Textile Printing Research Articles

Research Progress on Typical Quaternary Ammonium Salt Polymers.

Quaternary ammonium salt polymers, a kind of polyelectrolyte with a quaternary ammonium group, are widely used in traditional and emerging industries due to their good water-solubility, adjustable cationicity and molecular weight, high efficiency and nontoxicity. In this paper, firstly, the properties and several synthesis methods of typical quaternary ammonium salt monomers were introduced. Secondly, the research progress on the synthesis of polymers was summarized from the perspective of obtaining products with high molecular weight, narrow molecular weight distribution and high monomer conversion, and special functional polymers. Thirdly, the relationships between the structures and properties of the polymer were analyzed from the perspectives of molecular weight, charge density, structural stability, and microstructural regulation of the polymer chain unit. Fourthly, typical examples of quaternary ammonium salt polymers in the application fields of water treatment, daily chemicals, petroleum exploitation, papermaking, and textile printing and dyeing were listed. Finally, constructive suggestions were put forward on developing quaternary ammonium salt polymers with high molecular weights, strengthening the research on the relationships between the structures and their properties and pinpointing relevant application fields.

Scaffold-free 3D printing for fabrication of biomimetic branched multinucleated cardiac tissue construct: A promising ex vivo model for in situ detection of drug-induced sodium ion channel responses

3D bioprinted cardiac constructs have the potential to develop into functional native tissue. Although bioengineered cardiac constructs can be a promising tool for evaluating cardiac responses, the intrinsic limitation in reproducing the well-defined structural and functional properties of native cardiac tissue within the generated substitute restricts their applications. Herein, for the first time, we have introduced a sophisticated scaffold-free de novo three-dimensional (3D) printing model (SFP) to regenerate biomimetic cardiac tissue with a multinucleated branched cellular structure similar to native tissue–like phenotypes. Furthermore, the formation of tight intracellular junctions expressing connexin 43 certifies the maturation of the fabricated structure. In addition, in situ measurement of the bioengineered cardiac construct's physiologic sodium ion channel responses to known cardiac drugs was successfully performed. Hence, the proposed methodology recapitulates a significant milestone in developing biomimetic cardiac tissue structure and functionality in vitro and could be applied for regenerative therapies, disease modeling, and drug screening.

The Fate and Transport of Chlorinated Polyfluorinated Ether Sulfonates and Other PFAS through Industrial Wastewater Treatment Facilities in China.

Wastewater from certain industrial processes can be primary emission sources of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) and fluorinated alternatives like chlorinated polyfluorinated ether sulfonates (Cl-PFESA). Two such industrial processes are electroplating and textile printing and dyeing (PD). This study focused on the fate of Cl-PFESA in wastewater from these two industrial processes, in comparison to other PFAS, as they went through different wastewater treatment plants located in southeast China. The total target PFAS concentrations were 520 ± 30 and 4200 ± 270 ng/L at the effluents of the PD WWTP and electroplating WWTP, respectively. Specifically, 6:2 Cl-PFESA (18%) and 8:2 Cl-PFESA (0.7%) were abundant in electroplating-wastewater. Cl-PFESA were also detected in PD wastewater but at trace concentrations and were likely present due to diffuse emissions. The dissolved-phase Cl-PFESA and PFAS mass flows through the WWTPs were fairly constant throughout both facilities. The majority of Cl-PFESA was captured by sludge sedimentation. However, there were individual treatment processes that could cause the wastewater concentrations to fluctuate, and also could lead to relative enrichment of specific Cl-PFESAs as indicated by the 6:2/8:2 Cl-PFESA ratios. Cl-PFESA and perfluoroalkyl sulfonic acids were more influenced by the investigated treatment processes than perfluorocarboxylic acids.

Printing of cotton fabrics using microwave irradiation

Irradiation Microwave was used in fixation of pigment prints on cotton fabrics with a colour strength parameters comparable with the previous research obtained in case of thermo-fixation procedures. However printing pastes was introduced to the fabric via screen printing methods. The printed fabrics was subjected to irradiation microwave for different periods of time at microwave power. Results of both covered and uncovered ranges from 3.8 to 10.70 and 1.66 to 8.20.Also the effect of irradiation microwave on printed cotton fabrics with yellow pigment for 6 min, for both covered and uncovered ranges from 3.50 to 15.52 and 5.20 to 16.80, likewise fastness properties of the cotton fabrics printed with yellow pigment fixed either by optimum conditions for irradiation microwave for both washing and rubbing which ranges from 4/5 for colour change(cc) and for colour staining(cs) which is 4. In order to compare the initial result, another samples of cotton fabrics were printed with the same paste, dried and subjected to fixation procedure. The colour strength of the printed cotton fabrics fixed through irradiation microwave was found to be time and microwave power dependent. Results of this investigation clarified also that, regardless of the time of microwave, covering the pigment printed cotton fabric samples with covered and uncovered sample. Furthermore, the influence of reduction of the particle size of pigment yellow colour to the nano-scale on the colour strength and overall fastness properties of cotton fabrics printed and fixed using irradiation microwave was determined.

Non-standard colorimetry in ICC colour management

In ICC v4 colour management, data is exchanged between different colour encodings via a fixed Profile Connection Space (PCS), in which colorimetry is based on the D50 illuminant, and the CIE 1931 standard observer. According to the ICC specification, colorimetry that is based on a different illuminant, or observer should be transformed into the fixed PCS; however, while a chromatic adaptation method is specified for when illuminants are different, there is no method specified for differences in observer. The Waypoint method has been proposed as a means of transforming between different colorimetric data encodings. In this study a Waypoint-based method recommended by ICC was evaluated as a mechanism for transforming into the ICC PCS, as applied to a use case in digital textile printing in which source colorimetry is based on the D65 illuminant and the CIE 1964 observer. It was compared with an alternative approach in which a non-ICC PCS was used within a conventional ICC colour management framework. The results show that when both source and destination colorimetry are based on D65/10-degrees, both methods perform equally well. However, when the source and destination colorimetry do not match, the ICC approach of transforming via the standard PCS yields better results.

Antibacterial polyvinyl alcohol nanofiltration membrane incorporated with Cu(OH)2 nanowires for dye/salt wastewater treatment

In many important industries, such as the textile printing industry, a large amount of dye/salt wastewater is often discharged, which can destroy the ecological environment of the water body. Membrane technology has a great potential in the treatment of environmental problems caused by dye/salt wastewater. Polyvinyl alcohol (PVA) nanofiltration (NF) membrane has a bright future in dye/salt wastewater treatment, however, works on this are rare. Herein, antibacterial PVA NF membrane incorporated with Cu(OH)2 nanowires for the dye/salt wastewater treatment is reported. The membrane was prepared via coating the solutions containing PVA, glutaraldehyde and Cu(OH)2 nanowires on the polyethersulfone ultrafiltration membrane. Cu(OH)2 nanowires has a diameter of 60 nm and was successfully introduced into the membrane. The introduction of nanowires improved the membrane hydrophilicity and roughness, which is conducive to the improvement of membrane flux. Membrane separation performance for one component solution and dye/salt solution were investigated. The introduction of Cu(OH)2 increases the flux of the membrane obviously (the highest increase is 178.78% (from 21.49 to 38.42 L·m−2·h−1·bar−1, for NaCl solution as the feed). Besides, the membrane doped with nanowires also possessed a high dye/salt selectivity. For one component solution, the dye removal rate was over 97.00% while the salt rejection was low (the lowest was 13.18% (NaCl)). For the dye/salt solution, the dye (Congo Red) rejection kept at a high level (98.91%) and the salt (NaCl) rejection was still low (13.71%), while the flux was also high (37.56 L·m−2·h−1·bar−1). The performance is superior to that of many membranes reported in previous works. Moreover, the Cu(OH)2 nanowires endowed the membrane with an improved and high antibacterial property. The sterilization rate of Escherichia coli and Staphylococcus aureus reached more than 99.99%.

Green nanocomposite gels based on binary network of sodium alginate and percolating halloysite clay nanotubes for 3D printing

Alginate hydrogels with embedded rigid percolating network of halloysite clay nanotubes were evaluated as a novel ink for 3D printing. Hydrophilic alginate macromolecules adsorbing on halloysite stabilize the network of the nanotubes and form their own network of interlaced polymer chains. The effect of halloysite content on the structure and properties of the hydrogels was studied by rheometry, thermogravimetric analysis, FTIR-spectroscopy, dynamic light scattering, transmission electron microscopy, and 3D cryo-electron microscopy. Hydrogels demonstrate a very pronounced shear-thinning at extrusion and rather quick viscosity recovery after extrusion assigned to rapid rearrangement of the network structure promoted by mobile alginate chains. Even at low volume fractions (up to 0.054) the nanotubes reinforce the hydrogel increasing its storage modulus up to 650 Pa and inducing the appearance of yield stress. These properties make the alginate/halloysite hydrogels promising for the application in 3D printing for fabrication of green and sustainable nanocomposite materials made from natural components.

Design, inverted vat photopolymerization 3D printing, and initial characterization of a miniature force sensor for localized in vivo tissue measurements

BackgroundTissue healthiness could be assessed by evaluating its viscoelastic properties through localized contact reaction force measurements to obtain quantitative time history information. To evaluate these properties for hard to reach and confined areas of the human body, miniature force sensors with size constraints and appropriate load capabilities are needed. This research article reports on the design, fabrication, integration, characterization, and in vivo experimentation of a uniaxial miniature force sensor on a human forearm.MethodsThe strain gauge based sensor components were designed to meet dimensional constraints (diameter ≤3.5mm), safety factor (≥3) and performance specifications (maximum applied load, resolution, sensitivity, and accuracy). The sensing element was fabricated using traditional machining. Inverted vat photopolymerization technology was used to prototype complex components on a Form3 printer; micro-component orientation for fabrication challenges were overcome through experimentation. The sensor performance was characterized using dead weights and a LabVIEW based custom developed data acquisition system. The operational performance was evaluated by in vivo measurements on a human forearm; the relaxation data were used to calculate the Voigt model viscoelastic coefficient.ResultsThe three dimensional (3D) printed components exhibited good dimensional accuracy (maximum deviation of 183μm). The assembled sensor exhibited linear behavior (regression coefficient of R2=0.999) and met desired performance specifications of 3.4 safety factor, 1.2N load capacity, 18mN resolution, and 3.13% accuracy. The in vivo experimentally obtained relaxation data were analyzed using the Voigt model yielding a viscoelastic coefficient τ=12.38sec and a curve-fit regression coefficient of R2=0.992.ConclusionsThis research presented the successful design, use of 3D printing for component fabrication, integration, characterization, and analysis of initial in vivo collected measurements with excellent performance for a miniature force sensor for the assessment of tissue viscoelastic properties. Through this research certain limitations were identified, however the initial sensor performance was promising and encouraging to continue the work to improve the sensor. This micro-force sensor could be used to obtain tissue quantitative data to assess tissue healthiness for medical care over extended time periods.

Probe into the Low-Carbon Economic Environment Challenges and Opportunities of Textile and Garment Export.

Ecological and environmental protection is the main problem of China's economic construction. As one of the high-energy-consuming industries, the traditional textile printing and dyeing industry has led to great concern from all walks of life in the context of the country's in-depth promotion of energy conservation and consumption reduction. The comprehensive development of a low-carbon economy is the fundamental guarantee for China to solve the problem of climate warming and complete the sustainable development of economic development. The traditional textile printing and dyeing industry should also change its development mode to meet the standards of low-carbon economy. Here, the connotation of low-carbon economy and the significance of promoting the low-carbon economic reform of the textile printing and dyeing industry are described, and the current situation and development trend of the low-carbon economy of China's textile printing and dyeing industry is deeply analyzed. Taking the basic theory of garment trade and low-carbon economy as the carrier, the application of low-carbon development mode in China's textile and garment export business process is expounded. According to the fundamental goal of sustainable development of low-carbon economy and related objectives, the adverse impact on the domestic textile and apparel export business process was discussed and eliminated from three aspects: improve the relevant legal system, enhance the development of new energy, and enhance the importance of enterprises in the relevant whole industry chain.

Preparation and the Catalytic Properties of Attapulgite / TiO2 Nanocomposites

With the rapid development of industry, the discharge of textile printing and dyeing wastewater will cause serious pollution to other pure water bodies. It is imperative to deal with textile printing and dyeing wastewater. In this paper, with titanium tetrachloride as a precursor, attapulgite (ATP) / TiO2 nanocomposites were prepared by a neutralizing hydrolysis method and their catalytic activities were investigated by the oxidative degradation of methylene blue dye using ozone as oxidant. The test results showed that there were significant interactions between TiO2 and ATP support. The effects were also studied of ozone concentration, catalyst amount, reaction temperature, and initial concentration of methylene blue on the degradation rate of methylene blue catalyzed by the prepared attapulgite / TiO2 nanocomposites, and under the optimal conditions, the methylene blue could be degraded more than 90% in 30 minutes. Compared with that of pure ATP, the catalytic activities of ATP / TiO2 nanocomposites were enhenced remarkably. The degradation mechanism of methylene blue was also discussed.

High-Resolution Printing for Electronic Device Fabrication

High-Resolution Printing for Electronic Device Fabrication

A Universal Approach for Room‐Temperature Printing and Coating of 2D Materials (Adv. Mater. 4/2022)

Additive-Free Inks Additive-free dry-only inks can enable functional printing and high-throughput fabrication of elec-tronics at room temperature, but their design proves challenging. In article number 2103660, Jakob Heier and co-workers show how interflake van der Waals interactions in 2D materials can be used to replace the roles of conventional additives for the formulation of additive-free inks.

Numerical simulation of the complex flow during material extrusion in fused filament fabrication

This paper presents a CFD simulation of the non-Newtonian and non-isothermal polymer flow through the nozzle of a fused filament fabrication printer. The modeling approach is based on a melt fraction model which allows to cover the entire flow domain from the solid filament entering the nozzle to the melt state at the nozzle exit. The numerical results were compared with a specially developed setup that allows the measurement of the feeding force required to push the filament through the nozzle. The comparison is carried out over a wide range of filament velocities using different nozzle temperatures and nozzle geometries. It is shown that the assumptions used for the simulation are suitable to predict the melting and flow behavior in the relevant processing range. The model represents both the process region where the filament has sufficient time to melt before reaching the nozzle tip and the region of high filament velocities where there is insufficient time for complete melting. In the latter region, the model predicts that the molten region is reduced to a thin melt film at the tip of the filament as it is pushed against the conical transition zone of the nozzle. Furthermore, the simulation results show that the temperature at the nozzle exit decreases with increasing filament velocity. Based on this modeling approach, melting within the additive manufacturing process of material extrusion can be improved. Furthermore, the findings can be used to optimize the strand deposition.

The Egyptian Identity in the Works of Artist Hassan El-Sharq and its Role in Designing Ladies Printing Fabrics that are in line with Fashion

The Egyptian Identity in the Works of Artist Hassan El-Sharq and its Role in Designing Ladies Printing Fabrics that are in line with Fashion

Design and validation of a 3D printed vertical climbing robot for curved surface

For visual inspection of curved surfaces, we developed a modular 3D printed climbing robot called Ibex. The robot platform consists of a locomotion module which is interconnected with two adhesion modules. The complex structural frames of the locomotion and adhesion modules and the interlocking mechanisms of these modules are completely 3D printed. The 3D printed parts enable the robot to achieve optimized weight which is highly required for adhesion and vertical navigation. It also facilitates the faster and easier form of assembly of the robot platform and reduces the manufacturing cost. To adhere both flat and curved wall surfaces, the suction cup of each adhesion module is made flexible. The flexibility of the suction cup is achieved by 3D printing fabrication methods. For better adhesion and navigation performance of the robot platform, the fabrication method and the material of the suction cup needs to be optimized. Hence, in this paper, we demonstrate the deflection capability of the suction cups with three different materials: resin (printed from Zelta3D), thermoplastic polyurethane (TPU) cups printed using Ultimaker and Cubicon printer. Results show that the suction cup printed from Zelta3D enables the highest adhesion force. In addition, we designed a set up to estimate the thrust force generated by the suction module. From experimental observation, we obtain a linear correlation between the thrust- force and the differential pressure, which can be used for the closed-loop feedback controller design of the suction module.

In Depth Assessment on Digital Textile Printing Environment as the Concrete Path of Making Indonesia 4.0

Textile-garment industry in Indonesia has been established as the primary industry and economy that becoming fundamental to nation’s wealth. Well known as a top 5 of global market supplier, this industry predicted to keep score and improving their productivity to reach better position. In last 2019, Government of Indonesia already announced the roadmap plan of Indonesia 4.0, which put textile-garment industry as the one of priority industry that will be essentially adopting digital equipment and workflow to keep competitive and becoming the backbone of national industry alongside with other 4 industries mentioned. With this initiative being deployed and how the road map plan already announced, Author want to elaborate, assess and analyse how ready is digital adoption on textile-garment manufacturers, specifically on digital printing workflow. So on, this research will be titled “In Depth Assessment on Digital Textile Printing Environment as the Concrete Path of Making Indonesia 4.0”. The main purpose of this research is to give the clear picture of how ready textile-garment industry Indonesia to fulfil both of extensive demand from domestic and global market by adopting digital equipment, in this research digital textile printing. By elaborating all the considerations and factor, we are hoping that there would be identified root issues beneath of this industry and directly formulating the best approach and solution for this industry.

One‐step mini‐emulsion copolymerisation of waterborne polysiloxane‐modified polyacrylate/pigment hybrid latex and its application in textile pigment printing

AbstractTextile pigment printing and dyeing is an environmentally friendly and sustainable clean production technology that has the advantages of saving water, saving energy and reducing pollution. However, the application of this technology in industry is severely limited because of the disadvantages of stiff hand feeling, poor wet rubbing fastness and other performance properties of traditional pigment‐printed fabric. To improve the pigment printing performance, a novel method of preparing hybrid pigment latex containing silicone by one‐step mini‐emulsion copolymerisation of silicone and acrylic monomers was explored in this work. Here, a comprehensive study of the effect of the ratio of silicone and acrylic, and the silicone component of alkoxysilane and cyclic siloxanes, on the properties of hybrid latex films and pigment‐printed polyester fibres, was conducted. It was found that, with an increasing amount of silicone, the hybrid pigment latex films gradually enhanced the water resistance, flexibility and thermal stability properties. Those water repellencies and smooth feeling properties were achieved by incorporating the hydrophobicity and the flexibility of the copolymer chains of silicone. The waterborne self‐adhesive hybrid pigment containing silicone can be directly applied for pigment printing of polyester fabric. Compared with the control printing system (without silicone), it not only exhibited an equivalent colour strength, but also improved the colour fastness and hand feel. Based on these results, this approach may provide insights into the rational design of waterborne self‐adhesive textile hybrid pigments for high‐quality printing performance.

Synthesis of salt-resistant hyperbranched waterborne polyurethane associative thickener and its application in textile printing

To improve the thickening effect of polyurethane thickener, hyperbranched waterborne polyurethane associative thickener (HWPUAT) was successfully synthesized and the 3 wt% HWPUAT aqueous solution (HAS) was prepared. The viscosity of HAS at the rotating speed of 6 and 60 rpm was 12,118 and 4207 mPa·s, respectively. After adding 1.3 wt% NaCl, the viscosity retention rates of HAS and anionic polyacrylic acid thickener (APAT) aqueous solution with the same mass fraction were 90.5% and 27.5%, respectively. In addition, HWPUAT was used in textile printing with three different reactive dyes. The penetration ratios (PRs) and the paste removing rates (PRRs) of the cotton fabrics were equal to or greater than 75.91% and 74.23%, respectively. And the color unevenness (CU) of the cotton fabrics was equal to or less than 0.19. The comprehensive performance of the printed fabric was good.

Recovery of antimony using biological waste and stepwise resourcization as catalysts for both polyesterification and transfer hydrogenation

The recycle and reutilization of antimony in industrial sewage is an important issue. Here, we developed a protocol for the efficient antimony adsorption and the resourcization of the waste adsorbent. Following the concept of “treat waste by waste”, the adsorbent was produced with a kind of waste, pomelo peel, which was transferred to the biochar loaded ferric oxide (Fe3O4/BC) as the adsorbent. The Fe3O4/BC exhibited a fast procedure for the adsorption of antimony, and its maximum Sb(III) adsorption capacity reached 246.19 mg g−1 at 40 °C. Next, the re-utilization of the waste adsorbents was considered to avoid the secondary pollution of the solid waste. Taking the treatment of textile printing waste water as a real application, we realized the stepwise resourcization of the waste adsorbents as catalysts. The used adsorbents, Sb(III)/Fe3O4/BC, were extracted by KOH glycol solution and the eluent was directly used in synthesizing polyethylene terephthalate (PET). The remained part of the adsorbents could be converted into the catalyst for transfer hydrogenation (CTH) of nitroarenes. This work helps to achieve the waste-free application of antimony, and delivers an overall solution of Sb-containing waste water, which follows the concept of “turning waste into treasure”.

Structural and Tribological Assessment of Biomedical 316 Stainless Steel Subjected to Pulsed-Plasma Surface Modification: Comparison of LPBF 3D Printing and Conventional Fabrication.

The structural features and nanoindentation/tribological properties of 316 stainless steel fabricated by conventional rolling and laser-based powder bed fusion (LPBF) were comparatively investigated regarding the effect of surface-pulsed plasma treatment (PPT). PPT was performed using an electrothermal axial plasma accelerator under a discharge voltage of 4.5 kV and a pulse duration of 1 ms. Optical microscopy, scanning electron microscopy, X-ray diffraction, nanoindentation measurements and tribological tests were applied to characterize the alloys. The LPBF steel presented almost the same modulus of elasticity and double the hardness of rolled steel. However, the LPBF steel manifested lower dry-sliding wear resistance compared with its wrought counterpart due to its porous structure and non-metallic inclusions. Conversely, LPBF steel showed three times higher wear resistance under sliding in simulated body fluid (SBF), as compared with wrought steel. PPT led to steel modification through surface melting to a depth of 22–26 μm, which resulted in a fine cellular structure. PPT moderately improved the dry-sliding wear resistance of LPBF steel by fusion of pores on its surface. On the other hand, PPT had almost no effect on the SBF-sliding wear response of the steel. The modification features were analyzed using a computer simulation of plasma-induced heating.