GB891217A - A process for feltproofing and shrinkproofing wool and textiles containing wool in alkaline baths - Google Patents

Abstract

Wool and wool-containing textiles are shrink-proofed and felt-proofed by treating them with dichlorcyanuric acid and/or trichlorcyanuric acid in an alkaline aqueous solution or suspension. The treatment bath preferably contains 5.5%-14% by weight of dichlorcyanuric acid or 4.5%-11% by weight of trichlorcyanuric acid or mixtures thereof in an amount corresponding to 2%-5% of active chlorine with reference to the weight of the treated material, and the pH of the bath is preferably adjusted to above 7 by the addition of buffer substances, e.g. borax and alkali-metal phosphates. The bath may also contain other oxidising agents, e.g. salts of monopersulphuric, dipersulphuric, peracetic and perbenzoic acids, inorganic salts, e.g. sodium chloride, sodium bromide, sodium sulphate, calcium chloride, magnesium sulphate and zinc sulphate and/or organic salts, e.g. the alkali and alkaline-earth metal salts of acetic acid and ethylenediamino tetracetic acid, and wetting agents. The treatment may be carried out at room or elevated temperature, e.g. 20 DEG C.-40 DEG C., for about an hour and the material may then be rinsed with cold water and treated with a reductive or oxidative dechlorination bath, e.g. an alkaline metal bisulphite or dithionite, a salt of a hydroxyalkane sulphinic acid or a reaction product of such an acid with ammonia or hydrogen peroxide.