Caution: Some Mordants Are Poisonous! The Use of Copper, Iron, Tin and Chrome Mordants
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devilturn70Caution: Some Mordants Are Poisonous! The Use of Copper, Iron, Tin and Chrome Mordants
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devilturn70What Is a Mordant?
To be successful at natural dyeing you need to know a bit about mordants and fixatives.
Basically, natural dyes will not adhere to natural fibres without the use of
a mordant or fixative. Whilst you may initially get a beautiful result from the dyeing, it will
soon wash out or fade away!
Protein fibres like silk and wool absolutely need a plant extract (dye) and a mineral mordant.
So, if you are looking to dye some yarn to eventually produce a garment that will wash well
you must learn a little about mordants!
Soaking the wool or yarn in water to which a mordant has been added will ensure your lovely
natural dye fixes to what you are dyeing.
To do this fill your pot with cool water to which your mordant has been added. Stir well to
ensure the mineral has dispersed through the water evenly and then place your dye material
(wool, fibre, yarn, thread) gently into the pot. Slowly bring to a simmer for about 20 – 30
minutes, then turn the heat off and leave to cool.
As the water cools, the mordant will adhere to the fibre or yarn in the pot. At this stage, you
can dry your mordanted yarn and store it for later use. Or you can transfer it to your dye bath
where the natural dye you have chosen will now fix itself to the mordant in your yarn or
fibre.
Caution: some mordants are poisonous! The use of Copper, Iron, Tin and Chrome mordants
has decreased over recent years as dyers have become more environmentally aware and
health conscious. Always wear gloves and follow the safety advice at the bottom of this
article.
List of Mordants for Natural Dyeing
Alum
The specific compound is hydrated potassium aluminium sulfate. Alum can sometimes be
found in your local supermarket, as it is often used in canning and preserving. Alum is one of
the most popular mordants used in natural dyeing, as you can dye and mordant all at the same
time. Just add your alum to the dye bath, mix well, then add yarn or fibre.
If you can’t find alum locally (or just can’t be bothered), you can easily order some via
Amazon. This offer to the right has a lot of great reviews, click to check them out.
Alum is also regarded as the safest of the common mordants, so it is probably your best bet if
you are just starting out.
Note: too much Alum can make your yarn sticky, so less is best. However you may need to
experiment to get a deeper color. A good starting point is 1/4lb Alum and 1 oz Cream of
Tartar to 1lb wool or yarn.
Iron
Iron (or Ferrous Sulphate) tends to darken the dye on your fibre or yarn. Use to create lovely
browns. 1/2 oz (15 grams) Iron per pound (500 grams) fibre.
Old nails boiled in water will also create an effective and free iron mordant.
Iron will dull down colors so care must be taken if that is not the look you are searching for.
Copper
Old pennies are made of copper and you can choose to (literally) save a few pennies and use
these as your mordant.
However, it is more effective to simply buy copper sulfate. Again, this is
readily available online, just click the link to the left to check out this one from Amazon.
Copper produces lovely greens!
The measurements are the same as for iron. Copper is toxic! Please see warning notes below!
Tin
As a mordant, tin has a tendency to be very harsh on the wool or
yarn and can make it quite brittle. Small amounts are recommended!
However, when used correctly, tin leaves a clear and very fast color.
Because of the harshness of tin it is most often used in tiny amounts along with another
mordant, or is added as an after bath to brighten colors. Tin is highly toxic, please see
warning notes below.
Chrome
Use at a rate of 2 – 4% chrome to wool weight. The advantage of using chrome is that it
leaves the wool soft to the touch, whereas the other mordants can be quite harsh leaving your
wool slightly crunchy.
I would actually not recommend using chrome these days, as it has been found to be proven
carcinogen!
List of Fixatives
Cottons and linens or other plant based textiles need a fixative to help set the dye, so that
your wonderful creation does not lose color quickly.
Salt – Use salt as a fixative for cotton fabrics, thread or yarns. As a general rule you
should use 1 part salt to 16 parts water. Place your dyeing medium into the salted
water and simmer for about an hour to allow maximum absorption. Gently squeeze
the salted water from your dyeing medium and then – whilst still wet – immerse the
item into the dye bath.
Tannins – Tannins occur naturally in some plants, which eliminates the need for
other fixatives. These plants are indicated by an “**” mark in the colors page.
Vinegar – 1 part vinegar to 4 parts water. Use as per salt above.
Baking Soda – 1/2 cup baking soda to 1 gallon water. Simmer.
Tara Powder –
Cream of Tartar – Cream of Tartar is often used with an alum mordant to produce a
clearer color in the final dyed product
Washing Soda –
Role of Softeners in Textile Wet-
Processing
Any operation that improves the physical characteristics of the fabric is
termed asFinishing. Softener is an finishing agent that when applied to textile
material improves its handle giving pleasing touch.
Non-ionic softeners : These are generally ethers and polyglycol esters,
ethoxylated products, paraffins and fats. These softening agents are
generally less efficient than anionic and cationic ones but they withstand the
effects of hard waters, acid or basic environment and also stable in presence
of cations and anions. As they do not bear any charge, they are mainly
applied by forced application like padding methods. We at Matex have
developed a complete range of Non-ionic softeners like Matsoft NISB paste,
Matsoft NI flakes, Matsoft NISIL liquid, Matsoft NYS emulsion and NISPE.
Advantages Disadvantages
Imparts bulkier, smooth handle Less softness compared to CS
Non yellowing and suitable for whites Less durability compared to CS
Does not change dyes shade Mechanical deposition by padding
Compatible with OBA’s and resins May deteriorate wet/dry crock fastness
Anionic softeners : Anionic softeners are produced by the condensation of
fatty acids. They have good characteristics as lubricating softening agents
and give the fabric a full hand. They are unstable in hard water and acid
environment. Anionic finishing agents have negatively charged hydrophilic
group. The cellulose acquires negative charge when wetted out and attracts
the positively charged hydrophobic group, with hydrophilic group orienting
away from the fiber surface.
Advantages Disadvantages
Good rewetting properties Less softness compared to others
Good stability towards heat Limited durability to laundering
Less yellowing Mechanical deposition by padding
Good for lubricating yarns Incompatible with resins
Cationic softeners : They are usually quaternary ammonium salts, amino-
esters and amino-amides. They are recommended for all types of fiber, and
can be also applied with exhaustion process in acid environment (pH 4-5).
These are also called molecular finishing agents because they form bonds
with the cationic group on the surface of the fiber generally with negative
electric potential. They can give some problem in presence of large anions,
and they can cause change in dye toning, or a reduction in fastness to light
values in the presence of direct and reactive dyes.
Advantages Disadvantages
Imparts soft, fluffy handle More yellowing. Not suitable for whites
Durable to multiple washes Poor re-wetting properties
Imparts antistatic properties May change dyes shade
Suitable by any method May deteriorate light fastness
Compatible with resins Not compatible with anionic
Amphoteric softeners : Typical properties are good softening effects, low
permanence to washing and high antistatic effects. They have fewer
ecological problems than similar cationic products. Examples are betaine and
the amine oxide type.
Reactive softeners : N-methylol derivatives of superior fatty amides or
urea compounds replaced with fatty acids. The products have to be cross-
linked. They provide permanent softness and water repellency.
Polyethylene-based softeners : Polyethylene can be modified by air
oxidation in the melt at high pressure to add hydrophilic character (mainly
carboxylic acid group). Emulsification in the presence of alkali provides
higher quality and more stable products. They show high lubricity that is not
durable to dry cleaning. They are stable to extreme pH conditions and heat
at normal textile processing condition, and compatible with resins and
fluorescent brightening agents. They impart lubricity especially required for
yarns. They are very strong in improving properties like tensile strength/tear
strength, sewability, abrasion resistance and rubbing. Matsoft PE emulsion
and Matsoft PEW emulsion belongs to this category.
Silicone-based 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 are insoluble in water, and therefore
must be applied on fabrics after emulsification or dissolution in organic
solvents. They feature quite good fastness to washing. They create a
lubricating and moderately waterproof film on the surface and give fabrics a
silky hand.
They provide very special unique hand, high lubricity, good sewability, elastic
resilience, crease recovery, abrasion resistance and tear strength. They show
good temperature stability and durability, with high degree of permanence
for those products that form cross linked films and a range of properties from
hydrophobic to hydrophilic. As per the required properties the organoreactive
group is modified and the results are achieved. Matex has a developed a
complete range of silicone softeners like Diamino silicone(DAS), Reactive
aminosilicone (RAS), Aminofunctional silicone (AFS), Organofunctional
silicone (OFS), Premium aminofunctional silicone (PAS), polyether silicone
(HYS) and epoxy silicone (NYS).
. Detergent
Detergent is used to remove impurities from the Garment fabric surfaces and temperature
helps detergent to enhance its action. During coming these impurities, some pigment will be
washed out from the pigment dyed or printed area of the garments. As a result fading affect
will be developed