Colour fastness tests

Dr. Nilanjana Bairagi

Colour fastness to light

This tests measures the resistance to fading of dyed textiles when exposed to daylight. Curtains, upholstery, beach wear, carpets, etc. need high level of light fastness. Clothing also requires high light fastness as they are displayed at stores, exposed to sunlight during use & drying.

Light sources

The British standard allows either daylight or xenon arc light to be used for the test. Daylight BO1( exposed to natural light in the northern hemisphere, sample facing south, sloping at an angle equal to the test site latitude. Xenon arc B02: This xenon arc is a much more intense source of light which has a very similar spectral content to that of daylight so that the test is speeded up considerably.

Light sources

Xenon arc B02: heat is generated by the lamp, efficient heat filter has to be placed between the lamp & the specimen. Mercury-tungsten fluorescent lamp (MBTF) This is a source found in certain commercial light fastness testers. Accelerated test. Lamps are cheaper than xenon arcs. Similar results to daylight.

Reference standards

The test standards are blue wool standards. The sample and the blue wool are partially covered so that some of the material fades and some is left unfaded. A rating is given to the sample which his the number of the blue wool standard. Photochromism: some samples change colour on exposure to different light sources.
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Effect of humidity
The fastness of the dye is affected by both temperature & humidity Standard temperature & humidity is maintained inside the light fastness tester.

Colour fastness to dry-cleaning

The sample to be tested is enclosed in an umdyed cotton bag with 12 steel balls. The bag is then agitated in a was wheel for 30 mins in perchloroethylene at 300 C. The sample is then removed, dried and assessed for colour change. The colour of the used solvent is also compared with the unused solvent to check for any staining using grey scale.
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Colour fastness to sea water

The composite specimen is wetted out in sodium chloride solution 30g/l and placed in a perspirometer in an oven for 4 h at 37 C. It is then separated, dried and assessed for colour change.

Colour fastness to chlorinated water ( swimming pool)

The specimen is agitated in a washwheel for 1 h at 27 0C in a weak solution of sodium hypochlorite( either 20mg/l active chlorine for towels or 100 mg/l for swimwear), dried and assessed for colour change.

Colour fastness to perspiration

Alkaline solution ( chemically prepared) Acidic solution ( chemically prepared) Perspirometer Oven

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Colour fastness to perspiration

The specimen is wetted in the solution at pH 8 at a liquor ratio of 50:1 and kept for 30 min at room temperature. The excess solution is wiped off, and the specimen is placed between two acrylic plates of the perspirometer under a pressure of 12.5 kPa. The same process is repeated with another sample with acidic solution. The perspirometer is placed in an oven at 370 C for 4 hrs. Then it is removed, open out and dried. The samples are assessed for colour change and staining of the adjacent fabric using grey scale.

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Fastness to steaming

This test is carried out to determine the effect that the steaming stage in printing has on colours. In this test steam is passed at atmospheric pressure through the composite specimen for 30 min, the adjacent fabric is then assessed for staining using grey scale.

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Rubbing fastness

The specimen is rubbed 10 times using a Crockmeter which has a weighted finger with a piece of undyed cotton cloth 5 * 5 cm. For wet rubbing the cotton cloth is wetted out before being rubbed on the dyed sample. The cotton rubbing cloth is then assessed for staining using grey scales.

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