GB750352A - Process for the prescouring and bleaching of textile fibres - Google Patents

Abstract

Textile materials containing cotton are prescoured by treatment with bacteria or enzymes which decompose pectin. The materials may be subsequently bleached, and the prescouring bath may include diastatic enzymes from malt, pancreas or bacteria as desizing agents. The prescouring may be effected with preparations containing pectase or pectinase or with retting bacteria from the preparation of flax. The desizing and prescouring reagents may be effective at the same pH and temperature or the pH and temperature of the treating bath may be adjusted during the process to provide optimum conditions for desizing and prescouring successively. The subsequent bleaching may be effected with chlorine, sodium hypochlorite, calcium hypochlorite, hydrogen peroxide or other peroxides or sodium chlorite. The materials may be rinsed between prescouring and bleaching and after bleaching may be dyed or printed. In the examples the temperature of the prescouring treatment is of the order 35 DEG to 40 DEG C. and the pH from 4.7 to 6.5. In examples, (4) cotton material is prescoured in a bath containing pectinase, dipotassium phosphate, and phosphoric acid and, after rinsing, is bleached in a bath containing hydrogen peroxide, water glass (38 DEG Be) and soda, the temperature of which is first maintained at 35 DEG C. and is then raised to 85 DEG C., (5) cotton goods are treated in a bath containing an industrial fungus pectinase and a condensation product of dodecyl alcohol and ethylene oxide and, after rinsing, are bleached with sodium hypochlorite, and (8) goods of a cotton and viscose rayon mixture are treated in a bath containing a pectinase and a pancreas diastatic enzyme at a pH of 6.5, the temperature of which is first maintained at 35 DEG to 40 DEG C. and is then raised to 50 DEG C. and after rinsing, are bleached with sodium chlorite at pH 4 and 50 DEG C.