- Mercerized cotton
Mercerization is a treatment for
cotton fabric and thread that gives fabric a lustrous appearance. The process is applied to materials like cotton or hemp.The process was devised in 1844 by John Mercer of
Great Harwood ,Lancashire ,England , who treated cotton fibres withsodium hydroxide . The treatment caused the fibres to swell, which in Mercer's version of the process shrunk the overall fabric size and made it stronger and easier to dye. The process did not become popular, however, untilH. A. Lowe improved it into its modern form in 1890. By holding the cotton during treatment to prevent it from shrinking, Lowe found that the fibre gained a lustrous appearance. [cite book | author = J. Gordon Cook | title = Handbook of Textile Fibres: Volume I: Natural Fibres | publisher = Woodhead | year = 1984 | pages = p. 68 | id = ISBN 1855734842] [cite web
last = Beaudet
first = Tom
title = What is Mercerized cotton?
publisher = FiberArts.org
date =1999
url = http://fiberarts.org/design/articles/mercerized.html
accessdate = 2007-01-03]The modern production method for mercerized cotton, also known as pearl or pearle cotton, gives cotton thread (or cotton-covered thread with a
polyester core) a sodium hydroxide bath that is then neutralized with anacid bath. This treatment increases luster, strength, affinity todye , resistance tomildew , but also increases affinity tolint . Cotton with long staplefiber lengths responds best to mercerization. Mercerized thread is commonly used to produce finecrochet .References
External links
* [http://encyclopedia.jrank.org/MEC_MIC/MERCERIZING.html Online Encyclopedia - Mercerizing]
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