Wool Fabrics Colored with Fluorescent Pigment Emulsion: Their Color Performance and Fluorescent Properties

Abstract

The fluorescent hue is brilliant and attractive, and is usually used in outdoor, traffic, and teenage clothes industry, as well as in marker and fields of warning signs. But the fluorescence coloration of natural fibers with fluorescent dyes is rare because of the inherent polymeric and optical property of natural fibers, and the dyes state on fiber. The wool fabrics can be colored with pigments emulsion or water dispersions by exhaustion process. In this paper, the wool fabrics were colored with fluorescent pigment emulsions by padding, and their dyeing properties were investigated by color measurement, spectrofluorometer, SEM, TG, and fastness testing. The color data, dominant wavelength (or complementary wavelength), and excitation purity of colored samples were measured and illustrated with chromaticity diagram. The fluorescence spectrum of colored samples was tested as well. The results showed, with the raise of amount of pigments emulsion, the K/S value, reflectivity, durability, and shrinkage of colored samples increased, whereas the softness decreased. There were FRET (fluorescence resonance energy transfer) phenomena in the colored samples. The fluorescent pigments emulsion deposited on the fabrics as resins between the wool fibers. The migration and rubbing fastnesses of all samples were good and were at grade 4 or above, but the light fastnesses were not good, and only at grade 3 or grade 3–4.

Keywords

• color performance
• wool
• fluorescent pigment
• padding process