Evaluating glutaraldehyde as a nonformaldehyde durable press finishing agent for cotton fabrics

In recent years, extensive efforts have been made to find nonformaldehyde durable press finishes to replace the traditional formaldehyde-based reagents. In this research, glutaraldehyde is evaluated as a nonformaldehyde durable press finish for cotton fabrics. The infrared spectroscopy data show that the two aldehyde groups of glutaraldehyde react with cotton at elevated temperatures. There is a linear correlation between the fabric wrinkle recovery angle and the reduction in the carbonyl band intensity of the treated cotton cured at increasing temperatures. We have compared glutaraldehyde with low-formaldehyde DMDHEU and nonformaldehyde DHDMI as crosslinking agents for cotton. The fabric finished with glutaraldehyde shows adequate wrinkle resistance, sufficient whiteness, and high strength retention. As a nonformaldehyde durable press finishing agent, the performance of glutaraldehyde is superior to that of DHDMI.