FORMALDEHYDE RELEASE IN DYNAMIC CHAMBER TESTING OF COTTON FABRICS FINISHED FOR DURABLE PRESS

Federal regulatory agencies have applied increasing pressure to lower and possibly ban formaldehyde emissions from textiles. For this reason the textile industry has shown interest in formaldehyde levels in air released from fabrics treated for durable press with N-methylol agent s. A dynamic method for measuring formaldehyde in air, developed at th e Southern Regional Research Center, was used to assess the influence of agent type, agent modification, catalyst type and addition of scave ngers. Emissions from selected commercial fabrics are discussed. Compa risons with results from static testing are presented.