Optimization of Fluorochemical Finish Concentration for Liquid Repellency Treatment of 100% Cotton Fabric and Resulting Physical Properties

Abstract

This study is focused on optimizing fluorochemical urethane finish concentration for treatment of 100% cotton fabric. Fluorochemical urethane (FU) is a newer innovation with a shorter fluorocarbon chain (C4), is free from perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA) and perfluorooctanesulfonate (PFOS), and thus is a safer alternative to older C6- or C8-based fluorocarbons. The finish concentration was optimized based on the liquid repellency (water and oil repellency) and its influence on selected physical properties of the fabric. In addition, the laundering durability of the repellency effect was studied as well. The results indicate that a 80 g/L concentration of fluorochemical urethane was the optimal finish concentration for 100% cotton woven fabric based on desired liquid repellency and physical properties of the fabric.

An Experimental Investigation on Optimizing Liquid Repellency of Fluorochemical Urethane Finish and Its Effect on the Physical Properties of Polyester/Cotton Blended Fabric

“…The DWRs using C 8 or longer fluorocarbon polymers have been banned by United States Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA) due to their release of perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA) and perfluorooctanesulfonate PFOS toxins as a byproduct in the environment [10][11][12][13]. Consequently, there has been a tremendous amount of research in this area to find an eco-friendly alternative.…”

“…Consequently, there has been a tremendous amount of research in this area to find an eco-friendly alternative. However, finding an optimum balance of function with lesser/no environmental impact is still a challenge in the field of DWRs [10,12]. C 6 has the closest liquid repellency performance to C 8 without PFOA emissions in the environment.…”

“…C 6 has the closest liquid repellency performance to C 8 without PFOA emissions in the environment. Instead, it releases a byproduct called perfluorohexanoic acid (PFHA) which is 40 times less bioaccumulative than PFOA [10,13]. Nonetheless, it is still present in the environment and is not completely biodegradable.…”

“…It produces perfluorobutanesulfonate (PFBS) as a byproduct [11]. As per US-EPA guidelines, it does not accumulate in the environment to the extent that higher perfluorinated byproducts did [10][11][12][13][14]. Simply put, PFBS does not remain in human and animal bloodstreams for long and is eliminated much quicker than PFOA and PFHA.…”

“…The loss of liquid repellency after laundering is common in fabrics treated with fluorocarbon-based DWRs due to their disturbed crystallinity in the aqueous laundering process [4,10,15,[25][26][27][28]. The washing process influences the orientation of the fluorinated side chains [5].…”