Easy care finish

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Introduction
• Easy care, durable press, crease resistant, wash and
wear, crease resistant, durable press, permanent
press, shrink proof, wrinkle resistant and wrinkle free

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Properties expected to be imparted
• Uncomplicated laundering
• Minimum wrinkling when dry or wet
• Fast drying
• No ironing necessary
• Good soil-repellency and easy removal of soil by
washing
• Full retention of all creases and pleats
• Good retention of dimensions and shape
• Wearer comfort in different climates
• Adequate resistance to wear and tear.
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Advantages
• improved dimensional stability and shape retention
• less tendency to creasing
• easier to iron
• softer and smoother
• better appearance and therefore more durable
• less change in shade
• improved wet fastness of dyeings and prints
• less tendency to pilling, especially of fibre blends
• greater wash resistance of mechanically produced
lustre and embossed finishes and finishes with
softeners, stiffening agents, water-repellents and oil-
repellents
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Mechanism of creasing in cellulose
• Under stress, the hydrogen bonds between
adjacent cellulose chains can break allowing the
chains to slip past each other.
• New H-bonds can form as the hydroxyl groups re-
associate with different partners.
• Having done so, there are no forces to pull the
neighboring chains back to their former position.
• Water will facilitate the disruption of these bonds
by forming H-bonds between the water molecule
and the cellulose hydroxyls and act as lubricant.
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Hydrogen bonding in cellulose

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Factors affecting wrinkling
➢Fibre factors
Fine fibres exhibit less wrinkling
➢Yarn factors
Low twist yarn exhibit less wrinkling
➢Fabric factors
Tightly woven fabrics exhibit higher wrinkling

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Easy-care finishing
Mechanisms of easy-care
• Two approaches are used
– Old approach: incorporation of a polymerized
finish in the pores.
– Newer approach: the reaction of multifunctional
crosslinking agents with the hydroxyl groups of
adjacent cellulose molecules.

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Urea formaldehyde

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Easy-care finishing
Urea formaldehyde
• poor wash resistance (due to high sensitivity
to hydrolysis)
• negative impact on the light fastness of direct
and reactive dyes.
• in combination with bleaching agents a
release of HCl is observed, resulting into
degradation of the cellulose and thus a loss in
strength.
• Stiffer handle of fabric
• Formaldehyde release
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Easy-care finishing
Melamine formaldehyde

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To increase stability it is converted into methoxy methyl melamine
Easy-care finishing
Melamine formaldehyde
• Higher degree of crosslinking
• More stiff finish
• Durable to laundering
• Reaction with chlorine cause yellowing but no
HCl
• Enhancement of flame retardancy when used
in combination with phosphorous

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Easy-care finishing
Dimethyloldihydroxyethylene urea (DMDHEU)
About 90 % of the easy-care finish products are
based on DMDHEU

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Easy-care finishing
Dimethyloldihydroxyethylene urea (DMDHEU)
• It is less reactive than DMU and TMM
• The reactivity of DMDHEU can be further reduced
by reaction with methanol and diethylene glycol.
• These alcohols are also formaldehyde scavengers
by forming acetal.

• A typical DMDHEU commercial product is made

from about 45 % DMDHEU, 9 % diethylene glycol
and 2 % methanol.
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Easy-care finishing
Dimethyloldihydroxyethylene urea (DMDHEU)
The main properties:
• Low to very low reactivity (when ether
modified)
• Excellent durability to laundering
• Low chlorine retention
• Medium to very low formaldehyde release
• The most commonly used durable press
products.

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Easy-care finishing
Dimethyloldihydroxyethylene urea (DMDHEU)
• Effect of alcohol on Formaldehyde release

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Easy-care finishing
Acceptable Limits of Formaldehyde in Clothing
• Infants under 2 years of age < 30 ppm (30 mg/kg);
• Adults and children with sensitive skin < 30 ppm
• Adult clothing in direct contact with skin< 100 ppm
• For clothing and textiles not in direct contact with
skin: no greater than 300 ppm

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Easy-care finishing
Scavangers
• Due to the changing regulations on formaldehyde over the years
alternatives have been developed containing less or no formaldehyde.

Two types of compounds are used

• N compounds (urea, ethylene urea and carbohydrazide)
• Alcohols (nitroalcohols, ethylene glycol, diethylene glycol
and sorbitol)

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Low formaldehyde crosslinking agents
DMeDHEU

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Easy-care finishing
Properties of DMeDHEU
• Higher price
• low chlorine retention
• limited wash resistance
• yellowing (non-modified DMeDHEU)
• in some cases odour formation during production

• Combinations of DMDHEU and DMeDHEU in a 1 : 1 ratio,

however, have gained in importance since they combine
acceptable performance and an acceptable price with
reduced formaldehyde content.

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