JPH04352877A - Treatment of fabric comprised of synthetic fiber - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To obtain fabric rich in wearing comfortableness by imparting synthetic fiber fabric with an aqueous solution containing a polymerization initiator and a monomer mixture of a specific group-contg. vinyl compound and vinylcarboxylic acid at a specified weight ratio followed by steaming and then hygroscopicity-developing treatment. CONSTITUTION:Synthetic fiber fabric is imparted with an aqueous solution containing (A) a monomer mixture of (1) an N-alkylolamide group-contg. vinyl compound (pref. N-methylolacrylamide) and (2) a vinylcarboxylic acid [e.g. (meth)acrylic acid] at the weight ratio (1:3)-(4:1) and (B) a polymerization initiator followed by steaming (and pref., in addition, high-frequency heating) and then pref. substituting cation such as ammonium ion for the hydrogen ion of the carboxyl group in the resulting copolymer to make hygroscopicity-developing treatment, thus obtaining the objective fabric rich in wearing comfortableness, which is suitable for sportswears or underwears.

Description

[Detailed description of the invention]

0001

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a method for treating synthetic fiber fabrics that have moisture absorbing and desorbing properties, are comfortable to wear, and are capable of maintaining sufficient color fastness and fiber properties.

0002

[Prior Art] Synthetic fibers such as polyester and nylon have excellent physical and chemical properties, and are used not only for clothing but also for a wide range of industrial applications, and have important industrial value. are doing.

[0003] However, these synthetic fibers such as polyester and nylon have extremely low hygroscopicity, so their use in fields that require hygroscopicity, such as spring and summer inner and outer clothing, underwear, and sheets, is currently limited. Met. In an attempt to improve this, methods have been developed to impart hygroscopicity by graft polymerizing acrylic acid or methacrylic acid to synthetic fibers, such as in JP-A No. 61-282476;
Publication No. 266672, Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 2-84565,
JP-A-2-145872 proposes a method of applying hygroscopic substances such as cellulose and polyamino acid resins to synthetic fiber fabrics and threads.

0004

[Problems to be Solved by the Invention] However, both methods have many problems in practical use. for example,
In the method of graft polymerizing acrylic acid or methacrylic acid to synthetic fibers, it is necessary to carry out graft polymerization before the dyeing process due to the nature of the polymerization initiator used, which makes process and hue control difficult and reduces the physical properties of the fibers. is also unavoidable. In addition, in the method of adding hygroscopic substances such as cellulose and polyamino acid resins to synthetic fiber fabrics and threads, it is difficult to obtain sufficient hygroscopic performance due to the balance with texture. This cannot result in clothing that is highly comfortable to wear. Furthermore, when applying the polyamino acid resin in the form of threads, especially in the case of polyester fibers, it is a fatal drawback that an alkali weight loss treatment cannot be performed after the fabric is made.

[0005] Alternatively, JP-A-56-159363, JP-A-57-106774, JP-A-59
A method has been proposed in which a hydrophilic monomer is added and then polymerized on a synthetic fiber fabric, such as in Japanese Patent No. 36777, but these methods do not aim at imparting hygroscopic properties to synthetic fibers. , antistatic property, dirt removal property (SR
Since the purpose of this invention is to impart moisture absorption performance), these blending ratios and methods cannot be expected to achieve the moisture absorption performance aimed at by the present invention, and cannot result in comfortable clothing.

The present invention overcomes the problems of the prior art described above and provides a synthetic fiber fabric that can sufficiently maintain the moisture absorption performance necessary for providing wearing comfort, color fastness, and fiber physical properties. The challenge is to provide a processing method.

[0007]

[Means for Solving the Problems] In order to solve the above problems, the present invention has the following configuration. That is, an aqueous solution containing a polymerization initiator and a mixed monomer containing a vinyl compound having an N-alkylolamide group and vinyl carboxylic acid in a weight ratio of 1:3 to 4:1 is applied to a synthetic fiber fabric, and then heated with steam. This is a method for treating synthetic fiber fabric, which is characterized in that it is then subjected to a hygroscopicity development treatment.

[0008] In the present invention, the above mixed monomers are heated and polymerized in the presence of a polymerization initiator. Another important point is that the obtained copolymer forms a coating along the fiber axis between the fiber surface and the fiber bundles constituting the synthetic fiber fabric. Since the copolymer forms a film along the fiber axis, it is possible to suppress hardening of the texture, improve the washing durability of the copolymer, and exhibit antistatic performance.

The synthetic fibers used in the present invention include polyester fibers such as polyethylene terephthalate and polybutylene terephthalate, polyester fibers made by copolymerizing polyester with a third component, and polyamide fibers such as nylon 6 and nylon 66. Synthetic fibers include fibers, polyamide fibers made by copolymerizing polyamide with a third component, acrylic fibers whose main component is polyacrylonitrile, and polyolefin fibers such as polypropylene, and these synthetic fibers can be arbitrarily selected depending on the use and purpose. It's something you get.

In the present invention, two types of mixed monomers are used, one of which is N.
- A vinyl compound having an alkylolamido group is used. If other monomers are used, they may be difficult to polymerize, or even if they polymerize, they easily fall off during the washing process, or they cannot effectively suppress the evaporation of vinyl carboxylic acid, another monomer, during heating. There are other problems.

[0011] As the vinyl compound having an N-alkylolamido group used in the present invention, N-methylolacrylamide, N-ethylolacrylamide, N-
Propyroll acrylamide, N-butyrol acrylamide, N-methylol methacrylamide, N-ethylol methacrylamide, N-propyrol methacrylamide, N-butyrol methacrylamide, etc., and synthetic fibers of polymers obtained from these include From the viewpoint of affinity, availability, etc., N-methylol acrylamide and N-methylol methacrylamide are preferred.

The vinyl carboxylic acid used in the present invention may be any carboxylic acid compound having a polymerizable vinyl group, such as vinyl compounds having a carboxyl group, acrylic acid, methacrylic acid, maleic acid, or itaconic acid. In particular, acrylic acid and methacrylic acid are preferred from the viewpoint of polymerization efficiency.

In the present invention, the mixing weight ratio of the vinyl compound having an N-alkylolamide group and the vinyl carboxylic acid is 1:3 to 4:1, and 1:2 to 3:
It is preferable to set it to 1. If this mixing weight ratio is less than 1:3, the polymerization efficiency will decrease;
If it exceeds this, there is a problem that the development of moisture absorption performance is reduced.

[0014] Furthermore, in addition to the above two mixed monomers of a vinyl compound having an N-alkylolamide group and vinylcarboxylic acid, a sulfonic acid such as 2-acrylamido-2-methylpropanesulfonic acid and 2-sulfoethyl methacrylate is added. It is preferable to add a monomer having a group because the moisture absorption performance can be further improved. In this case, the amount of the monomer having a sulfonic acid group added is preferably 20% by weight or less of the above mixed monomers from the viewpoint of polymerization efficiency.

The polymerization initiator suitable for the present invention may be any initiator as long as it can be dissolved or dispersed in water, but water-soluble initiators are preferred from the viewpoint of ease of handling.

For example, inorganic polymerization initiators such as ammonium persulfate, potassium persulfate, ammonium sulfate, etc.
, 2'-azobis(2-amidinopropane) dihydrochloride, 2,2'-azobis(N,N'-dimethyleneisobutyramidine) dihydrochloride, 2-(
It is an organic polymerization initiator such as carbamoylazo)isobutyronitrile. Ammonium persulfate is particularly preferably used in terms of cost and ease of handling.

The concentration of the polymerization initiator depends on the concentration of the monomers used and the heating conditions, but it is necessary to prevent the heating time required for polymerization from becoming excessively long, and on the other hand, to prevent the film-forming properties of the copolymer from decreasing and the copolymerization. From the viewpoint of preventing a decrease in the durability of the coating due to a decrease in the molecular weight of the product, the content is preferably 0.1% to 3%. In addition, at such a concentration of the polymerization initiator, the required heating time to complete the polymerization can generally be in the range of 1 to 5 minutes.

Steam is used as the heating means used in the present invention. If dry heat is used instead of steam, a uniform copolymer coating along the fiber axis cannot be obtained, the durability of the polymer coating will be poor, the texture will harden, and the monomer will easily evaporate during heating. There are problems such as.

[0019] In order to prevent the required heating time from becoming excessively long and, on the other hand, to prevent the monomer from evaporating rapidly and causing a decrease in polymerization efficiency, the heating temperature is set at 100°C to 13°C.
0°C is preferred.

From the viewpoint of improving heating efficiency, it is preferable to use high frequency heating in combination with steam heating. High frequency heating is a method of generating heat by applying high frequency waves with a wavelength of 2450 Mz or 920 Mz to an object to be heated, and is generally used in combination with normal pressure steam, which will be described later.

[0021] Such heating equipment includes a normal pressure steamer,
There are pressurized steamers and high-frequency heating machines that are equipped with high-frequency oscillators. Furthermore, a high-temperature steamer in which the temperature is raised by sending hot air into a normal-pressure steamer can also be applied as long as the temperature is within the above-mentioned temperature conditions. In this case, it is preferable to increase the amount of steam input as much as possible from the viewpoint of suppressing evaporation of the monomer and preventing a decrease in polymerization efficiency.

The copolymer formed on the fiber fabric by the method of the present invention forms a film and exists along the fiber axis on the single fibers and between the single fiber bundles of the fibers constituting the synthetic fiber. When synthetic fibers are dissolved using a solvent suitable for dissolving them, such as phenol/tetrachloroethane in the case of polyester, a continuous film of the copolymer that maintains its morphology is obtained by SEM, etc. Observed with a high-power microscope.

[0023] The amount of the copolymer film formed on the synthetic fiber fabric by the above method is 4 to 12 wt% based on the synthetic fiber fabric, from the viewpoint of providing excellent moisture absorption performance and preventing hardening of the texture. It is preferable that In addition,
In the case of polyester fibers which have almost no hygroscopicity, the content is preferably 8 to 12 wt%, and in the case of polyamide fibers which have some degree of hygroscopicity, the content is preferably 4 to 8 wt%. A fabric having such a copolymer coating amount is
Weight increase rate (%) when left for 24 hours in an environment of 20°C and 65% RH, which corresponds to the outside environmental humidity, and the weight increase rate (%) when left for 24 hours in an environment of 30°C and 90% RH, which corresponds to the humidity inside the clothes when worn. The difference from the weight increase rate (%) when left standing (hereinafter referred to as ΔMR)
) can be set to 2.5% or more, making it easier for moisture inside the garment to escape to the outside environment when worn, preventing stuffiness when worn, and further enhancing wearing comfort. Further, the official moisture content can be set to 2% or more and less than 9%, and while maintaining a certain degree of hygroscopicity, the fabric does not become slimy or heavy, making it unsuitable for clothing.

[0024] From the viewpoint of providing wearing comfort,
Rather than the official moisture content, the difference between the humidity inside the garment (high humidity area) and the outside environmental humidity (low humidity area) when worn has a greater effect on moisture transportability.

[0025] In the present invention, a moisture absorption development treatment is further performed after the above heat treatment. If such moisture-absorbing treatment is not performed, moisture-absorbing performance sufficient to provide wearing comfort cannot be obtained.

[0026] In the present invention, the moisture absorption development treatment refers to a process in which the hydrogen ions of the carboxyl groups of the copolymer are treated with alkali metal ions, ammonium ions, etc. in order to give the copolymer added to the synthetic fiber even higher moisture absorption performance. This refers to the process of replacing with cations.

Particularly preferred moisture absorption agents are acetic acid, ammonium sulfate, sodium hydrogen sulfite, or an aqueous solution of a mixture of sodium hydrogen sulfite and soda ash. Furthermore, basic alkali metal salts such as caustic soda and soda ash, ammonia aqueous solutions, ammonium salts such as ammonium chloride and ammonium acetate, and ammonia aqueous solutions of ammonium salts are also suitably used. Ammonium ions are preferred as cations because they have low substitution reactivity with metal ions such as calcium and magnesium in water and there is no risk of deterioration in moisture absorption performance due to washing with water.

The required amount of the moisture absorption agent to be added is determined by the amount of carboxyl groups in the copolymer added to the synthetic fiber fabric (polymer molecular weight:
(calculated based on the average molecular weight of the mixed monomers) is preferably 1 to 5 times equivalent.

[0029] In addition, the preferable treatment temperature is 60°C to 120°C, from the viewpoint of not reducing the reaction rate too much and preventing discoloration of the fibers and shedding of the copolymer coating. Furthermore, 80°C to 100°C is preferable.

[0030] The synthetic fiber fabric obtained by the method of the present invention is
Depending on the amount of the copolymer coating formed on the synthetic fiber fabric, it tends to have a rougher and harder texture than the unprocessed fabric, so to prevent this texture from hardening, if necessary, add water to the bath during the above-mentioned moisture absorption treatment. From the viewpoint of texture adjustment, it is also preferable to use a softening treatment and/or to perform a physical kneading action such as cam fit processing in the final step.

[0031]

[Examples] The present invention will be explained in more detail below using examples. The various performances described in the Examples were measured by the following methods.

Amount of polymer coating (%) = {(fabric weight after polymerization) - (fabric weight before polymerization)}/(fabric weight before polymerization) Official moisture content (%) = {(fabric weight at moisture absorption) ) - (Fabric weight when absolutely dry)} / (Fabric weight when absolutely dry) Here, the fabric weight when moisture is absorbed is when the fabric is left in an environment of 20°C and 65% RH for 24 hours from an extremely dry state. The weight of

ΔMR (%) = (weight increase rate when left in an environment of 30°C, 90% RH for 24 hours) - (20°C,
Weight increase rate when left in an environment of 65% RH for 24 hours) Washing fastness was measured by the method of JIS L 0842.

(Example 1) A woven fabric made of polyethylene terephthalate subjected to a conventional dyeing process (Toray Industries, Inc.)
#SC9000) was immersed in an aqueous solution containing 10% by weight of N-methylolacrylamide, 10% by weight of methacrylic acid, and 0.3% by weight of ammonium persulfate, squeezed with a mangle to a squeezing rate of 60%, and then heated at 110°C. Polymerization treatment was carried out by heating the mixture in a high-temperature steamer for 3 minutes.

[0035] Then, after washing with hot water at 100°C for 20 minutes,
Dry. In addition, sodium bisulfite (20% owf)
) and ammonium sulfate (5% OWF) in a jet dyeing machine at 100°C for 20 minutes (bath ratio 1:
40) and then dried. Then tenter (17
After setting the temperature at 0° C.), it was subjected to evaluation. The results are shown in Table 1.

[0036]

[Table 1]

(Example 2) Tricot knitted fabric (#50 manufactured by Toray Industries, Inc.) made of nylon 6 subjected to a conventional dyeing process.
5) was immersed in an aqueous solution containing 5% by weight of N-methylolacrylamide, 5% by weight of methacrylic acid, and 1% by weight of ammonium persulfate, squeezed with a mangle to a squeezing rate of 60%, and then placed in a high-temperature steamer at 110°C for 3 hours. Polymerization treatment was carried out by heating for a minute.

[0038] Then, after washing with hot water at 100°C for 20 minutes,
Dry. Furthermore, sodium bisulfite (10% owf)
) and ammonium sulfate (2.5% OWF) in a jet dyeing machine at 100°C for 20 minutes (bath ratio 1).
:40) and then dried. Then tenter (1
After setting the temperature at 70° C., it was subjected to evaluation. The results are also shown in Table 1.

(Example 3) The same fabric as in Example 1 was immersed in an aqueous solution containing 10% by weight of N-methylolmethacrylamide, 10% by weight of acrylic acid and 0.3% by weight of ammonium persulfate. Treated in the same way. The results are also shown in Table 1.

(Example 4) The same fabric as in Example 1 was immersed in an aqueous solution containing 6% by weight of N-methylolacrylamide, 14% by weight of maleic acid and 0.3% by weight of ammonium persulfate. processed. Table 1 shows the results.
It is also shown in .

As is clear from Table 1, Examples 1 to 4 according to the present invention are more satisfactory in both the official moisture content and ΔMR than Comparative Examples 1 and 2, which will be described later, in which the proportion of mixed monomers is different from that of the present invention. No decrease in washing fastness was observed.

(Comparative Example 1) The same fabric as in Example 1 was immersed in an aqueous solution containing 4% by weight of N-methylolacrylamide, 16% by weight of methacrylic acid, and 0.3% by weight of ammonium persulfate. processed. The results are also shown in Table 1.

(Comparative Example 2) The same fabric as in Example 1 was used for 16.
After being immersed in an aqueous solution containing 5% by weight of N-methylolacrylamide, 3.5% by weight of methacrylic acid, and 0.3% by weight of ammonium persulfate, it was treated in the same manner as in Example 1. The results are also shown in Table 1.

[0044]

[Effects of the Invention] The synthetic fiber fabric obtained by the present invention is highly comfortable to wear, and is therefore suitable for innerwear for sports clothing, underwear, etc., as well as inner and outer clothing for spring and summer.

Claims (2)

[Claims] Claim 1: A synthetic fiber fabric containing a vinyl compound having an N-alkylolamide group and vinyl carboxylic acid in a weight ratio of 1:1.
A method for treating a synthetic fiber fabric, which comprises applying an aqueous solution containing a mixed monomer and a polymerization initiator in a ratio of 3 to 4:1, heating with steam, and then subjecting the fabric to hygroscopicity development treatment. 2. The method for treating synthetic fiber fabric according to claim 1, wherein high frequency heating is used in conjunction with the heating with steam.