Perfume Finishing of Cotton/Polyester Fabric Cross-linked with DMDHEU in Presence of Softeners

Abstract

The inclusion of softeners (20 g/l), namely, Siligen VN (silicon based), Basosoft SWK (cationic), or Leomin NI (nonionic), in a dimethyloldihydroxy ethylene urea (DMDHEU, 50 g/l) finishing formulation of 65/35 cotton/polyester blended fabric, enhances the resiliency of the fabric, which is expressed as the dry wrinkle recovery angle (WRA). The fabric acquires the ability to keep a rose oil fragrance upon storage up to 3 months. Improving the WRA and acquiring the ability to keep the fragrance can be descendingly arranged as follows: Siligen VN>Basosoft SWK>Leomin NI. Increasing the Siligen VN concentration (0-30 g/l) in the finishing formulation is accompanied by a small increase in the WRA, and a noticeable enhancement in the ability to keep the rose oil fragrance upon storage. By increasing the rose oil concentration (100-300 g/l) in a perfumed bath of cross-linked/Siligen VN, the softened fabric is accompanied by a slight drop in the WRA, and a decreasing ability to keep the fragrance up to 3 months. However, the extent of the fragrance is higher at higher rose oil concentrations, regardless of the storage time. The ability of the fabric to keep the fragrance can be attributed to solubilization and/or encapsulation of the perfume in the oleophilic segments of the softener, and its slow release with time, so that the smell can be sensed. This ability decreases after increasing the storage time up to 3 months, and depending on the type of perfume oil used, is descendingly arranged as follows: jasmine oil > rose oil > sandal oil.