Effects of Softening Agent on Drapability of Cotton Khadi Fabric” submitted for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy
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Date
2021-01
Authors
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Publisher
CCSHAU, Hisar
Abstract
Khadi can be deliberated as the vocal evocative of the Indian cottage Industry. Khadi fabric is emerging
as a fashion fabric with shifted designers‟ interest in apparels but khadi also has drawbacks associated with it as
cotton khadi is prone to wrinkles, poor drapability, higher maintenance cost etc. The present study has been
conducted to study the effects of softening agent on drapability of cotton khadi fabric. Desizing and scouring was
done by conventional and enzymatic method. Enzymatic desizing and scouring depicted better water absorption;
hence it was continued for further research work. Three commercial softeners and three enzymes were procured on
the basis of their suitability for softening of cotton khadi fabric. Eighteen combinations of commercial softeners
and eighteen combinations of enzymes were tried and one top ranked combination from each category was
selected on the basis of preference of experts. Standardization of commercial softener and enzymatic treatment for
cotton khadi fabric was done on the basis of improvement in mechanical properties i.e. bending length, flexural
rigidity and drape coefficient. Application of conventional chemical treatment was done by exhaust method.
Application of amino-silicone softener and enzymatic treatment was done as per optimized conditions by pad dry
cure method. SEM was done to understand the changes in surface morphology and FTIR analysis was performed
for understanding the functional groups after each treatment. The changes in physical and functional properties
after different treatments were studied. The results showed improvement in softness and drape after each treatment
with decrease in bending length (1.29 per cent in warp and 5.43 per cent in weft), flexural rigidity (5.93 per cent)
and drape coefficient (6.89 per cent) after conventional chemical treatment. After commercial softener treatment
also, decrease in bending length (9.09 per cent in warp and 15.21 per cent in weft), flexural rigidity (21.53 per
cent) and drape coefficient (16.92 per cent) was observed and maximum decrease in bending length (18.18 per
cent in warp and 27.17 per cent in weft), flexural rigidity (41.06 per cent) and drape coefficient (28.37 per cent)
was observed after enzymatic treatment. The treated cotton khadi fabric was assessed for reduction in the growth
of bacteria for K. pneumoniae and S. aureus. Conventional chemical treated fabric exhibited per cent reduction of
32.43 for K. pneumoniae and 9.37 per cent for S. aureus whereas commercial softener treated fabric exhibited per
cent reduction of 36.48 for K. pneumoniae and 45.31 for S. aureus. Enzymatically treated fabric exhibited per cent
reduction of 32.43 per cent for K. pneumoniae and 37.50 for S. aureus in the growth as compared to controlled
sample. It was also discerned that the UPF value of the scoured fabric was 8.07 which increased to 17.54 when
treated with enzymes with good grade under protection category. The conventional chemical treatment also
showed improvement in UPF value with moderate grade protection(14.70) but the ultra violet protection property
increased slightly (8.88) after commercial softener treatment. The differently treated fabric samples were washed
and changes in physical properties after 5, 10, 15 and 20 washing cycles were recorded. Conclusively, the
application of softening agents improved the drapability and other physical as well as functional properties of
treated cotton khadi fabric and will be beneficial for fulfilling the growing demand of suitable fabric hand and
drape.