The covering of neps and immature cotton on knit and woven fabrics by simple chemical pretreatment
Authors
Richard Combs
Abstract
Neps are hopelessly entangled fibers., Generally, cottons that are classed as immature are more susceptible than mature fibers to the formation of neps during fiber preparation and yarn processing. Neps in (otton yarn and fabric have always posed problems to the textile dyer. Immature cotton fiber has poor cell wall development and when that fiber gets tangled, it forms a ncp. The neps in dyed fabric absorb less dye <'n. 111 the past, better fiber sel~tion methods and modifications of machine settings during textile processing were practiced to avoid the formation of neps. Mercerization of yarn, a caustic soda chemical treatment, was fQund to be partially effective in covering neps. Some dyes have also been i:leveloped to cover neps, however they areavailable in only a limited range of colors. A study conducted by Mehta (1) reported a chitosan pretreatment method to successfully cover fabric nep.s prior to dyeing with direct dyes. (ChitoS