Water‐repellent finishing of cotton fabrics by ultraviolet curing

Abstract

Cotton fabrics were water-repellent-finished by radical ultraviolet curing of silicone and urethane acrylates with different formulations. The fabrics were impregnated with undiluted resins and with toluene solutions or water emulsions. Moreover, cationic ultraviolet-curable systems were also investigated, such as an epoxy-functional polysiloxane and mixtures of an epoxy resin with hydroxyl-containing silicone additives. The gel content and polymerization yield were considered for the ultravioletcuring process evaluation. Water-resistance properties were determined in terms of the contact angle, wettability, moisture adsorption, and water vapor permeability measurements, whereas the morphology and surface composition of treated fabrics were examined with scanning electron microscopy and energy-dispersive X-ray analysis.

Advances in the finishing of silk fabrics

“…In UV curing, however, radical species are generated by the interaction of UV light with a suitable photo-initiator, which induces the curing reaction of reactive monomers and oligomers at low temperature and quickly, with lower environmental impact and lower process cost than thermal process (Ferrero et al, 2008).…”

Water and Oil Repellent Finishing of Textiles by UV Curing: Evaluation of the Influence of Scaled-Up Process Parameters

“…Therefore, the functionalization of a cotton surface by UV-cured coatings has been proposed to obtain various finishing effects onto fabrics such as color fastness in pigment printing [7], antimicrobial activity [8], flame retardancy [9,10], and finally water and oil repellency [11,12].…”

“…Besides the well-known advantages of UV curing (space saving, easy installation of equipment, reduced waste, high speed of treatment) [5], this process consumes only about 25% of the energy required by a conventional thermal-based system using a fuel-fired oven [6], since it is carried out at low temperature. Therefore, the functionalization of a cotton surface by UV-cured coatings has been proposed to obtain various finishing effects onto fabrics such as color fastness in pigment printing [7], antimicrobial activity [8], flame retardancy [9,10], and finally water and oil repellency [11,12].…”

Modification of Surface Energy and Wetting of Textile Fibers

“…Ferrero et al [77] proposed the water-repellent finishing of cotton fabrics by radical UV curing of silicone and urethane-acrylates with different formulations. The results of contact angle, wettability, and moisture adsorption showed that water repellency is already significant at a low resin add-on, whereas the treated fabric maintains its own breathability.…”