Claims
- 1. A method for scouring of cellulosic material, comprising the steps of:
(a) preparing an aqueous enzyme solution comprising pectinase; and (b) treating cellulosic material with an effective amount of the pectinase solution of step (a) at a pH of 9.0 or above, a temperature of 50° C. or above, in the presence of a low calcium ion concentration, wherein scouring is achieved.
- 2. The method of claim 1, further comprising the step of:
(c) exposing the cellulosic material to a chemical treatment.
- 3. The method of claim 1, wherein the calcium ion concentration is about 0-0.2 mM.
- 4. The method of claim 3, wherein the calcium ion concentration is reduced to 0.2 mM or less by the addition of an effect amount of a calcium chelating or sequestering agent.
- 5. The method of claim 4, wherein the calcium chelating agent is selected from the group consisting of luminosilicates, silicates, polycarboxylates and fatty acids, ethylenediamine tetraacetate, aminopolyphosphonates, ethylenediamine tetramethylene phosphonic acid, and diethylene triamine pentamethylenephosphonic acid.
- 6. The method of claim 5, wherein the calcium chelating agent is ethylenediamine tetraacetate (EDTA).
- 7. The method of claim 6, wherein EDTA is present in the amount of up to 2 mM.
- 8. The method of claim 2, wherein the chemical treatment is an oxidative bleaching process.
- 9. The method of claim 1, wherein the enzyme solution further comprises one or more enzymes selected from the group consisting of protease, glucanase, and cellulase.
- 10. The method of claim 1, wherein the cellulosic material is selected from the group consisting of cotton fiber, yarn, knitted or woven cotton fabric, flax, linen, ramie, or blends thereof with natural or man-made fibers.
- 11. The method of claim 1, wherein the enzyme solution of step (a) further comprises textile adjuncts selected from the group consisting of surfactants and antiredeposition agents.
- 12. The method of claim 9 wherein any of the individual enzyme classes is represented by a single protein component responsible for at least 80% of the activity units for that specific class.
- 13. The method of claim 1, wherein the effective amount of enzyme is about 0.0005-0.5% per weight of cellulosic material.
- 14. The method of claim 13, wherein the amount of enzyme is less than 0.02% per weight of cellulosic material.
- 15. The method of claim 1, wherein the pH is 9-12.
- 16. The method of claim 1, wherein the temperature is 50° C.-70° C.
- 17. The method of claim 1, wherein the treatment is conducted for a time of less than 1.5 hours.
- 18. The method of claim 1, wherein the treatment is conducted for a time of less than 0.5 hours.
- 19. A cellulosic material produced by the method of claim 1, characterized as having one or more of the following characteristics: enhanced whiteness, reduced pilling, softer hand, and improved dyeability.
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS
[0001] This application is a continuation of U.S. application Ser. No. 09/247,390 filed Feb. 10, 1999, which is a continuation of U.S. application Ser. No. 08/977,587 filed Nov. 25, 1997, now U.S. Pat. No. 5,912,407, and claims the benefit under 35 U.S.C. 119 of of U.S. provisional application No. 60/034,314 filed Dec. 4, 1996, the contents of which are fully incorporated herein by reference.
Provisional Applications (1)
|
Number |
Date |
Country |
|
60034314 |
Dec 1996 |
US |
Continuations (2)
|
Number |
Date |
Country |
Parent |
09247390 |
Feb 1999 |
US |
Child |
10371380 |
Feb 2003 |
US |
Parent |
08977587 |
Nov 1997 |
US |
Child |
09247390 |
Feb 1999 |
US |