EP1294964A1

EP1294964A1 - Fireproof fabric

Info

Publication number: EP1294964A1
Application number: EP01956478A
Authority: EP
Inventors: Hans-Dieter Eichhorn; Günther Widler; Heinz Berbner
Original assignee: BASF SE
Current assignee: BASF SE
Priority date: 2000-06-20
Filing date: 2001-06-15
Publication date: 2003-03-26
Also published as: WO2001098569A1; DE10029334A1; AU2001278454A1

Abstract

The invention relates to fabric containing melamine fibres which is made of warp thread and weft thread. Only the weft thread contains melamine fibres, the warp thread not containing any.

Description

Flame retardant fabric

description

The invention relates to a fabric containing melamine fibers, which is composed of warp threads and weft threads, only the weft threads containing melamine fibers and the warp threads containing no melamine bevel.

Furthermore, the invention relates to a method for the production of such fabrics, the use of the fabrics for the production of work clothing, heat protection clothing, welding protective clothing, fire protection clothing and flame retardant materials for the interior of fire-endangered vehicles and rooms, and finally work, heat protection, fire protection clothing and flame retardant clothing Fabrics for the interior of vehicles and rooms at risk of fire, from the fabrics mentioned.

Fabrics for work, heat protection, welding protection and fire protection clothing should meet several requirements at the same time. It should be durable and have a high abrasion resistance, have good mechanical strength (e.g. against tearing, tearing) and can also be washed or dried easily with industrial washing machines and dryers and without any adverse changes in properties. At the same time, it should be comfortable to wear and provide good protection against heat and open flames.

Natural fibers such as cotton offer good wearing comfort due to the high moisture absorption and skin friendliness, but cotton yarns suffer during washing and drying, especially under industrial conditions, since industrial washing machines and dryers work with higher loads, higher detergent concentrations and higher temperatures than household appliances. This stress leads to the fluffing of the cotton fibers: the cotton thread breaks open little by little and becomes thinner, the cotton "washes out" and the yarn loses its strength.

Synthetic fibers such as polyester or polyamide are well washable and dry-resistant and have good mechanical strengths, but they melt and drip on contact with the open flame and the drops can also burn (melting or burning dripping). Your fire behavior is therefore bad. Fire protection fibers such as those based on aramid (e.g. Twaron® from Akzo-Nobel, Kevlar® and Nomex® from DuPont) show good heat and fire protection, but are hard to wear due to their hardness.

EP-A 874 079 discloses heat and flame-retardant fabrics which contain a mixture of melamine fibers and aramid fibers.

DE-A 195 23 081 discloses fiber mixtures of 10 to 90 parts by weight of melamine fibers and 10 to 90 parts by weight of natural fibers, as well as the fabrics produced therefrom.

DE-A 196 17 634 discloses flame-resistant fabrics made from melamine fibers, optionally flame-resistant fibers, and normally inflammable fibers such as wool, cotton, polyamide, polyester and viscose.

EP-A 976 335 discloses fabrics made from 10 to 90% by weight of cotton fibers, 5 to 45% by weight of polyamide or polyester fibers and 5 to 45% by weight of melamine fibers.

The fabrics of the prior art can only be produced in a comparatively complex manner. Because of the complex production, the fabrics are quite expensive.

The task was to remedy the disadvantages described. In particular, a fabric should be provided that combines good abrasion resistance, good washing and drying behavior even with industrial washing or drying (little washing out of fibers), and high mechanical strength with high wearing comfort as well as good heat and fire protection behavior and at the same time simple and is inexpensive to manufacture on conventional machines.

Accordingly, the tissues defined at the outset were found. In addition, there was a process for the production of such fabrics, the use of the fabrics for the production of work clothing, heat protection clothing, welding protection clothing, fire protection clothing and flame retardant materials for the interior of fire-prone vehicles and rooms, and finally work, heat protection, fire protection clothing and flame retardant materials for the interior decoration of fire risk Vehicles and rooms, found from the fabrics mentioned.

None of the documents mentioned in the prior art discloses or suggests using warp thread and weft thread with different compositions. In particular, no nes of the documents or suggests using melamine fibers only in the weft thread, but not in the warp thread.

According to the invention, the fabric is made up of warp and weft threads, only the weft threads (hereinafter referred to as "weft") contain melamine fibers and the warp threads (hereinafter referred to as "warp") contain no melamine bevel.

In a preferred embodiment, the wefts contain

sl) melamine fiber, s2) natural fibers and s3) polyester fibers or polyamide fibers or mixtures thereof.

In another preferred embodiment, the warp threads contain

kl) natural fibers and k2) polyester fibers or polyamide fibers or mixtures thereof.

Accordingly, the warp and weft threads are preferably so-called mixed fiber threads (or yarns) which contain several different types of fibers.

Melamine bevel sl)

The melamine fibers used according to the invention can be produced, for example, by the processes described in EP-A 93 965, DE-A 23 64 091, EP-A 221 330 or EP-A 408 947. Particularly preferred melamine fibers contain 90 to 100 mol% of a mixture consisting essentially of 30 to 100, preferably 50 to 99, particularly preferably 85 to 95, in particular 88 to 93 mol% of melamine and 0 to 70 as the monomer unit (A), preferably 1 to 50, particularly preferably 5 to 15, in particular 7 to 12 mol%, of a substituted melamine I or of mixtures of substituted melamines I.

As a further monomer building block (B), the particularly preferred melamine fibers contain 0 to 10, preferably 0.1 to 9.5, in particular 1 to 5 mol%, based on the total number of moles of monomer building blocks (A) and (B), one Phenol or a mixture of phenols.

The particularly preferred melamine fibers are usually obtainable by reacting components (A) and (B) with formaldehyde or formaldehyde-providing compounds and subsequent spinning, the molar ratio of melamines to formaldehyde is in the range from 1: 1.15 to 1: 4.5, preferably from 1: 1.8 to 1: 3.0.

As substituted melamines of the general formula I

come into consideration those in which X ¹ , X ² and X ^{3 are} selected from the group consisting of -NH ₂ , -NHR ¹ and -NR ^X R ² , where X ¹ , X ² and X ^{3 are} not simultaneously -NH are, and R ¹ and R ^{2 are} selected from the group consisting of hydroxy-C ~ -Co-alkyl, hydroxy-C ₂ -C ₄ - alkyl- (oxa-CC ₄ -alkγl) _n , with n = 1 to 5 , and amino-C ₂ -C-alkyl.

The preferred hydroxy-C 1 -C ₆ -alkyl groups are hydroxy-C ₆ -C ₆ -alkyl, such as 2-hydroxyethyl, 3-hydroxy-n-propyl, 2-hydroxyisopropyl, 4-hydroxy-n-butyl, 5-hydroxy -n-pentyl, 6-hydroxy-n-hexyl, 3-hydroxy-2, 2-dimethylpropyl, preferably hydroxy-C ₂ -C ₄ -alkyl, such as 2-hydroxyethyl, 3-hydroxy-n-propyl, 2-hydroxyisopropyl and 4-hydroxy-n-butyl, particularly preferably 2-hydroxyethyl and 2-hydroxyisopropyl.

As hydroxy-C ₂ -C ₄ -alkyl- (oxa-C ₂ -C ₄ -alkyl) _n groups, preference is given to those with n = 1 to 4, particularly preferably those with n = 1 or 2, such as 5-hydroxy -3-oxa-pentyl, 5-hydroxy-3-oxa-2, 5-dimethylpentyl, 5-hydroxy-3-oxa-l, 4-dimethylpentyl, 5-hydroxy-3-oxa-1, 2, 4 , 5-tetramethylpentyl, 8-hydroxy-3, 6-dioxaoctyl.

The preferred amino-C ₂ -C ₂ -alkyl groups are amino-C ₂ -Ca-alkyl groups, such as 2-aminoethyl, 3-aminopropyl, 4-aminobutyl, 5-amino-pentyl, 6-amino-hexyl, 7- Aminoheptyl and 8-aminooctyl, particularly preferably 2-aminoethyl and 6-aminohexyl, very particularly preferably 6-aminohexyl.

Substituted melamines which are particularly suitable for the invention are the following compounds: melamines substituted with the 2-hydroxyethylamino group, such as

2- (2-hydroxyethylamino) -4, 6-diamino-l, 3,5-triazine, 2,4-di- (2-hydroxyethylamino) -6-amino-l, 3,5-triazine, 2, 4, 6-tris- (2-hydroxyethylamino) -1,3, 5-triazine, melamines substituted with the 2-hydroxyisopropylamino group, such as 2- (2-hydroxyisopropylamino) -4, 6-diamino-1,3 , 5-triazine,

2,4-di- (2-hydroxyisopropylamino) -6-amino-1,3,5-triazine

2,4,6-tris- (2-hydroxyisopropylamino) -1,3,5-triazine, melamines substituted with the 5-hydroxy-3-oxapentylamino group, such as 2- (5-hydroxy-3-oxapentylamino) -4, 6-diamino-l, 3, 5-triazine, 2,4, 6-tris- ( 5-hydroxy-3-oxapentylamino) -1,3,5-triazine, 2,4-di (5-hydroxy-3-oxapentylamino) -6-amino, 1,3,5-triazine, with the 6-aminohexylamino- Group substituted melamines such as

2- (6-aminohexylamino) -4, 6-diamino-l, 3,5-triazine, 2,4-di- (6-amino-hexylamino) -6-amino-l, 3,5-triazine, 2, 4, 6-tris- (6-aminohexylamino) -1, 3, 5-triazine or

Mixtures of these compounds, for example a mixture of 10 mol% of 2- (5-hydroxy-3-oxapentylamino) -4, 6-diamino-l, 3,5-triazine, 50 mol% of 2,4-di- (5th -hydroxy-3-oxapentylamino) -6-amino-l, 3, 5-triazine and 40 mol% of 2,4,6-tris (5-hydroxy-3-oxapentyamino) -1, 3, 5- triazine.

Suitable phenols (B) are one or two phenols containing hydroxyl groups, which are optionally substituted with radicals selected from the group consisting of C 1 -C 6 -alkyl and hydroxyl and C 1 -C ₄ -alkanes, di (hydro. ₎ Substituted with two or three phenol groups - xyphenyl) sulfones or mixtures of these phenols.

The preferred phenols are: phenol, 4-methylphenol, 4-tert. -Butylphenol, 4-n-octylphenol, 4-n-nonylphenol, pyrocatechol, resorcinol, hydroquinone, 2, 2-bis (4-hydroxyphenyne propane, bis (4-hydroxyphenyl) sulfone, particularly preferably phenol, resorcinol and 2, 2 - bis (4-hydroxyphenyl) propane.

Formaldehyde is generally used as an aqueous solution with a concentration of, for example, 40 to 50% by weight or in the form of compounds which, when reacted with (A) and (B), give formaldehyde -1, for example as an oligomer or polymeric formaldehyde in solid form, such as paraformaldehyde, 1, 3, 5-trioxane or 1, 3, 5, 7-tetroxane.

To produce the particularly preferred melamine fibers, usually melamine, optionally substituted melamine and optionally phenol are polycondensed together with formaldehyde or formaldehyde-providing compounds. All of the components can be introduced right at the start, or they can be reacted in portions and successively and subsequently further melamine, substituted melamine or phenol can be added to the precondensates formed.

The polycondensation is carried out in a manner known per se (see EP-A 355 760, Houben-Weyl, vol. 14/2, pp. 357 ff). The reaction temperature is generally chosen in a range from 20 to 150, preferably from 40 to 140 ° C. The reaction pressure is usually not critical. The procedure is generally in the range from 100 to 500 kPa, preferably under atmospheric pressure.

The reaction can be carried out with or without a solvent. As a rule, no solvent is added when using aqueous formaldehyde solution. When using formaldehyde bound in solid form, water is usually chosen as the solvent, the amount used generally being in the range from 5 to 40, preferably from 15 to 20,% by weight, based on the total amount of monomers used ,

Furthermore, the polycondensation is generally carried out in a pH range above 7. The pH range is preferably from 7.5 to 10.0, particularly preferably from 8 to 9.

Furthermore, small amounts of other additives, such as alkali metal sulfites, e.g. Sodium disulfite and sodium sulfite, alkali metal formates, e.g. Sodium formate, alkali metal citrates, e.g. Add sodium citrate, phosphates, polyphosphates, urea, dicyandiamide or cyanamide. They can be added as pure individual compounds or as mixtures with one another, each in bulk or as an aqueous solution before, during or after the condensation reaction.

Other modifiers are amines and amino alcohols, such as diethylamine, ethanolamine, diethanolamine or 2-diethylaminoethanol.

Fillers or emulsifiers can be considered as further additives. The fillers can be, for example, fibrous or powdery inorganic reinforcing agents or fillers, such as glass fibers, metal powder, metal salts or silicates, e.g. Use kaolin, talc, heavy spar, quartz or chalk, as well as pigments and dyes. The usual nonionic, anionic or cationic organic compounds with long-chain alkyl radicals are generally used as emulsifiers.

The polycondensation can be carried out batchwise or continuously, for example in an extruder (see EP-A 355 760), according to methods known per se.

To produce fibers, the melamine resin according to the invention is generally spun in a manner known per se, for example after adding a hardener, usually acids such as Formic acid, sulfuric acid or ammonium chloride, at room temperature in a rotary spinning machine and then hardening the raw fibers in a heated atmosphere, or spinning in a heated atmosphere, at the same time evaporating the water used as a solvent and curing the condensate. Such a method is described in detail in DE-A-23 64 091.

However, other common methods can also be used to produce the melamine fibers, e.g. Stringing, extruding and fibrillation processes. The fibers obtained in this way are generally predried, optionally stretched and then cured at 120 to 250.degree.

The fibers are usually 5 to 25 μm thick and 2 to 2000 mm long. Suitable melamine resins are e.g. commercially available as Basofil® from BASF.

Natural fibers s2) or kl)

As a rule, naturally occurring fibers based on cellulose, such as cotton, wool, linen or silk, are used as natural fibers. These natural fibers should also include those based on cellulose that are of natural origin, but according to known and customary procedures are modified or treated.

According to DIN 60001, cotton or wool in particular are natural fibers, with cotton belonging to the group of vegetable fibers. The terms for the raw material wool are defined in DIN 60004. For the purposes of this invention, wool is understood to mean all coarse and fine animal hair.

If necessary, the natural fibers can be treated with flame retardants, e.g. reactive phosphorus compounds.

Such connections are e.g. B. as Afflammit®, Pyrovatex® or Proban® in stores.

The natural fibers s2) of the weft thread can be identical to or different from the natural fibers kl) of the warp thread. For example, the weft can contain cotton fibers and the warp can contain wool fibers, or vice versa, or the weft and warp can contain cotton fibers. The weft and warp particularly preferably contain the same natural fiber. In particular, weft and warp contain as natural fiber cotton fiber with a proportion of 50, preferably 80, in particular 100,% by weight, based on the natural fiber ser s2) or kl). Accordingly, only cotton is used as natural fiber s2) or kl).

Polyester fibers s3) or k2) and polyamide fibers s3) or k2)

All conventional textile fibers made of polyester or polyamide can be used as polyester fibers or polyamide fibers. Such fibers are known. Polyester fibers are made from linear saturated polyesters such as e.g. Polyethylene terephthalate (PET) and / or polybutylene terephthalate (PBT) are produced, which are made up of dihydric alcohols, especially glycols, and aromatic dicarboxylic acids, mostly terephthalic acid.

The polyester fibers are usually produced by the melt-spinning or extrusion process, after which they are hot drawn. Subsequent heat treatment can make them highly crystalline and low-shrink. The person skilled in the art can find details on polyester fibers in Ulimann's Encyclopedia of Technical Chemistry, Vol. 11, 4th Edition, p. 305, Verlag Chemie, Weinheim 1978.

Polyamide fibers are made from various types of polyamide (PA), especially from PA-66 and PA-6, and also from PA-11 and PA-610, using the melt spinning or extrusion process. They are then stretched hot or cold. PA-6 is polycaprolactam, PA-66 is made up of hexamethylenediamine and adipic acid units. PA-11 is composed of 11-aminoundecanoic acid, PA-610 of hexamethylenediamine and sebacic acid. The person skilled in the art can find details on polyamide fibers in Ulimann's Encyklopadie der Technischen Chemie, vol. 11, 4th edition, p. 315, Verlag Chemie, Weinheim 1978.

Suitable polyester fibers are e.g. commercially available as Trevira® fibers from Trevira GmbH and Teretal® fibers from Montefibre. Suitable polyamide fibers are e.g. from BASF, DuPont and Rhodia.

The polyester or polyamide fibers s3) of the weft thread can be identical or different from the polyester or polyamide fibers k2) of the warp thread. For example, the weft may contain PET fibers and the warp PBT fibers, or vice versa, or the weft may contain PA-6 and the warp PA-66 fibers, or vice versa. The weft may also contain polyester and the chain polyamides, or vice versa, any combination, for example within the group PET, PBT, PA-6 and PA-66, being possible. If a mixture of polyester fibers and polyamide fibers is used for the warp and / or the weft, the polyester content is preferably 30 to 97, in particular 50 to 95% by weight, based on the mixture s3) or k2). The weft and warp particularly preferably contain polyester fibers with a proportion of 50, preferably 80, particularly preferably 100% by weight, based on s3) or k2). Accordingly, polyester is particularly preferably used alone as component s3) or k2). In particular, weft and chains contain the same polyester. Weft and warp very particularly preferably contain PET fibers.

The respective fiber mixtures from which the weft thread or the warp thread is produced can contain up to 25, preferably up to 10% by weight of conventional fillers, in particular those based on silicates such as mica, as well as dyes, pigments, metal powder, matting agents and spinning aids be added.

In particular, the weft threads or yarns, but also the warp threads or yarns, or weft and warp, can contain antistatic additives in accordance with DIN EN 1149-1.

In a preferred embodiment, electrically conductive filaments are worked into the weft thread (preferred), the warp thread, or weft and warp, in particular twisted. All, but preferably only a few weft threads and / or warp threads can then contain these conductive filaments during the production of the fabric. In the latter case, "normal" weft threads (without these conductive filaments) and weft threads containing these conductive filaments usually alternate in a certain order. It is particularly preferred that every second to twentieth, in particular every fifth to fifteenth, particularly preferably every tenth weft contains such conductive filaments. An example of a suitable conductive filament is the filament F901 with 24 dtex. It essentially consists of a core made of polyamide 6 and an outer layer in which conductive carbon pigments are embedded. This filament is preferred and commercially available e.g. B. available as Resistat® type from BASF.

In another preferred embodiment, the antistatic properties of the fabric are achieved by incorporating electrically conductive staple fibers into the fiber mixture from which the weft thread (preferred) or the warp thread or weft and warp is made. An example of such conductive staple fibers is the 5.6 dtex staple fiber F7105, which essentially consists of a conductive core made of carbon and an outer layer (sheath) made of polyamide 6. This staple fiber is preferred and commercially available e.g. B. available as Resistat® type from BASF. This staple fiber and the other fibers of the weft thread and / or warp thread are generally used to produce a homogeneous fiber mixture in a known manner, which is spun into the yarn as usual.

The warp and / or weft threads and / or the fibers contained in them can be treated in a known manner before they are processed into the fabric, e.g. by bleaching, dyeing, finishing with textile auxiliaries, hydrophobing, etc.

In a preferred embodiment, the wefts contain the fabric

sl) 5 to 90, preferably 15 to 60 and in particular 20 to 45% by weight of melamine fibers,

s2) 5 to 90, preferably 15 to 60 and in particular 20 to 55

% By weight of cotton fibers, and

s3) 5 to 60, preferably 15 to 40 and in particular 20 to 35

% By weight: polyester fibers or polyamide fibers or their

Mixtures.

In another preferred embodiment, the warp threads contain the fabric

kl) 5 to 95, preferably 30 to 80 and in particular 50 to 70% by weight of cotton fibers, and

k2) 5 to 95, preferably 15 to 70 and in particular 25 to 50% by weight of polyester fibers or polyamide fibers or mixtures thereof.

The weft threads very particularly preferably contain

sl) 20 to 50, preferably 25 to 45% by weight of melamine fibers,

s2) 25 to 60, preferably 30 to 50% by weight of cotton fibers, and

s3) 15 to 30, preferably 20 to 25 wt .-% polyester fibers.

The warp threads very particularly preferably contain

kl) 60 to 70, preferably about 65% cotton fibers, and k2) 30 to 40, preferably about 35% polyester fibers.

The various types of fibers are usually premixed as a flake and spun into yarns using the known processes customary in the textile industry. However, it is also possible to process the fibers into yarns in another way. Such methods are known to the person skilled in the art.

Depending on the field of application, these yarns can then be further processed into various textile or non-textile fabrics.

The yarns preferably have a fineness of Nm 5 to Nm 70, in particular Nm 20 to Nm 50. The basis weight of the fabrics according to the invention produced therefrom is preferably 70 to 900, in particular 120 to 600 and particularly preferably 300 to 500 g / m ² .

The fabrics according to the invention can contain heat, oil, dirt and / or moisture repellent finish. The fabric can be impregnated or coated with the finishing agent.

Examples of equipment suitable according to the invention are layers of metal, such as aluminum, applied on one or two sides. Such metal layers, which are usually applied in a thickness of, for example, 5-200 μm, preferably 10-100 μm, so that the flexibility of the fabric is not adversely affected, protect against fire, heat, in particular the radiant heat, soot and extinguishing agents, such as, for example Water and extinguishing foam or powder. According to the European standard EN 1486, metallized fabrics are suitable for the production of protective suits for heavy fire and heat protection. The metallization is usually carried out by evaporating metal onto the tissue in a high vacuum (see Ullmanns Enzyklopadie der Technischen Chemie, 3rd ed., Vol. 15, p. 276 and the literature cited there). It is also possible to glue thin metal foils onto the fabric. Metal foils of this type generally consist of a polymeric carrier foil which is coated with a thin metal film. They preferably contain a polymeric carrier based on polyester. According to TL 8415-0203 (TL = Bundeswehr technical binding), the metallized foils can be applied to the fabric according to the invention on one side or preferably on both sides, for example by means of an adhesive or by hot calendering. Such films are used by various manufacturers for coating fabrics (eg Gentex Corp., Carbondale PA, USA; CF Ploucquet GmbH & Co, D-89522 Heidenheim; Darmstädter GmbH, D-46485 Wesel).

In addition, it is possible to produce the fabrics according to the invention from 5 metallized yarns or fibers. The yarns are preferably coated with aluminum in layer thicknesses in the range from 10 to 100 μm, the fibers have metal coatings from 0.01 to 1 μm. Such yarns or fibers can be produced, for example, based on the processes described in DE-AS 27 43 768, DE-A 38 10 597 or EP-A 10 528 192.

Further examples of suitable equipment are water-repellent hydrophobic layers applied to the fabric on one or both sides. Such layers preferably consist of polyurethane

15 than materials and / or materials containing polytetrafluoroethylene. Such coatings are already known from the prior art for improving the weather protection for textiles (see Ulimanns Enzyklopadie der Technischen Chemie, 5th edition, Vol A26, pp. 306-312, and lexicon for textile finishing,

20 1955, pp. 211 ff). These coatings can be designed in such a way that water vapor can diffuse through the layer, while at the same time liquid water or similar fire extinguishing products and combustion products cannot penetrate them or can penetrate them only insignificantly. These coatings are

25 usually glued or calendered onto the fabric as polymer films.

Further measures to improve the protective effect of the fabric consist in equipping the fibers or the fabric with water

30 repellant, oil and / or dirt repellent compounds (hydrophobic or oleophobic finish). Such compounds are known to the person skilled in the art as textile auxiliaries (cf. Ulimann's Encyclopedia of Industrial Chemistry 5th Ed., Vol. A26, pp. 306-312). Examples of water-repellent compounds are metal soaps, silicon

35 liqueur organofluorine compounds, e.g. Salts of perfluorinated carboxylic acids, polyacrylic acid esters of perfluorinated alcohols (see EP-B-366 338 and the literature cited therein) or tetrafluoroethylene polymers. The latter two polymers in particular are also used as oleophobic finishes.

40

The fabrics according to the invention combine good abrasion resistance, good washing and drying behavior under industrial conditions (little washing-out of fibers), and high mechanical strength with high wearing comfort and with good heat and fire protection behavior.

45 In particular, they are inexpensive to produce, which will be explained in more detail below. The machines known to the person skilled in the art, in particular looms, are used to produce fabrics (hereinafter referred to collectively as looms). The warp threads leave the corresponding spools of thread and are aligned parallel to one another, and the weft threads are guided, for example, at right angles to the warp threads above and below the warp threads, for example by means of a shuttle.

If a different fabric is to be produced on the loom, the warp and weft threads must be changed. The weft thread can be changed comparatively easily and quickly since it is easily accessible on the loom. On the other hand, changing the warp thread is complex and requires longer retooling work on the loom, and therefore leads to long, uneconomical downtimes.

In the fabrics according to the invention, only the (easily replaceable) weft contains melamine fibers, but the warp thread (which can only be replaced with long changeover times) does not. The flame-retardant fabrics according to the invention can therefore be produced on a loom on which normal (non-flame-retardant) fabrics have previously been produced by simply changing the weft thread. That on the same loom, both normal fabrics and flame-retardant fabrics can be made by simply changing the weft. This minimizes the changeover times and downtimes of the loom, which brings a considerable cost advantage and thus makes the fabric according to the invention cheaper.

If, for example, a thread made of 65% by weight of cotton fibers and 35% by weight of polyester fibers is used as the warp thread (and this is a particularly preferred embodiment of the invention), and a thread of identical composition (not according to the invention) is used as the weft thread, the known ones are obtained Blended fabrics made of 65% cotton and 35% polyester, which are used for "non-iron" shirts, socks, T-shirts, workwear ("Blaumann") and other mass articles of the textile industry. If one changes the weft thread with a thread containing melamine fiber while maintaining the warp thread, then flame-retardant fabrics according to the invention for work, heat protection and fire protection clothing etc. are obtained on the same loom without time-consuming retrofitting of the loom, the production quantity of which is considerably lower. Protective work clothing, heat protective clothing, welding protective clothing and fire protective clothing can be produced from the fabrics according to the invention, as well as protective clothing for heat-exposed work (blast furnace, chemical industry). Furthermore, the fabrics according to the invention can also be used to furnish interior materials for vehicles and rooms at risk of fire, for example upholstery fabrics, curtain fabrics, fabrics for wall, ceiling and floor coverings in airplanes, buses, railway, tram and underground cars, cable car cabins, Manufacture cinemas, theaters, event halls, etc.

Examples

Four different fabrics were made on a loom. The warp and weft threads were obtained in a manner known to the person skilled in the art by intimately mixing the individual fibers and producing a mixed fiber yarn or thread therefrom.

Fibers made of polyethylene terephthalate (PET) were used as polyester fibers k2) and s3). The cotton fibers kl) and s2) were flame-retarded with Proban®. Basofil® from BASF was used as melamine fiber sl).

The table summarizes the compositions and properties of the fabrics.

Table [Complete or delete units and empty fields! ]

UV for comparison

The examples show that different fabrics with different properties can be produced on the same loom while maintaining the warp thread by simply changing the weft thread.

The fabrics of Examples 1 to 4 according to the invention have a weft containing melamine fibers and a warp without such fibers and are flame-retardant. The fabric of Example 5 (for comparison, warp and weft from the same fibers without melamine fibers) is a customary non-flame retardant cotton blend fabric with 35% by weight polyester, as used for shirts, socks, T-shirts, normal work clothing etc. ,

Claims

claims

1. Fabric containing melamine fibers, which is made up of warp threads and weft threads, only the weft threads containing melamine fibers and the warp threads containing no melamine fibers.

2. The fabric of claim 1, wherein the wefts

sl) melamine fibers, s2) natural fibers and s3) polyester fibers or polyamide fibers or mixtures thereof

contain.

3. Fabric according to claims 1 to 2, wherein the warp threads

kl) natural fibers and k2) polyester fibers or polyamide fibers or mixtures thereof

contain.

4. Fabric according to claims 1 to 3, wherein the weft threads

sl) 5 to 90% by weight of melamine fibers, s2) 5 to 90% by weight of cotton fibers and s3) 5 to 60% by weight of polyester fibers or polyamide fibers or mixtures thereof

contain.

5. Fabric according to claims 1 to 4, wherein the warp threads

kl) 5 to 95 wt .-% cotton fibers and k2) 5 to 95 wt .-% polyester fibers or polyamide fibers or mixtures thereof

contain.

6. Fabric according to claims 1 to 5, wherein the weft threads

sl) 20 to 50% by weight of melamine fibers, s2) 25 to 60% by weight of cotton fibers and s3) 15 to 30% by weight of polyester fibers

contain.

7. Fabric according to claims 1 to 6, wherein the warp threads

kl) 60 to 70 wt .-% cotton fibers and k2) 30 to 40 wt .-% polyester fibers

contain.

8. A process for the production of fabrics containing melamine fibers, characterized in that weft threads containing melamine fibers and warp threads containing no melamine fibers are woven together.

9. Use of fabrics according to claims 1 to 7 for the production of work clothing, heat protection clothing, Sc white protection clothing, fire protection clothing and flame-retardant materials for the interior of fire-prone vehicles and rooms.

10. Work clothing, heat protection clothing, welding protection clothing, fire protection clothing and flame retardant materials

Interior of fire-endangered vehicles and rooms, made of fabrics according to claims 1 to 7.