Fabrics made of 100% cotton, 100% polyester and a 50/50 cotton/polyester blend with and without functional finishes were treated in aqueous solutions of the cationic surfactant distearyldimethylammonium bromide (DSDMAB). Finishes chosen were dimethyloldihydroxyethyleneurea (DMDHEU), a durable press finish, and poly(acrylic acid), a soil release finish. Selective sorption of the cationic surfactant by finished and unfinished fabrics was quantified. Cotton takes up much larger amounts of DSDMAB than does polyester. In general, acrylic finished fabrics take up more DSDMAB, while DMDHEU finished fabrics take up smaller amounts of DSDMAB as compared to their unfinished controls. These findings indicate that ionic interaction forces play an important role in the sorption process. In order to investigate this, acid numbers were used as a relative measure of negative sorption sites on fabrics. A direct relationship between DSDMAB sorption and the acid numbers of the fabrics was established.Perceived fabric softness is generally improved by treatments with DSDMAB for all test fabrics. Although cotton fabrics finished with DMDHEU were perceived to be less soft than unfinished cotton, treatment with DSDMAB restored the softness level to that of unfinished cotton. The softness of both cotton and polyester fabrics was greatly lowered by the acrylic finish. The presence of even large amounts of DSDMAB did not restore softness ratings to levels comparable to unfinished controls.Electrical resistivity and electrostatic clinging measurements were used to assess the effectiveness of DSDMAB as an antistatic agent. DSDMAB reduced the electrical resistivities of all test fabrics. However, relative humidity played a much larger role in reducting the electrical resistivity of fabrics. Clinging times were also reduced by DSDMAB treatments. DSDMAB was particularly efficient in reducing the clinging time of polyester.Additional moisture related properties were investigated. The presence of DSDMAB on the test fabrics did not significantly alter moisture regain. The application of DSDMAB from aqueous solutions resulted in lower water retention values of the test fabrics after centrifuging at ag‐factor comparable to home washing machines. This leads to energy savings during drying from 10–24%, depending on the fabric and finish type. However, energy savings due to fiber type were more significant than those due to the cationic surfactant treatment.
A method for testing drycleaning detergents for their ability to inhibit soil redeposition is described. It involves the measurement of soil transfer from a soiled to a clean fabric. The customary practice of using suspensions of a model soil in a detergent solution is a soildeposition test and does not give results comparable with the soil-redeposition test.The major argument against redeposition tests in the past has been that they do not permit two detergents to be compared at the same soil concentration in the suspension. It is therefore argued that redeposition tests "stack the cards" against better detergents because soil must be removed before it can be redeposited. Present results refute this argument and show that detergents exhibiting low soil-removal generally show high graying and vice versa. These two qualities either correlate or they are two aspects of the same quality.A possible explanation for the difference between the two test procedures is that the degree of dispersion of soil is much greater in the redeposition test.
The Garment Analysis Department of the International Fabricare Institute receives frequently vinyl coated fabrics which have lost their softness of hand and flexibility. These changes in physical properties are due to the loss of plasticizer during a regular dry cleaning cycle Experiments have been performed with vinyl films which were formulated with plasticizers of different molecular weights. Loss of plasticizer and solvent absorption were determined in perchlorethylene, petroleum solvent and solvent 113, the principal dry cleaning solvents. The experiments revealed that a linear relationship exists between plasticizer loss and shrinkage of vinyl films. Rate studies were carried out with vinyl films containing a high, a medium and a low molecular weight plasticizer in all three drycleamng solvents. Desorption diffusion coefficients of the plasticizers were derived from these data. It was established that the diffusion coefficient for desorption of di-2-ethylhexyl phthalate is much higher than that of low or medium molecular weight polyester plasticizers. Low molecular weight plasticizers are almost completely extracted from vinyls during drycleaning. Higher molecular weight polyester plasticizers are not extracted appreciably. These results should be considered in formulating vinyls to be used for the manufacturing of drycleanable garments.KEY WORDS: Vinyl films, plasticizer, drycleaning, loss of plasticizer, shrinkage of vinyls, stiffening of vinyls, diffusion of plasticizer, drycleaning solvents, solvent absorption.
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