Method and apparatus for treating a textile fabric
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Solution Overview
Problem
The textile industry faces challenges in desizing and shrinking fabrics in an environmentally friendly and cost-effective manner without using excessive amounts of solvents, water, and chemicals, while ensuring controlled and reliable processing at high speeds.
Innovation Solution
A method and apparatus that involves wetting the fabric with a first pool of liquid, passing it through a heatable roller chamber, soaking it in a main pool of liquid, and treating it with ozone gas to achieve desizing and shrinking, optimizing conditions such as temperature, pH, and liquid flow to enhance efficiency and throughput.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If wet processing with large amounts of water and chemicals is used for desizing and shrinking, then effective fabric treatment is achieved, but environmental impact and processing cost increase significantly
Solution Approach 1:
The patent changes the chemical composition parameters of the treatment solution by using ozone (O3) instead of traditional harsh chemicals, and controls physical parameters such as temperature (20-100°C) and pH (3-11) to achieve effective desizing and shrinking with reduced environmental impact
Solution Approach 2:
The patent employs ozone, a strong oxidant, to replace conventional chemicals for desizing and shrinking processes. The ozone generates reactive oxygen species that effectively remove size materials and control fabric shrinkage without the harmful environmental effects of traditional chemical agents
2Reliability
If wet processing with large amounts of water and chemicals is used for desizing and shrinking, then effective fabric treatment is achieved, but processing cost increases due to excessive solvent and chemical consumption
Solution Approach 1:
The patent optimizes treatment parameters including reducing water consumption to 2-50 L/m of fabric (compared to traditional 12 m³/h), controlling temperature between 20-100°C, and adjusting pH to 3-11 to achieve effective treatment with minimal resource consumption
Solution Approach 2:
Ozone serves as a potent oxidizing agent that replaces large volumes of chemical solutions, enabling effective desizing and shrinking with significantly reduced water and chemical usage while maintaining treatment reliability
3Productivity
If high processing speed is used for fabric treatment, then productivity increases, but control over shrinking and desizing quality becomes more difficult
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements feedback control mechanisms to monitor and adjust treatment parameters in real-time during high-speed processing, ensuring consistent fabric shrinkage and desizing quality even at increased production speeds
Solution Approach 2:
The patent optimizes physical parameters such as temperature (20-100°C), pH (3-11), and ozone concentration to achieve both high processing speed and precise control over fabric treatment quality, allowing rapid production without sacrificing manufacturing precision
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
The method and apparatus enable high-speed, controlled desizing and shrinking with reduced water and chemical use, achieving significant fabric shrinkage and desizing while maintaining fabric quality and reducing environmental impact.
Implementation Method 1
contacting the fabric with at least one heatable roller heated at a treatment temperature
Implementation Method 2
treating the fabric by means of ozone
Data Source
AI summary
An apparatus for desizing and/or shrinking a textile fabric, the textile fabric having a length and a width, the method including moving, lengthwise, the fabric, and wetting the fabric within a first pool of liquid, the first pool of liquid including water; passing the fabric through a chamber, and in the chamber contacting the fabric with at least one heatable roller heated at a treatment temperature; soaking the fabric with a main pool of liquid, the main pool of liquid including water; and treating the fabric with ozone. The apparatus includes a first module for wetting the fabric, a second module with a heatable roller for heating the fabric, a third module for soaking the fabric, and fourth module for treating the fabric with ozone. The second module may optionally be integrated with the first module.