GB2381798A

GB2381798A - Improving resistance to abrasion in garments

Info

Publication number: GB2381798A
Application number: GB0126759A
Authority: GB
Inventors: Christopher Michael Carr; Sona Swamima Nath
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 2001-11-07
Filing date: 2001-11-07
Publication date: 2003-05-14
Also published as: AU2002363556A1; WO2003039279A2; WO2003039279A3; GB0126759D0; GB2381798A8

Abstract

A method of producing a garment or other fabric article having increased resistance to wet or dry abrasion, particularly at edge portions, comprises constructing at least those portions of the article having an abradable edge using pre-treated fabric, or untreated fabric and then subsequently treating the fabric during the course of the manufacture of the article, said treatment comprising treatment with (a) an epichlorohydrin adduct of a polyamide-polyamine derived from a dicarboxylic acid and a dihydrocarbon triamine, in particular a polyamide-polyamine having a repeating unit of the general formula: <EMI ID=1.1 HE=20 WI=98 LX=623 LY=1429 TI=CF> <PC>wherein R<SP>1</SP> is present or absent and R<SP>1</SP> (when present), R<SP>2</SP> and R<SP>3</SP> are each independently an alkylene group with 1-4 carbon atoms or an arylene group; or with (b) a UV-curable high molecular weight urethane acrylate or dimethacrylate resin; and subsequent curing by heat or UV-radiation respectively.

Description

METHOD OF IMPROVING RESISTANCE TO ABRASION IN GARMENTS TECHNICAL FIELD The present invention relates to a method for treating fabric, in particular collars and cuffs, to reduce dry and wet abrasion.

BACKGROUND TO INVENTION

The term"textile"is used herein to include cotton, cellulosics (for example viscose, Tencel TM, Lyocell TM etc.), polyamides, acrylics, polyethylene, polypropylene, polyester, polyvinyl chloride and rubber or mixtures thereof. The term fabric is used to mean any assembly of fibres such as woven, knitted, web or nonwoven material.

In use, textile materials are exposed to many different environments which cause abrasion and wear. Abrasion of a textile can have an important detrimental influence on its appearance, strength and end-use properties. In particular the visual appearance of the collar and cuffs in textile garments can be adversely affected by both dry and wet abrasion to a greater extent than the rest of the garment. This leads to the overall acceptable wear lifetime of the garment being reduced even if the rest of the garment is relatively unabraded and visually acceptable and hence suitable for wear.

It is known that the construction of collars and cuffs creates localised high levels of curvature in the yams and fibres at the exposed edge points and it is this fibre/yam configuration, added to the exposed position within the garment, that leads to the increased propensity to dry and wet abrasion. In addition for some collar constructions an internal, rigid polymer"bone"support is incorporated into the collar for enhanced rigidity and improved appearance. However, within the collar this rigid bone can

provide an internal cutting edge which further increases the detrimental abrasion process at the collar point.

It is an object of the present invention to obviate or mitigate the aforesaid disadvantages and to provide textile collar and cuff constructions with improved abrasion lifetime.

According to the present invention there is provided a method of producing a garment or other fabric article having increased resistance to wet or dry abrasion, particularly at edge portions, comprising constructing at least those portions of the article having an abradable edge using pre-treated fabric, or untreated fabric and then subsequently treating the fabric during the course of the manufacture of the article, said treatment comprising treatment with (a) an epichlorohydrin adduct of a polyamide-polyamine derived from a dicarboxylic acid and a dihydrocarbon triamine, in particular a polyamide-polyamine having a repeating unit of the general formula :

wherein Ri ils present or absent and R1 (when present), R2 and R3 are each independently an alkylene group with 1-4 carbon atoms or an arylene group; or with

(b) a UV-or other radiation-curable high molecular weight urethane acrylate or dimethacrylate resin ; and subsequent curing by heat or UV-radiation respectively. The epichlorohydrin adducts (a) are cationically charged (typically by quatemisation of the nitrogen between R2 and R). Typical dicarboxylic acids include oxalic, malonic, succinic, glutaric and adipic acid; and typical triamines include dialkylene triamines, particularly diethylene triamine.

These epichlorohydrin adducts are fully described by Carr, Doane, Hamerstrand and Hofweiter, J., Appl Polymer Science, Vol. 17, pp 71-735 (1973). Typical resins are sold by Hercules, Inc. as KYMENE and as Hercosett. A commercial synthesis of adipic acid, diethylene triamine and epichlorohydrin-based materials is described in the Carr et al publication and in US-A-2 926 154 and US-A-4 240 995.

These materials are previously known as treatment agents to provide resistance to wrinkling and as ingredients in laundry products to provide improved appearance and anti-fading. (See, for example, EP-A-0978556 and WO 98/29530).

It is the surprising finding of the present invention that, when applied to the garment or article during manufacture, particularly to edge areas such as collars and cuffs, these materials provide enhanced abrasion resistance, both in wet and dry conditions.

Preferably the fabric is a cellulosic fabric, particularly cotton or a cotton blend.

The cationic materials used according to the present invention are applied at about 0. 1% to 10%, preferably 0. 1 % to 1 % on weight of fabric.

The epichlorohydrin adducts are gently heat-treated after application, for example by a hot press or by hot air, in order to firmly adhere the coating to the fibres.

Radiation curable resins or pre-polymer systems are widely used in the coatings industry, in particular for application to wood, paper, plastic and metal substrates. In addition to primarily functioning as abrasion resistant coatings, with varying levels of flexibility depending on end-use, the coatings performance profile may also incorporate weather resistance, liquid repellency and colour into the surface varnish/coating.

Coloured pigments are also utilised in radiation curable lithographic and flexographic printing inks for the paper, packaging and plastics industries where high definition images are required. Other end-use applications include solder-resist and etch-resist finishes for the electronics, or simply as a laminating adhesive combining two substances.

The attractiveness of radiation curable systems are based on the low temperature cure, rapid cure time, application process flexibility from solvent-based or aqueous-based systems, and final coatings performance. While these process benefits have been exploited by many industries, the introduction of radiation curable technology in the textile area has been very limited or non-existent.

The resins in the present invention are applied preferably in the form of an aqueous emulsion, or a solvent based solution, or as an undiluted prepolymer formulation. Typically the application level is between 0. 1 % tol 0%, preferably 0. 1% to 5%. After application, the fabric is dried and then subjected to a source ofUV light in order to effect a suitable cure. It is noticeable that in comparison, magnesium chloride-catalysed urethane resins used to provide crease-resistance on fibres by providing a"memory", cause up to 30% loss in dry strength, with the fabric becoming more brittle. In conventional use, this problem is masked by the addition of polyethylene softeners as lubricants. Problems then arise by the removal of the softener in the washing processes which follow.

While we do not wish to be bound by theory, it is believed that the present invention works by providing a surface buffer which protects the fibres from abrasion, rather than providing internal cross-linking making the fibres more rigid.

In either embodiment, the treatment can be provided by any conventional desired method, including"printing"it on with a soaked pad; localised spraying; etc.

Specific embodiments of the present invention will now be described, by way of example only, with reference to the accompanying examples.

The essential composition herein applied to improve the abrasion performance, and hence the garment lifetime, comprises an aqueous cationic poly (aminoamide)epichlorohydrin (PAE) type fabric treatment material. The cationic PAE materials useful herein will generally be applied at about 0. 1% to 10% on weight fabric, o. w. f, and can be applied by padding, exhaustion or spraying. Most preferably such cationic PAE materials will be applied at 0.1% to 1.0% o. w. f. Following the application of the

PAE material, the collar or fabric is subsequently dried ! cured at from 30 C to 180 C though most preferably from 90 C and 150 C. Other preferred compositions include, polyurethane acrylates and polyurethane methacrylates or mixtures thereof, which are cured by ultraviolet and/or visible radiation.

EXAMPLES Tests were conducted using 65%/35% polyester/cotton, and 100% cotton collars.

The dry and wet flat abrasion tests were performed using a Martindale Abrasion tester and a standard wool fabric abradant following the guidelines in British Standard 5690 (1991) test method. Prior to dry testing the samples were conditioned at 20 C and 65% relative humidity for 24 hours. The wet abrasion test involved pre-soaking the test fabric and standard abradant fabric in distilled water, squeezing to 100% wet pick up and performing the comparative abrasion test until two yams were broken. This point was deemed as the fabric failure and the number of rub cycles to failure noted.

Currently no internationally recognised test method is available for accurately evaluating collar or cuff abrasion. Therefore to assess the localised abrasion at the collar point, and in particular the effect of the rigid supporting bone within the collar point, the Martindale abrasion sample holder was modified to hold and position the collar point or edge in order to simulate the dry and wet abrasion action. The collar was assessed as failed when the polymer bone was first visible, having burst through the collar point, and the number of rub cycles to failure noted.

EXAMPLE 1 Table 1 shows the abrasion performance of a collar point under dry and wet conditions.

Table 1

PAE Application Level Dry, Point Abrasion Wet, Point Abrasion (Hercosett 125) Failure Failure % o. w. f.

0 2390 2750 2 2710 3200 *Burst collar when bone is apparent.

It is clear that both the dry and wet abrasion lifetime of the collar point is improved by the application of the PAE material.

EXAMPLE 2 Table 2

PAE Application Level Dry, Flat Abrasion Wet, Flat Abrasion (Hercosett 125) Failure Failure % o. w. f.

0 8733 9400 2 14566 10233 *Number of rub cycles to break two yams.

It is evident that both the dry and wet flat abrasion lifetime is improved by the application of the PAE material.

EXAMPLE 3 Table 3 shows the wet abrasion performance of untreated control collar points and ultraviolet cured polymer treated collar points. Typical polyester acrylate or polyurethane acrylates radiation curable polymers were applied to the textile, together with 0.5%, on weight of radiation curable coatings of a photoinitiator, dried and ultraviolet radiation cured.

Table 3

Sample Wet Abrasion Number of Rubs to Burst Collar Control 2925 Ebecryl 230* Treated, 5% o. w. f. 6025 IRR 456 Treated, 5% o. w. f. 5072 *UCB Ltd. products

Claims

Claims 1. A method of producing a garment or other fabric article having increased resistance to wet or dry abrasion, particularly at edge portions, comprising constructing at least those portions of the article having an abradable edge using pre-treated fabric, or untreated fabric and then subsequently treating the fabric during the course of the manufacture of the article, said treatment comprising treatment with (a) an epichlorohydrin adduct of a polyamide-polyamine derived from a dicarboxylic acid and a dihydrocarbon triamine, in particular a polyamide- polyamine having a repeating unit of the general formula :

wherein Ru ils present or absent and R1 (when present), R2 and R3 are each independently an alkylene group with 1-4 carbon atoms or an arylene group; or with

(b) a UV-curable high molecular weight urethane acrylate or dimethacrylate resin ; and subsequent curing by heat or UV-radiation respectively.
2. A method according to Claim 1, in which said dicarboxylic acid is oxalic, malonic, succinic, glutaric or adipic acid.
3. A method according to Claim 1 or Claim 2, in which said triamine is a dialkylene triamine.

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4. A method according to Claim 3, in which said triamine is diethylene triamine and said carboxylic acid is adipic acid.
5. A method according to any of Claims I to 4, in which the cationic materials (a) are applied at a rate of about 0. 1 % to 10% on weight of fabric.
6. A method according to Claim 5, in which the cationic materials (a) are applied at a rate of about 0. 1% to 1 % on weight of fabric.
7. A method according to any of Claims 1 to 6, in which the cationic epichlorohydrin adducts (a) are subsequently heat cured.
8. A method according to Claim l, in which the UV-curable resins (b) are applied at a rate of about 0. 1 % to 10% on weight of fabric.
9. A method according to Claim 1 or Claim 8, in which the UV-curable resins applied at a rate of 0. 1% to 5% on weight of fabric.