Washing,Viscose

Viscose is a man-made fiber created from wood pulp. This comes under the section of regenerated cellulosic fibers. An inexpensive product that dyes easily and is non-static in nature, it has a unique Luster and brilliancy. Due to this, viscose is often referred to as faux silk and artificial silk beside its generic name of Rayon. Viscose is a less expensive alternative to real silk. Viscose fibers can be dyed in brilliant colors using cellulosic dyes. As its Amorphous region is more than other natural cellulosic fibers like cotton, its shade depth under similar conditions is higher than cotton, its moisture absorbency is higher as 13% compared to that of 8% in case of cotton. This property makes it very much skin friendly and soft. But the fiber is bit delicate due to the same reason.

A carpet is a textile floor covering consisting of an upper layer of "pile" attached to a backing. The pile generally consists of twisted tufts. This is used to improve the aesthetic of living areas. It is now transcending from high class commodity to essential commodity and has a very good growing market. 100% Viscose and Viscose/wool blended carpets are predominant in the carpet market due to softness and luster of viscose and warmth and elasticity of wool. Industrial manufacturing of carpet requires thorough washing prior to packing in order to get rid of fluffs, dirt and dust acquired by the carpet during its manufacturing. Carpets made out of viscose fiber needs to be taken care of during washing keeping in view the delicacy of the fiber; it needs milder treatment compared to those made from other fibers. Hence a controlled cleaning solution is of utmost necessary to follow for the product.

A suggested Industrial washing procedure for Viscose or Viscose-wool pile carpets is as below:

1. Secure the carpet to the floor or a mounting board.
2. Prepare the cleaning solution (4.5 gpl anionic detergents) and heat up to 60°C.
3. Pour the heated cleaning solution into empty solution tank of hot water.
4. Draw the cleaning head across the surface of carpet in a direction against the lay of pile.
5. Draw the cleaning head again from the same position as in step 4 with Vacuum ON only.
6. Repeat the steps 4&5. This constitutes one cleaning cycle.
7. No. of cycles can be decided based on extent of soiling.
8. When total soaps are removed by washing, soak in 1 gpl acetic acid solution to neutralize.
9. Shine and whiteness of the carpets may be improved/ restored by using optical brightening agents meant for cellulosic materials at step-8.
10. Solvent based chemicals/ thinners may be used to improve stains cleaning efficiency.