Department of Fashion Design and Technology

Uttara University
 Course Title: TEXTILE TECHNOLOGY-II
Course Title: IE2003
Assessment on:
Modern materials for sizing recipe in woven fabric production
Application of Polyvinyl alcohol for sizing.

Submitted To:
Mr. Sudipta Bain

Assistant Professor and Coordinator

Department of FDT

Uttara University

Submitted By:
Rafeuzzaman
ID: 2201401055
Semester: 5th
Batch:23rd
Introduction
Polyvinyl alcohol (PVA) has been one of the most versatile size materials available for warp
sizing formulations since it was commercialized as a textile warp sizing agent sometime around
1965. The versatility of PVA arises from the fact that it can be manufactured into a variety of
modified forms and can be utilized alone or in combination with other size materials, starch,
polyester resins, acrylic copolymers, and CMC, or as a binder with numerous fiber substrates,
glass, acrylic, polyester, cellulose acetate, nylon, and numerous styles. High-speed looms
require yarns with strong flexible films, which makes the use of some grade of PVA in the size
mixture a virtual necessity.

Chemistry and Manufacturing of PVA

Polyvinyl alcohol is manufactured by the process of addition polymerization of vinyl acetate
rather than the highly stable vinyl alcohol [30]. The resulting vinyl acetate polymer is hydrolyzed
under varying conditions of catalyst, time, and temperature to remove varying amounts of the
acetate (ester) radical (–O–CBO–CH3) and replace them with the hydroxyl groups (—OH), as .By
controlling the length of the PVA chain—DP or n in—and the degree of hydrolysis of the acetate
groups, a family of PVA warp sizing grades can be manufactured, thus allowing the size to be
tailored for specific sizing needs

100% PVA PVA blends

Cotton fabrics Twill fabrics
Corduroy Muslin sheeting
Percale sheeting Batiste styles
Fine broadcloth Print cloth
Rayon (100% spun and filament) Heavyweight apparel fabric Denim
Polyester Lightweight 100% cotton
 100% industrial
 100% spun
 Polyester/cotton(fabrics,and
towelling)
 Polyester/rayon

The acetate or the hydroxyl groups, after saponification are randomly distributed left or right
on the carbon polymer backbone chain thus substantially reducing molecular order which
would allow for greater hydrogen bonding, as shown. As a result only a few nonhydrolyzed
acetyl wedges remaining on the PVA chain can have a considerable effect on the properties of
the size.
The chain disrupting effect of a properly selected comonomer polymerized into the PVA
structure was recognized by the Du Pont company about l972. Physical properties of the
copolymer size are similar to the intermediate hydrolyzed (IH) grades. The methacrylate
comonomer appears to meet

Effect of degree of hydrolysis on the ease of dissolving (redissolving) and humidity sensitivity of
polyvinyl alcohol.
• Segment of fully hydrolyzed PVA chain. Water must break intrachain hydrogen bonding.
• Segment of a partially hydrolyzed chain.
Acetate radical forces neighboring chains to exist further apart, facilitating water penetration
and dissolving (redissolving), thus lowering the strength but improving adhesion to hydrophobic
fibers.

Hydrolysis of polyvinyl acetate. Carbon and hydrogen atoms on the backbone chain omitted for
clarity
These requirements quite well. For example, methacrylate copolymers are resistant to,
possibly due to steric hindrance of the pendant methyl group, the hydrolytic conditions
necessary for saponification of the acetate groups of PVA as well as having the correct reactivity
ratios necessary for random atmospheric copolymerization with PVA. The latter comonomer
appears ideal because it has an additional interchain disrupting group (methyl wedge)
associated with the acrylate ester (—C—O—R). A few mole percent of such a comonomer may
produce its maximal effect on the sizing properties of the PVA copolymer. Regardless of the
comonomer employed, it must
Be stable to the hydrolysis reaction which converts PVA to PVA Not hinder the
purification steps
Be as compatible as regular PVA to other size ingredients Not be labile to the high
temperatures employed (cooking, size box, dry cans, etc.) in sizing
Not be chemically altered by recovery (ultrafiltration) processes
Not cause size preparation problems (foaming, sticking to dry cans, etc.)
Be consistent in properties from batch to batch (i.e., be reproducible)
Have good water dispersibility and desizeability.
Three-dimensional structure of atatic PVA. Hydroxyls must match up to achieve any hydrogen
bonding in the molecule.

The grades of PVA with respect to chain length (molecular weight), degree of hydrolysis, and
viscosities for warp sizing are given. A superhydrolyzed grade of PVA will have only four of every
1000 original acetate groups still remaining on the PVA chain; fully hydrolyzed, 12–20 acetyl
groups, etc. This could be visualized as only 12 acetyl groups remaining along a superhydrolyzed
chain (36–60 for a FHA grade) that had a DP of 3000. These small amounts of remaining acetyls
have essentially no practical effect on the overall properties of PVA. It should be noted that
copolymer type PVA will also have a high degree of hydrolysis of acetyl groups. A small number
of residual acetyl groups will still be present on the copolymer chain; however, most of the
acetyls will have been replaced by the comonomer. The comonomer group will not be
saponified under the mild conditions employed
 Acetyl removal Acetyls remaining
PVA grade type Abbreviation (%) per 1000 originals

Superhydrolyzed SH 99.6 4
Fully hydrolyzed FH 98–98.8 12–20
Intermediate hydrolyzed IH 95.5–96.5 35–45
Partially hydrolyzed PH 87.0–89.0 110–130
Copolymer None 98–98.8 30–40a

for acetate groups. Further, the comonomer radical is more effective at achieving solubility characteristics
than the acetates due to its size, reactivity, and randomness of the distribution on the PVA backbone
chain.
Polyvinyl alcohol grades are normally available in viscosities ranging from a low of 5 cp to intermediate 14
cp, medium 25 cp, and high 40 cp, approximately. For practical reasons most of the PVA used for warp size
applications will consist primarily of the intermediate and medium viscosity grades since they are the only
ones that have the proper viscosity range necessary for most sizing applications. Usually it is a practice to
blend the low viscosity grades with the high viscosity types. The low viscosity types are not used alone for
sizing since they provide too thin a size mixture that can result in excessive penetration of the size into the
yarn bundle. On the other hand, high viscosity types are more difficult to process and mostly result in
surface sizing without sufficient penetration in the yarn bundle to achieve proper anchoring of the
resulting size film.
The PH grades show excellent adhesion, while the copolymer types are better than the FH grades. All
PVA grades are superior in their adhesion to hydrophobic fibers than the CMC. The superior adhesion
and strength of PVA films may cause problems

Adhesion expressed as peeling strength of polyvinyl alcohol film from polyester film.
such as increased hairiness when the sized yarns are separated at the bust rods. Fig. 3.24 shows
a comparison of the ease of sheet separation at the bust rods for the three major film formers
used in sizing. Thus, PVA size formulas may need to be modified if a softer sheet separation is
required. Alternatively, greater yarn spacing in the size box and on the drying cans should be
employed
 Adhesion of Medium Viscosity Polyvinyl Alcohol and CMC to Synthetic Films

Adhesion strength (g/mm2)

Film CMC Partially hydrolyzed PVA
Acetate 0.5 10.0
Nylon 6 2.0 11.0
Acrylic 1.5 9.0
Polyester 0.5 7.0

Conditions: 65% relative humidity, 20°C. Source: Ref. 40.

Separating force (bust and lease rods)

Water Solubility and Resolubility of PVA
Polyvinyl alcohol with less than 88% hydrolysis, i.e., the PH grade, is not 100%
soluble in cold water (70%F). As the percent hydrolysis increases, however, the
water solubility decreases such that the fully hydrolyzed PVA have high water
resistance. In hot water (140F), all grades of PVA above 88% hydrolysis are water
soluble (see Fig. 3.26). Heat setting of PVA in the greige cloth can reduce the
resolubility of FH grades and will require a higher temperature for solubility in
water in order to achieve acceptable desizing. The copolymer sizes can be
considered comparable to the partially hydrolyzed grades as far as resolubility is
concerned .Generally, temperatures in the range of 170 to 190F are required to
achieve acceptable desizing of most grades of PVA. The solubility of the FH grades
of PVA can be improved by the addition of polyester resins

Size Recovery
One of the major advantages of PVA is that it can be recovered by ultrafiltration
techniques. Ultrafiltration is a membrane separation process that selectively
filters chemicals according to the molecular size. The ultrafiltration membranes
suitable for PVA recovery include carbon tubes manufactured by Gaston

Water solubility of PVA at 70OF

 Water solubility of PVA at 140OF.

Percent desize versus temperature for heat-set and non-heat-set PVA. (Heat-set
at 392F for 45 s. FH grade having the same DP as T25.)

Actual’’ recovery is somewhat less since allowances for loom shed, desize washer
efficiency, etc., must be made. Generally, 10–20% virgin PVA is added to the
recovered size to make.Percent Size Removal from Non-Heat-Set Fabric (Not
Steamed) at 150°F
 Percent Size Removal from Heat-Set Fabric (Not Steamed)

There are a number of textile mills that are operating units to recover PVA from
desizing of sheeting, apparel, and industrial fabrics . From 17 to 20 million pounds
of PVA is recovered yearly, which represents 22% of the total PVA requirements in
sizing Currently only PVA is being recovered in the United States, although other
size materials are also recoverable. A chemical process for separating PVA from
starch (Shikibo Process) and then recovering the PVA is currently being employed
in Japan .

Typical PVA size recovery by ultrafiltration.

About 65% of all chemicals entering a finishing plant effluent is size related; yet,
desizing uses only 10–15% of the total water. Waste treatment plants average
about 75% treatment efficiencies. One reason is that bacteria acclimated to
degrade PVA are temperature dependent and are not as efficient during the
colder winter months. Size reclamation can substantially reduce waste treatment
loads and save water and energy during preparation. A plant using 3 million
pounds of size per year (36 million pounds of woven fabric per year) can pay for
the recovery equipment in less than 2 years.The distance the recovered size must
be transported from the recovery site to the mill is an additional consideration
Conclusion
sizing agents based on polyvinyl alcohol are characterized by high adhesive
power. Depending on the desired properties the various products can form either
glutinous, tear-resistant or elastic, transparent sizing films. The non-ionic sizing
agents can be combined with other sizing agents. They are suitable for natural
fibers as well as for synthetic staple fibers and their blends.

Reference
 Textile Sizing by BHUVENESH C. GOSWAMI & RAJESH D. ANANDJIWALA

 https://drpetry.de/en/products/sizing.html