Method of treating fibers, carpet yarns and carpets to enhance repellency
View Patent ↗Methods of enhancing repellency of fibers, carpet yarns and carpets are disclosed. Compositions used to enhance the repellency of fibers, carpet yarns and carpets are also disclosed.
1. A method of treating a fiber comprising the steps of:
(a) providing a fiber;
(b) applying an aqueous treating composition to the fiber by immersing the fiber in a bath containing the treating composition, wherein the aqueous treating composition comprises:
(i) a fluorochemical compound;
(ii) a cationic organosilicate compound; and
(iii) an acid to provide a pH for the aqueous treating composition of below about 3.5:
(c) heating the fiber with steam; and
(d) removing excess water from the treated fiber, wherein the fluorine exhaustion efficiency of the method is greater than about 70%.
2. The method of claim 1 , wherein the fluorochemical compound is selected from the group consisting of telomeric and electrochemically fluorinated fluorochemicals.
3. The method of claim 1 , wherein the fluorochemical compound is present in the aqueous treating composition in an amount ranging from about 0.02 to about 0.1 percent by weight solids based on a total weight of the aqueous treating composition.
4. The method of claim 1 , wherein the organosilicate compound is present in the aqueous treating composition in an amount ranging from about 0.006 to about 1.0 percent by weight solids based on a total weight of the aqueous treating composition.
5. The method of claim 1 , wherein the fiber is heated at a temperature between about 160° F. (71° C.) and about 260° F. (127° C.) for between about 15 seconds and about 60 minutes.
6. The method of claim 1 , wherein the fiber comprises a carpet yarn, and the carpet yarn is tufted into a carpet before the aqueous treating composition is applied.
7. The method of claim 1 , wherein the fiber comprises a carpet yarn, and a weight ratio of the aqueous treating composition to the carpet yarn during the heating step is at least 0.5:1.
8. The method of claim 7 , wherein a weight ratio of the aqueous treating composition to the carpet yarn during the heating step is between about 2:1 and about 60:1.
9. The method of claim 1 , wherein the fiber comprises a carpet yarn, and the carpet yarn is immersed in the aqueous treating composition by placing the carpet yarn in a vessel containing the aqueous treating composition.
10. The method of claim 9 , wherein the carpet yarn is removed from the vessel before a heating step, wherein the aqueous treating composition and the carpet yarn are present at a weight ratio of at least about 0.5:1 during the heating step.
11. The method of claim 10 , wherein a weight ratio of the aqueous treating composition to the carpet yarn during the heating step is between about 2:1 to about 10:1.
12. The method of claim 9 , wherein the carpet yarn and the aqueous treating composition are heated in the vessel.
13. The method of claim 1 , wherein the fiber comprises polyester, polypropylene, polyamide, or a combination thereof.
14. The method of claim 1 , wherein the fiber comprises polyamide and the aqueous treating composition further comprises an anionic polymer-binding compound in an amount of up to about 4.0 percent by weight solids based on a total weight of the aqueous treating composition.
15. The method of claim 13 , wherein the fiber comprises polyester fibers and the aqueous treating composition further comprises a dye for the polyester fibers.
16. The method of claim 1 , wherein the pH is below about 2.5.
17. The method of claim 1 , wherein the pH is below about 2.0.
18. The method of claim 1 , wherein the pH is between about 1.5 and about 1.8.
19. The method of claim 1 , wherein the organosilicate compound is formed from (i) silanes having a first formula R—Si(OR′) 3 and (ii) silanes having a second formula Si(OR′) 4 wherein R represents a substituted or unsubstituted hydrocarbon radical having from 1 to 7 carbon atoms with substituents selected from halogens, amino groups, mercapto groups, and epoxy groups, and R′ represents an alkyl radical having from 1 to 4 carbon atoms.
20. A method of treating a fiber comprising the steps of:
(a) providing a fiber, wherein the fiber is a carpet yarn comprising polymeric fibers;
(b) applying an aqueous treating composition to the carpet yarn by immersing the carpet yarn in a bath containing the treating composition, wherein the aqueous treating composition comprises:
(i) a fluorochemical compound;
(ii) an organosilicate compound; and
(iii) an acid to provide the aqueous treating composition with a pH of below about 2.0;
(c) heating the fiber with steam; and
(d) removing excess water from the treated carpet yarn, wherein the fluorine exhaustion efficiency of the method is greater than about 70%.
21. The method of claim 20 , wherein the pH is between about 1.5 and about 1.8.
22. The method of claim 20 , wherein the fluorochemical compound is present in the aqueous treating composition in an amount of up to about 2.0 percent by weight solids based on a total weight of the aqueous treating composition.
23. The method of claim 20 , wherein the organosilicate compound is present in the aqueous treating composition in an amount of up to about 2.0 percent by weight solids based on a total weight of the aqueous treating composition.
24. The method of claim 23 , wherein the organosilicate compound is formed from (i) silanes having a first formula R—Si(OR′) 3 and (ii) silanes having a second formula Si(OR′) 4 wherein R represents a substituted or unsubstituted hydrocarbon radical having from 1 to 7 carbon atoms with substituents selected from halogens, amino groups, mercapto groups, and epoxy groups, and R′ represents an alkyl radical having from 1 to 4 carbon atoms.
25. A method of increasing fluorine exhaustion onto a fiber comprising the steps of:
(a) immersing the fiber in an acidic bath comprising a cationic organosilicate compound, and a fluorochemical compound; and
(b) steaming the treated fiber;
wherein the fluorine exhaustion efficiency of the method is greater than about 70%, and the pH is below about 3.5.
26. The method of claim 25 , wherein the fluorine exhaustion efficiency is greater than about 80%.
27. The method of claim 25 , wherein the fluorine exhaustion efficiency is greater than about 90%.
28. The method of claim 25 , wherein the organosilicate compounds are formed from (i) silanes having a first formula R—Si(OR′) 3 and (ii) silanes having a second formula Si(OR′) 4 wherein R represents a substituted or unsubstituted hydrocarbon radical having from 1 to 7 carbon atoms with substituents selected from halogens, amino groups, mercapto groups, and epoxy groups, and R′ represents an alkyl radical having from 1 to 4 carbon atoms.
29. The method of claim 25 , wherein the fiber comprises polyamide, polyester, polypropylene, or a combination thereof.
30. The method of claim 1 , wherein the fluorochemical compound is an anionic fluoropolymer.
31. The method of claim 1 , wherein the fluorochemical compound is a non-ionic fluoropolymer.
32. The method of claim 1 , wherein the organosilicate compound contains a halogen substituted hydrocarbon substituent.
33. The method of claim 14 , wherein the anionic polymer-binding compound is a polyacrylic acid.