Classifications

• • D—TEXTILES; PAPER
  • D06—TREATMENT OF TEXTILES OR THE LIKE; LAUNDERING; FLEXIBLE MATERIALS NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR
  • D06B—TREATING TEXTILE MATERIALS USING LIQUIDS, GASES OR VAPOURS
  • D06B17/00—Storing of textile materials in association with the treatment of the materials by liquids, gases or vapours
  • D06B17/04—Storing of textile materials in association with the treatment of the materials by liquids, gases or vapours in wound form
• • D—TEXTILES; PAPER
  • D06—TREATMENT OF TEXTILES OR THE LIKE; LAUNDERING; FLEXIBLE MATERIALS NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR
  • D06B—TREATING TEXTILE MATERIALS USING LIQUIDS, GASES OR VAPOURS
  • D06B5/00—Forcing liquids, gases or vapours through textile materials to effect treatment, e.g. washing, dyeing, bleaching, sizing impregnating
  • D06B5/12—Forcing liquids, gases or vapours through textile materials to effect treatment, e.g. washing, dyeing, bleaching, sizing impregnating through materials of definite length

Definitions

• the present invention relates to a method of heat-treating textiles, in particular spun cops or bobbins, in a heated steamer connected to a water and/or chemical supply and a vacuum pump via valves, and also relates to apparatus for carrying out this method.
• Texttiles means any structure made of raw textile materials and includes materials in both fibrous and sheet form.
• Textiles can also be conditioned or finished by treatment in a steam phase, if necessary with the addition of chemicals .
• Suitable steamers have been known for many years and substantially comprise a cylindrical boiler closable by a pivotable cover. Inside the steamer is a water bath which generates steam by means of a heating device and effects the appropriate heat treatment of the material introduced. To enable the steam to penetrate better the interior of the textiles, a vacuum is generated before the heating device for the water bath is switched on.
• An object of the invention is to provide a method and apparatus which use less energy, permit better penetration of the material to be treated and, in addition, reduce the cycle times and the overall heat treatment.
• the invention provides a method of heat-treating textiles in a heated steamer connected to a water and/or chemical supply and a vacuum pump via valves, wherein: in a first step, the steamer is charged with the material to be treated, - in a second step, the vacuum pump is then switched on until a vacuum of at least 100 mbar has been generated in the steamer, in a third step, a feed valve of the water and/or chemical supply is opened and a predetermined volume of liquid is admitted into the steamer to form a liquid bath, in a fourth step, the liquid bath and the steam phase to be formed are heated to a predetermined temperature, after the material to be treated has been held for a preselected time in the saturated steam phase, the liquid is pumped out of the steamer into a container, in a fifth step, the vacuum pump is re-activated, in a sixth step, after a preselected evacuation, cooling and drying time, the vacuum pump is switched off and ambient air is admitted into the steamer, and in a final step,
• a vacuum of at least 50 mbar is generated.
• the method according to the invention produces an energy saving in the order of 12 k h per cycle or 35 to 40 k h per treatment. Furthermore, the water vapour pumped off during the formation of the vacuum does not have to be recondensed. The non-recondensed volume saved is approximately 20 litres per treatment cycle.
• a further advantage consists in the simple and economic supply of chemicals and/or finishing additives which load the vacuum pump only slightly or not at all.
• the heat treatment or the results achieved may be improved in a simple manner by repeating the second to sixth steps at least once.
• the heat treatment can be optimised by successively increasing the temperatures of the steam phase from the first to at least one subsequent heat treatment.
• a steam phase temperature of at least 350 'K is established in a first cycle and at least 380 °K in a further cycle.
• Energy may additionally be saved by aeration and the overall treatment time further reduced as a result, ie before the end of the first heat treatment, in an intermediate step, the vacuum is interrupted and then built up again.
• the water and/or chemicals are supplied from containers dimensioned in accordance with the volume of the liquid bath in the steamer and which, together with the steamer, form a closed system into which only lost liquid is fed back from outside, the lost liquid due to the residual moisture in the steamed material and the evacuation.
• This permits recirculation of the liquids and/or chemicals and is therefore particularly economical and environ- mentally friendly.
• the invention further provides apparatus for carrying out the above method and comprising a heated steamer connected to a water and/or chemical supply and a vacuum pump via valves, wherein at least one container, a pump and at least two valves are provided for the liquid and/or chemical supply, the valves controlling the admission of liquid into and discharge of liquid from the steamer.
• an electric heating device is provided at least within the space of a liquid bath within the steamer.
• Such an electric heating device is particularly advantageous because it can be controlled very flexibly and thereby has a favourable effect.
• Other heating systems for example steam heating systems, may also be used economically depending on the energy available.
• the vacuum pump is a water-ring pump or a rotary vane pump.
• a water-ring pump is very cost-effective and suitable for vacuums up to 30 mbar.
• a rotary vane pump is necessary for vacuums up to 5 mbar.
• Fig.l is a simplified, schematic representation of steam apparatus for treating cops in accordance with the invention
• Fig.2 is a characteristic temperature graph for the steam phase in the steamer of the installation according to Fig. 1, and
• Fig.3 is the pressure graph associated with Fig. 2, in relation to the ambient atmosphere.
• an exhaust line is designated by the reference numeral 1.
• a vacuum pump 2 with an electric motor M is connected to the exhaust line 1.
• a vacuum line 3 is connected to the input side of the vacuum pump 2 (a ro- tary vane pump) and communicates with the interior of a steamer 6 via a valve VI and a suction line 4.
• a further valve V2 is also arranged in the suction line 4 and is connected to an air line 5.
• a liquid bath 8, the aqueous liquid 9 of which can reach a level Nl , and an electric heating device 10 are arranged inside the steamer 6 known per se.
• the steamer 6 is provided with a pivotable cover 7 having a vertical pivoting axis 7a.
• the material G to be treated is introduced into the steamer 6, where it is steam-treated, by opening the cover 7.
• Feed lines 11 lead from the electric heating device 10 to a control unit, the regulating function of which is represented by +/- .
• a liquid line 12 leads from the steamer 6 and is connected to pump lines 13 and supply lines 22.
• the pump line 13 leads to valves V7 , V8 , and V9 via a valve V3 , a liquid pump 14 with an electric motor M and pressure lines 15.
• the valves V7 - V9 are for their part connected to the lower parts of liquid containers 19 - 21 via in- let/outlet lines 16 - 18.
• Each of these liquid containers (tanks) has an aeration line 19' - 21', respectively.
• Valves V4 - V6 are also arranged on the inlet/outlet lines 16 - 18 and are connected to the supply lines 22.
• Fig. 1 The operation of the arrangement according to Fig. 1 is relatively simple: the interior of the steamer 6 is evacuated to the desired low pressure via the vacuum lines 3 and 1 by closing the valve V2 , opening the valve VI, and switching on the vacuum pump 2. As a result, the material G to be treated also becomes substantially free of entrapped air.
• valve V4 on the water tank 19 is now opened; the valve V9 remains closed so that water is sucked via the supply line 22 and the liquid line 12 into the steamer, where it fills the liquid bath 8 to the level Nl .
• the valve V4 is then closed and the electric heating device 10 is simultaneously activated by switching on the mains voltage, with the result that a steam phase forms inside the steamer 6 and penetrates the material G as saturated steam.
• the control unit swit- ches the heating device 10 off, the valves V3 and V9 are opened, the valve V4 remains closed and the liquid pump 14 is switched on; the water is pumped back into the water tank 19 and returns to approximately the level N2.
• the resultant displaced air can escape via the aeration line 19 ' .
• the acids or bases are fed from the chemical tank 20 into the steamer 6 and then pumped back again.
• a further advantage of this arrangement is the connection to the liquid-wax tank 21 after the last steaming process in order to facilitate processing of the material G, namely spun yarn in the form of cops.
• Figs. 2 and 3 show the characteristics of a heat treatment for cops carried out in practice, starting from an ambient pressure of 1000 mbar. For graphical reasons, low pressures have been shown in abbreviated form in Fig. 3.
• the steamer 6 is evacuated to a pressure of 5 mbar, after which water from the water tank 19 is admitted and heated, producing a steam phase having a temperature of approximately 350 °K held constant for 2.0 minutes; cf. Fig. 2. During this process, the pressure in the steamer 6 is raised to approximately 420 mbar.
• the vacuum is then interrupted and a residual quantity of steam is released via the suction line 4 and the valve V2 into the air (aeration); cf. Fig. 1.
• a vacuum of 5 mbar is subsequently re- generated and a second treatment cycle begins.
• the temperature of the steam phase is increased to 380 °K, the pressure being raised to a positive pressure of 1300 mbar during the heating of the liquid supplied from the chemical tank 20.
• the first cycle l.C begins after the first evacuation process l.V and lasts 3.0 minutes; the second and third cycles 2.C and 3.C each have a durationd of 4.0 minutes.
• the whole heat treatment is finished after the fourth evacuation process 4.V, during which the residual moisture is removed from the material.
• the material in question is a spun cotton yarn; the cops have a net weight of 120 g.
• a steam condenser is additionally connected upstream of the vacuum pump 2.
• the process may also be carried out under vacuum with a pressure above 50 mbar.
• the process time is increased and the quality of treatment is reduced, especially when the material is heavy and/or compressed.

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• Engineering & Computer Science (AREA)
• Chemical & Material Sciences (AREA)
• Materials Engineering (AREA)
• Textile Engineering (AREA)
• Treatment Of Fiber Materials (AREA)

Priority Applications (8)

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• 1996
  • 1996-11-14 GB GB9623730A patent/GB2319263B/en not_active Expired - Fee Related
• 1997
  • 1997-11-06 AU AU47194/97A patent/AU4719497A/en not_active Abandoned
  • 1997-11-06 AT AT97909531T patent/ATE299962T1/de active
  • 1997-11-06 WO PCT/IB1997/001400 patent/WO1998021390A1/en active IP Right Grant
  • 1997-11-06 ES ES97909531T patent/ES2246509T3/es not_active Expired - Lifetime
  • 1997-11-06 EP EP97909531A patent/EP0938603B1/de not_active Expired - Lifetime
  • 1997-11-06 CZ CZ0168499A patent/CZ296059B6/cs not_active IP Right Cessation
  • 1997-11-06 DE DE69733765T patent/DE69733765T2/de not_active Expired - Lifetime
  • 1997-11-06 CN CN97199709A patent/CN1082580C/zh not_active Expired - Lifetime
  • 1997-11-06 KR KR10-1999-7004266A patent/KR100454847B1/ko not_active IP Right Cessation
  • 1997-11-06 JP JP52233498A patent/JP3856479B2/ja not_active Expired - Fee Related
  • 1997-11-06 TR TR1999/00975T patent/TR199900975T2/xx unknown
• 2000
  • 2000-04-06 HK HK00102111A patent/HK1023155A1/xx not_active IP Right Cessation

Non-Patent Citations (1)

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