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Article: Alcohol treatment increases cotton's absorbency.
- Article from:
- Medical Textiles
- Article date:
- January 1, 1999
CopyrightCOPYRIGHT 1999 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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A cost-effective method of treating cotton with alcohol to increase the fibre's absorbency has been developed by Edward Hall. The treated cotton can be used for absorbent applications such as bandages, according to the company of Whaley Bridge, Stockport, UK.
As disclosed in GB Patent 2 320 036, the cotton is immersed in a bath of alcohol or placed in a stream of alcohol vapour for 10-20 minutes, so that the alcohol passes through and over the fibre. The alcohol can be:
* a primary alcohol - such as methanol, ethanol, propanol or butanol;
* a secondary alcohol - such as propan-2-ol;
* more complex alcohols - such as ...