Effects of repeated laundering on the performance of garments with wrinkle-free treatment

ABSTRACT

This paper reports an experimental investigation of the effect of repeated laundering on the comfort-related and low stress mechanical properties of polo shirt fabrics with and without wrinkle-free treatments. Comparisons are made of untreated fabrics, fabrics treated with a hydrophobic wrinkle-free treatment, and fabrics treated with a hydrophilic wrinkle-free treatment. The results show that a wrinkle-free treatment can reduce the adverse effects of washing on many low stress mechanical properties. In general, the surface water absorption rate, warm/cool feeling, and low-stress mechanical properties of wrinkle-free treated fabrics are more stable against repeated laundering, because untreated fabrics tend to shrink and become more compact. The extensibility of a wrinkle-free treated fabric decreases significantly after twelve washing cycles. Application of a hydrophilic softener in the wrinkle-free finish can improve the surface water absorption rate, but the durability of the hydrophilic softener to repeated laundering should be further improved to prevent deterioration of fabric properties after washing.

For hygienic reasons, garments need to be washed, so they should be durable against washing. The effects of washing on the properties and performance of fabrics have been investigated by a number of workers. Hurren et al. [1] reported that laundering results in both mechanical degradation, due mainly to abrasion of the wet fabric, and chemical degradation caused by the cleaning agents and laundering conditions. The effect of laundering on wear life in terms of breaking strength and appearance characteristics of durable press and cotton broadcloth treated with liquid ammonia was investigated by Raheel and Lien [4-9], who found that durable press finished fabrics retained a higher proportion of their initial tensile strength with repeated laundering compared to nonresin treated broadcloth.

However, so far there has been little investigation of the effect of repeated laundering on comfort-related physical and low stress mechanical properties of knitted fabrics with wrinkle-free treatment. In this research, we investigate changes in the surface water absorption rate, q-max and KESF low stress mechanical properties of polo shirt fabrics with two different wrinkle-free treatments as a result of repeated laundering …