Degumming

100% Silk Fibers

1. Degumming (to get rid of
non-fibrous
materials
(sericin))
2. Bleaching (to make the
goods whiter)

Carbonising
100% Wool Fibers
1. Carbonising (to remove leave, bark
and other parts of the plants from the
wool fibers)
2. Scouring (to get rid of fat and oil
from the fibers)
3. Bleaching (to make the fibers whiter)

 Morphology of Textile Fibers

1. Crystalline Regions are the regions that
cannot absorb water, humidity and
dyestuff solutions but they are the part for
fiber strength.
2. Non-Crystalline Regions or Amorphous
regions are the regions that can absorb wa
ter, humidity and dyestuff therefore they c
an be dyed but they are a very weak part o
f the fibers.

3. Orientation of the Crystalline

Regions alongside the fiber axis
This property is very important in t
hat it will increase the tensile stre
ngth of the fiber if it presents in th
e optimal quantity.

Introduction

The outer hydrophobic layer has to be removed to make the

fabric absorbent

The process by which the water-resistant layer is removed

is called scouring

In cotton textile processing, scouring is also known as

kiering, kier-boiling or boiling out
Boiling the cloth or yarn in alkaline chemicals
The boiler or vessel in which this is done is called a
kier and hence the terms kiering and kierboiling

Changes taking place during Scouring

The saponifiable oils in it are converted into soaps
The unsaponifiable oils and waxes it contains are
emulsified
The proteins are hydrolysed into soluble products
The pectose and pectins are changed into soluble salts
of pectic or metapectic acids
Mineral matter is dissolved
Dirt particles are removed and held in a stable form in
the kier liquor

 Saponification
Vegetable oils, animal fats and mineral oils are not
soluble in water
A vegetable oil is a glyceride of fatty acid
When oil such as this is heated with a solution of NaOH
in water
Oil splits up into fatty acid and glycerine
Glycerine dissolves freely in water
Fatty acid reacts with NaOH to form its sodium salt i.e.
soap which is also soluble in water
The conversion of glycerides of fatty acids into soaps by
using NaOH is known as saponification

 Emulsification
Waxes present
saponification

in

the

fibre

cannot

be

removed

by

They can however be removed from the fibre by converting

them into emulsion, which can be held into kier solution
An emulsion is a fairly stable mixture of two liquids, which
normally do not mix with each other
The soap formed by the saponification of oils in the kier
acts as the emulsifying agent
Waxes
+
Soap Emulsion
(already formed by a
saponification or added)

Solvent Scouring
Scouring is done with trichloroethylene
The fabric is impregnated and passed
through trichloroethylene where the wax
and oil dissolves and are removed
Other impurities that remain will be
degraded and dissolved during peroxide
bleaching
Satisfactory in conjunction with peroxide
bleaching

Standard Recipe for

scouring

Standard Recipe: The amount of different chemicals used

in a kier boiler may vary according to

Hardness of water.
Quality / Quantity of cotton.
Fabric construction/ texture, yarn twist etc.
But in generally, the following amounts of the chemical are
used.

Caustic Soda (Strong) 2-5% owf

Soda ash (mild) 0.3-0.5%
Sequestering agent0.05-0.5%
Wetting agent 0.25-1.0%
M:L1:4 to1:5
Temp100C-120C
Time12hrs - 4hrs