Mechanism of crosslinking Tencel woven fabric for superior easy‐care properties and analysis using fluorescence microscopy

A crosslinking treatment to impart easy‐care properties to Tencel fabric has been investigated, using dimethyloldihydroxyethylene urea (Reaktant DH) as crosslinking agent and magnesium chloride hexahydrate as catalyst. Nonconventional treatment techniques such as “flash curing,” “moist curing,” “pad‐batch‐cure,” and “pad‐dry‐dry steam cure” are used to facilitate better penetration of crosslinking monomer into the fiber interior. Easy‐care properties of Tencel fabrics using these techniques are evaluated and compared with those treated with resin monomer using conventional pad‐dry‐cure process. Analysis of treated fabric using a fluorescent labeling technique and image analysis shows that nonconventional techniques significantly improve the penetration of crosslinking agent. The results further suggest that these techniques can be used to improve abrasion resistance and fabric handle of Tencel woven fabric. © 2006 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci 101: 2154–2161, 2006     

Pilling in cellulosic fabrics,Part 2: A study on kinetics of pilling in alkali‐treated lyocell fabrics

As pilling in textiles originates from many factors, the kinetic of pilling formation play an important role in the investigation and approaches of pilling. The single jersey‐knitted lyocell fabrics were treated with different alkaline solution concentrations and submitted to Rapid Pilling Test—a wet‐state Martindale test for cellulosic fabrics performed with increasing abrasion cycles. After each type of cycles, the pilling density was microscopically counted, and then pilling was visually rated. The changes in fiber properties were followed by water retention values (WRV), fibers swelling, fiber wet abrasion resistance (NSF), and fibers tenacity/elongation in wet and in dry states. The kinetics of pill formation—quantified by pills/cm²—occurred in the following steps: pills are promptly formed at first abrasion cycles, reached the pill plateau cycles, and are self‐removed from the fabric surface. The untreated and alkali‐treated lyocell fabrics followed a similar trend of pill formation. However, the pilling propensity is distinct depending on the concentrations. The changes in the swollen state of fiber properties and fiber–fiber friction mainly determined the pill kinetics in lyocell fabrics. The kinetic model aims to figure out the pilling mechanism and the appropriate treatment for pilling resistance. © 2008 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci, 2008     

Function of lipase in lipid soil removal as studied using fabrics with different chemical accessibility

Fatty stain removal is enhanced by the inclusion of lipase in washing compounds and leads to increased lipid removal from within the fibers. Cotton fabrics with varied morphology/chemistry were investigated to study the accessibility of soil in textiles to detergent and lipase. Three cotton fabrics (untreated, mercerized, and carboxymethylated cotton), differing in chemical accessibility, and Tencel^TM lyocell fabric, a microdenier manufactured cellulosic fiber, were subjected to three treatments—unwashed, washed with detergent, and washed with lipase—so as to understand further the effects of fiber morphology on lipase effectiveness. Both detergents and lipase removed more soil from the more chemically accessible and hydrophilic textiles. Lipase increased lipid removal for all fabrics and all morphological locations on the fiber, including fiber surfaces, interfiber capillaries, small capillaries, and the center of the yarn bundle. Lipase removed significant quantities of soil from the lumen in untreated and mercerized cotons; these fabrics showed the largest total increases in amount of lipid removed by lipase. When the fiber surfaces were smoother and the fiber structure was less open and not carboxymethylated, i.e., the mercerized cotton fabric, more lipase benefit was observed (72% of the residual soil left after washing with detergent was removed when lipase was added). The total soil removal from the mercerized cotton fabric by use of lipase was equal to that observed for the more open, hydrophilic carboxymethylated fabric and for the Tencel, which has no lumen or other morphological features of natural cotton such as crenulations. Lipase appeared to enhance lipid removal under conditions where removal by the detergent surfactant system was limited. Furthermore, we concluded that lipase acted to remove lipid soil from within the fibers by functioning at the interior surfaces of microfibrils and pores within the fiber structure at the lipid-water interface.     

Hydro‐entangled bi‐component microfiber nonwovens

This article describes the production of microfiber nonwoven fabrics from segment pie bi‐component fibers using air‐laying and hydro‐entanglement. The bi‐component fibers were split into microfibers during hydro‐entanglement. The microfiber nonwoven fabrics are compared with similar products made from single component fibers. The degree of fiber splitting is found to depend on the jet pressure as well as the fiber position in the web thickness direction. Compared with the nonwovens fabric made from single component fibers, the microfiber nonwoven fabrics have higher tensile strength, lower elongation, higher water absorbency. However, contrary to what was expected, the microfiber nonwovens fabrics have a stiffer handle. This is caused by the increased fiber entanglement and much denser structure for the bi‐component microfiber nonwoven fabrics. POLYM. ENG. SCI., 2009. © 2009 Society of Plastics Engineers     

Chemical treatments for improving adhesion between electrospun nanofibers and fabrics

Nanofiber‐coated fabrics have potential uses in filters and protective clothing. One major challenge is to ensure good adhesion of nanofibers to the fabrics achieving satisfactory durability against abrasion for practical use. This work is aimed to study adhesion mechanisms and their improvement between nanofibers and textile substrates; to achieve this goal cotton fabrics were treated with an alkali solution, while nylon fabrics were treated with ethanol. Adhesion of polyamide‐6 electrospun nanofiber layer to fabrics was evaluated by means of a peeling test. Treated fabrics showed improved bonding towards nanofibers: adhesion energy was ～0.58 J m^?2 for both untreated fabrics, and after treatments increased to 0.93 and 0.86 J m^?2 for cotton and nylon ones, respectively. Optical observations revealed that nanofibers deposited on fabrics are mainly linked to external protruding fibers (i.e., fabric hairiness). Therefore, surface hairiness seems to be the critical factor limiting adhesion. © 2013 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Appl. Polym. Sci. 2014 , 131, 39766.     

Structure and properties of hemp fabric treated with chitosan and dyed with mixed epoxy‐modified silicone oil

To enhance the color yield and improve the soft handle, hemp fabrics were treated with chitosan of molecular weight 4200 and degree of deacetylation 0.90, and then dyed using Remazol Brillant Blue R with mixed epoxy‐modified silicone oil in different volume ratios. The structural changes in hemp fibers were investigated by means of scanning electron microscope, FTIR, TG, DSC, and XRD. The properties of tensile, bending, dyeing, and color fastness for hemp fabric were also studied. The results showed that when compared with the untreated hemp fiber, the thermal performance of chitosan/silicone oil‐modified hemp fiber changed and the percent residual weight increased in the range of temperature 25–550°C. The crystal grain size decreased and the degree of crystallization increased. For chitosan/silicone oil‐treated hemp fabric, the flexural stiffness and tensile properties degraded. The maximum color yield (K/S value) was obtained when the volume ratio of dyeing liquor to silicone oil was 2 : 1. The color fastnesses to rubbing and wet scrubbing were also improved. © 2009 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci, 2009     

Pilling in man‐made cellulosic fabrics,part 1: Assessment of pilling formation methods

Despite the pills appear similarly in fabric surfaces, their structure and mechanism of formation are distinct depending on material categories and handling conditions. The lyocell and viscose knitted fabrics were abraded with short cycles in the wet state as an assessment method for pilling formation called rapid pilling test (RPT). The samples were immersed in different wetting agents and subsequently padded before short abrasion in Martindale tester. The results were compared with long abrasion, besides 5–25 cycles of washing and drying (W‐D). The samples were rated and these results were correlated with the changes in the physical parameters obtained in the dry and wet state. The correlation showed the feasibility of RPT in wet state with short‐abrasion cycles, in lieu of long cycles and W–D cycles. Furthermore, the image analysis of single pills formed by different methods and the inner/outer pill structure may reflect the pilling mechanism and yield a comprehensive view of the whole process. Instead of conventional Martindale test, the easy‐handling RPT can be applied for cellulosic fabrics, in which wet samples are abraded in short cycles fulfilling two important demanding factors during test performance: test of material in the wet state and reduced testing time. © 2008 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci, 2008     

Relationships Between Birefringence of Constituent Fibers and Properties of Thermally Bonded Nonwovens

Summary: Three‐dimensional nonwoven fabrics have been produced using a newly developed air‐laid web forming and through‐air thermal‐bonding process directly from commercial PP/polyester (sheath/core) bi‐component staple fibers. Following the previous study on the morphology and structure of constituent fibers, this paper reports the breaking force and abrasion resistance of the fabrics. Results indicate that the relationships between both the breaking strength and abrasion resistance of the samples, and the thermal‐bonding process conditions are similar to each other. The appropriate thermal‐bonding temperature and dwell time are critical for achieving fabrics with high breaking strength and abrasion resistance. Such relationships are inconsistent with those between the tensile strength of the constituent fiber reflected by the birefringence and the thermal‐bonding process conditions. The birefringence of the constituent fiber appears to decrease with increasing thermal‐bonding temperature and dwell time. These results provide evidence that both the breaking force and abrasion resistance for the thermally bonded nonwoven fabrics are governed not only by the mechanical properties of constituent fibers, but also by the bonding properties between the fibers.

Abrasion mass loss and breaking force of fabric and birefringence of constituent fiber for the thermally bonded nonwoven samples as functions of the dwell time.     

Preparation of alginate/soy protein isolate blend fibers through a novel coagulating bath

Alginate and soy protein isolate blend fibers were prepared by spinning their solution through a viscose‐type spinneret into a novel coagulating bath containing aqueous CaCl₂, HCl, and ethanol. The structures and properties of the fibers were studied with the aids of infrared spectra (IR), X‐ray diffraction (XRD), and scanning electron micrograph (SEM). Mechanical properties and water‐retention properties were measured. And with the sample of AS1 fiber (soy protein isolate weight content was 10%), the effects of the composition of the novel coagulating bath were also studied. The best values of the tensile strength of AS1 were 14.1 cN/tex in the dry state and 3.46 cN/tex in the wet state, respectively. Both the dry state and wet state breaking elongation were also having the best value 20.71% and 56.7% with AS1. Mechanical properties of the AS1 enhanced with the CaCl₂ content increased in the coagulating bath. When the HCl content was 1%, the mechanical property of the fiber was best. Ethanol in the coagulating bath increased the wet mechanical properties of the fiber by 41.2% (tensile strength) and 45.1% (breaking elongation) when the ethanol weight content in the coagulating bath was 50%; but it had little effect on the dry mechanical properties. And the water‐retention value (WRV) of blend fibers decreased as the amount of soy protein isolate was raised. The structure analysis indicated that there were strong interaction and a certain level of miscibility between alginate and soy protein isolate. © 2006 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci 101: 425–431, 2006     

Tensile and elastic behavior of tencel continuous filaments

Tencel is a regenerated cellulose fiber produced using an environmentally‐responsible dry‐jet wet‐spinning process, which contributes to its excellent mechanical properties. In this study, the tensile properties of Tencel continuous filaments are characterized and the effect of twist on mechanical properties, including breaking load and extension, are considered. Peak strength was obtained in Tencel filaments of 140 t m^?1. The elastic behavior of Tencel monofilament was observed by assessing the recovery from strain‐induced energy and the elastic recovery was found to be low. Along with time dependency, Tencel has the ability to stabilize its deformed state by forming new crosslinks, and this influences the elastic behavior. In simple extension cycles, the same low elasticity was observed. Cumulative extension cycles were also performed to characterize the behavior of filaments subjected to repeated strain and to determine the resultant hysteresis effects. Permanent elongation was observed at 2% imposed strain, which suggests that the filament has low extensibility. © 2005 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci 99: 1496–1503, 2006     

Effect of Silicone Nano,Nano/Micro and Nano/Macro‐Emulsion Softeners on Color Yield and Physical Characteristics of Dyed Cotton Fabric

The study of silicone nano‐emulsions and softeners to alter physical properties of undyed cotton fabric has recently gained a substantial interest. However, systematic investigation of silicon nano‐emulsion softeners on dyed cotton fabric has not so far been conducted. This paper deals with the application of silicone nano‐, micro‐, and macro‐emulsion softeners, and combinations of nano/micro and nano/macro, on dyed cotton fabric. We report the effect of silicon nano/micro‐ and nano/macro‐emulsion softeners on color yield and physical characteristics of dyed cotton fabric. All bleached fabrics were dyed with CI Reactive Black 5 and then treated with known concentrations of silicone softeners by the pad‐dry method. The silicone nano‐emulsion was combined with micro‐ and macro‐emulsion softeners using blending ratios of nano/micro (1:1) and nano/macro (1:1). Treated fabrics were compared in terms of physical properties such as fabric handling, wrinkle recovery angle, bending length, abrasion resistance and tensile strength. The color changes were evaluated by color yield (K/S) values and total color difference (ΔE_cmc). The results revealed that the silicon nano‐emulsion had better physical properties than micro‐, macro‐ and combination nano/micro‐ and nano/macro‐emulsion softeners. Among all treated samples, nano‐emulsion softeners showed better ΔE_cmc values. Scanning electron microscopy analysis suggests that the fiber morphology of treated fabrics was very smooth and uniform.     

Modification of dry‐spun Suplon polyimide fibers by mixed‐acid oxidation and their effects on the properties of polypropylene‐resin‐based composites

In this study, the effects of mixed‐acid oxidation on the contents of surface elements, morphology, fiber fineness, mechanical properties, mass change rate, chemical structure, and microaggregate structure of dry‐spun Suplon polyimide (PI) fibers were systematically investigated with wet chemical treatment with HNO₃/H₂SO₄. Experiments investigating both the improvement in the O/C ratio of the fiber surface elements and the changes in other performance features were conducted through the functional modification of the fibers. Meanwhile, the causes of specific changes in the mechanical properties of the oxidized PI‐fiber‐reinforced polypropylene‐resin‐based composites were studied and are discussed. The results of this study demonstrate that the treatment of the fibers with HNO₃/H₂SO₄ mixed‐acid oxidation resulted in significant changes in the properties of the fibers; these changes included an uneven surface, increased specific surface area and surface roughness, a locally etched surface, increased surface energy and O/C ratio, an enhanced wettability, an increased fiber fineness, reduced mechanical properties, and a mass gain in the fibers. Although the chemical structures of the fibers treated by oxidized HNO₃/H₂SO₄ were not significantly changed compared to those of the untreated fibers, the microscopic aggregation of the treated fibers changed to some degree, and the ratio of the amorphous regions significantly increased. Taken together, the functional modification of the PI fiber surface was achieved efficiently through the use of a suitable HNO₃/H₂SO₄ oxidation process and with other performance features of the fibers taken into account. This was favorable for the enhancement of the interfacial properties of the polypropylene fibers and the matrix resins, and thus, the modification improved the mechanical properties of the composites. © 2017 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Appl. Polym. Sci. 2017 , 134, 44932.     

Raman spectroscopic study of effect of steam and carbon dioxide activation on microstructure of polyacrylonitrile‐based activated carbon fabrics

This work presents the different effects of steam and carbon dioxide activation on the microstructure of an oxidized polyacrylonitrile (PAN) fabric. An investigation was conducted on a series of carbonized fabrics and two series of activated carbon fabrics. The fabrics were activated by steam and carbon dioxide using heat‐treatment temperatures of 900–1100°C. Steam and carbon dioxide developed the microstructure initially present in the PAN‐based activated carbon fabrics, but with different effects. These fabrics in the form of fabric and powder were examined by X‐ray diffraction and Raman spectrometry. This study indicated that carbon dioxide only reacted with the crystalline edges or the irregular carbon on the fiber surface and that the inside structure of the fibers was not greatly affected. When the fabrics were activated using steam, water molecules reacted not only on the fiber surface but also with the carbon at the crystal edge and/or the nonregular carbon in the fibers, which led to communicating pore structures on the surface and in the inner portions of the fiber. This activation also promoted the denitrogenation reactions. Because of these structures and reactions, the activated carbon fabrics, which were activated by steam, had the highest stacking height for carbon layer planes (L_c), the highest number of layer planes (L_c/d₀₀₂), the highest oxygen content, the largest crystal size (L_a), and the highest density over the other samples. © 2001 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci 81: 1090–1099, 2001     

Chemical modification of nylon 6 and polyester fabrics by ozone‐gas treatment

In a previous article, we reported on the ozone‐gas treatment of wool and silk fabrics in relation to the gas‐phase processing of textile fabrics. The treatment incorporated an oxygen element into the fiber surface and contributed to an increase in water penetration into the fabric. In this study, nylon 6 and polyester fabrics were treated with ozone gas in the same way as that of the wool and silk fabrics. The treatment incorporated much more oxygen into the fiber surface in the form of ? COH and ? COOH, as shown by electron spectroscopy for chemical analysis. Water penetration increased considerably with treatment, and the apparent dyeing rate and equilibrium dye uptake were also improved, especially for the polyester fabric, despite an increase in the crystallinity. Therefore, it seemed that the treatment brought about a change not only in the fiber surface but also in the internal structure of the fibers (the crystalline and amorphous regions) with regard to the dyeing behavior. Further, the mechanical characteristics of the ozone‐gas‐treated polyester and nylon 6 fabrics were measured with a Kawabata evaluation system apparatus. The shearing modulus and hysteresis widths increased with treatment, especially for the polyester fabric. Therefore, it was clear that the treatment caused a change in the fabric hand to crisp. © 2006 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci 100: 1344–1348, 2006     

Polyaniline–TiO2 hybrid‐coated cotton fabric for durable electrical conductivity

A polyaniline–TiO₂ hybrid was coated on cotton fabric to make it electrically conductive. A One‐pot method of synthesis with acetic acid medium was used, in which TiCl₄ was used as precursor. The oxidative polymerization of aniline adsorbed on TiO₂ (anatase form) was performed in the presence of cotton fabric. Fabric crystallinity was least affected by the coatings, as confirmed by XRD analysis. FTIR studies revealed interactions between fiber and hybrid. The morphological study through SEM showed the uniform coating of hybrid over the fibers of the cotton fabric and AFM analysis revealed the rod‐like structure of the hybrid. The strength of the coated fabrics was assessed using abrasion tests. The electrical conductivity was determined using electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS).The conductivity value varied with respect toTiO₂ content and ranged in the order 10^?4 to 10²S/cm. The effect of atmospheric aging was assessed. A more durable conductivity was observed in hybrid‐coated fabric than pristine polyaniline‐coated fabric. © 2012 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Appl. Polym. Sci., 2013     

Characterization of the draping behavior of jute woven fabrics for applications of natural‐fiber/epoxy composites

In this study, we investigated the draping behavior of jute woven fabric to study the feasibility of using natural fabrics in place of synthetic glass‐fiber fabrics. Draping behavior describes the in‐mold deformation of fabrics, which is vital for the end appearance and performance of polymer composites. The draping coefficient was determined with a common drapemeter for fabrics with densities of 228–765 g/m² and thread counts under different humidity and static dynamic conditions. The results were compared to glass‐fiber fabrics with close areal densities. Characterization of the jute fabrics was carried out to fill the knowledge gap about natural‐fiber fabrics and to ease their modeling. The tensile and bending stiffnesses and the shear coupling were also characterized for a plain woven jute fabric with a tensile machine, Shirley bending tester, and picture frame, respectively. As a case study, the draping and resin‐transfer molding of the jute fabric over a complex asymmetric form was performed to measure the geometrical conformance. The adoption of natural fibers as a substitute for synthetic fibers, where the strength requirements are satisfied, would thus require no special considerations for tool design or common practices. However, the use of natural fibers would lead to weight and cost reductions. © 2013 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Appl. Polym. Sci. 130: 1453–1465, 2013     

Mechanical strength of durable press finished cotton fabric part V: Poly(vinyl alcohol) as an additive to improve fabric abrasion resistance

Multifunctional carboxylic acids, such as 1,2,3,4‐butanetetracarboxylic acid (BTCA), are effective crosslinking agents for cotton cellulose and have become the most promising nonformaldehyde durable press (DP) finishing agents to replace the traditional formaldehyde‐based dimethyloldihydroxylethyleneurea (DMDHEU) and its derivatives. DP finishing imparts wrinkle resistance to cotton fabrics and also severely reduces the strength and abrasion resistance of finished fabrics. In this research, we investigated the use of poly(vinyl alcohol) (PVA) as an additive to improve the abrasion resistance of the cotton fabric crosslinked by BTCA. We found that addition of PVA improves the abrasion resistance of the crosslinked cotton fabric when the concentration of PVA exceeds 0.6% in the finish solution. We also found that the use of PVA as an additive has no negative effect on the wrinkle recovery angle (WRA), DP rating, and tensile strength of the treated cotton fabric. This is probably because the molecules of PVA stay on the surfaces of the cotton fibers due to their large molecular sizes. PVA competes with cellulose to esterify BTCA, thus reducing the number of crosslinkages formed on the cotton fiber surface. The reaction of PVA and BTCA may also form a protective layer on the fiber surface, thus reinforcing the mechanically weak points on the fiber surface. © 2004 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci 91: 3940–3946, 2004     

Fibrillation tendency of cellulosic fibers,part 6: Effects of treatments with additive polymers

The influences of the treatments with various polymers on fibrillation and abrasion resistances of lyocell materials were investigated with respect to the type of polymer, the polymer concentration, and the drying temperature. Fibril number, generated with agitation using ball‐bearings (FN_ball), was decreased with increasing the concentration of aminofunctional polysiloxane because of reduction in water retention capacity (WRV) in fibers. The never‐dried lyocell fiber showed smaller decrease in FN_ball because of its higher WRV when compared to dried fibers. The treatment with aminofunctional polysiloxane enhanced not only the fibrillation resistance but also abrasion resistance, which was indicated as rotation number of abrasive bar in the abrasion test (RN_abr). No fibrillation was obtained in the fiber treated with 10 g/L aminofunctional polysiloxane at 120°C for 20 min, while the fibers treated at 60 and 170°C for 15 min were fibrillated in the agitation and abrasion tests. The addition of secondary polyethylene derivative also reduced the fibrillation tendency of lyocell; however, the extent of the reduction was lesser when compared with aminofunctional polysiloxane. The treatments with polyacrylate, polyurethane, and polyisocyanate derivatives improved the fibrillation resistance in lyocell fabrics, while fiber abrasion resistance was not significantly improved by the treatment with those additives, except in polyisocyanate. © 2006 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci 101: 4140–4147, 2006     

Jute fabric reinforced engineering thermoplastic sandwich composites. I. The effect of molding time

Jute fabric‐reinforced sandwich composites were fabricated using engineering thermoplastics. The jute fabrics were precoated with thermosetting resin to improve their thermal resistance before molding of the composites. Thermal gravimetric analysis (TGA) studies revealed that the resin coated fabrics decomposed at higher temperature than the uncoated jute. The onset of degradation of the coated fibers also falls between that of jute fibers and the thermoset resins. This indicates the presence of good interfacial bonding between jute fibers and both resins. Isothermal TGA studies revealed that jute could withstand brief exposure to higher temperature at 270 and 290°C. The sandwich composites were fabricated at 270°C by compression molding for 1.5 and 3 min in each case, and then characterized by flexural, tensile and morphological studies, i.e., SEM and optical microscopy. The uncoated jute fabric yielded composites of superior mechanical properties even with 3 mins molding at 270°C which is close to the degradation temperature of uncoated jute fibers. This is an indication that it is feasible to prepare jute fiber filled engineering polymer composites provided the exposure time at high temperature during processing does not exceed 3 mins as determined by TGA isothermal studies. SEM studies revealed strong fiber/matrix interfacial bonding between jute and the thermoset resins while the inferior mechanical properties of the resin coated sandwich composites could be attributed to the poor interfacial bonding between the already cured thermoset coating and the matrix based on optical microscopy of the polished cross‐sections. © 2012 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Appl. Polym. Sci., 2013     

Effects of pretreatment reagents on the hydrolysis and physical properties of PET fabrics

The effects of pretreatment reagents on the hydrolysis and physical properties of PET fabrics were investigated under various alkaline hydrolysis treatment and pretreatment conditions. Before alkaline hydrolysis, solvent treatment with pretreatment reagents, including benzyl alcohol (PET‐b) or 2‐phenyl ethanol (PET‐p), modified the structure of the PET fabric, thus affecting the hydrolysis and physical properties of the PET fabrics. Fabric weight loss increased with increasing hydrolysis time. The rate constant (k) increased markedly with increasing methyl groups in the pretreatment reagents. The activation energy (E_a) of untreated fabrics was higher than those of the treated fabrics. The crystallinity of the PET fabrics increased with increasing hydrolysis times (t) and methyl groups in the pretreatment reagents. The weight loss of PET‐b increased with increasing pretreatment temperature (T). However, the weight loss of PET‐p increased up to 100°C but decreased above 120°C. The shrinkage of all samples increased with increasing hydrolysis times (t). Shrinkage of PET‐b and PET‐p was greater than that of untreated fabrics. PET‐b displayed greater shrinkage than PET‐p because byproducts polluted the PET fibers. Both the initial and maximum water absorption of the fabrics increased with increasing hydrolysis times (t). © 2009 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci, 2009