SOFTENINING

FINISHES
OVERVIEW

Naisargi Ruparelia
DFT NIFT
BENGALURU
 • It is the process that helps achieve an agreeable,
soft hand , smoothness, flexibility and better
What is softening? drape and pliability.
Why softening?
During fabric preparation, the textiles can become embrittled.

ADVANTAGE DISADVANTAGE

Enhances natural quality Crock fastness

Feeling of fullness Yellowing
Anti-static properties Hue-change
Sewability
Softeners

• Most softeners have a hydrophobic and hydrophilic part.

• They are generally insoluble so sold as emulsions.
• Surfactants
• Most commonly used agents are silicon based.
• Three major types: cationic, anionic, non-ionic.
Mechanism
• Cationic softeners orient themselves with their positively charged ends toward the partially
negatively charged fiber (zeta potential), creating a new surface of hydrophobic carbon
chains
• Anionic softeners, on the other hand, orient themselves with their negatively charged ends
repelled away from the negatively charged fibre surface. This leads to higher hydrophilicity,
but less softening than with cationic softeners.
• The orientation of non-ionic softeners depends on the nature of the fiber surface, with the
hydrophilic portion of the softener being attracted to hydrophilic surfaces and the
hydrophobic portion being attracted to hydrophobic surfaces.
 • Usually quaternary ammonium salts, amino-esters and amino-amides.
• Suitable for all fabrics
• durable to laundering
• Suitable with any method
• Anti static properties
• Poor rewetting
Cationic
softener • They can cause change in dye toning.
• Yellowing.
 • produced by the condensation of fatty acids.
• Good for lubricating yarns.
• Less yellowing
• Good rewetting

Anionic
softener • Less softness compared to others; not silky
• Limited durability to laundering
• Mechanical deposition by padding
• Need a lot of chemicals
Padding
 • generally ethers and polyglycol esters, ethoxylated
products, paraffins and fats.
• less efficient than anionic and cationic
• mainly applied by forced application like padding
Non-ionic methods

softener • Imparts bulkier, smooth handle, suitable for whites

• Less softness, less durability.
Silicone softeners
• Silicones are macromolecules comprised of a
polymer backbone of alternating Silicon and
Oxygen atoms with organic groups attached
to silicon.
• Silicone’s softening capability comes from the
siloxane backbone’s flexibility and its freedom
of rotation along the Si-O bonds.

• They feature quite good fastness to washing.

• They create a lubricating and moderately
waterproof film on the surface and give
fabrics a silky hand
References
• https://textilelearner.blogspot.com/2013/11/softeni
ng-finishes-in-textile.html
• https://www.textiletoday.com.bd/role-of-softeners-i
n-textile-wet-processing/
• https://www.slideshare.net/asayedessie/softening-fi
nishes
• https://youtu.be/W9DfAJebFX4
Thankyou