Process of bleaching and desizing cotton gray goods with organic solvent degreasing and dewaxing and peroxygen bleaching

Claim 1

IN A MULTI-STAGE PROCESS FOR THE BLEACHCING AND DESIZING OF SUBSTANTIALLY GRAY GOODS CONTAINING COTTON WHICH COMPRISES (1) DEGREASING AND DEWAXING SAID GOODS BY CONTINUOUSLY AND RAPIDLY PASSING THE SAME THROUGH A BATH OF SOLVENT SELECTED FROM THE GROUP CONSISTING OF TRICHLOROETHYLENE AND PERCHLOROETHYLENE AT APPROXIMATELY THE BOILING POINT THEREOF, THE TOTAL NECESSARY IMMERSIONN TIME IN THE BATH BEING NOT MORE THAN THREE MINUTES, (2) REMOVING SOLVENT FROM THE GOODS BY CONTACTING THEM WITH AN AQUEOUS MEDIUM HELD AT AN ELEVATED TEMPERATURE SUFFICIENT TO FLASH-OFF SAID SOLVENT, THE IMPROVEMENT WHICH COMPRISES THE COMBINATION OF (3) THEN PASSING THE GOODS THROUGH A DESIZING AND PARTIAL BLEACHING BATH OF AN AQUEOUS ALKALINE SOLUTION OF A DESIZING PEROXYGEN COMPOUND, SAID SOLUTION HAVING A PH OF 11 TO 12 WITH AN ALKALINITY CORRESPONDING TO AT LEAST 7.2 GRAMS PER LITER OF SODIUM HYDROXIDE AND SUBSEQUENTLY SUBJECTING THE GOODS TO THE ACTION OF STEAM FOR A PERIOD REQUIRING NOT MORE THAN THREE MINUTES TO DESIZE AND PARTIALLY BLEACH THE GOODS, (4) THEREAFTER PASSING SAID STEAMED GOODS THROUGH A SECOND BATH OF AN AQUEOUS ALKALINE LIQUOR OF A PEROXYGEN BLEACHING COMPOUND, SAID LIQUOR HAVING AN ALKALINITY LESS THAN THAT CORRESPONDING TO 7.2 GRAMS PER LITER OF SODIUM HYDROXIDE AND THE AVERAGE PH VALUE OF THE LIQUOR WHILE IN CONTACT WITH SAID GOODS BEING AT LEAST 9.5 BUT LESS THAN 11, AND (5) THEN DEVELOPING A FULL BLEACH OF SAID LIQUOR-CONTAINING GOODS BY STEAMING THE SAME, THE TOTAL TIME INVOLVED IN DEVELOPING THE FULL BLEACH BEING A PERIOD REQUIRING NOT MORE THAN ONE HALF HOUR.