Reactive Pad-Steam Dyeing of Cotton Fabric Modified with Cationic P(St-BA-VBT) Nanospheres

Abstract

The Poly[Styrene-Butyl acrylate-(P-vinylbenzyl trimethyl ammonium chloride)] P(St-BA-VBT) nanospheres with N + (CH 3 ) 3 functional groups were successfully prepared and applied to modify cotton fabrics using a pad-dry process. The obtained cationic cotton fabrics were dyed with pad-steam dyeing with reactive dye. The results show that the appropriate concentration of nanospheres was 4 g/L. The sodium carbonate of 25 g/L and steaming time of 3 min were suitable for dyeing cationic cotton with 25 g/L of C.I. Reactive Blue 222. The color strength and dye fixation rates of dyed cationic cotton fabrics increased by 39.4% and 14.3% compared with untreated fabrics. Moreover, sodium carbonate and steaming time were reduced by 37.5% and 40%, respectively. The rubbing and washing fastness of dyed fabrics were equal or higher 3 and 4–5 grades, respectively. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) images revealed that the P(St-BA-VBT) nanospheres randomly distributed and did not form a continuous film on the cationic cotton fiber surfaces. The X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) analysis further demonstrated the presence of cationic nanospheres on the fiber surfaces. The cationic modification did not affect the breaking strength of cotton fabrics.

Effect of Cotton Cationization Using Copolymer Nanospheres on Ink-Jet Printing of Different Fabrics

“…The treated cotton fabrics showed that a large number of nanospheres were deposited on the surface of the fiber, and the nanospheres on the fiber surfaces did not form a continuous film and were randomly distributed, similar to the previous study [27,37]. Besides, the size of the nanospheres was significantly smaller than the diameter of the cotton fibers, indicating that the cationization of cotton fabrics had little effects on the spread and diffusion of reactive dye ink droplets on the surfaces of fabrics or fibers [15]. Compared to the previously study [18], the cationization of cotton fabrics modified with nanospheres is an effective method for improving the color performance of reactive dyes ink-jet printing.…”

“…As shown in Figure 6, it can be seen that the K / S values of ink-jet printed cotton fabrics gradually increase as the amounts of NaHCO 3 increase from 1 g/L to 10 g/L, and the maximum K / S value can be achieved when NaHCO 3 amounts achieve 10 g/L. It can be explained that the surface of fabrics become more alkaline with the amounts of NaHCO 3 increases, which can quickly dissociate more hydroxyl groups on the fibers and enhance the degree of reaction with the reactive dyes [15,16], resulting in most of reactive dyes fixing on the fibers. For the cotton fabrics, when the amounts of NaHCO 3 exceed 10 g/L, the K / S values displayed a downward trend, because the excess alkali increased the degree of hydrolysis of the reactive dye.…”

“…For the cotton fabrics, when the amounts of NaHCO 3 exceed 10 g/L, the K / S values displayed a downward trend, because the excess alkali increased the degree of hydrolysis of the reactive dye. In addition, excess alkali can damage cotton fibers [15,16]. Therefore, the NaHCO 3 of 10 g/L was the optimal to obtain the product with good K / S values for plain, twill and honeycomb fabrics, and it was selected in following investigation.…”

“…The cationic P(St-BA-VBT) nanospheres modification of cotton fabrics was carried out according to the Pad-Batch method [15]. The concentration of the P(St-BA-VBT) nanospheres changed from 0.5 g/L to 2.5 g/L, and the concentration of sodium bicarbonate changed from 1 g/L to 25 g/L.…”

“…Cotton fabrics cationized with 3-chloro-2-hydroxypropyltrimeth-ylammonium chloride solutions and then pretreated with a medium viscosity alginate thickener showed a very higher color strength and pattern sharpness compared with the non-cationized fabrics [13,14]. Surface modification of cotton fabrics using cationic nanospheres was proved to possess strong electrostatic attraction to the negatively charged dyes to increase the dye utility and fabric handle and to obtain a salt-free dyeing effect [15,16]. For example, cotton fabrics modified with cationic copolymer nanospheres were dyed by an acid dye, revealing that the dyed fabrics had good handle and permeability [17].…”