Patent GB-584437-A (GB)
Title: Improvement in plasticized vinyl copolymer resin yarns, fabrics, and other textile articles
IPC: D01F6/08
Filed: 1942-03-16
Abstract: Filaments, threads, yarns or other textile materials having a basis of a water-insoluble vinyl resin, produced by the conjoint polymerization of a vinyl halide with a vinyl ester of a lower aliphatic acid, containing 80-95 per cent of vinyl halide in the polymer and having a molecular weight of 15,000 or more, are rendered elastic and resilient by applying to the textile material an elasticiser for the resin in which the resin is insoluble at temperatures around 25 DEG  C. and below, this elasticiser consisting of an alkyl dicarboxylate, having two or more carbon atoms between the ester carboxyl radicals, an alkyl or aryl phosphate or a polyglycol di-ester of a carboxylic acid, fixing 20-110 per cent by weight of elasticiser in the material, and thereafter scouring, if desired, to remove excess unfixed elasticiser.  Alternatively, the elasticiser may be incorporated in the spinning solution from which the filaments are produced.  The filaments are preferably obtained by dry spinning a solution of the resin in a volatile solvent such as acetone, the temperature of extrusion being 40-90 DEG  C.  When the formed filaments, or the yarns, or fabrics, are impregnated with the elasticiser, the latter may be fixed in the material by a heat treatment at 40-110 DEG  C. or by ageing at room temperature for several days.  The elasticiser may be used in the form of a solution in a volatile solvent or of an aqueous emulsion.  Filaments or yarns may be treated in stretched or unstretched state.  The elasticiser may be an alkyl ester of a dicarboxylic acid in which the alkyl group contains at least three carbon atoms, e.g. dibutyl, dioctyl, methoxy glycol, or dioctyl tetrahydro phthalate, dibutyl sebacate, dioctyl maleate, or dioctyl succinate.  It may be tricresyl or tributyl phosphate, or a polyglycol ester of a carboxylic acid which has six to eight carbon atoms in the acid radical, e.g. triglycol di-2-ethyl hexoate.  The filaments or yarns containing the elasticiser have rubber-like elasticity and resilience and they have a lowered softening point.  They may be mixed with cotton, wool, silk, glass or other fibres and may be used as thermoplastic bonding agents for such fibres in composite yarns or fabrics, the bonding being effected by a heat treatment.  In an example, a yarn made of a conjoint polymer of vinyl chloride and vinyl acetate is impregnated with dibutyl sebacate and then immersed, untensioned, in water at 50 DEG  C. containing a little soap.  The temperature is slowly raised to 81 DEG  C.  The yarn containing the fixed elasticiser is then washed.  Woven fabric, or stretched yarn may be treated similarly.  In another example, knitted fabric made of the vinyl polymer is immersed in an aqueous emulsion containing dibutyl sebacate and an emulsifying agent.  The elasticiser may be applied by a coating-roller and may then be fixed by immersing the yarn in hot water.  The dibutyl sebacate may be diluted with a solvent such as methyl isobutyl ketone.  In another example, a solution of a vinyl chloride-vinyl acetate copolymer in acetone containing triglycol di-2-ethylbutyrate is extruded to form filaments by a dry-spinning method.  The yarns, fabrics, or other textile materials may be used in making shoes, belts, suspenders, or clothing.  Specification 518,710 is referred to.