Optimal conditions for condensation of equimolar ratios of stearic acid (St) and polyethylene glycol (PEG) 400, i.e. 180°C, 8hrs and H 2 SO 4 , 4g/kg (reactants mixture), were utilized to condensate the equimolar ratio of stearic (St), palmitic (Pa) or myristic (My) acid with PEG 300, 400, 600, 2000 or 6000. Each of the fifteen condensates was formed by total conversion (83.5 to 84.1 %). Monoester-diester ratios of the condensates ranged from 4:1 to 49:1. FT -IR spectroscopy and hydrophilic lipohilic balances (HLB) of the condensates were also examined. The condensates had softening and hydrophilic properties of cotton fabric with no yellowing at concentrations of 30 and 50g/l in the presence or absence of DMDHEU (50g/l). The presence of DMDHEU improved the fabric resiliency.However, the softening and hydrophilic properties of the fabric were inferior in the presence of DMDHEU rather than the absence. In comparison with a commercial softener, PEG 2000-or 6000-based condensates were higher in fabric wettability and pliability but lower in smoothness. Regarding CRA, only My-2000 was comparable to that of the commercial softener in terms of effect.

The inclusion of softeners (20 g/l), namely, Siligen VN (silicon based), Basosoft SWK (cationic), or Leomin NI (nonionic), in a dimethyloldihydroxy ethylene urea (DMDHEU, 50 g/l) finishing formulation of 65/35 cotton/polyester blended fabric, enhances the resiliency of the fabric, which is expressed as the dry wrinkle recovery angle (WRA). The fabric acquires the ability to keep a rose oil fragrance upon storage up to 3 months. Improving the WRA and acquiring the ability to keep the fragrance can be descendingly arranged as follows: Siligen VN>Basosoft SWK>Leomin NI. Increasing the Siligen VN concentration (0-30 g/l) in the finishing formulation is accompanied by a small increase in the WRA, and a noticeable enhancement in the ability to keep the rose oil fragrance upon storage. By increasing the rose oil concentration (100-300 g/l) in a perfumed bath of cross-linked/Siligen VN, the softened fabric is accompanied by a slight drop in the WRA, and a decreasing ability to keep the fragrance up to 3 months. However, the extent of the fragrance is higher at higher rose oil concentrations, regardless of the storage time. The ability of the fabric to keep the fragrance can be attributed to solubilization and/or encapsulation of the perfume in the oleophilic segments of the softener, and its slow release with time, so that the smell can be sensed. This ability decreases after increasing the storage time up to 3 months, and depending on the type of perfume oil used, is descendingly arranged as follows: jasmine oil > rose oil > sandal oil.

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Four polyethylene glycol (PEG)=2,4-toluene diisocyante (TDI)= perfluorinated aliphatic alcohols mixture (F6) adducts were prepared by reacting equimolar ratios of PEG (300, 600, 1000, or 2000), TDI, and F6 at 90 C for 90 min. All adducts, except that based on PEG 300 were water dispersible. These dispersions were used as water=oil repellent and oily stain release finishes for cotton fabric, via incorporation in a finishing bath containing DMDHEU. Factors affecting finishing process, using an adduct based on PEG 1000, such as DMDHEU concentration (0-60 g=l), adduct concentration (10-40 g=l), curing time (1-5 min), and temperature (140-170 C) were studied. Optimal performance properties of treated fabric, namely wrinkle recovery angle (WRA), %N, water= oil and stain release ratings, tensile strength, and breaking extension, were obtained using a padding bath containing DMDHEU (50 g=l), the adduct (30 g=l), and MgCl 2 Á 6H 2 O 2 (5 g=l), drying at 100 C=5 min and curing at 160 C=3 min. The inclusion of hydrophilic PEG segments in the adduct structure weakens the hydrophobic effect of perfluorinted segments, where the water repellency rating does not exceed a ceiling of 50, under the conditions employed. However, the adduct has a dual activity, where it repels oily stain in air and releases them during washing. A comparison among performance properties of fabric treated with adducts based on PEG 600, 1000, and 2000, showed that the fabric properties are practically the same, with little drops in WRA, %N, and oil repellency rating upon increasing PEG molecular weight from 600 to 2000.