Kw. Oh et al., Nonformaldehyde crease-resistant finishing of ramie with glyoxal in the presence of a swelling agent, TEXT RES J, 71(3), 2001, pp. 225-230
The feasibility of glyoxal treatment for ramie fabric in the presence of a
swelling agent is studied. Adding polyethylene glycol (PEG) 600 or a higher
molecular weight PEG to the glyoxal finishing bath provides an optimum bal
ance between the wrinkle recovery angle and strength retention by maximizin
g ramie swelling during the crosslinking reaction. Adding PEG also increase
s the water of imbibition, moisture regain, whiteness index, and color stre
ngth of treated ramie fabrics. The durability of glyoxal finished fabric in
the presence of PEG is also acceptable during multiple launderings. Theref
ore, glyoxal treatment with PEG can be used for crease-resistant finishing
of ramie and ramie-blended fabrics to obtain superior performance propertie
s.