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Article: Copying nature to achieve stain-resistance.(Finishing)
- Article from:
- Advances in Textiles Technology
- Article date:
- October 1, 2006
CopyrightCOPYRIGHT 2006 International Newsletters. This material is published under license from the publisher through the Gale Group, Farmington Hills, Michigan. All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Gale Group. (Hide copyright information)
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Taiwan's Formosa Taffeta Co Ltd has patented (European Patent EP 1652995) a method for making fabrics with a durable stain-resistant finish that is also waterproof.
The company says that the surface treatment is based on mimicking the lotus leaf (the so-called "lotus effect" and is applied after dyeing.
To do this the fabric's surface must be roughened to increase the surface area where reagents containing hydrophobic groups can bond to the textiles. Various techniques are described in the Patent for achieving this modification including plasma treatment, corona discharge, chemical etching or an application of adhesive.
In plasma treatment, for ...