SOUTHEAST

UNIVERSITY
Department of Textile Engineering
“Assignment”

Course Code: TEX – 435.1

Course Title : Wet Processing Technology - III

Submitted By -
Name : Zobair Hasan Moon
ID : 2019000400045
Batch : 40th
Section : 01

Submitted To -
Rajib Saha
Assistant Professor,
Department of Textile Engineering,
Southeast University
Submission Date : 22.03.2022

“Natural Dye and Dyeing”

Natural Dye: Natural dyes are dyes or colorants derived from plants, invertebrates,
or minerals. The majority of natural dyes are vegetable dyes from plant sources like
roots, berries, bark, leaves, and wood and other biological sources such as fungi.
Because of different molecular structure, cellulose and protein fibres require different
mordant treatments to prepare them for natural dyes.
Cellulose fibres: cotton, linen, hemp, ramie, bamboo, rayon
Protein fibres: wool, angora, mohair, cashmere, silk, soy, leather, suede.
The historic record contains many hundreds of different mordanting methods for both
protein and cellulose fibres.
The types of natural dyes currently popular with craft dyers and the global fashion
industry include:

Animal-derived dyes :
Cochineal insect (red)
Cow urine (Indian yellow)
Lac insect (red, violet)
Murex snail (purple, indigo blue)
Octopus/Cuttlefish (sepia brown)

Plant-derived dyes :
Catechu or Cutch tree (brown)
Gamboge tree resin (dark mustard yellow)
Chestnut hulls (peach to brown)
Himalayan rhubarb root (bronze, yellow)
Indigofera leaves (blue)
Kamala seed pods (yellow)
Madder root (red, pink, orange)
Mangosteen peel (green, brown, dark brown, purple, crimson)
Myrobalan fruit (yellow, green, black, source of tannin)
Pomegranate rind (yellow)
Teak leaf (crimson to maroon)
Weld herb (yellow)
Juglans Nigra or Black Walnut hulls (brown, black, source of tannin)
Rhus typhina or Staghorn Sumac tree (brown, source of tannin)

Dye Fabric Using Onion Skins

Onion skin dyes provide a broad range of colors. Onion skins do not require
mordanting to adhere the wool, but mordants are used to get different shades.
Depending on the mordant used, yellow-skinned onions will yield burnt and bright
orange, yellow, brass, and brown colors, while red-skinned onions will yield reddish-
orange, pink, salmon, gold, tan-brown, and dark tan dyes.
Onion skins will produce a beautiful orange color with alum. White vinegar can be
used for acidity. It must be noted that dyeing should be done in a non-reactive (non-
aluminum) pot that is used exclusively for dyeing.

Procedure :
 Put onion skins in a pot of water.
 Bring the water to a boil.
 Let it simmer for 20 minutes.
 Let the water cool.
 Take out the onion skins.
 Heat the water and put in the wool.
 Put in 2 tablespoons of vinegar.
 Turn off the heat and let it soak for one hour.
 Rinse the wool in cool water and let it dry.
 Dye Fabric with Coffee
Coffee is one of the best ways to give something an aged, weathered look that fits well
with rustic decor and gives an impression of being lived-in. Brown and tan dyes can
have a similar effect, but often the result is strangely artificial and uniform, resulting
in a look that doesn’t elicit the right feel

Materials :
 Fabric or clothing
 Coffee (brewed or instant)
 Large Bowl or container
 Wooden spoon
 Vinegar

Procedure :
 Wash the fabric. It is important to start with a clean fabric.
 Put 2 cups of water in the kettle and put on to boil.
 In a large bowl or container, soak the selected fabric in cold water for a minute
 After a minute, drain the cold water, leaving the fabric in the bowl or container
 Spoon 1-3 tablespoons of coffee onto the material and pour the 2 cups of boiling
water on top
 Use a spoon to stir the mixture until the coffee granules dissolve (alternatively,
to create a more mottled coffee-dyed aesthetic, scatter raw coffee granules over
the damp fabric and leave until the dye develops splotchy patterns.
 Allow the mixture to stand, stirring every so often. The longer the fabric is left
in the coffee mixture, the darker it will get. For a light effect, the fabric only
needs to be submerged for a few minutes. For a darker result, leave the fabric to
soak anywhere from an hour to overnight
 Dye Fabric with Turmeric
Many of the foods that you associate with stains can be made into fabric dye, and
turmeric is not one of the exceptions. Turmeric dye yields a cheery yellow color that
fades some with washing but sticks pretty well with the right type of care.

Materials :
 Fabric with natural fibers
 Large mordant pot
 Large pot for simmering turmeric
 ¼ cup turmeric
 Alum mordant
 Water to fill pot

Procedure :
1. Simmer your fabric in the water/salt mixture for about an hour. Remove from the
heat, then drain and rinse your fabric.
2. Simmer your fabric in the same pot again, this time with the water/turmeric mixture,
for 15 minutes, then remove from the heat but don’t drain. Let your fabric steep in the
turmeric mixture for up to 15 minutes.
3. Rinse the fabric under running water, then transfer to your bowl and cover in the
vinegar for a quick rinse.
4. Rinse again with water, then hang your fabric to dry
 Dye Fabric with Indigo
The blue jeans you are wearing today are likely colored using a synthetic dye, but that
wasn’t always the case. Unlike other colors that could easily be obtained using bark,
berries and the like, blue remained a difficult color to recreate until it was discovered
that dye could be made from indigo plants. Making indigo dye, however, is no easy
task. Dyeing with indigo is a multi-step, labor intensive process.

Making Indigo Plant Dye :

First, need to gather a lot of the indigo producing plants. Once you have a lot of cut
stems, pack them tightly into a dark colored plastic tub. Add water to cover the stems
and weight them down with mesh topped with stones.
Cover the tub and allow fermentation to take place over 3 to 5 days. After the time is
up, remove the stems and leaves.
Next, add 1 teaspoon (3.5 g.) per gallon (4 L.) of slaked lime. This makes the solution
alkaline. Then you need to whip the infant dye. It will get foamy, then turn blue, but
it’s not done until it is an ugly, reddish-brown hue.
Then settle the sediment and skim off the concentrate at the top. Strain it several times
and it is ready for immediate indigo dyeing or store for a year in glass bottles. It can be
also dry the pigment and it will last indefinitely.
How to Dye with Indigo Plants :
Once you have your pigment, dyeing with indigo is straightforward. You can choose
to make patterns by adding something that resists the dye such as string (tie dye), wax,
or other items that will prevent dye from coloring the fabric.
The dye is prepared by mixing: 0.35 ounces (10 grams) indigo 0.71 ounces (20 grams)
soda ash 1 ounce (30 grams) sodium hydrosulfite 1.3 gallons (5 liter) water 2 pounds
(1 kg.) fabric or yarn You will need to slowly temper the soda ash and indigo dye with
water so it is liquid enough to add to the vat.
Boil the remaining water and slowly stir in the other ingredients. Use metal tools and
gloves as you dip your fabric.
Repeated dips will result in darker blue tones. Let the garment dry. The blue tones
created by indigo plant dye are unique and much more earth friendly than synthetic
dyes.
 Dye Fabric with Marigold Flowers
Marigold flowers are absolutely stunning in nature. Their vibrant, orange glow look
like little drops of sunshine! When dyeing with these beauties, Marigold Flowers
produce a beautifully golden sunny hue on the cloth or silk you are dyeing.

I’ve been absolutely in love with natural dyeing lately. I feel like nature provides you
with this amazing amount of beauty that allows you to make stunningly gorgeous
fabrics.

Materials :
 white fabrics to dye
 two large stainless steel pots
 stove
 two baths
 Marigold flowers
Scouring Bath :
There are two options when scouring your fabrics, in pot and washing machine. With
the in pot scour method, you can use any type of fabric (protein or cellulose), but with
the washing machine method it’s best not to use protein fabrics.

In pot scour method (protein fibers – silks, wools)

1. Weigh your garments (dry) in grams
2. Fill a pot two-thirds of the way with hot water (not boiling but hot to touch).
3. Add 3% WOF (weight of fabric) PH neutral dish soap to water. You can also
use a wool-specific washing soap such as eucalan!
4. Let soak and stir regularly for about an hour.
5. Drain, rinse, and move to the mordanting step!

Washing machine scour method (cellulose fibers)

This method is only recommended for cellulose fibers and clothing or fabric that is not
coming directly from a manufacturing facility! Fabric that is directly from a supplier is
often saturated with oils and needs to be pot scoured for best results.
1. Weigh your garments (dry) in grams
2. Add 5% WOF (weight of fabric) of soda ash to your washing machine where
the detergent goes. Add a drop of a PH neutral detergent in as well! (We
recommend the seventh generation brand!)
3. Set your washing machine to the hottest setting available, and the longest
setting available.
4. Wash and move to the mordanting steps!
Mordant your fibers :
Both cellulose and protein fibers require a different type of mordanting recipe to
ensure the natural dye binds with the fabric. We will go through both recipes, just
make sure to use the one that matches what you wish to dye.
Cellulose Fibers Mordant Recipe :
1. Based on your original fiber weight calculated above, measure 10% WOF in
aluminum acetate.
This can be purchased on Maiwa
2. Fill your pot with hot water (hottest tap will suffice) and dissolve the aluminum
acetate into the water. Make sure the aluminum acetate is fully dissolved.
3. Add your fibers and stir regularly for 4-24 hours. Do not leave fibers in for
more than 24 hours as aluminum acetate can deteriorate and weaken fibers.
4. Rinse in cold water and add to the dye bath

Protein Fibers Mordant Recipe :
1. Based on your original fiber weight calculated above, measure 10% WOF in
alum (aluminum potassium sulfate). This can be purchased on Maiwa
2. Fill your pot with hot water (the hottest tap will suffice) and dissolve the alum
into the water. Make sure the alum is fully dissolved.
3. Add the garments to the pot and bring the water to a simmer for two hours.
4. Let cool, rinse, and add to dye bath!
Once fibers have been mordanted, it is ready to start dyeing
Using Marigolds for Dyeing
Marigolds are a pretty easy flower to dye with, you just need a lot of them! Their
bright orange/yellow hue binds beautifully with the fabric and creates absolutely
magical fabrics!
The first step is to prepare the extract from the beautiful color of the Marigolds. To do
this, heat a pot with water and add your Marigold flowers. This will take about 30
minutes and you will see a beautiful golden dye emerge.
Next, wash your fabric with cold water after removing it from the Mordant bath. If
you are using cellulose fabric, feel free to a rubber band and fold different designs into
your fabric! When you have everything set up, place the fabric in the warm dye. I’d
recommend letting it sit in there for about 45 minutes so the dye has time to bind with
all of the fabric.
The result
After 45 minutes, you are ready to take your fabrics out of the dye bath. The result of
dyeing with Marigolds will yield a gorgeous sunny hue on the fabric! We found it so
easy to work with Marigolds, and we definitely want to try it again and again to find
new techniques. It’s such a wonderful weekend project that yields amazing results.
ADVANTAGES OF NATURAL DYES
 Minimal Environmental Impact – Because they come from natural sources,
natural dyes are not harmful to the environment, which makes it so appealing
for consumers. Natural dyes are biodegradable and disposing them don’t cause
pollution.
 Renewable – Natural dyes are obtained from renewable sources that can be
harnessed without imposing harm to the environment.
 Color pay-off – If you’re going for a soft hue or soothing shade, natural dyes
can help you achieve that look.
 Safe – Some natural dyes, such as carmine found in lipsticks, will not cause
harm or health problems when ingested.

DISADVANTAGES OF NATURAL DYES

 Cost – A larger amount of natural dyes may be needed in order to dye a specific
amount of fabric as opposed to synthetic dyes. For instance, one pound of
cotton may be dyed with just five grams of synthetic dye, whereas 230 grams of
natural dye are needed to dye the same amount of material. Since that is the
case, using natural dyes is more expensive than synthetic dyes.
 Color payoff – Color pay-off from natural dyes tend to fade quickly. More so,
quality may not be as consistent than what synthetic dyes can deliver.
 Availability – Another issue with natural dyes is their availability. It can be
difficult to produce because the     availability of raw materials can vary from
season to season, place, and species, whereas synthetic dyes can be produced in
laboratories all year round.
 Harmful Effects – Natural dyes can also be harmful to some extent. Logwood
has ingredients, hematein and hematoxylin, that can be have harmful effects
when inhaled, ingested, or absorbed through the skin. Bloodroot, another natural
dye source, can cause irritation and inflammation when inhaled. More so,
natural dyes may need mordants for application. While these substances help
the dye stick to fabrics, they can also be toxic. Example of mordants used in
natural dyes are aluminum, copper, iron, and chrome.
 Sustainability – While natural dye sources are renewable, sustainability can
still be an issue for natural dyes because producing them require vast areas of
land.