The 60th Southern Textile Research Conference (STRC) was outstanding. The presentations were excellent, and they filled out the theme of “Emerging Material Technologies and Processes” well. The attendance was the highest for the STRC in many years.
Mr. Jeff Neuville, Director for the Manufacturing Solutions Center (MSC) at Catawba Valley Community College delivered the Keynote Address, “History, Current Capabilities and Future Plans for the Manufacturing Solutions Center”. The mission of the MCS is to Support US Manufacturers and Create/Retain US Manufacturing Jobs. This support is provided through their testing lab which is accredited to ISO/IEC 17025, providing textile and non‐textile product development support, sourcing assistance. workforce training, and by being an incubator for manufacturers. The STRC is very thankful to Mr. Neuville for the support provided by the MCS and for Mr. Neuville’s Keynote Address.
Rick Stanford, VP Global Business Development for Baldwin Technologies, discussed, “Spray Technologies (Low Waste, Fast Changeover, Low Add-on”). Spray technologies have been evolving in recent years to provide low wet pick-up in textile finishing, thus leading to energy savings. Mr. Stanford provided an excellent overview of the various types of spray technologies that are now available. He then reviewed the features of Baldwin’s TexCoat G4 system.
“Noble’s Planet Positive Initiative” was presented by Lou Protonentis, Vice President – Technical Services & Integration with Noble Biomaterials. Mr. Protonentis covered Noble’s platforms for Ionic+, naturally self-cleaning fabric. Ionic+ can reduce the need for laundering by 66%, which greatly reduced the amount of water needed for the life of a textile material. Ionic+ can be provided in various forms, including metalized treatments that are bonded to the textile material, extruded metal ions into fibers or filaments, and topical including a newly developed citrus-based treatment.
Dr. Ian Beringer, Senior Scientific Expert with the Hohenstein Institute, presented, “Heat and Moisture Management of Fabrics and Garments – Testing Methods and the Science Behind”. This presentation was an in-depth review of Components of Comfort (thermal, moisture, ergonomic, sensorial, touch), Factors Influencing Comfort (fiber material, yarn/fabric construction, finishing, garment fit/composition), and Measuring Comfort (including the Hohenstein skin model).
Dr. Ludwig Huber, Senior Project Manager from Rudolf GmbH, presented, “Unlocking the Potential of Biobased Materials for Reduction of Environmental Impact”. As carbon dioxide emissions have been increasing at an alarming rate in recent years, biobased materials for textile manufacturing are being offered as a means to remediate carbon emissions. Rudolf offers a range of products, “BIO-LOGIC”, for textile preparation, dyeing and finishing that have between 25 and 100% biobased content according to ASTM D6866 radiocarbon dating. These products are listed in the USDA BioPreferred database.
Diana Wyman, Executive Vice President from AATCC, and Katelyn Lee, Manager, Textile Chemistry Research & Safety from Cotton Incorporated, made “tag team” presentations on the topic of Ultraviolet Protection Factor (UPF). Ms. Wyman began with a presentation entitled, “Measuring UV Protection for Apparel Fabrics”. The presentation began with a quick summary of the services that are provided by AATCC. The importance of UPF was reviewed in terms of preventing skin damage that could potentially lead to cancer. Compliance and fabric labelling were reviewed, along with terminology and factors that are important to UV protection.
The second UPF presentation was, “Ultraviolet Protection Factor as a Function of Fabric Construction, Dyeing, & Ultraviolet Absorber Application”. Katelyn Lee presented a study that was performed at Cotton Incorporated using different fabrics (woven, knit), different constructions, varying colors (including optical white), and with or without a UV blocker in the recipes. This study showed that UV protection can be obtained on a variety of cotton constructions and colors up to 50 home laundering cycles.
Despina Papadopoulos, Despina Papadopoulos, Visiting Professor, Collaborative Arts Program at New York University, presented, “Electronics in Textiles” for the STRC. Since electronic textiles is a broad collection of technologies, Professor Papadopoulos focused on wearable computing, fashionable technology, e-textiles, and performance materials. She reviewed the pros and cons for different materials used for sensors in textiles (such as wiring, conductive inks, etc.). An amazing variety of technologies and materials were reviewed in this presentation!
Dr. Ahmed El-Shafei, Polymer and Color Chemistry Program Director at the Wilson College of Textiles, NC State University (a longtime STRC supporter), wrapped up the 2024 STRC with, “Second Generation of Cotton Cationization: Sustainable Dyeing and Finishing of Cotton”. This talk provided a summary of dyeing results and fastness properties of cationized cotton using new cationizing chemistry. Cotton pretreated using this new technology was dyed with reactive dyes and achieved a clear dye bath using no salt or alkali. Furthermore, the dyed fabrics exhibited significantly greater color yield, comparable fastness properties compared to conventional dyeing method and conferred both antimicrobial and wrinkle-free functionalities. This study demonstrated the potential for revolutionizing the landscape of textile industry by offering a new sustainable dyeing and finishing technology with zero waste using one single sustainable chemical pretreatment of cotton.
There were many opportunities for the STRC attendees to engage with the speakers and with each other to build on knowledge, strengthen old relationships, and to make new relationships at the 2024 conference. The STRC is looking forward to the 2025 STRC, which will be at a new location!
