Properties of a new nitrogen‐free additive as an alternative to urea and its application in reactive printing

Abstract

AbstractThe development of a urea substitute with little nitrogen has become a hot research topic for cleaner production in reactive printing. In the current study, a mixture made from glycerol and 1,4‐butanediol (1:1, w/w), namely, urea substitute glycerol butanediol (USGB), was used instead of urea in the printing paste formulation. USGB’s abilities of moisture adsorption, swelling fibres and solubilisation to reactive dyes were compared with those of urea. The printing properties of USGB on different fabrics with reactive dyes were intensively investigated in comparison with urea and commercial 391‐H. The results showed that USGB’s ability to swell viscose fibres was superior to that of urea. When the dosage of USGB was within 8‐10 wt% in the printing paste, the colour yield of USGB on viscose fabrics drew near to that of urea and was higher than that of 391‐H. During viscose printing of reactive blue dyes with different shades and structures, the colour performance of USGB was close to that of urea and higher than that of 391‐H. Furthermore, USGB could obtain good printing effects in deep printing with Reactive Turquoise K‐GL on different fabrics. Compared with urea, the content of ammonia‐nitrogen and total nitrogen in the printing wastewater using USGB were greatly reduced, which is of huge significance for lowering ammonia‐nitrogen emissions in the printing industry.