US2185746A - Method of producing permanent glaze chintz - Google Patents

Description

A Patented Jan. 2, 1940 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE METHOD OF PRODUCING PERMANENT GLAZE CHIN TZ No Drawing. Application July 23, 1936, Serial No. 92,142

Claims.

This invention relates to the production of a new and useful textile fabric finish of the general nature of that heretofore known as glazed chintz, but in a more permanent and durable 5 form.

Glazed chintz has been known for many years. In general, it comprises a cotton or other textile fabric provided with a glazed surface or coating. This coating has heretofore been produced by a sizing of water soluble or similar materials which do not withstand hot soap and water. The primary object of the present invention is to produce a finish having the general appearance of glazed chintz as commonly known but in 'a form which will withstand laundering and be much more permanent and durable.

According to our invention, the glaze finish is obtained by the use of resins, by which term we mean to include natural and synthetic resins, condensation products and the like, which can be converted into a substantially water insoluble form or state. Preferably these resins are also infusible, and in many cases they are advantageously transparent or substantially so, in order that 25 the color or design of dyed and printed goods may be visible through the finish.

In the production of the glaze chintz finish on textile fabrics, it is highly important that the coating be very thin, and that it should not substantially penetrate into the fibers or the interstitial spaces of the fabric. Our method of production, therefore, includes the use of a filler or repellent in the textile fabric at the time of applying the resin or resin-forming composition to the surface of the fabric. Ordinarily, the filler employed is one which would be quite objectionable in the finished product, and the resin is applied to but one surface of the goods so that the filler can be readily removed from the fabric at a 40. suitable stage after the resin has been applied to the surface. In this way the fabric per se may have restored to it its usual or original flexibility and feel, except as modified by the thin superficial coating of resin on the one surface. In order to further reduce any stiffening effect which may be occasioned by the presence of the resin coating, the coated fabric is preferably passed through suitable breaker unimsuch as commonly employed in the textile trade to break or soften fabrics.

with the above general understanding of the object sought and the procedure employed for the attainment thereof, a simple description of one example of carrying out the method of production will enable those skilled in the art to fully understand and practice the invention.

A woven cotton cloth of, for example, 39" grey width, 80 x 80 count, 4 yards per pound, or cloth of 39" grey width, 68 x 72 count, 4.75 yards per 5 pound, will represent in general a suitable type of cloth for treatment. The cloth is preliminarily subjected to the usual singeing, boiling in caustic under pressure, and bleaching. It may thereafter he dyed or printed, or both, in accordance 0 with any standard practice, and may then be considered as ready to undergo the special treatments for the production of the glaze chintz finish. I

The first step in the production of the finish 15 comprises the filling of the interstices of the cloth with some kind of an inert filler which can be easily removed later on. Such a filler may be, for example, an ordinary tapioca starch solution or suspension. This filler is applied by pass 20 ing the cloth through an impregnation box containing the filler, squeezing out the excess and drying the filled cloth on'cans or tentering frames to proper width, thus changing the filler from fluid to solid condition. At this stage there may be incorporated into the cloth a catalyst to accelerate the drying or condensaiton of the resin which is to be applied in a subsequent step. Such catalysts or accelerators are, of course, well known in the synthetic resin art, and we need only inv dicate an example which may be a to 2% aqueous solution of ammonium chloride, potassium sulphocyanate or the like. This accelerator may be applied by nip-padding the cloth a second time, although the accelerator might be applied at the same time with the filler if a filler and accelerator which are miscible with each other are selected. Obviously in the formation of some types of resins the accelerator may be omitted. It is usually preferred, however, as it admits of a complete hardening of the resin at a temperature which is conveniently low and safe for cotton fabric. When an accelerator is to be used, it is distinctly preferable to apply it to the goods prior to the application of the resin to the goods rather than afterward, and we furthermore find it desirable not to incorporate the accelerator directly into the resin ingredients or mixture for the reason that the resin mixture is much more stable and gives much more uniform results if it does not initially contain the accelerator.

Having prepared the filled cloth, with or without the accelerator, the next step comprises 'the preparing of the surface of the cloth to receive the coating of resin or resin-forming composition. 65

This preparation is usually carried out by passing the filled cloth once or twice through a frictioning or glazing calender. The normal effect of this treatment is to lay any existing fuzz and close the interstices of the cloth, as well as to produce a highly glossy and smooth surface. The importance of these results will be apparent. The smooth surface, which is almost like a paper, does not allow the resin to penetrate into the cloth or to find any depressions or crevices which would give rise to undue or irregular thickness of the resin film at such points. Actual penetration of the resin to any substantial extent into the goods themselves, as for example if no filler were employed, would entirely defeat the purpose of the invention, since the resulting finish would be extremely stiff, boardy to the touch, and commercially worthless. If any fibers should protrude from the surface of the cloth, the coating would anchor them in their protruding positions, and the resulting surface would be extremely harsh to the touch. Furthermore, the \vater-repellency of the final product would be seriously afiected.

Having prepared the goods for the reception of the resin composition, the operator may employ any one of a number of methods for applying the resin composition in the form of a thin continuous film upon the filled and calendered cloth. This may be done, for example, by spraying, brushing or fiowing the liquid resin composition on to the smooth surface of the cloth in such a way as to provide a very thin and uniform film. The procedure we prefer is to flow the resin composition on to the upper surface of the cloth running level in a horizontal plane. The resin preparation is preferably in the form of a rather thin syrupy liquid and may drain by gravity from a supply trough through one or more delivery openings, from which point or points it is allowed to-fiow more or less evenly over the surface of the cloth and leveled off by passing beneath a steel knife, the edge of which is carefully ground and polished to a semi-round bevel and extends transversely of the direction of feed. This knife is set at sufficiently close proximity to the surface of the cloth to ensure the formation of a very thin film or layer as the cloth passes under it. From this point the cloth is passed to a drying unit, such as for ex ample steam cans or hot air chambers, and thus the resin composition is brought to an intermediate state in which the surface is dry enough to be free of tackiness but not yet in the final hardened stage of the resin. It is quite important in this operation to so adjust the drying that the coating is still in a somewhat plastic state, capable of responding to a further surface treatment to smooth out any fuzz which may have been raised by the coating operation, and to give a very intimate and firm bond between the resin coat and the fibers exposed at the surface of the cloth.

This subsequent surface treatment of the coated goods is in the nature of a second glazing operation similar to that describedabove with respect to the calendering of the filled cloth. The calender roll or equivalent device for performing this operation presses the resin composition into very firm contact with the cloth surface, and leaves it with a high gloss or polish. The sequence of operations should be so timed and regulated that the resin will have reached the insoluble and preferably infusible state at about the completion of this second glazing-operation aietfne or immediately thereafter. .At this time the cloth will possess a marked stiffness, due both; to the filler and to the presence of the hard resin surface.

The filler is then removed from the cloth by the use of any of the known enzymes which convert the starch used into soluble sugars, which are then easily washed out. This leaves the cloth in a much softer condition. A boiling soap bath is then employed to remove any loose particles of hardened resin which may have found their way into the interior of the cloth, and thereafter the coated cloth is passed through a machine such as employed in the textile trade to break or soften fabrics, such as button break- 'ers, spiral breakers, breakers with rubber blankets over corrugated drums, steel bars over which the cloth is drawn, or a simple stenter frame in which the cloth is pulled widthwise. The effect of this operation is to break up the continuity of the resin surface so as to obtain the desired softness or flexibility of the finished goods.

The final result of the operations described is a smooth and remarkably flexible fabric with high surface gloss, very resistant to laundering, heat, mechanical stresses and exposure to sunlight. While the resin film in the finished goods is not continuous, and hence the cloth is not waterproof, the product is nevertheless markedly water-repellent. If the cloth is wet and dried, the original luster of the cloth returns on drying, and there is no appearance of spots or destroyed luster as in the case of ordinary glazed chintz. Organic solvents, such as are used in dry cleaning, have no effect whatever upon the luster.

With regard to the resin composition, we prefer to employ one which can be applied in the form of an aqueous liquid. The principles of the invention, however, are quite broadly applicable to many different types of resins. We may mention, for example, the urea formaldehyde type, phenol formaldehyde, polyvinyl resins, polyacrylic acid and derivatives, alkyd resins, such as glyptal, and the casein types. To illustrate a procedure we have found particularly practical in the manipulation of the resin treatment, we

may refer to the preparation and use of a resin of the urea formaldehyde type. The resin composition in the initial stage is produced by boiling for thirty minutes a mixture of 120 grams urea, 324 c. c. of 40% formaldehyde solution (formalin), and 10 c. c. of strong ammonia solution. After thirty minutes boiling, the mixture is cooled to room temperature and the resin will have a syrupy consistency which can readily be applied to the cloth in the form of a thin even film in the manner already described. This resin preparation is quite stable and remains in liquid state almost indefinitely until after it has been brought into contact with the cloth prepared with the accelerator as previously explained. Under the conditions recited, the hardening of the resin proceeds at a sufficiently low rate to permit the drying of the solution to a non-tacky state at a temperature slightly above the normal boiling point of water, without immediate hardening to the infusible state. The hardening action is, however, progressive, and it is therefore desirable to so regulate the drying temperature and the timing of the successive operations that the resin will not be too far hardened prior to the final glazing operation to which we have referred. It must, of course.

be understood that supplemental or additional hardening of the resin after this final glazing operation may be employed if necessary or desired. The thinness of the coating, while subject to some adjustment at the option of the operator, is preferably such that the coating is just sufilcient to ensure the actual covering of all portionsof the surface of the cloth. Some uniting or binding action may occur at the actual contacting surfaces of the starch filler and the resin coating, which may even contribute to'some extent to the marked adhesion or permanence of the union of the coating with the cloth. It must, therefore, be understood that the removal of the filler is not necessarily complete to the extent that the last/traces are removed at the surface of contact between the filler and the coating.

While we have mentioned the infusible character of the finished resin, we wish this term to be understood as more or less relative, an essential condition being that the finished resin is not fusible at the ordinary temperatures of laundering and ironing. In its broader aspects, the invention includes the application of a dry resin to the cloth in the state of approximate fusion in a hot friction calender, and in such case we should prefer to select a resin which is not fusible at the ordinary ironing temperatures.

We claim: a

1. Method of producing glazed chintz, which comprises applying to the cloth a temporary filler,

calendering the filled cloth to a smooth, densesurface to limit penetration of a subsequently applied resin coating preparation, coating one face of the cloth, on the smooth, dense surface thus prepared, with a hardenable resin coating preparation in the form of an aqueous liquid, drying the coating preparation, calendering the coated goods to force the resin coating into firm contact with the filled cloth, and subsequently removing the temporary filler.

2. Method of producing glazed chintz, which comprises applying to the cloth a temporary filler, calendering the filled cloth to a smooth,

dense surface to limit penetration of a subsequently applied resin coating preparation, coating one face of the cloth, on the smooth, dense surface thus prepared, with a hardenable resin coating preparation in the form of an aqueous liquid, drying the coating preparation, calendering the coated goods to force the resin coating into firm contact with the filled cloth, subse-' quently removing the temporary filler, and breaking up the continuity of the resin coating.

3. Method of producing glazed chintz, which comprises applying to the cloth a temporary filler, calendering the filled clothto asmooth,

dense surface to limit penetration of a subsequently applied synthetic resin coating preparation, coating one face of the cloth, on the smooth, dense surface thus prepared, with a hardenable synthetic resin coating preparation in the form of an aqueous liquid, drying the coating preparation on the goods to a non-tacky condition, friction calendering the coated goods While the setting of the resin is in progress, to obtain a highly glossy surface and to force the resin coating into firm contact with the filled cloth, subsequently removing the temporary filler and breaking up the continuity of the resin coating.

4. Method of producing glazed chintz, which comprises applying to the cloth a temporary filler, calendering the filled cloth to a smooth,

dense surface to limit penetration of a subsequently applied synthetic resin coating preparation, coating one face of the cloth, on the smooth, dense surface thus prepared, with a hardenable synthetic resin coating preparation in the form of an aqueous liquid, drying the coating preparation on the goods to a non-tacky condition, friction calendering the coated goods while the setting of the resin is in progress, to obtain a highly glossy surface and to force the resin coating into firm contact with the filled cloth, further setting the resin coating to a substantially water-insoluble state, after the completion of the friction calendering operation, subsequently removing the temporary filler andbreaking up the continuity of the resin coating.

5. Method of producing glazed chintz, which comprises applying to the cloth a temporary filler, drying and 'calendering'the filled cloth to a smooth, dense surface to limit penetration of a subsequently applied urea formaldehyde coating preparation, applying upon the smooth, dense surface thus provided a coating of aqueous preparation of an initial stage of a urea formaldehyde resin, drying the coating to a non-tacky state, friction calendering the coated goods while the setting of the urea formaldehyde resin is in progress, to obtain a highly glossy surface and to force the resin coating into firm contact with the filled cloth, further setting the urea formaldehyde resin to asubstantially water-insoluble state, after said friction calendering operation, removing the temporary filler and breaking up the continuity of the urea formaldehyde resin coating.

DENIS DE GOENCZ. EDMUND C. TARNUZZER. ALFRED F. STOCKWELL.