Record Details
Laundering performance of Wurlan finished wool fabrics including soil detection by x-ray fluorescent spectroscopy
ScholarsArchive at Oregon State University
| Field | Value |
|---|---|
| Title | Laundering performance of Wurlan finished wool fabrics including soil detection by x-ray fluorescent spectroscopy |
| Names |
Borchardt, Marilyn Ruth
(creator) Bubl, Janet L. (advisor) |
| Date Issued | 1968-12-16 (iso8601) |
| Note | Graduation date: 1969 |
| Abstract | The main goals of this study were: (1) to develop a combination of soiling, laundering, and soil detection procedures which would be accurate, reproducible, and relatively rapid; (2) to develop a quantitative method to detect artificial soil on fabrics by X-ray fluorescent spectroscopy; (3) to compare unfinished and Wurlan finished (poly-amide interfacial polymerized) plain and twill weave wool fabrics for soil retention after 20 launderings; (4) to determine the effectiveness of the Wurlan finish on these woolen fabrics by measurement of shrinkage and breaking strength after laundering. These wool fabrics were artificially soiled by immersion in a mixed oil containing 50% dibromostearic acid, dried and then tumbled with a dry kaolinite clay. Soil and shrinkage specimens were laundered with an all-purpose, hot-water anionic detergent at 120°F. for five minutes by using either gentle or no agitation. Shrinkage specimens were also laundered with a cold-water, nonionic detergent under the same conditions. Count rates obtained from X-ray fluorescent spectroscopy of aluminum and bromine on soil retention specimens were converted to percentages of clay and oil respectively by comparison to fabric with known percentages of these soils. This method is faster than ashing and extraction, more accurate than color difference, less costly than neutron activation analysis, and easier than radioactive liquid scintillation. There was a significant buildup of oil, but not of clay on these fabrics over the period of this study. Wurlan finished fabrics retained slightly more clay than the unfinished wool fabrics. This may be due to an affinity of the Wurlan finish for clay or mechanical entrapment of the clay in the fabric-finish structure. The plain weave fabrics retained similar amounts of oil, but the Wurlan finished twill weave fabric retained considerably more oil than the unfinished twill weave fabric. This difference in oil retention may also have resulted from an affinity of the finish for oil, but could reflect the felting of the unfinished twill weave fabric which made deep penetration of oil applied more difficult. There was significantly more clay and two to four times more oil retained by these fabrics when laundered without agitation than with gentle agitation. While gentle agitation resulted in better removal of soil, it also caused excessive shrinkage of the unfinished wool fabrics. There was significantly more warp shrinkage during the early launderings, particularly for the unfinished wool fabrics. The dimensions of the Wurlan finished fabrics were stable after ten launderings, while the unfinished fabrics continued to shrink at the 20th laundering. Wurlan finished wool fabrics shrank less than 2% in both warp and filling after 20 launderings. The shrinkage of fabrics laundered with standard anionic detergent and cold-water nonionic detergent was not significantly different. Wurlan finish increased the warp grab breaking strength of the plain weave fabric, but did not alter that of the twill weave fabric. Limited ravelled strip breaking strength tests indicated that Wurlan finish increased the strength per warp yarn of both fabrics. Unfinished twill weave fabric laundered at gentle agitation with both detergents had a significantly higher warp grab breaking strength than the unlaundered twill weave fabric, possibly because excessive shrinkage increased the compactness of this fabric, The breaking strengths of the Wurlan finished fabrics after 20 launderings were similar to those of the unlaundered fabrics. The breaking strength and shrinkage tests seem to indicate that the Wurlan finish produced a washable wool fabric which resulted in satisfactory performance for the length of this study. These fabrics can be laundered with gentle agitation, moderately hot water, and an all- purpose, hot water synthetic detergent. |
| Genre | Thesis/Dissertation |
| Topic | Clothing and dress -- Care |
| Identifier | http://hdl.handle.net/1957/46633 |
