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The article discusses the approach to improve the performance of the cotton industry. An overview about the N,N'-dimethylol-4, 5-dihydroxyethyleneurea (DMDHEU), the most important traditional durable press (DP) finishing agent for cotton, is provided. Also tackled is the development of the alternative cotton durable press finishing systems based on maleic acid (MA).

The article discusses the government policies, standard testing methods to determine textile flammability and textile flame retardants used in China. Brief summary of the regulations enforced by the government on textiles flammability are presented. It mentions that among the standard textile flammability testing methods are Textiles, Flammability Test, Vertical Method, Textile Fabrics, Determination of Surface Burning Properties and Floor-covering Textiles, Flammability Test, Pill Test at Room Temperature. Several industry practices on various flame retardant textiles are also included.

The article provides an overview of a study which investigates the effectiveness of a low cost non-formaldehyde flame retarding system to reduce the flammability of cotton fleece. Researchers applied three bi-functional carboxylic acids, including succinic acid (SUA), malic acid and tartaric acid as flame retardants of the fabric. They found that all the three bifunctional carboxylic acids are able to esterifies cotton in the presence of sodium hypophosphite as the catalyst. They concluded that the three acids are effective in reducing the flammability of cotton fleece from Class 3 to Class 1. They added that SUA is the most effective flame retardant for cotton fleece among the bifunctional acids.

The article presents a study which investigates the effectiveness of phosphorous-containing oligomer of maleic acid (POMA) as a flame retardant for cotton fleece. Methodology and procedures used in the study are presented. It found that cotton fleece treated with POMA at different concentrations after one home laundering cycle showed two distinct carbonyl bands at around 1.723 centimeter[-1] and 1.584 centimeter[-1]. It determined that both the ester band and the carboxylate band intensity increased as the POMA concentration increasing from 1.0% to 10%, which indicated that the increased amount of ester formed on the cotton fabric.

The article focuses on the study investigating the bonding of the hydroxy-functional organophosphorus oligomer (HFPO) onto nylon by dimethyloldihydroxyethyleneurea (DMDHEU). It also evaluates the performance of the 50/50 nylon/cotton Batter Dress Uniform (BDU) military fabric treated with HFPO/DMDHEU flame retardant finishing system. Results show that DMDHEU is able to covalently bond HFPO to nylon 6.6 fabric, probably by the formation of a crosslinked HFPO/DMDHEU polymeric network. The trimethylolmelamine system is not suitable for the flame retardant finishing of the nylon/cotton blend fabric.

This article presents a study which compared the N-methyl resins DMDHEU with TMM as bonding agent to link hydroxy-functional organophosphorus oligomer to nylon and cotton/nylon blend fabric by examining the phosphorus concentration, phosphorus retention and stiffness of treated fabric subject to different laundering cycles. Cotton/nylon blend fabric has received more attention due to excellent textile performance. It has been used as a material for U.S. Army Battle Dress Uniform. The materials employed in the study are discussed, and the key findings are outlined.

This article presents a study which investigated the bonding of two reactive organophosphorus flame retardant agents to cotton and to compare the performance and laundering durability of those flame retardant finishing agents after they are bound to cotton fabric. It also evaluated the physical properties of the cotton fabric treated with those two different flame retardant finishing systems. The materials and methods employed in the study are described. The key findings of the study are also outlined.

This study focuses on the use of inorganic phosphorus containing compound in flame retardant finishing of cotton fleece. Among the materials used for this study include a 100 percent unbleached cotton fleece fabric, aluminum sulfate hydrate and sodium phosphate. In order to study the composition of the precipitates formed on cotton fleece, the precipitate was dissolved by 10 percent hydrochloric acid and analyzed by atomic emission spectrometer. Findings show that the precipitate aluminum hydroxyphosphate serves as an effective flame retardant agent by increasing char formation and inhibiting cellulose depolymerization.

This study investigates the functions of triethanolamine (TEA) as an additive in non-formaldehyde flame retardant finishing system containing hydroxyl-functional organophosphorous compound and 1,2,3,4-butanetetracarboxylic acid for cotton/Nomex blend fabric. The study used a bleached desized cotton print cloth weighing 102 grams per square meter. Findings show that the phosphorous concentration on the treated cotton/Nomex blend fabric initially increased, and then reached the maximum, finally decreased when TEA concentration increased from 0.0 to 10.0 percent. The increasing flame retardancy can be attributed to following three functions of TEA, including the addition of TEA can reduce deposit of calcium on the treated cotton/Nomex blend fabric during laundering.

The article evaluates and compares American Association of Textile Chemists and Colorists (AATCC) Method 66 and AATCC Method 128 for measuring the wrinkle recovery performance of cross linked cotton fabrics. The Wrinkle recovery angle of a fabric is a measure of the fabric's ability to release a sharp wrinkle in a dry state. Based from the data of the study, the article suggests that wrinkle recovery angle results are quantitative and reproducible. AATCC Method 66 seem to more reliable quantitative testing method for evaluating wrinkle release performance of durable press finished cotton fabric.

This article discusses a study which evaluated the flame retardant finishing of the cotton/nylon battle dress uniform fabric by an organophosphorus oligomer. Cotton/nylon blend fabrics are widely used as technical fabrics to produce protective clothing due to high strength and abrasion resistance. The cotton/nylon blend twill fabric, known as Battledress Uniform fabric, is currently used army to make military uniforms in the U.S. The fabric was first immersed in a finish solution containing flame retardant, the binders and the catalyst, then passed through a laboratory padder with two dips and two nips, dried at 90°C for three minutes, and finally cured in a Mathis curing over at 165°C for 2.5 minutes. The vertical flammability of the cotton fabric was measured according to ASTM Standard Method D6413-99. When trimethylolmelamine is (TMM) applied to cotton in the presence of flame retardant, it reacts with both cotton and flame retardant, thus bonding to flame retardant to cotton. As the TMM concentration increases, it reacts with flame retardant to form a crosslinked polymeric network, thus improving the laundering durability of flame retardant. The cotton fabric treated with the flame retardant/TMM system demonstrates excellent flame retarding performance, high laundering durability and low tensile strength loss.

The article presents research which investigates the reactivity of dimethyloldihydroxylethyleneurea (DMDHEU) and melaminefromaldehdye (M-F) in flame retarding systems based on hydroxy-functional organophosphorus oligomer (FR). Study shows that FR/M-F-treated cotton fabric has higher initial flame retarding properties than the FR/DMDHEU-treated fabric. The former maintains higher flame retardiing properties than the latter. However, it finds out that the phosphorus retention of the latter is higher that the former.

The article discusses research which examined the relation between limited oxygen index (LOI) and phosphorous/nitrogen content of the cotton fabric treated with dimethyloldihydroxylethyleneurea (DMDHEU) and a hydroxyl-functional organophosphorous flame retardant agent. It cites several flame retardant finishes for cotton and other cellulosic fibers commonly used in the textile industry including tetrakis-(hydroxylmethyl) phosphonium chloride (THPC)-based system, dimethyl (N-hydroxylmethyl-carbamoylethyl) phosphonate, and N-methylol reagents. The study indicated that capability of DMDHEU to enhance performance of the flame retardant finishing system due to phosphorus/nitrogen synergism.

The article presents a study on nonformaldehyde durable press finishing of cotton fabrics. It states that the toxicity of formaldehyde have prompted researchers to find nonformaldehyde alternatives, and butanetetracarbocylclic acid (BTCA) has proved the most promising durable press agent for cotton when sodium hypophosphite is used as a catalyst. It discusses the performance of BTCA which has reportedly demonstrated various advantages as a press finishing agent for cotton. It concludes that the industrial grade BTCA and the reagent grade BTCA are similar in crosslinking cotton cellulose and in adding wrinkle resistance to cotton fabrics. It adds that polymaleic acid also showed efficiency as a durable press finishing agent for cotton and causes no adverse effect on fabric shade.

The article presents the findings of the research and development (R&D) project at the Akzo Nobel Coatings Inc. which investigates flame retardant (FR) finishing chemistries and their durability. It uses several chemicals such as a surfactant, silicon softener, DMDHEU resins, and an activated magnesium chloride solution, woven and knit fabrics. It reports that the finish is durable and performs well in burn tests with the low formaldehyde characteristics of FR/DMDHEU application chemistry. It concludes that the finishes are durable through multiple laundering cycles and depends on the type of binding resin used.

The article presents a research that investigates the cotton cellulose depolymerization using polycarboxylic acid, Lewis acid and their combination in the U.S. Researchers evaluated the impact of acid-catalyzed degradation on cotton fabrics by using bifunctional carboxylic acids with different acid dissociation constants to treat cotton fabrics, like succinic acid, malonic acid, malic acid and oxalic acid. They found that four of these acids do not esterify cotton cellulose under high temperatures and the combination of Lewis and polycarboxylic acids resulted to severe cellulose depolymerization.