Description
Surface treatment of a material, in particular of an item of clothing
Technical Field
The present invention concerns the surface treatment of a material, in particular of an item of clothing.
In the fashion field, it is a known fact that there are items of clothing, in particular jeans or the like, which present a surface treatment that gives the items of clothing a specific appearance .
Background Art The aim of these surface treatments is normally to obtain an item of clothing presenting a particular appearance which is attractive to purchasers .
These surface treatments, however, have the disadvantage of not modifying to an appreciable extent the mechanical features of the product to which they are applied. In other words they do not provide these features in a lasting way, so that after just a few washes, or a brief use of the product, the compound applied on the surface of the item disappears completely or wears away to a considerable extent.
Summary of the Invention
A treatment composition is therefore provided, characterised in that it comprises at least a silicone elastomer and at least a polyurethane-based paste. A process is also provided for the treatment of a material, in particular an item of clothing, characterised in that a treatment composition, with at least a silicone elastomer and at least a polyurethane-based paste, is applied on the surface of the material, and in that the material on which the composition has been applied is then heated.
This treatment gives the material a greater surface resistance, considerably improving resistance to wear. The composition does not easily wash' off and remains on the item on which it has been applied. This treatment, moreover, does not modify the essential features of the product, and even after it has been applied to the item of clothing the fibres of the fabric are still visible.
When items of clothing made from fabric are treated, for example jeans, the fabric becomes particularly soft, feeling just like leather.
According to another advantageous aspect, the surface or side of the item of clothing subjected to this treatment becomes waterproof, thus protecting the person wearing the item in the event of rain. This invention also concerns a process for the preparation of this treatment composition, the use of this treatment composition for the surface treatment of a material, in particular an item of clothing, and a material, in particular an item of clothing, obtained with this process.
Description of Preferred Embodiments of the Invention
The technical features and the various advantages of the invention will become more evident on reading the detailed description that follows, which refers to application examples that represent embodiments and are given as non-binding examples.
According to a preferred embodiment, the present process for the treatment of materials, in particular for the treatment of items of clothing, foresees a first stage in which a treatment composition is applied on the surface of the fabric, preferably by spraying on the outer surface of the item, but which may also be applied in other ways, for example by brushing.
This treatment composition comprises a silicone elastomer, a polyurethane-based paste and a diluting agent which consists, preferably, of water or appropriate saline solutions, which make it possible to maintain good adherence of the composition to the material.
The silicone elastomer is, preferably, a silicone elastomer named "RO-MA-SILIKON 403" manufactured by the company named ROTTA
(IT) , while the polyurethane-based paste is preferably a polyurethane-based printing paste in watery emulsion.
For the polyurethane paste, the product named "TRASPARENTE NEOPRINT LB"" manufactured by the company named LAMBERTI (IT) is preferably used.
Other polyurethane pastes or other silicone elastomers different from those mentioned above can, however, be used.
In particular, from 200 to 400 g of silicone elastomer and from 400 to 600 g of polyurethane-based paste per kilogram of composition are used.
The quantity of water or saline solution added is preferably equal to the quantity of paste and silicone elastomer, i.e. between 200 and 400 g, per kilogram of composition.
The composition is prepared by centrifuging the polyurethane paste for a period varying between 10 and 20 minutes, adding the silicone elastomer and, subsequently, the water during .the centrifugation. This centrifugation is continued up to 25 minutes, when a colouring agent is then added to the composition.
The application stage of the treatment composition is followed by a heating and polymerisation stage, at a temperature between 120 and 160°C, for a period of 3 to 5 minutes, in air furnaces, with continuous circulation of hot air, which make it possible to achieve polymerisation even on delicate materials (leather) . During this stage the water evaporates, causing the composition to adhere to the fabric or material to be treated.
This stage of simple heating is followed by a pressing stage, preferably at 6 atm (varying, in any case, between 4 and 8 atm) , with porcelain paper or similar (for example with pressure contact surfaces in Teflon) , for a preferred duration of 20 seconds (varying, in any case, between 10 and 30 seconds) at a preferred temperature of 180°C (in any case between 175 and 185°C) in pneumatic presses or calenders. The porcelain paper or similar is supported by an elastic or yielding base.
The treated fabric preferably consists of cotton fibres, rayon and mixed fibres obtained from these.
This treatment provides the material with greater surface resistance.
The polymerisation stages permits good adherence of the composition and the pressing stage in turn allows the finishing, in which an "explosion" of the composition molecules takes place. A particularly attractive appearance of the surface of the treated item is thus achieved. A washing stage (with stones or enzymes in water) can also be foreseen at the end of this process to reduce the surface shine or greasiness of the item.
The treatment composition is preferably applied in quantities of not less than 15 g/m2 and not more than 85 g/m2 of treated surface area.
The polyurethane-based paste can contain or be supplemented with at least one colouring agent, for example a colouring pigment or a direct colorant (natural-based synthetic colorant) .
Examples
Application example 1
The treated item of clothing is a pair of cotton jeans. The jeans are placed on a dummy that keeps them stretched out and allows the entire external surface of the item to be treated. The treatment composition is sprayed onto the item and comprises 300' g/kg of silicone elastomer (named "RO-MA-SILIKON 403" manufactured by ROTTA (IT)), 400 g/kg of polyurethane-based paste
(in particular a polyurethane-based print paste in watery emulsion named "TRASPARENTE NEOPRINT LBR" manufactured by LAMBERTI (IT) ) and water to make up the remaining part.
A quantity of 60 g/m2 is applied on the surface of the item. This is followed by polymerisation with heating at a temperature of 140°C for a period of 4 minutes, in an air furnace, and subsequent pressing at 6 atm, with the contact surface of the item in porcelain paper, for a period of around 20 seconds at a temperature of 180°C, in a pneumatic press. The porcelain paper rests on an elastic or soft base.
Application example 2 The treated item of clothing is a pair of trousers, the fabric of which is made from cotton-coated elastic thread. The trousers are placed on a dummy that keeps them stretched out and allows the entire external surface of the item to be treated.
The treatment composition is sprayed onto the item and comprises 300 g/kg of silicone elastomer (named "RO-MA-SILIKON 403" manufactured by ROTTA (IT) ) and 400 g/kg of polyurethane-based paste (in particular a polyurethane-based print paste in watery emulsion named "TRASPARENTE NEOPRINT LBR" manufactured by LAMBERTI (IT) ) . A saline solution makes up the remaining part.
A quantity of 40 g/m2 is applied on the surface of the item.
This is followed by polymerisation with heating at a temperature of 150°C for a period of 5 minutes (in an air furnace) , and subsequent pressing at 8 atm with porcelain paper for a period of 20 seconds at a temperature of 180°C, in a calender with the outer surface consisting of porcelain paper resting on an elastic or yielding base.
Application example 3
The treated item of clothing is made from leather. The treatment composition is sprayed onto the item and comprises 325 g/kg of silicone elastomer (named "RO-MA-SILIKON 403" manufactured by ROTTA (IT)), 350 g/kg of polyurethane-based paste (in particular a polyurethane-based print paste in watery emulsion named "TRASPARENTE NEOPRINT LBR" manufactured by LAMBERTI (IT)) and water to make up the remaining part .
A quantity of 15 g/m2 is applied on the surface of the item. This is followed by polymerisation with heating at a temperature of 120°C for a period of 3 minutes, in an air furnace, with continuous air circulation, in which the water evaporates and the composition spreads over the material, and subsequent pressing at 5 atm, with porcelain paper for a period of 10 seconds at a temperature of 10°C, in a pneumatic press. The porcelain paper rests on an elastic or yielding base.
Application example 4
The treated item of clothing is a pair of jeans made from indigo coloured cotton. The treatment composition is sprayed onto the item in three subsequent stages and comprises 250 g/kg of silicone elastomer (named "RO-MA-SILIKON 403" manufactured by ROTTA (IT) ) , 500 g/kg of polyurethane-based paste (in particular a polyurethane-based print paste in watery emulsion named "TRASPARENTE
NEOPRINT LBR" manufactured by LAMBERTI (IT)) and water to make up the remaining part, and containing a different colouring pigment for each spray stage.
The first spray contains a pigment which provides a yellow ochre colour. The second spray contains a pigment which provides a brick red colour, named burnt Siena in the sector, while the third spray contains a pigment which provides a dark brown colour. A quantity of 15 g/m2 is applied with each spray. This is followed by polymerisation with heating at a temperature of 150°C for a period of 5 minutes (in an air furnace), and subsequent pressing at 8 atm, with porcelain paper for a period of 20 seconds at a temperature of 180°C, in a pneumatic press. The porcelain paper rests on an elastic or yielding base. A "tan leather" colour effect is achieved.
Application example 5
In order to give a leather item of clothing an aged-leather appearance, the treatment composition is sprayed onto the item in a first stage and comprises 325 g/kg of silicone elastomer (named "RO- MA-SILIKON 403" manufactured by ROTTA (IT)), 350 g/kg of polyurethane-based paste (in particular a polyurethane-based print paste in watery emulsion named "TRASPARENTE NEOPRINT LBR" manufactured by LAMBERTI (IT) ) and water to make up the remaining part. The composition is sprayed onto the item from 1 to 4 times, adding a colorant the same colour as the leather but with a different shade for each spray stage.
A quantity of 20 g/m2 is applied with each spray. This is followed by polymerisation with heating at a temperature of 120°C for a period of 3 minutes, in an air furnace, and subsequent pressing at 5 atm, with porcelain paper for a period of 10 seconds at a temperature of 10°C, in a pneumatic press.
According to another aspect of the invention, this process could also be applied to a fabric used for footwear or similar. This fabric consists, for example, of thick cotton fibres.
This invention is susceptible to numerous modifications and variants, without thereby departing from the inventive concept.
Moreover, all the construction details may be substituted by technically equivalent elements .