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Home / Knowledge / Article / Problems in Bleaching For Cotton Textile Material

Problems in Bleaching For Cotton Textile

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Written by: New Cloth Market

Cotton, like all natural fibres, has some natural colouring matter, which confers a
yellowish brown colour to the fibre. The purpose of bleaching is to remove this
colouring material and to confer a white appearance to the fibre. In addition to an
increase in whiteness, bleaching results in an increase in absorbency, levelness of pre
treatment, and complete removal of seed husks and trash. In the case of the
production of full white finished materials, the degree of whiteness is the main
requirement of bleaching. The amount of residual soil is also taken into
consideration because of the possibility of later yellowing of the material. In the case
of pretreatment for dyeing, the degree of whiteness is not as important as, for
example, the cleanliness of the material, especially the metal content. Similar
demands refer to the production of medical articles. In this case, too, the metal
content as well as the ash content are important factors. If whiteness is of primary
importance, it requires a relatively large amount of bleaching agent as well as a high
operating temperature and a long dwell time.

Accurate regulation of the bleaching bath is a further obligatory requirement. Where

the destruction of trash, removal of seed husks and an increase in absorbency is a
prime necessity (e.g. for dyed goods), a high degree of alkalinity is all important. It is,
however, not the alkali alone that is responsible for these effects. The levelness of
pretreatment can only be guaranteed if cotton of the same or equal origin is
processed in each bath. If this is not the case, suitable pre-treatment will have to be
undertaken to obtain, as closely as possible, the required uniformity. A pre-treatment
with acid and/or a chelating agent will even out (better still eliminate) varying
quantities of catalytic metallic compounds.

Although there are different bleaching agents that can be used for bleaching cotton,
hydrogen peroxide is, by far, the most commonly used bleaching agent today. It is
used to bleach at least 90% of all cotton and cotton blends, because of its advantages
over other bleaching agents. The nature of the cotton colour, its mechanism of
removal with hydrogen peroxide and the basic rules for formulation of bleaching
liquors have been presented in detail elsewhere. The mere formulation of the correct
initial bath concentration is not sufficient to ensure a controlled bleaching process.
Of equal importance are regular checks of the bath composition during the operation.
Such checks do not only contribute to an economic bleaching operation but also
allow an early tracing of the defects and failures of the system. The important
parameters for bleaching with hydrogen peroxide are as follows:

Concentration of hydrogen peroxide.

Concentration of alkali.

pH.
 Temperature.

Time.

Nature and quality of the goods.

Water hardness and other impurities.

Types and concentration of auxiliaries.

Desired bleaching effect.

Available equipment and stabilizer system employed.

Most of these factors are inter-related, and all have a direct bearing on the
production rate, the cost and the bleaching quality. Though they operate collectively,
it is better to review them individually for the sake of clarity.

There are two concentrations to be considered: that based on the weight of the goods
and that based on the weight of the solution. All other factors being equal, the
concentration on the weight of the goods determines the final degree of whiteness. In
order to get adequate bleach there must be enough peroxide present from the start.
On the other hand, the peroxide concentration based on the weight of the solution
will determine the bleaching rate - the greater the solution concentration, the faster
the bleaching. No peroxide bleaching system ever uses up its entire peroxide charge
for active bleaching, as some is always 'lost' during normal process.

The alkalinity in the system is primary responsible for producing the desired scour
properties and maintaining a reasonably constant pH at the desired level throughout
the bleaching cycle. The quantity of the alkali to be added depends above all on the
character of the goods, the finish required and the kind and quality of the other
ingredients in the liquor. The alkalinity is defined as the 'amount' of alkali in the
system and should be distinguished from the pH, which is a measure of the hydrogen
ion concentration in the solution. The pH value in peroxide bleaching is of extreme
importance because it influences bleaching effectiveness, fiber degradation and
peroxide stability in bleaching cotton fibers.

With increasing pH, whiteness index increases to a maximum at a pH of 11.0 and

then decreases. Fibre degradation is at minimum at a pH of 9.0 but that which occurs
at a pH of 10.0 is well within acceptable values. Above a pH of 11.0, fibre degradation
is unacceptably severe. A pH range of 10.2-10.7 is considered optimum for bleaching
cotton with hydrogen peroxide. Lower pH values can lead to decreasing solubility of
sodium silicate stabiliser (see below) as well as lower whiteness due to less activation
of the peroxide.

By increasing the temperature, the degree of whiteness as well as its uniformity

increases. However, at too high a temperature, there is a possibility of a decrease in
the degree of polymerization of the cotton. Moreover, due to good fat removal at high
temperatures such as 110C, the handle of the material can become harsh and the sew
ability of woven cotton fabrics may also decrease. Time, temperature and
concentration of peroxide are all inter-related factors. At lower temperatures, longer
times and higher concentrations are required. As the temperature of bleaching
increases, shorter times and lower peroxide concentrations can be employed.

The amount of peroxide decomposed is greatly reduced with increasing weight of

cotton fibre in the bleach liquor. The raw fibre almost completely suppresses
decomposition, while the scoured fibre is somewhat less effective. The demineralised
fibre is the least effective stabiliser. While impurities such as magnesium and calcium
may have a good stablising effect when present in appropriate amount, other
impurities such as iron, copper and manganese can have very harmful effect,
resulting in catalytic decomposition of hydrogen peroxide leading to fibre damage.

A good stabilizing system is indispensable in bleaching cotton with hydrogen

peroxide. While sodium silicate is one of the most commonly used stabilisers, its use
may result in a harsh handle of the fabric as well as resist spots leading to spotty
dyeing. The best alternatives to sodium silicate are organic stabilisers or a
combination of silicate and organic stabilisers.

In addition to the most important ingredients of the bleaching recipe, namely

hydrogen peroxide, caustic soda and the stabilizer, auxiliaries are used sometimes to
aid the bleaching process. These may include surfactants and chelating agents. The
type and concentration of these auxiliaries also plays an important role in the bleach
effect obtained. The desired bleaching effect does not need necessarily be optimal
white. For goods-to-be-dyed, the main concern will normally be achieving good and
uniform absorbency.

The available equipment plays a role in determining which process criteria must be
taken into account such as: cold, hot or HT bleaching; dry-wet or wet-on-wet
impregnation; discontinuous or continuous processing; process control. The most
common problems in bleaching cotton with hydrogen peroxide are as follows:

Inadequate mote removal.

Low degree of whiteness.

 Uneven whiteness (or bleaching).

Resist marks.

Formation of ox cellulose

It is not always possible to find the cause of these problems without detailed
analyses. The most useful tests that can be carried out to check the effectiveness of
the bleaching process are for whiteness, absorbency and tensile strength. Checks and
measures are required also to assure level dyeing properties. Control of residual
moisture content (e.g. 7% for cotton) is part of the standard pre-treatment, which
should be uniform throughout the material.

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