Abstract
Cotton fibers were treated, with 1, 2, 3, 4-butanetetracarboxylic acid (BTCA) which is formaldehyde-free reagent to impart durable press performance. The dyeability, dyeing rate, and diffusion coefficient, of BTCA treated cottons were compared to prove the changes of pore size structure using direct dyes and disperse dyes. Diffusion coefficients of BTCA treated cotton fibers were determined at acidic conditions to figure out the effect of swelling. Since the dyeability of BTCA treated cotton fibers dyed with direct dyes were reduced, it is considered that the dyeability to direct dyes is related to the quantity of residual large pores. But, the dyeability to disperse dyes were increased due to the less reduction of small pore sizes and the increase of hydrophobicity in BTCA treated cotton cellulose. The dyeability to direct dye and disperse dye were decreased more at acidic conditions than at neutral conditions. It seemed that the swelling of pores in the fiber were inhibited.
