Developments in grey preparatory processes of cotton textile materials

Abstract

Among all the chemical processes of textile materials, the grey preparatory process has been the most neglected area for research till mid sixties. The escalating energy and labour costs, stringent pollution control regulations, scarcity of water and greater demand for quality textiles have compelled the textile chemists to consider the preparatory processes more seriously. The R&D work carried out over the last four decades to overcome these problems in desizing, scouring and bleaching of cotton is reported. The developments that have taken place in the designing of preparatory processing machinery, including singeing, are also reported.