Patent GB-989873-A (GB)
Title: New methods of producing stabilised knitted cellulosic fabrics of improved characteristics
Inventor: EVANS JOHN GWYNANT
IPC: D06M13/358
Filed: 1961-02-03
Abstract: Knitted fabrics composed wholly or predominantly of cellulose fibres, e.g. cotton, partially hydrolysed cellulose acetate or regenerated cellulose, are treated with an aqueous solution or slurry of at least one polyfunctional compound capable of chemically modifying the fibres, stretched before or after the application of the aqueous solution or slurry, maintained in a stretched condition in one or more directions while in the wet swollen condition, washed to remove any excess reagent after the desired reaction has taken place, allowed to relax from their stretched condition and dried at their original or other predetermined dimensions, to improve their dimensional stability, crease resistance and hand.  Suitable polyfunctional compounds, of which numerous examples are given, are polymethylol derivatives of urea, urethanes, ethylene urea, dihydroxyethylene urea, melamine, ammeline, formoguanamine, triazones, hydantoin, substituted hydantoins, uron, substituted urons, dicyandiamide or adipamide, formals including dioxolan, formaldehyde, diepoxy butane, epichlorhydrin, polyfunctional ethylenically unsaturated sulphones, e.g. divinyl sulphone, and compounds which liberate such sulphones ethylenically unsaturated phosphine oxides, divinylketone, 3, 6-dioxooctadiene-1, 7, hexahydro-triacrylyl-S-triazine, betachloropropionyl-methylene diamide, cyanuric chloride alkali or alkaline earth metal salts of 2, 4 dichloro-6-hydroxytriazine and di-and trichlorinated derivatives of pyrimidine.  The fabric may be treated before, during or after treatment with the polyfunctional compound with a polyvinyl substance containing reactive side chains e.g. hydroxyl, carboxyl, amido, methylol-amido, alkylated methylolamido, hydrozido, epoxy, vinyl, aziridinyl and isocyanate groups.  The fabric may be treated with a swelling agent, e.g. sodium hydroxide, and then with the polyfunctional compound or the fabric may be swollen as a result of its treatment with the aqueous liquor containing the polyfunctional compound.  The fabric may then be stretched maintained in the swollen state while reaction takes place by steaming or by wrapping it in a polyethylene film.  Before washing and drying the fabric may be neutralised to deactivate any excess reagent.  The fabric may be given a pretreatment with a mercerising medium, steam, superheated steam, a swelling agent, an amino-formaldehyde type condensation resin, a cellulose ether, polyvinyl alcohol, partially hydrolysed polyvinyl acetate, starch or a starch derivative and may be after treated with a mercerising medium, an amino-formaldehyde type condensation resin, stiffening agents, softening agents, water repellants or fluorescent brighteners, bleached with alkaline solutions of hydrogen peroxide and dyed or printed with direct cotton dyes, vat dyes, solubilised vat dyes, azoic dye combinations or reactive dyes.  The treating medium may also contain cellulose ethers containing free hydroxyl groups, polyvinyl alcohol, partially hydrolysed polyvinyl acetate, starch or a starch derivative. Specifications 776,468, 780,043, 855,547, 905,044 and 939,256 are referred to.