GB1070694A - Process for finishing keratinous fibre fabrics - Google Patents

Abstract

Lustre is imparted to a keratinous fibre containing fabric by treating the fabric with a reducing agent capable of splitting the cystine disulphide linkages in the keratinous fibres, paper pressing under conditions insufficient permanently to set any significant portion of the reducing agent treated keratinous fibres of the fabric and then fully-decatising the fabrics. The reducing agent may be an alkanolamine sulphite containing up to 8 carbon atoms in the alkyl chain, zinc or sodium formaldehyde sulphoxylate, sodium borohydride, potassium borohydride, sodium potassium borohydride, sodium or potassium bisulphite, sulphite, meta bisulphite or hydrosulphide, ammonium bisulphite, sodium sulphide, hypophosphite, thiosulphate or dithionate, titanous chloride, sulphurous acid, thioglycollic acid and its water-soluble salts, hydrogen sulphide, ethyl or butyl mercaptan, b -mercapto ethanol or mixtures thereof. The reducing agent may be applied to the fabric as an aqueous solution containing 0.01-20% by weight of the reducing agent by spraying, padding, squeezing, immersion or wetting with blankets saturated with the solution. The fabric may then be rolled and stored or partially air dried and stored prior to paper pressing. Prior to paper pressing the fabric may be subjected to mild semi-decatising with 5 seconds of steaming and 2 minutes of vacuum. Paper pressing may be carried out at pressures of 50-1000 p.s.i. at temperatures of 70 DEG -200 DEG F for 6-8 hours, the pressing time interval being repeated after shift of the fabric. The fabric is then subjected to full-decatising preferably with a steam interval of 1-10 minutes at a pressure of 1-100 p.s.i. and a vacuum interval of 2-60 minutes. The treating solution may also contain a swelling agent, e.g. urea, guanidine hydrochloride, formamide, N,N-dimethyl formamide, acetamide, thiourea, phenol or lithium chloride, bromide or iodide, or a polyhydroxy compound containing more than one hydroxy group and having a molecular weight no greater than 4000, e.g. ethylene glycol, trimethylene glycol, tetramethylene glycol, pentamethylene glycol, hexamethylene glycol, decamethyene glycol, 1, 2-propylene glycol, dipropylene glycol, 1, 3-butylene glycol, diethylene glycol, polyethylene glycol, polypropylene gycol, glycerine, diethyl glycerol, trimethylol ethane, trimethylol butane or triohydroxymethyl amino methane. Fabrics comprising keratinous fibres, e.g. sheep wool, lamb wool, mohair, alpaca, camel hair, cashmere, vicuna, llama or angora wool, alone or in admixture with other fibres, e.g. polyester fibres, may be treated.