Information wants to be free!<\/a><\/p>\nTo make my own postings to DyersLIST visible to search engines, I have attached all of them below.<\/p>\n
From: oniemita at mail.student.oulu.fi (Olli Niemitalo)<\/strong><\/pre>\nDate: Sun Jul 7 09:31:00 2002<\/strong><\/pre>\nContext:\u00a0<\/strong>What is soda ash, washing soda, and baking soda?<\/span><\/strong><\/pre>\nHello!\r\n\r\nThis is my first post to the list so I'll introduce myself. I'm a\r\n23-year-old (male, if you can't make that out from my name) biochemistry\r\nstudent from Oulu\/Finland. Last year I had a short trip to California, and\r\nbought a truly colorful tie-dye hippie T-shirt with a gekko figure, from a\r\nwoman with her baby on Telegraph street in Berkeley, and have been sorry\r\never after that I only bought one piece... So, I started experimenting\r\ntie-dyeing myself, reading up on color theory, even selling a few pieces\r\nto my friends (still have orders waiting!) and just this week received\r\n(together with my mother, who's quite an artistic person) a package of\r\nProcion MX dyes from Quilt&Art\/Germany. So everything is looking good!\r\n\r\nThe actual post:\r\n\r\nThere has been some confusion what soda ash, washing soda, baking soda,\r\nsoda, sodium carbonate, sodium bicarbonate and such are. I had this mess\r\nin my head as well, so I did some research and came up with answers that\r\nI'd now like to share:\r\n\r\nThere are two different chemical compounds: sodium carbonate (Na2CO3) and\r\nsodium bicarbonate (NaHCO3). The one you want to use to control pH in\r\ndyeing is sodium carbonate, which rises pH of the solution to around 11,\r\nbut not much above. Sodium bicarbonate has the same effect, but only gets\r\npH to around 8, which typically is inadequate. Let's take a closer look at\r\nthe two substances:\r\n\r\nSodium bicarbonate\r\n\r\n \"baking soda\"\r\n\r\n * white powder\r\n\r\n Heating sodium bicarbonate above 50 degrees Celsius decomposes it into\r\n sodium carbonate, water and carbon dioxide gas. Note that this means you\r\n can prepare a sodium carbonate solution by boiling a sodium bicarbonate\r\n solution!\r\n\r\n Baking soda is readily available in grocery stores.\r\n\r\nSodium carbonate\r\n\r\n \"soda ash\" or shortly \"soda\"\r\n\r\n * white powder\r\n\r\n * dehydrate\/anhydrate (water-free) or monohydrate (one water per\r\n sodium carbonate). Not that much difference.\r\n\r\n \"washing soda\"\r\n\r\n * transparent crystalline\r\n\r\n * decahydrate (10 water molecules per sodium carbonate)\r\n\r\n Dissolved in water, the two are exactly the same chemical. But as\r\n solids, washing soda contains much more water and, for example in\r\n preparation of a solution, you need to use it roughly 2.5 times in\r\n weight the amount you would use soda ash. (I myself like to prepare\r\n a saturated stock solution by mixing two volume units of washing soda\r\n with at most one volume unit of water)\r\n\r\n Heating washing soda (i tested it in my kitchen electric oven) dries it\r\n into soda ash.\r\n\r\n As said, you can use either soda ash or washing soda, whichever you\r\n can find cheaper. Note that if soda ash costs twice as much as the same\r\n weight package of washing soda, it's still cheaper in use. Sodium carbonate\r\n can be available as household washing soda (only buy pure, without\r\n brighteners and such additives), a photographic chemical (sodium\r\n carbonate), pool pH controlling chemical (pH UP for one), or, reportedly\r\n from a clay company.\r\n\r\nAs a final reminder, remember safety issues when dealing with alkalic\r\nsubstances such as sodium carbonate. Wear protective goggles and gloves\r\nand avoid breathing the dust.\r\n\r\n-olli\r\n\r\nFrom: oniemita at mail.student.oulu.fi (Olli Niemitalo)<\/strong><\/pre>\nDate: Sun Jul 7 10:59:01 2002<\/strong><\/pre>\nContext: What is salamoniac?<\/span><\/strong><\/pre>\nHmm... I didn't know of any use of it in dyeing. All my experience about\r\nthe substance (ammonium chloride) is through ingestion. :-) If you wanna\r\nknow more of that...\r\n\r\n http:\/\/www.everything2.com\/index.pl?node_id=505027&lastnode_id=320771\r\n\r\nOh and while on that California trip, I had some Tyrkisk Peber candies\r\nwith me. I had to eat them myself! :-\/\r\n\r\n-olli\r\n\r\nFrom: oniemita at mail.student.oulu.fi (Olli Niemitalo)<\/strong><\/pre>\nDate: Wed Aug 7 13:32:01 2002<\/strong><\/pre>\nContext: It has been claimed that Dylon brand dyes sold in England are Procion MX. Is this correct?<\/span><\/strong><\/pre>\nI have a Finnish package of black Dylon washing machine dye on which is\r\nprinted \"C.I. Reactive Black 5\". C.I. presumably stands for \"color\r\nindex\".\r\n\r\nThere was something on the web of this particular dye:\r\n\r\n\"C.I. Reactive Black 5 is one of the most used reactive dyes for textile\r\nfinishing. It is a diazo dye [...]\"\r\n(http:\/\/www.iwaponline.com\/wst\/04405\/wst044050295.htm)\r\n\r\n\"C.I. Reactive Black 5 [2,7-naphthalenedisulfonic acid, 4-amino-\r\n5-hydroxy-3,6-bis((4-((2-(sulfooxy)ethyl)sulfonyl)phenyl)azo)-,\r\ntetrasodium salt] (CAS Reg. No. 17095-24-8).\"\r\n(http:\/\/vm.cfsan.fda.gov\/~lrd\/cf733127.html)\r\n\r\nLooks like different stuff from Procion MX to me! (but perhaps someone can\r\ntell better)\r\n\r\n-olli\r\n\r\nFrom: oniemita at mail.student.oulu.fi (Olli Niemitalo)<\/strong><\/pre>\nDate: Wed Aug 7 15:25:01 2002<\/strong><\/pre>\nContext: Dylon Washing Machine dyes<\/span><\/strong><\/pre>\nI gave a local store a quick visit and found these texts on miscellaneous\r\nDylon Washing Machine dye packages. Some more info is added as found from\r\nthe Web.\r\n\r\n\"Reactive Yellow 125\" (azo dye)\r\n\r\n\"Reactive Blue 225\"\r\n Lithiumnatriumhydrogen-4-amino-6-(5-(5-chlor-2,6-\r\n difluorpyrimidin-4-ylamino)-2- sulfonatophenylazo)-5-hydroxy-3-\r\n (4-(2-(sulfonatooxy)ethylsulfonyl)phenylazo)naphthalin- 2,7- disulfonat\r\n\r\n\"Yellow DO 2286\"\r\n\r\n\"Reactive Red MDO 358\" (Drimarene Red R-7B, monoazo dye)\r\n\r\nI think why the above chemicals are mentioned is because, in Finland,\r\nthere was a fuss on azo dyes (in candies) causing allergy, so it might be\r\nrequired that azo dyes are mentioned in consumer product packaging.\r\n\r\nI'm sure at least some of the Dylon packages I inspected contained\r\nother dyes in addition to the listed azo ones. Not all of them had any\r\nnotes on the chemicals at all!\r\n\r\n-olli\r\n\r\nFrom: oniemita at mail.student.oulu.fi (Olli Niemitalo)<\/strong><\/pre>\nDate: Thu Aug 8 18:45:01 2002<\/strong><\/pre>\nContext: Any information about Dylon Hand dye ingredients, from Finnish packaging?<\/span><\/strong><\/pre>\nYes, I found some today (such the Finnish name of which translates to\r\n\"Hand\"). Again, they seem mixtures of several dyes, some of which are\r\nmentioned (must be this azo thing again). Most read simply \"contains\r\nreactive dyes\" (my translation). The explicitly mentioned dyes I spotted\r\nin the Hand series were:\r\n\r\n\"Reactive Yellow DO 2286\"\r\n\r\n\"C.I. Reactive Black 5\"\r\n\r\n\"Reactive Red MDO 358\"\r\n\r\nSo at least some of the dye chemicals are exactly the same as in the\r\nDylon Machine series.\r\n\r\n-olli\r\n\r\nFrom: oniemita at mail.student.oulu.fi (Olli Niemitalo)<\/strong><\/pre>\nDate: Sun Aug 25 04:53:01 2002<\/strong><\/pre>\nContext: Is bleaching Procion MX -dyed cotton possible?<\/span><\/strong><\/pre>\nYes, it might be possible.\r\n\r\nThough English is not my native tongue, I think discharge means releasing\r\nthe dye from the fabric. But what really (usually?) happens, is that the\r\ndye molecule is modified by the bleach, removing or changing its colorant\r\nproperties.\r\n\r\nSo depending on the dye and bleach, bleaching might change or remove, or\r\npartially remove, the color of the cloth. You should try both oxidizing\r\n(chlorine) and reducing (sodium dithionite) bleaching agents, as either\r\nprobably has at least *some* effect on the dye.\r\n\r\nYou might end up with a completely different tone of color. I had a cloth\r\nthat had absolutely no green or yellow dye, but after bleaching it had a\r\npale, greenish tone! It would be interesting to have a chart of the\r\nbleachabilities of the different MX reactive dyes.\r\n\r\nI've experimented a bit with bleaching as part of the dyeing process, and\r\nthe results are sometimes interesting, though not yet consistent. :-)\r\nUsually I end up with pale, clearly defined spots on the cloth instead of\r\nnice gradients...\r\n\r\n-olli\r\n\r\nFrom: oniemita at mail.student.oulu.fi (Olli Niemitalo)<\/strong><\/pre>\nDate: Sat Aug 31 03:36:01 2002<\/strong><\/pre>\nContext: Can I measure microwave oven temperature using an electric thermometer?<\/span><\/strong><\/pre>\nYou do not want to have the microwave on while the thermometer or its\r\nprobe is in there, as induction from the microwaves can destroy the\r\ndevice.\r\n\r\n-olli\r\n\r\nFrom: oniemita at mail.student.oulu.fi (Olli Niemitalo)<\/strong><\/pre>\nDate: Thu Sep 12 03:43:01 2002<\/strong><\/pre>\nSubject: Mercerization<\/span><\/strong><\/pre>\nAre blank T-shirts typically mercerized?\r\n\r\nOr should I try mercerizing at home? :-)\r\n\r\n-olli\r\n\r\nFrom: oniemita at mail.student.oulu.fi (Olli Niemitalo)<\/strong><\/pre>\nDate: Wed Sep 18 12:17:00 2002<\/strong><\/pre>\nContext: In Finland, Procion MX (or similar) dyes can be found under brand name Furian.<\/span><\/strong><\/pre>\nI'm also from Finland; where did you find Furian dyes from? I ordered\r\nmy set of Procion MX dyes all the way from Quilt und Art, Germany.\r\n\r\n-olli\r\n\r\nFrom: oniemita at mail.student.oulu.fi (Olli Niemitalo)<\/strong><\/pre>\nDate: Wed Sep 18 12:54:02 2002<\/strong><\/pre>\nSubject: Mercerization<\/span><\/strong><\/pre>\nOn Thu, 12 Sep 2002, Olli Niemitalo wrote:\r\n\r\n> Are blank T-shirts typically mercerized?\r\n>\r\n> Or should I try mercerizing at home? :-)\r\n\r\nOK, I tried it last weekend...\r\n\r\nI used a 20% NaOH solution for 5 minutes at room temperature to do the\r\nmercerization, and citric acid for neutralization. It was much like Doug\r\nsaid, the cotton fabric became *very* stiff while it had NaOH in it. And\r\nit shrank much, perhaps 15%.\r\n\r\nI did this on two t-shirts, the other of which I wrapped tightly around a\r\npiece of wood to avoid shrinkage, but in vain as both shirts turned out\r\nmuch the same. After laundrying and drying, the shirts were really\r\nwrinkled and had a sort of \"cardboard\" feeling to them. One of the shirts\r\nwas already a bit short, and now it is too short to reach my pants! :-)\r\nThe other is quite fine and actually looks pretty classy after ironing.\r\n\r\nThis was all quite interesting, but not very useful, and hard to do\r\nproperly at home. If you want to have the fabric tensioned for the luster\r\neffect and less shrinkage, you need a large(ish) supporting system and\r\nconsequently a large tank where to dip the system in. The amount of NaOH\r\n(and neutralizer) wasted is huge. Neither would I recommend this to\r\nanyone without lab training (I've had lots).\r\n\r\n-olli\r\n\r\nFrom: oniemita at mail.student.oulu.fi (Olli Niemitalo)<\/strong><\/pre>\nDate: Fri Sep 20 03:03:01 2002<\/strong><\/pre>\nContext: In Finland, Furian is sold by Seriv\u00e4ri.<\/span><\/strong><\/pre>\nThanks for the good info!\r\n\r\nContext: Any more info about the German Quilt und Art?\r\n\r\nYou can take a look at their homepage:\r\n\r\n http:\/\/www.quiltundart.de\/\r\n\r\nWe ordered with a credit card by faxing the order and e-mailing the\r\nforgotten credit card security number. (I had to order with my mother as\r\nI'm a student and don't have a credit card) Alternatively, you can use\r\ne-mail or phone.\r\n\r\nThese MX dyes are available:\r\n\r\nColor Code euro\/100 g box\r\n------------------------------------------\r\nMarine blue MX - 4 RD 12,78\r\nYelloworange MX - 3 R 12,78\r\nBurnt orange MX - GRN 12,78\r\nPinkred MX - 8 B 12,78\r\nCitrus Yellow MX - 8 G 15,34\r\nBlueviolet MX - 7 RX 15,34\r\nTurquoise MX - G 15,34\r\nPrimary blue MX - G 15,34\r\nDark Blue (cold) MX - 4 GD 15,34\r\nCotton Black MX - 602 A 17,90\r\nOrange MX - 2 R 15,34\r\nMagentared MX - 5 B 12,78\r\n------------------------------------------\r\n\r\n...Plus postage, which is around 6 euro. They also have an offer for 8\r\npreselected 100 g boxes for 92.03 euro.\r\n\r\n-olli\r\n\r\nFrom: oniemita at mail.student.oulu.fi (Olli Niemitalo)<\/strong><\/pre>\nDate: Sat Sep 28 09:51:01 2002<\/strong><\/pre>\nSubject: Sugar and fiber reactive dyes<\/span><\/strong><\/pre>\nDo reactive dyes such as the Procion MX dyes react with table sugar, in\r\nsolution, in a similar way they react with cellulose fibers?\r\n\r\nIt would seem so:\r\n\r\nI did some experimenting by adding into a solution of Red MX-8B and soda\r\nsome 1) dextrose, 2) sucrose (table sugar) 3) nothing. After a while I\r\ntried dyeing with the solutions and the one with sucrose gave a much more\r\npale result than the others. There wasn't any significant difference\r\nbetween dextrose and water.\r\n\r\nIn another experiment, I rinsed a freshly dyed piece of fabric (which\r\ncontained some unreacted dye) in a small amount of 1) water and 2) sucrose\r\nsolution, with a white cotton test swatch. After the initial rinsing, I\r\nwashed the pieces and compared the swathes. The one from the sugar\r\nsolution was somewhat whiter overall, though both were slightly pink from\r\nthe bled dye (Red MX-8B).\r\n\r\nPerhaps sugar could be used creatively in dyeing, or to prevent bleeding\r\nin the rinses (if huge amounts are not required? I used quite much...).\r\n\r\n-olli\r\n\r\nFrom: oniemita at mail.student.oulu.fi (Olli Niemitalo)<\/strong><\/pre>\nDate: Tue Dec 24 22:13:01 2002<\/strong><\/pre>\nSubject: Dye Mixer applet<\/span><\/strong><\/pre>\nHere is my little X-mas gift for you people... :-)\r\n\r\n http:\/\/www.ee.oulu.fi\/~ollinie\/dye\/dye.html\r\n\r\nIt is a computer program that allows you to try mix different MX dyes.\r\nIt is still a bit hard to use, but I will keep working on it.\r\n\r\n-olli\r\n\r\nFrom: oniemita at mail.student.oulu.fi (Olli Niemitalo)<\/strong><\/pre>\nDate: Thu Dec 26 13:31:18 2002<\/strong><\/pre>\nContext: How can I open Dye Mixer applet using Microsoft Windows?<\/span><\/strong><\/pre>\nThe Dye Mixer (which, by the way, is now at version 1.0, with slide bars\r\nfor changing the amounts of dyes) is a \"Java applet\" program that runs\r\ndirectly from Internet, in the web browser (in your case Internet\r\nExplorer). To use it, you need to install \"Java plug-in\" for the web\r\nbrowser. To find the Java plug-in download page, open the Dye Mixer page\r\n\r\n http:\/\/www.ee.oulu.fi\/~ollinie\/dye\/dye.html\r\n\r\nand follow the link where it says \"Java plug-in\" and you will be taken to\r\na Google search page. In your case, the first link will enter the Java\r\nplug-in download and install page, where it says \"Click to begin\".\r\nProceed, and install the plug-in. You need to close and restart Internet\r\nExplorer after the installation has completed.\r\n\r\nHappy mixing! :-)\r\n\r\n-olli\r\n\r\nFrom: oniemita at mail.student.oulu.fi (Olli Niemitalo)<\/strong><\/pre>\nDate: Fri Dec 27 18:21:01 2002<\/strong><\/pre>\nContext: Which Java to download for Dye Mixer applet, 1.4.1?<\/span><\/strong><\/pre>\nMy keyboard got destroyed so i can't do much on computer now... :\/\r\n\r\nJava plug-in v1.2 or greater, or rferrably the latest, should do.\r\n\r\nI'll get back to business, when I get a new keyboard....\r\n\r\n-olli\r\n\r\nFrom: oniemita at mail.student.oulu.fi (Olli Niemitalo)<\/strong><\/pre>\nDate: Sun Dec 29 18:48:00 2002<\/strong><\/pre>\nContext: Dye Mixer applet<\/span><\/strong><\/pre>\nThank you everybody for the feedback, and your kind support! I'll try to\r\ngive some answers collectively in this mail.\r\n\r\nCompatibility problems\r\n----------------------\r\n\r\nThe Dye Mixer will only work if you have, or have installed, Java Plug-in\r\n1.2 or later. It should be available free of charge. Google\r\n(www.google.com) is your friend.\r\n\r\nMac OS 9 or ealier won't work. Seems that the only workaround\r\nis to install Mac OS X, which has up-to-date Java support.\r\n\r\nLinux, and Microsoft Windows operating systems should run the Dye Mixer\r\nafter installing the latest Java Plug-in (may require restarting the\r\nbrowser).\r\n\r\nIn some cases, you may need to go to the web browser security settings to\r\nenable Java.\r\n\r\nPlease, if you send a problem report, always specify your operating system\r\nand its version, and your web browser and its version.\r\n\r\nAdding a new dye\r\n----------------\r\n\r\nEach dye in the Dye Mixer has been carefully analyzed with a\r\nspectrophotometer, and the resulting spectral data are used. To add a new\r\ndye, I either need to obtain the measured data or receive a small sample\r\nof the dye so that I can do the analysis myself.\r\n\r\nSaving settings\r\n---------------\r\n\r\nCurrently it is impossible to save the dye recipe by other means than\r\nwriting it down yourself. This is something I plan to work on to provide\r\na more reasonable solution.\r\n\r\nIn Windows, to take a screen shot, press Print Screen on your keyboard and\r\npaste the picture into any image processing program.\r\n\r\nIn reply to other suggestions\r\n-----------------------------\r\n\r\nI will add a link to Paula's great page.\r\n\r\nThe relative amount values might be confusing, but I really don't know a\r\nbetter way.\r\n\r\n-olli, from freezing-cold -29C\/-20F Oulu, Finland\r\n\r\nFrom: oniemita at mail.student.oulu.fi (Olli Niemitalo)<\/strong><\/pre>\nDate: Sun Jan 5 22:31:00 2003<\/strong><\/pre>\nContext: What do the amount values in the Dye Mixer applet mean? They apparently are not related to the sliders.<\/span><\/strong><\/pre>\nOh but they are! The idea is that you use the slider bars to change those\r\nnumbers. The numbers range from very small numbers to quite large numbers,\r\nso I had to make the sliders non-linear. That is, most of the range of a\r\nslider operates on the \"small numbers\" range, and large numbers can only\r\nbe adjusted very coarsely using the slider.\r\n\r\nAnd what are these numbers? They are values proportional to the amount of\r\ndye in the canvas.\r\n\r\nFor example, you try dyeing a piece of cloth using 2 g of actual dye. In\r\ndye mixer, you get the same resulting color by adjusting the Dye Amount\r\nvalue to 1.5. However, you want a deeper shade for your cloth, the one\r\nthat you see by adjusting the Dye Amount value to 3.0. This is a two-fold\r\nincrease from 1.5, so you also need to increase your 2 g to 4 g, that is:\r\n\r\n 3.0\/1.5 * 2 g = 4 g\r\n\r\nThis is presuming that doubling the amount of dye in your dye bath will\r\nalso double the amount of dye in the canvas. Perhaps that 2 g is a \"per\r\n1 kg of cloth\" type of a measure.\r\n\r\nHowever great it would be, I do not plan to make it possible to use\r\nreal-world dye amounts in the Dye Mixer any time soon. Now I am working on\r\na new version which will include some more dyes, lamps and hundreds of\r\ndifferent \"canvases\" (most just to function as color references). And - it\r\nwill work in most browsers straight-from-the-box without installing Java\r\nfrom Sun.\r\n\r\nThe link, just in case: http:\/\/www.ee.oulu.fi\/~ollinie\/dye\/dye.html\r\n\r\n-olli\r\n\r\nFrom: oniemita at mail.student.oulu.fi (Olli Niemitalo)<\/strong><\/pre>\nDate: Mon Jan 6 14:25:01 2003<\/strong><\/pre>\nContext: Dye Mixer applet, a confusion on how to calculate real amount of dye.<\/span><\/strong><\/pre>\n[...]\r\n\r\nNo, not like that at all. Hmm.. You should perhaps read once more the\r\ninstructions on the page and my previous mail (in which I was talking of a\r\nsingle dye, not a dye combination).\r\n\r\n[...]\r\n\r\nI didn't say such a thing. I'll try to explain again...\r\n\r\nYou should think of the Dye Amount value as being of an unknown unit. I\r\ncannot have it in grams or such because the actual amount of dye consumed\r\nis different for each combination of dye, dyeing method and type of\r\ncanvas, and all the other additional parameters. All I am doing is giving\r\nyou a proportional measure which helps you in the way that you can make\r\nobservations like: \"Oh, I need to double \/ halve \/ triple \/ whatever the\r\namount of dye to move from *this* shade to *that* shade\".\r\n\r\n-olli\r\n\r\nFrom: oniemita at mail.student.oulu.fi (Olli Niemitalo)<\/strong><\/pre>\nDate: Fri Jan 10 18:41:01 2003<\/strong><\/pre>\nSubject: SDC Online Resource File<\/span><\/strong><\/pre>\nFor those interested in \"who makes the dyes\" and such things, but can't\r\nafford The Colour Index, there appears to be a nice on-line industry\r\nresource:\r\n\r\n http:\/\/www.sdc-digital.org\/resource\/\r\n\r\n-olli\r\n\r\nFrom: oniemita at mail.student.oulu.fi (Olli Niemitalo)<\/strong><\/pre>\nDate: Wed Feb 26 10:19:01 2003<\/strong><\/pre>\nContext: New subscriber introduction and where to buy Procion MX in EU?<\/span><\/strong><\/pre>\nWelcome to the list!\r\n\r\nI get mine from Quilt & Art, Germany:\r\n\r\n http:\/\/www.quiltundart.de\/Deutsch\/D_download.html\r\n\r\nThey accept credit cards. I have also paid them with a money transfer\r\nwhich cost 7 euro in a Finnish bank done through their Internet interface.\r\n\r\n-olli\r\n\r\nFrom: oniemita at mail.student.oulu.fi (Olli Niemitalo)<\/strong><\/pre>\nDate: Sat Mar 29 14:58:00 2003<\/strong><\/pre>\nSubject: \"hairy\" results in cotton LWI \/ Procion MX<\/span><\/strong><\/pre>\nHello, list!\r\n\r\nI have been doing low water immersion dyeing on cotton using Procion MX\r\ndyes. I nearly always get results where small white fibres stick out of\r\nthe otherwise nicely dyed fabric, making the darker colors slightly pale.\r\nOnly in spots where the fabric was immersed, the problem is absent.\r\n\r\nIs there a solution to this problem?\r\n\r\nI am using water + Procion MX + soda ash + (sometimes) salt on\r\nmachine-washed, dry, unmercerized cotton cloth.\r\n\r\n-olli\r\n\r\nFrom: oniemita at mail.student.oulu.fi (Olli Niemitalo)<\/strong><\/pre>\nDate: Mon Jun 30 03:19:01 2003<\/strong><\/pre>\nSubject: Procion MX dye bleaching table<\/span><\/strong><\/pre>\nHello!\r\n\r\nI have been testing different Procion MX dyes for how they can be bleached\r\noff cotton. Here are the results as a table (best viewed with a monospace\r\nfont).\r\n\r\nExplanations:\r\n\r\nOxidizing & reducing = Oxidative bleaching followed by reductive bleaching\r\nReducing & oxidizing = Reductive bleaching followed by oxidative bleaching\r\n- = No effect\r\nBleach = Bleaching effect\r\ne.g. Turquoise = Color shift to turquoise\r\nUnshift = Original color was restored in second bleaching\r\n\r\nOxidative agent: Sodium hypochlorite (\"bleach\", \"chlorine bleach\")\r\nReductive agent: Sodium dithionite (sodium hydrosulfite,\r\n sodium sulfoxylate, sodium hydrosulphite)\r\n\r\n Oxidizing Reducing Oxidizing Reducing\r\n & Reducing & Oxidizing\r\nBlue MX-7RX Bleach - Unbleach Bleach\r\nBlue MX-2G - Violet Violet Bleach, violet\r\nBlue MX-G Blue-violet Turquoise Unshift Blue-violet\r\nBrown MX-GRN Brown orange - Unshift -\r\nOrange MX-2R - Bleach Bleach Bleach\r\nRed MX-5B Bleach Pale brown Bleach Unshift, bleach\r\nRed MX-8B - Pale orange Pale orange Unshift, bleach\r\nTurquoise MX-G - - - -\r\nYellow MX-3R - - - -\r\nYellow MX-4G Bleach - Bleach Bleach\r\nYellow MX-8G Bleach Bleach Bleach Bleach\r\nYellow MX-3RA - - - -\r\n\r\n(I am not 100 % sure that the last entry is Yellow MX-3RA. The dye sample\r\nwas sent to me as \"Yellow MX-RA\" but it looks very much like Yellow MX-3R)\r\n\r\nAbout anti-chlor... I think the reason why it is needed is because in\r\nneutral (and acidic) conditions, such as after the cloth is washed after\r\nbleaching, hypochlorite turns partly into hypochlorous acid which is very\r\neffective in destroying the cellulose fibers. (This information is from\r\nhttp:\/\/www.wmich.edu\/ppse\/pekarovicova\/160999b.html)\r\n\r\n-olli\r\n\r\nFrom: oniemita at mail.student.oulu.fi (Olli Niemitalo)<\/strong><\/pre>\nDate: Sun Jul 13 16:23:01 2003<\/strong><\/pre>\nContext: Why do wet clothes look darker?<\/span><\/strong><\/pre>\nWhite fibers such as cellulose are actually transparent, but they have a\r\ndifferent refractive index than air. Therefore, when a ray of light\r\nenters a dry, white fabric, it changes its direction each time it crosses\r\na boundary between fiber and air. This results in the ray bouncing around,\r\nuntil it exits the fabric, and possibly enters one of your eyes.\r\n\r\nWhen the fabric is wet, the air inside the fabric is replaced by water.\r\nCompared to air, the refractive index of water is much closer to that of\r\nthe fiber. When the difference in the refractive indexes is smaller, the\r\nlight does not change its direction so much each time it passes a\r\nfiber\/water transition, and can enter deeper into the fabric before it is\r\neventually directed out of the fabric. The path traveled by the light in\r\nthis case is longer, on average, than with dry fabric. Much of the light\r\ncan actually pass the fabric if you didn't pick your swimwear right. :-)\r\n\r\nIf there are light-absorbing impurities in the fabric (there always are\r\nsome), such as dye molecules, then the longer path travelled by the light\r\nin the wet cloth results in higher absorption, hence deeper shade.\r\n\r\n-olli\r\n\r\nFrom: oniemita at mail.student.oulu.fi (Olli Niemitalo)<\/strong><\/pre>\nDate: Mon, 8 Sep 2003 08:54:31 +0300 (EEST)<\/strong><\/pre>\nSubject: Bleached (maybe PFD) cotton flannel from Dharma looks pink at a bunch but white in isolation, what is this?<\/span><\/strong><\/pre>\nDoes this happen under the same lighting conditions? Under different\r\nlights, objects can appear a different color. This is both because of the\r\ndifferent spectra of the lights and the adaptation of your eyes to accept\r\nthe lighting as being white. When there are two different light sources (a\r\nwindow and a lamp, or two different types of lamps), an object might only\r\nbe illuminated by either if the object surface is at a funny angle or if\r\nthe object is shadowed from one of the light sources. Also, your eyes will\r\nsomewhat compare the color of the object against the background against\r\nwhich you view it. Lastly, if you stare at some colored object for a\r\nwhile, your eye\/brain will compensate against this perception even a short\r\ntime after you have turned your eyes away, making other objects appear a\r\ndifferent color.\r\n\r\nApart from medical reasons, perhaps you can find an explanation from\r\nthese?\r\n\r\n-olli\r\n\r\nFrom: o at iki.fi (Olli Niemitalo)<\/strong><\/pre>\nDate: Wed, 1 Oct 2003 10:18:54 +0300 (EEST)<\/strong><\/pre>\nSubject: In Dye Mixer, which Procion MX are used? I have two suppliers that sell somewhat different shades with the same name.<\/span><\/strong><\/pre>\nMost of the Procion MX dyes in the Dye Mixer software came from Quilt und\r\nArt in Germany. I have presumed that pure dyes with the same (Procion MX)\r\nname may only vary by concentration and by additive content. If this is\r\nthe case (and I hope it is!), you should be able to get near-identical\r\nresults by adjusting the amount you use, until the actual amounts of dye\r\nchemical match.\r\n\r\nPre-mixed dyes can be different as dye houses do their own mixes. Some\r\nmixed dyes are also included in the Dye Mixer.\r\n\r\nFor a chart of pure Procion MX dyes, see Paula's page:\r\n\r\n http:\/\/www.pburch.net\/dyeing\/FAQ\/pureMXcolors.shtml\r\n\r\n-olli\r\n\r\nFrom: o at iki.fi (Olli Niemitalo)<\/strong><\/pre>\nDate: Sun, 19 Oct 2003 22:10:30 +0300 (EEST)<\/strong><\/pre>\nContext: I tried the Dye Mixer applet, but I get different colors using my real-life recipes.<\/span><\/strong><\/pre>\nAs you guessed, this has to do with the dye Amount numbers. They are not\r\ndirectly the real-life dye amounts (\"how much dye should I use\"), but they\r\nare proportional to those. Let me explain: If you use 1 g of dye A and 1 g\r\nof dye B, you may get consistent results using the same fabric, bath\r\nvolume, temperature, stirring or no stirring, time, pH, salt\/urea\r\nconcentration, etc.. But as soon as you change these parameters,\r\nyou may get different results. Dye Mixer is not \"locked\" into a specific\r\nset of parameters, as different people have different ways of doing\r\nthings and I didn't want to be biased.\r\n\r\nSo, I can only suggest that you find by experimenting the\r\ndye-specific ratios between the Amount values and the real-life dye\r\namounts. For example, if you see that 2 g of a certain dye gives the same\r\ncolor as Amount = 0.5, then you know that one Amount unit corresponds\r\nto 4 g of the dye (calculated as 2 g \/ 0.5). The ratio is different\r\nfor each dye!\r\n\r\nPlease let me know whether you succeed in reproducing your mixes after\r\nthis calibration step!\r\n\r\nUltimately, it would be best if Dye Mixer had some useful presets, or\r\na semi-automatic calibration procedure, but I cannot promise this.\r\n\r\nSome good news for you, Carol: Both Yellow MX-GR and Blue MX-R, and plenty\r\nof other MX dyes, will be added to Dye Mixer very soon (within next\r\nweek?).\r\n\r\n-olli\r\n\r\nFrom: o at iki.fi (Olli Niemitalo)<\/strong><\/pre>\nDate: Sun, 7 Mar 2004 20:14:36 +0200 (EET)<\/strong><\/pre>\nContext: Dye Mixer inaccessible. I changed my DyersLIST e-mail address, is this the reason?<\/span><\/strong><\/pre>\nIt is probably a temporary server problem. The following address is the\r\none you should be using:\r\n\r\n http:\/\/www.iki.fi\/o\/dye\/dyemixer\/\r\n\r\nSome you might be waiting for updates to the software that I promised to\r\nmake. Unfortunately, I have been very busy with studies, at the cost of no\r\ntime left for the project. Hopefully this will change in a couple of\r\nmonths.\r\n\r\nIn case of \"emergency\", try this link for another server:\r\n\r\n http:\/\/www.ee.oulu.fi\/~ollinie\/dye\/dyeresize.html\r\n\r\nNo, the software is not associated with Dyer's List.\r\n\r\n-olli\r\n\r\nFrom: o at iki.fi (Olli Niemitalo)<\/strong><\/pre>\nDate: Thu, 16 Aug 2007 00:43:00 +0300<\/strong><\/pre>\nContext: Discharging Procion MX from cotton<\/span><\/strong><\/pre>\nThere's a table here:<\/pre>\n http:\/\/yehar.com\/bleach.txt\r\n\r\nIt's from an old DyersLIST e-mail:\r\n\r\n https:\/\/list.emich.edu\/mailman\/private\/dyerslist\/2003-June\/019070.html\r\n\r\n-olli\r\n\r\nFrom: o at iki.fi (Olli Niemitalo)<\/strong><\/pre>\nDate: Tue, 27 Jan 2009 13:23:57 +0200<\/strong><\/pre>\nContext: How can I sprinkle Procion MX powder without lumps for snow dyeing?<\/span><\/strong><\/pre>\nIn the kitchen, one can sprinkle flour through a sift to avoid clumps.\r\nCould this work for dye powder?\r\n\r\n-olli\r\n\r\nFrom: o at iki.fi (Olli Niemitalo)<\/strong><\/pre>\nDate: Wed, 28 Jan 2009 10:06:54 +0200<\/strong><\/pre>\nContext: What do we really know about reactive dye safety?<\/span><\/strong><\/pre>\nI did a search on PubMed and the best article that came up was this\r\nCroatian study:\r\n\r\nZuskin E, Mustajbegovic J, Schachter EN, Doko-Jelinic J. Respiratory\r\nfunction of textile workers employed in dyeing cotton and wool\r\nfibers. Am J Ind Med. 1997 Mar;31(3):344-52.\r\n\r\n>From the abstract:\r\n\r\n\"Our data suggest that textile dyeing workers develop acute and\r\nchronic respiratory impairment as a result of their exposures. These\r\nfindings are exacerbated by cigarette smoking.\"\r\n\r\nhttp:\/\/www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov\/pubmed\/9055958\r\n\r\nIn the article they cite previous findings from literature: (some\r\ncitations removed and emphasis added)\r\n\r\n\"There are numerous publications on the effect of dust on the\r\nrespiratory system of textile workers employed in processing textile\r\nfibers such as cotton, hemp, flax, and wool. However, there are few\r\navailable data on respiratory function in the workers employed in the\r\ntextile dyeing industry.\r\n\r\nWork-related respiratory symptoms among employees in wool dye-houses\r\nin the United Kingdom associated with exposure to Lanasol dyes were\r\nreported by Topping et al. [1989]. Viegi et al. [1985] evaluated\r\nrespiratory function in workers of a dye factory and found the\r\nprevalence of chronic bronchitis and dyspnea of 32%; flow rates were\r\nsignificantly lower than reference values. Among their workers, 71%\r\nhad diagnoses of chronic obstructive lung disease; they all worked >15\r\nyears in the dye textile industry.\r\n\r\nNine cases of immediate type occupational asthma due to reactive dyes\r\nin one dye industry were described by Park et al. [1989]. Docker et\r\nal. [1987] showed that >15% OF WORKERS HANDLING REACTIVE DYES HAD\r\nWORK-RELATED RESPIRATORY OR NASAL SYMPTOMS. The same authors\r\nconsidered that the symptoms could be attributed to an irritant\r\nresponse to chemicals used in this industry, including hydrochloric\r\nacid vapor, sulfur dioxide, as well as the reactive dyes themselves.\r\nSOME OF THE SYMPTOMS WERE ATTRIBUTED TO AN ALLERGIC REACTION TO\r\nSPECIFIC AGENTS IN THE REACTIVE DYES. Recently, Lin et al. [1995]\r\nfound that reactive dye workers with atopy or asthma were at a\r\nsignificantly higher risk of developing respiratory symptoms. Alanko\r\net al. [1978] reported four cases of immediate-type occupational\r\nallergy (asthma and rhinitis) to reactive dyes. According to these\r\nauthors, reactive dyes probably act as haptens. Interestingly, Park et\r\nal. [1990] described that reactive dye induced occupational asthma\r\nwithout nonspecific bronchial hyperreactivity.\"\r\n\r\nMy comment is that as each dye is a different chemical, and there is\r\nalso simultaneous exposure to other chemicals, it is hard to tell\r\nwhich one is causing the symptoms of the workers. There *are* allergy\r\nrisks associated with *some* dyes. It is better to play safe with all\r\nof them if you don't know which. Inhalation is how one gets into worst\r\ntrouble, but also skin sensitization is a possibility. I have not seen\r\nanything about ingestion.\r\n\r\nThere is another article from the same authors on wool dust:\r\n\r\nZuskin E, Mustajbegovic J, Schachter EN, Kanceljak B, Godnic-Cvar J,\r\nSitar-Srebocan V. Respiratory symptoms and lung function in wool\r\ntextile workers. Am J Ind Med. 1995 Jun;27(6):845-57.\r\n\r\n http:\/\/www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov\/pubmed\/7645578\r\n\r\n>From the abstract:\r\n\r\n\"Our data suggest that dust exposures in wool textile mills may be\r\nassociated with the development of chronic respiratory symptoms and\r\nimpaired lung function.\"\r\n\r\n-olli<\/pre>\nFrom: o at iki.fi (Olli Niemitalo)<\/strong><\/pre>\nDate: Mon, 16 Feb 2009 16:49:25 +0200<\/strong><\/pre>\nSubject: Ultrasound cleaners<\/span><\/strong><\/pre>\nHas anyone tried ultrasound cleaners (\"sonicators\") in dyeing?\r\n\r\nI'm reading an article that says that ultrasound vibration improves\r\ndye penetration and dye uptake in many wet dyeing processes (Vajnhandl\r\nS and Le Marechal AM, Ultrasound in textile dyeing and the\r\ndecolouration\/mineralization of textile dyes, Dyes and Pigments,\r\nVolume 65, Issue 2, May 2005, Pages 89-101).\r\n\r\n-olli\r\n\r\nFrom: o at iki.fi (Olli Niemitalo)<\/strong><\/pre>\nDate: Mon, 3 Aug 2009 12:36:19 +0300<\/strong><\/pre>\nContext: Organic PFD fabric<\/span><\/strong><\/pre>\nIn its Global Organic Textile Standard, GOTS allows up to 10 % of\r\nsynthetic (polyester, polyurethane, polyamide) or regenerated\r\n(viscose, acetate, Lyocell) fibers, or up to 25 % in case of socks,\r\nleggings and sportswear.\r\n\r\n-olli\r\n\r\nFrom: o at iki.fi (Olli Niemitalo)<\/strong><\/pre>\nDate: Mon, 3 Aug 2009 12:44:04 +0300<\/strong><\/pre>\nContext: Organic PFD fabric<\/span><\/strong><\/pre>\nOn first reading I missed that in the following case the item may be\r\nlabeled MADE WITH X% OF ORGANIC MATERIALS. To be labeled ORGANIC, the\r\nlimit is more strict, 5 %.\r\n\r\n-olli\r\n\r\nFrom: o at iki.fi (Olli Niemitalo)<\/strong><\/pre>\nDate: Thu, 6 Aug 2009 10:54:35 +0300<\/strong><\/pre>\nContext: Can t<\/span>hiox be used to discharge jeans?<\/span><\/strong><\/pre>\nSodium dithionite did not remove indigo from my jeans. The same is\r\nprobably true for thiox as another reducing agent.\r\n\r\n-olli\r\n\r\nFrom: o at iki.fi (Olli Niemitalo)<\/strong><\/pre>\nDate: Sat, 9 Jan 2010 12:19:31 +0200<\/strong><\/pre>\n