Method for enzymatic treatment of textiles such as wool

Abstract

The application provides a method of treating fibrous textile goods comprising treating the fibrous textile goods with an enzyme. This enzyme can be used to covalently link one or more active functional compounds to the fibres and / or to trap one or more acitve functional compound within an inter-fibre matrix and / or within an intra-fibre matrix formed by the action of the enzyme. Preferably, the enzyme is a traglutaminase, especially a calcium-dependent transglutaminase. The enzyme may be used to add primary-amine containing active agents to the textile goods and also for the addition of proteins or peptides that have functional groups linked to them.

Description

[0001] The present invention relates to a method of treating fibrous textile goods, such as wool, wool fibres or animal hair with an enzyme, such as a transglutaminase, preferably either including or in the absence of a protease enzyme. This treatment can be used to trap one or more active functional compounds within, by linking either covalently or non-covently such compounds onto, the fibrous textile goods.BACKGROUND TO THE INVENTION[0002] The use of enzymes in the treatment of textile goods has gained widespread acceptance and the applications of such technology are many and diverse, including industrial processes and household laundering. Thus, enzymes find industrial applicability in the desizing of fabric, in enzymatic stone-washing of denim to create an aged look, and in numerous other treatments to impart enhanced fabric properties, such as a clean fabric surface, free of microhairs and fibres, or improved pilling properties or fabric hand. In domestic laundry products, enzy...

AI Technical Summary

Benefits of technology

[0025] A third aspect of the invention provides a method of treating fibrous textile goods to improve dimensional stability and / or improve yarn strength comprising treating the fibrous textile goods with a calcium-dependent transglutaminase. Such a treatment also may improve tensile and burst strength, shrinkage resistance, handle, reduces pilling, improves softness, improves dye uptake and washfastness, especially when used together with a protease.

[0038] Transglutaminase or its optimised derivatives can be used to improve, for example, fabric handle, pilling performance, wrinkle resistance, the setting process, improve durable press finishing.

Problems solved by technology

The enzymatic processes that are currently being used, however, are difficult to control and can lead to results that are not sufficiently predictable and reproducible and cause significant damage to the fibre cuticle with consequent strength loss.

The major problems associated with wool goods are its tendency to shrink and its handle (prickliness).

These methods achieve a significant level of shrink-resistance to wool textiles, but they are difficult to control, and may affect adversely the handle of wool goods, as well as generate damaging substances that may be released into the environment.

The scalar structure of the wool fibre is partly responsible for the tendency of wool goods to dimensional instability.

Ideally, a commercial process would remove the surface scales to a limited extent, reducing the fibre coefficient of friction without significantly reducing wool fibre strength.

The use of proteases alone is not yet widely used industrially, the main reasons being the significant losses of weight and strength that result and also the relatively low degree of reproducibility.

Many methods based on the degradation of the structure of scales are destructive, causing molecular degradation of the proteins, which is ultimately responsible for the macroscopic reduction in weight and strength of the processed wool or animal hair textiles.

Protease treatments may however, if not closely controlled, cause undesirable levels of weight and strength loss on the wool textiles.

Because of the protruding scales in the wool fibre felting shrinkage is a major problem, mainly in knitted garments.

Images