US1235929A - Process for bleaching textile fibers. - Google Patents

Description

UNITED TATE PATENT @FFIQE ALOIS SGHAIDHAUF, OF FRANKFORT-ON-THE-MAIN, GERMANY, ASSIGNOR TO THE ROESSLER & HASSLACHER CHEMICAL (10., OF NEW YORK, N. Y., A. CORPORATION OF NEW YORK.

PROCESS FOR BLEACHING TEXTILE FIBERS.

No Drawing.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, ALOIS SCHAIDHAUF, a subject of the Emperor of Germany, and resident of Frankfort on the Main, Germany, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Processes for Bleaching Textile Fibers, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to improvements in processes for bleaching textile fibers, such as cotton, by means of alkaline hydrogen peroxid solutions stabilized by anticatalyzers.

The introduction of the strongly alkaline solutions of sodium peroxid for bleaching purposes, though easily obtainable, has met with delay because of the fact that hydrogen peroxid solutions of strongly alkaline reaction very quickly give off their oxygen.

Furthermore, those sln'lled in the art generally have been of the opinion that textile fibers containing cellulose could not be treated with any strongly alkaline agent giving 011? oxygen, without reducing their valuable properties.

In the standard text-book The Chemistry of OeZZuZose by Schwalbe, (1911) the following is said on page 143, m:

Again the strongly alkaline solutions are the most detrimental ones. Here sodium peroxid stands in the front line. If dissolved in water one obtains caustic alkali besides hydrogen peroxid and the detrimental action of the former must be counteracted by the addition of acid or magnesium sulfate unless it is referable to operate with a neutral bath as or instance for such bleaching operation, the purpose of which consists strictly in removingdmpurltles only, without simultaneously oxidizing the cellulose-fiber.

In view of the points discussed above it has been suggested to achieve the cleaning and simultaneous bleaching of the cotton as well as of other vegetable fibers with slightly alkaline solutions of materials giving ofi oxygen, said solutions being produced by first neutralizing the stron alkali by a strong acid and then rendering the nearly neutral solution thus obtained alkaline by adding thereto a salt of a slight alkaline reaction.' (See Deutsche Faerberzeittmg of June 30, 1912, pg. 512513.) This latter Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Aug. "3, 1917.

Application filed October 2, 1913. Serial No. 793,039.

process is both too cumbersome and expensive to compete with the Wellknown processes using chlorin as a bleaching agent.

I have endeavored to carry out the bleachingrocess with strongly alkaline solutions, as o tained for instance when dissolving sodium peroxid in water, without previously neutralizing the free caustic alkali.

I have now found, that this purpose may be achieved if small quantities of a soluble magnesium salt, or small quantities of a combination of magnesia or magnesium, with silica or silicates respectively, are added to a solution of a peroxid, preferably so dium peroxid.

The addition may be made before or after preparing the solution of the sodium peroxid; one may add either ready made compounds or one may add the components of the same to effect the formation of the respective compounds in the solution of the peroxid.

With great advantage I may prevent the premature decomposition of the peroxid solution by employing the anticatalyzers in a state in which the latter are able to difi'use as much as possible within the solution, viz. by employing them in a colloidal or gelatinous form.

In preparing the peroxid solution I may also use natural water containing such, anticatalyzers, and to such natural water containing an anticatalyzer in either an insufiicient quantity or only one component of the same, I may add either the missing quantity of the anticatalyzer or the missing component in order to produce the anticatalytic action within the solution.

I have furthermore made the surprising discovery that the fiber is not affected in any way by treating it with solutions having a high content of free caustic alkali if the anticatalytic action, form-ing the subject matter of this invention, has been established in said solutions.

The following example will serve for the further elucidation of my invention. In bleaching cotton for instance I proceed as follows:

100 kilograms of cotton goods are thoroughly wetted whereby they take up 200 kilograms of water. In preparing the bleaching bath Idissolve 1.6 kilograms of sodium peroxid in 400 liters of Water. To this solution I add solutions containing each 0.15 kilograms sodium-silicate and 0.12 kilograms of magnesium chlorid, whereupon I finally add 0.4 kilograms of Monopol-soap, the latter comprising a staple standard soap made by treating olive oil with caustic potash, a certain amount of Turkey red oil and carbon tetrachlorid having been added to the crude soap. The bleaching bath then being ready, the wetted cotton-goods are immersed in the same. I

\Vithin the first hour the temperature is raised up to about 65-6'7 G. and maintained at this point for a further hour;

thereupon it is raised up to about 87 0.,

and the bleaching is continued until the bath is exhausted.

Cottons'of various origins display different behaviors in being bleached by means of oxygen, inasmuch as some become perfectly 7 white by one single treatment, necessitating only a little more bleaching liquor, whereas others require a second treatment. a

By the present invention I succeed 1n bleaching cotton perfectly white without affecting it in the least. I

My new process compares very favorably with the processes using chlorin as a bleaching agent, inasmuch as chlorin is unwholesome, afl'ects the cotton unfavorably and gives cause to losses in weight, thus rendering cotton bleached by my new process superior in every way to that bleached wlth chlorin. g

The properties of cotton bleached by the present process do not sufi'er in any way or manner, but, on the contrary the cotton exhibits most remarkable properties in regard to strength and elastlcity.

In bleaching loose cotton by the present process the losses sustained in weight are very considerably lower than those by the old processes employing the old lye-boil and chlorin bleaching process. y new process is also superior to the chlorin process inasmuch 'as it is free from deleterious efiect on the health of the workmen, and is much simpler in its operation without causing any greater expense than said latter process.

It is obvious that, while I have explained my invention with reference-to the bleaching of cotton and the claims are especially intended to comprehend cotton as one of the fibers which may be treated by mynew process, nevertheless the principles of the inven tion and the new process disclosed are just as applicable to other textile fibers as to cotton, as well as to other material which in the modern sense of the terms textile fiber may be understood as such, such material being for instance straw, wood in either disintegrated form or even in the form of plates, etc. I do not restrict myself there fore, to the use of the process in connection with the bleaching of any particular fibers further than the scope of the appended claims demands, and where in the claims I use the word soluble as qualifying the word anti-catalyzer I mean to use such word in a broad sense including as well col- 2. The process of bleaching textile fibers consisting in treating the fibers with a solution containing both caustic alkali and a substance carrying available oxygen andretarding the decomposition of the latter substance tion of said fibers by said caustic alkali by the presence of an anti-catalyzer of colloidal and simultaneously preventing decomposition containing both caustic alkali and available oxygen in the form. of hydrogen peroxid, and retarding the decomposition of the hydrogen peroxid and simultaneously preventing decomposition of said fibers by said caustic alkali by the presence of an anticatalyzer of colloidal form. 1

5. The process of bleaching textile fibers consisting in treating the fibers with a solution containing both caustic alkali and a substance carrying available oxygen, retarding the decomposition of said latter substance and simultaneously preventing decomposition of said fibers by said caustic alkali by the addition of a soluble magneslum compound which acts as an anti-catalyzer.

6. The process of bleaching textile fibers consisting in treating the fiber with an alkaline solution containing active oxygen and acting as an antic'atalyzer.

7. The process of bleaching textile fibers -consisting in treating the fibers with a solua colloidal magnesium compound, the latter caustic alkali by the addition of a magnesium compound which acts as an anti-catalyzer.

8. The process of bleaching textile fibers consisting in treating the fiber with an alkaline solution containing active oxygen in the alkali by the addition of a soluble combination of magnesia and silica, said combination acting as an anti-catalyzer.

10. The process of bleaching textile fibers consisting in treating the fiber with an alkaline solution containing active oxygen and a colloidal combination of magnesia and silica acting as an anticatalyzer.

11. The process of bleaching textile fibers consisting in treating the fibers with a solution containing both caustic alkali and available oxygen in the form of hydrogen peroxid, and retarding the decomposition of the hydrogen peroxid and simultaneously preventing decomposition of said fibers by said caustic alkali by the addition of a combination of magnesia and silica, said soluble combination acting as an anti-catalyzer;

12. The process of bleaching textile fibers consisting in treating thefiber with an alkaline solution containing active oxygen in the form of hydrogen peroxid and a colloidal combination of magnesia and silica acting as an anticatalyzer.

In testimony whereof I have signed my name to this specification in the presence of two subscribing witnesses.

ALOIS SCHAIDHAUF.

Witnesses:

JEAN Gmmn, 1 CARL GRUND.