers, or silk screens can be used to place colors on the fabric.
Colorants used in printing contain dyes thickened to prevent the
color from spreading by capillary attraction beyond the limits of
the pattern or design.
Figure of printing machine
 Finishing

• Textile finishing is the term used for a series of

processes to which all bleached, dyed, printed and
certain grey fabrics are subjected before they put on
the market. The object of textile finishing is to render
textile goods fit for their purpose or end-use and/or
improve serviceability of the fabric.
• Finishing on fabric is carried out for both aesthetic and
functional purposes to improve the quality and look of
a fabric. Fabric may receive considerable added value
by applying one or more finishing processes.
Finishing processes include :
•Raising
•Calendering
•Crease resistance
•Filling
•Softening
•Stiffening
•Water repellency
•Moth proofing
•Mildew-proofing
•Flame retardant
•Anti-static
•soil resistance
Calendering
Calendering is an operation carried out on a fabric to improve its aesthetics.
The fabric passes through a series of calender rollers by wrapping; the face
in contact with a roller alternates from one roller to the next. An ordinary
calender consists of a series of hard and soft (resilient) bowls (rollers) placed
in a definite order. The soft roller may be compressed with either cotton or
wool-paper, linen paper or flax paper. The hard metal bowl is either of
chilled iron or cast iron or steel. The calender may consist of 3, 5, 6, 7 and 10
rollers. The sequence of the rollers is that no two hard rollers are in contact
with each other. Pressure may be applied by compound levers and weights,
or hydraulic pressure may be used as an alternative. The pressure and heat
applied in calendering depend on the type of the finish required.
The purposes of calendering are to upgrade the fabric hand and to impart a
smooth, silky touch to the fabric, to compress the fabric and reduce its
thickness, to improve the opacity of the fabric, to reduce the air
permeability of the fabric by changing its porosity, to impart different degree
of luster of the fabric, and to reduce the yarn slippage.
Raising
An important and oldest textile finishing is brushing or raising.
Using this process a wide variety of fabrics including blankets,
flannelettes and industrial fabrics can be produced. The process of
raising consists of lifting from the body of the fabric a layer of
fibers which stands out from the surface which is termed as "pile".
The formation of pile on a fabric results in a "lofty" handle and
may also subdue the weave or pattern and color of the cloth.
There are to types of raising machine; Teasel machine and Card-
wire machine. The speed of the card-wire raising machine varies
from 12-15 yards per minute, which is 20-30% higher than that of
teasel-raising. That is why the card-wire raising machine is widely
used.
CONCLUSION

Wet processing of textiles constitutes innumerable steps

leading to finished product, each having a number of complex
variables and every lot is like a new lot and much depends on
the well-trained manpower rather than modern machines and
technology. However, developments are taking place at a rapid
pace to satisfy the user with quality product and competitive
price. Though underlying principle for developments is
satisfying user needs. This in turn will impart cost
competitiveness. Then, more functional finishes are also being
developed. However trend is to use more mechanical finishes
than chemical finishes. The key to success in textile wet
processing technology will be the indication of highly trained
manpower at lucrative wages in structured manner.