INTRODUCTION TO DYEING

Colour
• Colour is a sensation which occurs when light enters the eyes.
• If a textile material has a particular colour, the textile material
absorbs all the light falling upon it and reflects only that particular
wavelength of the colour.
• A white fabric appears white as it reflects all the light waves.
Green fabric – the dye on the fabric absorbs most of the light and
reflects only light with wavelengths which appear green to the eye.
INTRODUCTION TO DYEING
Specifying colour
There are three terms which are used to describe and specify colour.
Hue: is the common name of the colour; Eg: pink, mauve, beige.
Value: Term used to describe lightness, darkness, tone or shade of the
hues.
• A colour is termed light in value when it approaches white and dark
in value when it has a deep colour or approaches black.
Chroma: Term used to describe depth of colour; that is, the dullness,
brightness, saturation, intensity or purity of the colour.
• A bright, intense colour is said to have much chroma whereas a dull
colour is said to have little chroma.
INTRODUCTION TO DYEING
• Coloration is achieved by adding natural or synthetic
colorants: powerfully colored materials.
• Colorants are divided into dyes and pigments.
 Dyes Pigments
.
Dyes are organic materials. Pigments may be organic or inorganic.

Dyes are water soluble. Certain dyes are attracted to Pigments are not water soluble and possess no
certain fibre. They are usually adsorbed into the specific attraction for any particular fibre type.
fibre. They usually adhere to the surface of the fibre.

Dyes are colorants that are applied to, or formed in, Pigments are colorants ‘in a particulate form which
a textile substrate in a molecularly dispersed (i.e. is insoluble in a textile substrate,
soluble) form. but which can be dispersed within the substrate to
Dyes must be soluble or capable of being made modify its color’.
soluble in their application so they penetrate into the They are not molecularly dispersed, as are dyes, but
fiber, and a cross section of a dyed fiber typically are small, insoluble aggregate particles, similar to
shows color throughout. the pigments in paints.

Dyes are more difficult to match because the Pigment colors are easier to match than dye colors
chemical reactions o dyeing may cause the dye to because the color is held on the surface.
shift color.
Molecular size must be small enough to allow the Molecular size varies from small to large size.
molecules to penetrate the fibers.
The dye molecule
• Dye molecules are coloured because they are selectively able to
absorb and reflect incident light.

Chromophores and auxochromes

• Chromophores: Give the dye molecule its particular colour
• Auxochromes: Intensify the hue of the dye molecule’s colour,
makes the dye molecule more water soluble, and
improves the colour-fastness properties of the dyed or printed fiber.
The general theory of dyeing
• Dyeing is the process of colouring textile materials by
immersing them in an aqueous solution of dye, called dye
liquor. The dye liquor consists of dye, water and an
auxiliary. To improve the effectiveness of dyeing, heat is
usually applied to the dye liquor.
• The general theory of dyeing explains the interaction
between dye, fiber, water and dye auxiliary. It explains:
• Force of repulsion which are developed between the dye
molecule and water; and
• Forces of attraction which are developed between the
dye molecule and fibers.
• These forces are responsible for the dye molecules
leaving the aqueous dye liquor and entering and attaching
themselves to the polymers of the fibers.
The dye molecule
Dye molecules are organic molecules which can be classified as:
• Anionic – in which colour is caused by the anionic part of the dye
molecule
• Cationic – in which colour is caused by the cationic part of the dye
molecule
• Disperse - in which colour is caused by the whole molecule.
The role of water in dyeing:
• In addition to dissolving the dye, water acts as a medium
through which the dye molecules are transferred into the
fiber.
• Heat is necessary to encourage the dye to leave the water
and enter the fiber, and also for penetration of the dye into
the fiber.
• Water, assisted by heat also swells the fiber that are
hydrophilic, making it more accessible for the dye.
Advantages of lower liquor ratio in dyeing:
• Decreases water and energy consumption
• Decreases volume of waste water
• Facilitates rapid dyeing
• Increases dye exhaustion
Why the dye liquor is heated?
• Heat increases the energy of the dye molecule and the rate of dyeing.
• It increases the efficiency of the dye molecule to enter the amorphous
regions of the fiber.
• The heat also swells the fiber, making it easier for the dye molecule to
enter the fiber.
The dyeing process
• The medium most often used to dissolve or disperse dyes for
application to textiles is water.
• Successful application may require the addition of acids, bases,
salts, or other auxiliaries to assist in levelness or to increase
the uptake of dye.
• Dyeing is most often done in batches.
• In batch dyeing, the water containing the dye and auxiliaries is
called the dye liquor. For level dyeing, some form of agitation is
required.
• For dyeing to take place, attraction between dye and fiber is
required.
• The attraction, or affinity, of a dye for a particular fiber is
influenced by the chemical and physical nature of each.
• Ultimately it may be based on ionic forces, together with a
range of secondary bonding (such as hydrogen bonds).
A dye is also said to have substantivity for a fiber.
• These attractive forces not only allow dyeing to take place,
but also operate when the textile is used and laundered,
so they can be largely responsible for the fastness of the
dyeing.
Dyes used on cellulosic fibers:
• Direct, or substantive dyes
• Vat dyes
• Sulfur dyes
• Reactive dyes
• Azoic dyes

Dyes used for protein fibers:

• Acid dyes
• Metal complex dyes, or premetallised dyes
• Chrome, or mordant dyes

Dyes used for Manufactured fibers:

• Basic dyes
• Disperse dyes
Mechanism of dyeing
• In the process of dyeing, the dye is taken up in three distinct stages viz.
adsorption, absorption and fixation.

Adsorption of dye
• In all dyeing processes, the first and the most important stage consists in
the ‘localisation’ of the dye on the surface of the fibre or
• ‘adsorption’ of the dye – transfer of the dye from the aqueous solution or
dispersion to the surface of the fiber.
• All fibers are composed of macro-molecules having linear structure and
are characterized by chains having crystalline and amorphous regions
existing side by side.
• The crystalline regions behave mechanically as a rigid wall preventing
the chains to move apart, but
the amorphous regions permit absorption of moisture and absorption of
dyes and contribute to chemical reactivity and swelling of fibers.
Absorption of dye
• The second important stage viz. absorption of dye or its diffusion
into the fiber must take place so that the dye enters the internal
structure of the fiber before it is fixed.
• The hydrophilic fibers like cotton and wool, swell on wetting with
water and the solution of the dye diffuses into the amorphous
regions in the fiber molecules and thus gets absorbed.
• By increasing the temperature of the solution,
• the dye molecules diffuse faster into the fiber structure.
Fixation of dye
• After absorption of dye by the fiber, fixation of the dye
must occur so that the dye becomes irreversibly
attached to the fiber.
• The fixation of the dye inside the fiber is found to depend
on:
• the affinity of the dye,
• size and structure of the dye molecule,
• dye aggregation and
• hydrophilic or hydrophobic character of the fiber.
% shade
• When a particular dye is dyed on a textile material, the amount of dye
‘present’ on the material after dyeing is expressed as a ‘percent
shade’.
• It is based on the weight of the material taken for dyeing.
• When a 2% shade is to be produced on cloth, then 2 gm of dye is
taken for every 100 gm of cloth for dyeing.
The dyeing so produced gives a 2% shade.
• It does not mean that the cloth contains 2 gm of dye per 100 gm of
cloth after dyeing.
• This is qualitatively divided into three groups – deep, medium and
light (pale) shades. Still lighter shades are called pastel shades.
Light shades < 0.5 %
Medium shades 0.5-1.5 %
Deep shades > 1.5 %
• Dyeing is generally done from an aqueous medium.
• The quantity of water to be used in dyeing is calculated from
material: liquor ratio, M:L ratio.
• If M:L ratio is 1:10, for dyeing 100 kg material, we take 1000 kg
(or 1000 litres) of water. The reciprocal of this ratio is called
liquor: material ratio, or simply liquor ratio.
• In order to specify a dyeing process, the following data has to be
given:
Weight of the fabric to be dyed = W kg
% shade to be dyed =P%
M:L ratio = 1:V
C – Concentration of dye stock solution
Total quantity of liquor required for dyeing = (W × V) ml
Volume of dye solution needed = W × P ml
C
 Weight of the fabric to be dyed = 5 gm
% shade to be dyed =2%
M:L ratio = 1:30
C – Concentration of dye stock solution (1%): Take 1 gm of
dye and dissolve it in 100 ml of water.
Total quantity of liquor required for dyeing = (5×30) = 150 ml
Volume of dye solution needed = W × P ml
C
Volume of dye solution needed = 5 × 2 ml = 10 ml
1
NaCl = 10 gpl
Quantity of water required for the dyeing process = 150 - 10 =
140 ml
Calculate the amount of dye powder and liquor that would
be required to dye a fabric weighing 5 kg with 5% shade
and M:L ratio of 1:20 ?
Calculate the amount of dye powder and liquor that would
be required to dye a fabric weighing 5 kg with 5% shade
and M:L ratio of 1:20 ?

Dye powder = P % × Weight of fabric

100
= 0.25 kg

Liquor = Weight of fabric × V

= 5 × 20 = 100 Ltr.
Color Formulations and Matching Shades
• Matching of color shades by the dyer requires the skillful
blending and formulation of different color dyes within the
chosen dye class or pigments as well as
understanding of the behavior of fibers and of the numerous
chemicals needed to carry out the process.
• Once the dyer has formulated a color match, a sample swatch
of the finished dyeing known as a lab dip is made.
• Several lab dips, each with a formula adjustment, may be
needed to exactly duplicate the desired colors.
• This becomes the standard to which all future orders of the
same colors must conform.
• In actual practice, however, each new batch, or dye lot, is
slightly different in shade from all other lots before or after.
• These variations from lot to lot are caused by slight differences
in chemical concentrations or in molecular structure, or even
slight differences in the water used for dyeing.
• Variations in shade may even occur within the same lot.
Metamerism
• Sometimes in dyed fabrics the color has been formulated to mach an
already existing color. (For example, sleeve cuffs dyed to match the color
of a fabric for a jacket).

• When the two colors match each other under one light condition – for
example, daylight – but looks different from each other in a different light –
such as indoor light illumination – the condition is known as metamerism.

• The term color flare is used to indicate a fabric that has changed color
because of the change of light source.

• Metamerism may be caused when the dye components for the shade
being matched are chemically different from the components that were
used for the original.
• It is highly unlikely that metamerism would occur from dye lot to dye lot of
the same color if all the dyeing were performed by the same dyer.

• Metamerism is a possible problem, whenever two or more fabric types,

each dyed by different dyers, come together to be used as matched items.
Metamerism
• It is especially important that the phenomenon of metamerism
be understood and considered in apparel, such as coordinated
sportswear, where each component must be the same shade
under all conditions of sunlight and artificial light.

• A box-type device known as a color-matching booth is widely

used to test for metamerism.

• This standardized source of illumination can simulate natural

daylight as well as produce incandescent, fluorescent, and
ultraviolet light.

• Color-matching booths are sometimes called Macbeth Lamps,

which is the name of the original device.
Different dyeing assistants and their functions
Most dyeing processes require the addition of chemical auxiliaries to the
dyebath. These auxiliaries perform one or more of the following functions:

• They keep the dye in a stable physical form. Eg: dispersing agents are
included along with disperse dyes to promote the formation of stable
dispersions of these highly insoluble dyes.

• They change the chemical nature of the dye. Eg: vat dyes are chemically
reduced under alkaline conditions to promote their solubility and
substantivity for cellulosic substrates.

• They help to produce uniform dyeings. Eg: leveling agents are included
when dyeing acrylic fibers with basic dyes; they slow down the rate of
dyeing by competing with the dye molecules for sites within the fiber.
Different dyeing assistants and their functions
• They adjust the dyebath pH to promote dye substantivity. Eg: acid dyes of
low molecular weight are highly substantive on woolen textiles at low pH
levels (pH 2-3).

• They allow dye-fibre bonding to occur. Eg: Reactive dyes covalently bond
to the cellulosic substrates when the dyebath is made alkaline.

• They promote dye uptake during dyeing. Eg: Anionic dyes are made to
exhaust onto cellulosic substrates by the addition of sodium chloride
(NaCl) or sodium sulphate (Na2SO4) into the bath.

• They promote fibre receptivity to dye. Eg: auxiliary chemicals known as

carriers are included during the dyeing of polyester textiles to open the
fiber up so that molecules of disperse dye can more easily enter.