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fabrics involved and the machinery available. Chemicals that have strong affinities for
fibre surfaces can be applied in batch processes by exhaustion in dyeing machines,
usually after the dyeing process has been completed. Examples of these exhaust
applied finishes include softeners, ultraviolet protection agents, and some soil release
finishes. chemicals that do not have an affinity for fibres are applied by a variety of
continuous processes that involve either immersing the textile in a solution of the
finishing chemical or applying the finishing solution to the fabric by some mechanical
means.
After application of the chemical finish, the fabric must be dried and if necessary, the
finish must be fixed to the fibre surface, usually by additional heating in a ‘curing’
step as shown in the figure below:
CONCENTRATION RELATIONSHIPS
To determine the amount of supplied chemical added to the fabric the % Add-on is
given by following equation:
where % conc is the concentration of the finishing chemical in the applied solution or
emulsion expressed as percentage by weight. Since most finishing formulas are given
in terms of grams per litre, the following equation can be used to convert the ‘gpl’
concentration to weight percent:
% Conc. in Solution (Wt/Wt) = Conc in ‘gpl’ / (10 * density in grams per ml)
chemical finishes are often pad applied to dyed or printed fabrics after a drying step.
in this situation, dry fabric is passed through the chemical finish solution and the
process is called a ‘Wet on Dry’ process. The wet pickup of a chemical solution in a
padding mangle is influenced by many factors such as fabric characteristics, machine
settings and solution or emulsion properties. In order to obtain consistent chemical
application, the nip pressure should be uniform across the fabric width, the solution
level and temperature in the pad should be constant and the fabric speed should not
vary throughout the application process.
The following equation can be used to determine the necessary solution feed rate to
maintain a constant liquid level in the pad:
Sol. flow rate (ltr/min) = (Fabric flow (kg/min) * %WPU) / (Sol. density *100)
Fabric mass flow = Fabric speed (m/min) * Fabric linear density (kgs/m)
To avoid the costs of a drying step after dyeing, chemical finishes are often pad
applied to wet fabric in a process called ‘wet-on-wet’. In this case the wet pick-up of
the fabric exiting the pad must be maintained at a higher level than that of the
incoming fabric usually at least 15-20% higher. An additional complication is the fact
that water entering the pad through the fabric can interchange with the finishing
solution, and hence been diluting the concentration of the components and causing
tailing of the finish effect. Therefore, a chemical feed more concentrated than the pad
solution must be employed. In order to determine the padding liquor concentration, an
effective percentage Wet Pick-up, WPUeff is calculated as below:
where WPUo is the percentage wet pickup of the fabric exiting the pad, WPUi is the
percentage wet pickup of the fabric entering the pad and f is the interchange factor, a
measure of interaction between incoming water and the pad solution, that can vary
from 0 to 1 depending on the fabric and machine parameters. Typically f is between
0.7 and 0.8. An initial interchange factor is assumed and then corrected, if necessary
based on analysis of the treated fabric.
The pad solution concentration is found using the desired Percentage add-on:
The concentration of the chemical feed solution must be higher than the pad
concentration since the pad bath is being diluted by water on the incoming wet fabric.
thus, the feed concentration needed to maintain the pad concentration is calculated as
follows:
= Fabric mass flow (kg/min) * (WPUo – WPUi ) / Feed soln. density (g/ml) * 100
However, too low a wet pickup can be equally problematic and also lead to uneven
finish distribution if the liquid phase is discontinuous. The concept of a Critical
Application Value (CAV) is useful when discussing optimal wet-pickups. The CAV is
defined as the minimum amount or durable press finish liquid that can be applied to a
given cotton fabric without producing a non-uniform distribution of cross-links after
drying and curing. Dye staining tests can be used to determine these distributions. For
non-cellulosic fibres, other methods of finish distribution analysis can be used.
Cellulosic fibres because of their inherent hydrophilicity, have CAV’s of less than 5%,
allowing much lower wet pickups than hydrophilic fibres.
There are two main types of low wet-pickup applicators. The first is the saturation-
removal type where the fabric is completely saturated with the finishing solution and
then the excess is removed mechanically or with a vacuum before drying. With the
second type, a precise amount of finish liquid is uniformly applied to the fabric using
transfer roll, spray or foam techniques. One of the simplest approaches to the
saturation removal has been to place a vacuum extraction device after the
pad applicator and prior to dryer entry. By pulling a vacuum through the wet fabric
and returning the extracted liquid to the pad, an effective lower wet-pickup can be
achieved, usually in the order of 40%. The figure below gives a typical Vacuum
Extraction installation:
Vacuum Extraction Unit
Another relatively simple method of reducing wet-pickup is the use of the Machnozzle
system, a machine similar in principle to air-jet ejectors. in this device, high pressure
steam is used to push excess liquid out of the fabric, leading to very low wet-pickups,
especially for synthetic fabrics.
Low wet-pickup techniques: Machnozzle & Kiss Roll Applicator
In the area of topical application, several methods have been used to apply chemical
finishes using transfer rolls. The Kiss roll, shown in figure above, picks up the
chemical finish and transfers it by direct contact to the fabric. The amount of finish
picked up is dependent upon how well the finish wets the roll, the absorbency of the
fabric, and to a lesser extent, the surface speed of the roll relative to the fabric speed.
Another version of finish application with transfer rolls is the Loop transfer system. A
loop of fabric is immersed in finish liquid and then squeezed with the fabric to be
treated between the squeeze rollers. The finish is transferred to the fabric at a much
lower wet pickup than possible by direct immersion. These roll transfer techniques are
especially useful for the backside application of finishes, for example hand builders,
flame retardants and pile fabrics (without crushing the pile).
Low wet-pickup techniques: Loop Transfer Applicators
One interesting modification of the Kiss roll applicator is the TRIATEX MA machine
which uses on-line monitoring to control wet-pickup. As the fabric passes through the
system two β-gauges are used to determine the fabric weight difference before and
after the fabric has passed over a kiss roll. The β-gauges measure mass per unit area
based on the intensity of electrons that pass through the fabric. The kiss roll rotational
speed is then automatically adjusted relative to the fabric speed to maintain the desired
wet-pickup.
Foam densities in the order of 0.1 gm/cm³ are routinely used. The stability of foam is
influenced by the components of the chemical system, the viscosity of the foam, and
the method of foam preparation. The half-life of a foam is the time in which 50% of
the liquid in a given foam volume has been drained from the foam.
Some of the foam application methods are shown in figure below. The one side
applicators apply foam to only one side of the fabric, leaving open the possibility of
two different finishes on different sides of the same fabric. The another two side foam
application method shown below, employs two slots to apply foam to the fabric. Two
distinctly different finishes can be applied to different sides of the same fabric
simultaneously . Foam application on fabrics with large open spaces or non-uniform
porosity often causes uneven finish distribution. Foam application systems also
include horizontal pad mangles, kiss coating systems, knife-over-roller or knife-on-air
systems, screen printing, and slot applicators.
Low wet-
pickup techniques: Foam Applicator
Low
wet-pickup techniques: Two sided Foam Applicator
In all these application methods, proper fabric preparation is required in order to
achieve uniform finish distributions.