One for pops

[catgate]

This morning management popped one of the incessant torrent of glossy expensive postal catologues in front of me and said, "You're a textile man, what do you make of this?."

Well, I started out in textile chemistry, and along the way accumulated lots of other things in the world of technology, but this thing seems rather "far out", given my understanding of things.

The question was raised by an advert for a cardigan, and it says,

"Fresh all day: By means of a specially developed textile treatment, yarns are able to coat and enclose odour molecules in the fibres while they are being worn - until next wash, when all the body odourand smells form outside are simply washed away."

Although in the description of other items the type of fibre used in it's construction is quoted, for some reason there no mention in this case of the type of fibre used.

Any ideas pops? It all sound like poetic licence to me.

[-pops-]

I've heard of work being done by P&G with cyclodextrins as a permanent textile finish to act as a deodorant. I wasn't aware that they had been successful though.

Cyclodextrins are the actives in things like Febreze and P&G has literally hundreds of patents covering various uses.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cyclodextrin

If it isn't that, I don't know.

[catgate]

That was very interesting, pops. Although the only bit that seemed in any way to support the idea in the catalogue was :-

The strong ability of complexing fragrances can also be used for another purpose: first dry, solid cyclodextrin microparticles are exposed to a controlled contact with fumes of active compounds, then they are added to fabric or paper products. Such devices are capable of releasing fragrances during ironing or when heated by human body. Such a device commonly used is a typical 'dryer sheet'. The heat from a clothes dryer releases the fragrance into the clothing.

This however seems a long way from the claim:-

by means of a specially developed textile treatment yarns are able to coat and enclose odour molecules in the fibres while they are being worn

It's all a long way from flogiston (and possibly from the truth).

[-pops-]

The work I was aware of was based on the cyclising of chitin or chitosan, or even glucosamine derivatives to form a cationic cyclodextrin type of material. Another approach was the quaternising of the precursor starch/dextrose oligomers.

Both of these with the notion of creating a cyclic 5 to 8 sugar residue membered ring with pendent quaternary (or other) substantive areas - a cationic material much the same idea as the commonly used cationic fabric softeners.

I did a lot of work on cyclodextrins but gave up when it became apparent that P&G had most of the non-pharmaceutical applications protected.

[catgate]

You certainly pushed back the calx theory by the look of it.

In passing. I always thought "The Oligomers" would have made a very apt title for a pop group.

[Gandalph]

If anyone finds an English version of the above conversation would they kindly post it here so that we can all read it. :D

[andsome]

If anyone finds an English version of the above conversation would they kindly post it here so that we can all read it. :D

It's only available in Klingon. :lol:

[doug]

Clever people the Klingons. They invented the stuff you wrap food in.

[andsome]

Did they also invent French correspondence? :lol:

[lester1]

If anyone finds an English version of the above conversation would they kindly post it here so that we can all read it. :D

Nee chance hear kidda went steight owa mee heed :D