O o d h e a d p u b L i s h I n g L i m I t e d

7.7
Future trends
Increasing use of the domestic washing machine means that consumers continue
to seek comfort, greater softness and easy-care properties in wool products,
especially machine-washability and tumble-dryability. Wool manufacturers
have extended their product ranges to include wool garments for babies and
children, and bedding products including blankets and duvets, due to wool’s
natural comfort, warmth, moisture retention and wicking properties. In order
to accommodate consumer requirements, finishing processes are required to
ensure that greater softness and performance properties such as easy care
and antipilling are maintained throughout the lifetime of the product.
It is anticipated that lightweight and soft wool fabrics will be increasingly
included in the summer wear market for garments to be worn next to the
skin. Such a scenario means that characteristics as durability, antistatic
behaviour, deodorising performance and easy-care finishing will be increasingly
important.
Environmental issues have been an ongoing concern for the textile industry
and will necessarily become of increasing importance. Within the wool industry,
green technology has been rapidly developed in order to replace the harmful
chemicals traditionally used in wool processing. Plasma treatment is an
innovative approach for the replacement of the chlorination process for machine
© 2009 Woodhead Publishing Limited

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Wool finishing and the development of novel finishes
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washable wool. Indeed, the use of plasma has a promising future due to
significant benefits such as its requirement for a lower volume of water and
the absence of AOX in the waste effluent.
Another option when considering environmentally preferable methods of
wool processing is the use of enzyme treatments. The reaction of conventional
protease formulations on wool is difficult to control and may cause unacceptable
damage. However the modification of enzymes or alteration of the absorption
and penetration pattern of enzymes during treatment can confer specific
finishing to wool including soft handle, shrink-resistance and low-temperature
dyeing.
The development of different functional finishes to produce high-
performance characteristics without causing environmental impacts is urgently
required. Reduction of the levels of AOX and FPOS in processing effluents
must be addressed by the textile industry as a whole, while insecticide
discharges from insect-resist treatments are specific to wool. The use of
wool in carpets has significantly expanded in the recent marketplace. As a
consequence it has become increasingly important to develop self-cleaning
and stain-repellence technology finishing for wool carpets.
Innovations in chemical finishes have recently been expanded and notably
include nanotechnology, microencapsulation, plasma treatments and polymer
finishing for textiles. Adoption and adaptation of these advanced technologies
by the wool industry will facilitate the addition of more desirable properties
to natural wool fibres. With increasing demands for sophisticated functionality
and protective fabrics for military apparel and transportation textiles, a diverse
functionality for wool is demanded and dictated by a host of special end
uses. Advanced technologies enable attachment of a range of micro- and
nanoparticles to the surface of wool fibres to develop smart and intelligent
wool materials with multifunctionality. Plasma finishing, polymerisation and
grafting technology with multifunctional and multi-reactive polymers are
fast developing technologies and represent the way forward for smart wool
performance and fashion in what promises to be an exciting future.