Technical Field

The invention is related to a chemical finishing process applied to fabrics in the textile finishing sector and the machinery used in the system to carry out this process.

The invention is particularly related to a spray system used in the chemical finishing process.

Prior Art

Nowadays most commonly a foulard machine is used during chemical finishing processes. The chemical finishing process in said machines are carried out with the principle of dipping the fabric into a vessel containing chemical solutions. Following the finishing process the excess solution on the fabric shall be drained. In some other cases in order for the chemical finishing process to be carried out better the vessel is heated using several methods. Water, chemical and energy consumption is high during the chemical finishing process carried out with foulard.

Another method that is used is the rotational spray, which is based on spreading the pulverized finishing solution that is poured onto the rapidly rotating disk onto the fabric. As a chemical finishing process cannot be carried out homogenously during this application which is not very common, quality problems have been faced.

In order to solve these problems different types of systems have been designed. For example, in the application numbered TR2015/01357 a method and an apparatus has been provided which can be used to apply chemical materials in liquid form onto surfaces such as threads, woven fabrics, fabrics, knitted fabric, spun lace surfaces, carpets, paper, plastic or leather or to paint such materials. However in said application, aspects which minimize water consumption and finishing usage has not been mentioned. Moreover a configuration which can reduce energy consumption has not been provided either.

In the application numbered TR2014/1 1853, a finishing unit formed of a cooling cylinder and four heating cylinders have been provided in orderto ensure that the fabric which has passed through the squeezing foulard has the physical and chemical features that are subjected to the finishing process directly without being inserted into the stenter machine. By means of this unit the preparation times prior to the finishing process of facilities, is reduced and it has been aimed to provide cost and time saving. However in said application, configurations which minimize the usage of the finishing process have not been mentioned. Moreover a configuration which can reduce the frequency of maintenance procedures is not available.

As a result all of the solutions mentioned above have made it necessary to provide a novelty in the related technical field.

Brief Description of the Invention

The invention is related to a chemical finishing process applied to fabrics and the usage of this system in machinery used in the textile finishing sector.

The aim of the invention is to provide a spray system which minimizes the usage of the finishing process.

Another aim of the invention is to provide a spray system which minimizes water consumption.

Another aim of the invention is to provide a spray system which provides energy saving.

Another aim of the invention is to provide a spray system which reduces operation costs as the frequency of maintenance procedures is reduced.

The present invention which has been mentioned above and which intends to carry out all of the aims that shall be obvious from the detailed description below is a spray system which comprises a spray cabin in order to carry out a chemical finishing process applied to fabrics. Said spray system comprises;

• a pulverization system which has a nozzle that converts the chemical solution into a pulverized solution by spraying at the desired sizes,

• idler cylinders which enables to position the fabric according to its passage horizontally or vertically,

• an absorption system which has an absorption plate that allows the finishing that has been pulverized to be absorbed,

• a separator which separates the finishing solution that has not been absorbed and the absorbed air as air and liquid in the absorption plate, • a tank which allows the water to be separated and returned back to the system to be used,

• a blower with adjustable speed according to the type of fabric in order to provide an absorption process at a power suitable to the type of fabric.

All of the features and advantages of the invention shall be understood more clearly from the figures and the detailed description of these figures; therefore any evaluations carried out regarding the invention should be made by taking into account the descriptions and figures mentioned herein.

Brief Description of the Figures

Figure 1 , is the general view of the spray system subject to the invention.

Figure 2, is the inner view of the spray cabin.

Figure 3, is the fabric passage view.

Reference Numbers Given in the Figures

10 Spray Cabin

11 Nozzles

12 Separator Curtain

13 Idler Cylinders

14 Absorption Plate

15 Absorption Groove

16 Finishing Channel

20 Separator

30 Tank

40 Blower

50 Absorption Channel

60 Fog Chamber

70 Fabric

80 Absorption System

90 Pulverization System

100 Pulverized Solution Detailed Description of the Invention

The invention in this detailed description is related to a chemical finishing process applied to fabrics (70) and the usage of this system in machinery used in the textile finishing sector. The preferred embodiment of the materials used in the invention has been described without any limiting effects.

The invention is a spray system comprising a spray cabin (10) in order to carry out a finishing process applied to fabrics (70). Said spray system comprises;

• a pulverization system (90) which has a nozzle (1 1 ) that converts the chemical solution into a pulverized solution (100) by spraying at the desired sizes,

• idler cylinders (13) which enables to position the fabric (70) according to its passage horizontally or vertically,

• an absorption system (80) which has an absorption plate (14) that allows the finishing that has been pulverized to be absorbed,

• a separator (20) which separates the finishing solution that has not been absorbed and the absorbed air as air and liquid in the absorption suction plate (14),

• a tank (30) which allows the water to be separated and returned back to the system to be used,

• a blower (40) with adjusted speed according to the type of fabric (70) in order to provide an absorption process at a power suitable to the type of fabric (70).

The general view of the spray system subject to the invention has been provided in Figure 1 , and is used in order to apply the chemical finishing process to the fabric (70) on its own or by being attached to the suitable sections of the foulard machines used in the textile system. The invention can also be used to apply chemical finishing to the fabric (70) as a standalone system.

The invention is generally formed by operating two basic systems together. The first one of these system is the pulverization system (90) where the solution is pulverized and the second system is an absorption system (80) which allows fabric (70) finishing of the pulverized solution (100). The absorption process can be carried out from the right, left or both sides of the system and it can also be carried out from the top, bottom or both sides of the system.

The invention basically comprises a spray cabin (10) a fog chamber (60) which surrounds said spray cabin (10), an absorption channel (50) that is connected to the spray cabin (10), a separator (20) that is connected to the absorption channel (50), a blower (40) that is connected to the separator (20) and a tank (30). A plurality of absorption systems (80) and pulverization systems (90) can be placed in the same direction or diagonally inside the spray cabin (10).

With reference to figure 1 and figure 2 the spray cabin (10) is the chamber in which the finishing process is carried out. The spray cabin (10) comprises a finishing channel (16). Chemical solution is located inside the finishing channel (16). Nozzles (1 1 ) have been provided on the finishing channel (16). The nozzles (1 1 ) are such that they can divide the solution into parts having the desired sizes. The chemical solution located inside the finishing channel (16) is pulverized by means of the nozzles (1 1 ). The pulverized solution (100) is left to rest inside the fog chamber (60) for a short period of time and is then directed towards the absorption area. The fog chamber (60) has an impermeable structure. The fog chamber (60) has a sufficient size in order to create fog. The sizes of the fog chamber (60) can vary in order to provide fog formation. A separating curtain (12) has been provided which is specially placed in order to prevent formation of droplets and to prevent the fog inside the spray cabin (10) to come into contact with the fabric (70). The separating curtain (12) not only prevents the droplets that may fall onto the fabric (70) but also it prevents the dispersion of the pulverized solution (100) from the fog chamber (60).

The fabric (70) passage view has been provided in Figure 3. Accordingly idler cylinders (13) have been provided which have been particularly placed in order to direct the fabric (70) inside the spray cabin (10). The fabric (70) can be inserted into the idler cylinders (13) according to its passage horizontally or vertically. The idler cylinders (13) are preferably two in number and have been placed on top of each other. The fabric (70) is directed by the idler cylinders (13) and contact of the fabric (70) with the absorption plate (14) is ensured. Absorption grooves (15) have been provided on the absorption plate (14). Said absorption grooves (15) are the grooves (15) through which the pulverized finishing is absorbed. The grooves have been positioned and sized particularly to enable absorbance equally from each section of the fabric (70). The absorption grooves (15) can be straight or inclined.

The application of the invention is carried out according to the following steps under the light of the descriptions provided above. The fabric (70) is directed by the idler cylinders (13) and contact of the fabric (70) with the absorption plate (14) is ensured. At the same time a blower (40) is operated and absorption at with the suitable power according the type of fabric (70) is started. The speed of the blower (40) can be adjusted. As a result the speed of the blower (40) can be adjusted according to the features of the fabric (70). The chemical solution located inside the finishing channel (16) is pulverized by means of the nozzles (1 1 ). The pulverized solution (100) is left to rest inside the fog chamber (60) for a short period of time. The pulverized solution (100) is then directed towards the absorption area. The absorption process is carried out through the absorption grooves (15) located on the absorption plate (14). The air that is sucked through the absorption grooves (15) is received from the fog chamber (60). During the movement of air towards the air absorption grooves (15) the pulverized finishing solution located in the fog chamber (60) is also carried. The pulverized solution (100) passes through the fabric (70) before it passes through the absorption channel (50). During this passage the fibres of the fabric (70) act as a mechanical filter and they grasp and absorb the pulverized finishing solution (100) that is present in the air. By this means the chemical finishing process is carried out. The air that has been absorbed through the absorption grooves (15) located on the absorption plate (14) and the finishing solution (100) that has not been absorbed are received at the absorption channel (50). Following this the mixture is received by the separator (20) by means of the blower (40). The mixture that enters the separator (20) is separated as air and liquid. The solution (100) that is liquid is transferred to the tank (30). The air that has been separated from the liquid enters the blower (40) after the separator (20) and it is then discharged to the external environment. The separator (20) and the tank (30) enable the water to be re-used by transferring back to the system after it has been resolved. The separating curtain (12) provided in the spray cabin (10) not only prevents the droplets that may fall onto the fabric (70) but also it prevents the dispersion of the pulverized solution (100) from the fog chamber (60).

Cost saving is provided by collecting the solution (100) that has not been in contact with the fabric (70) inside a tank (30) and transferring this solution back to the process cycle. The time span to use a new solution (100) is reduced to 5 minutes. Solution (100) that is sufficient to be absorbed by the fabric (70) is heated only. As a result 50-60% reduction in energy consumption is achieved. As only the solution (100) amount necessary is applied onto the fabric (70) by means of the invention, the finishing consumption is also decreased. By means of the invention the pick-up rate following chemical finishing is 70-75%. In conclusion a lower amount of liquid is evaporated during the drying process. Therefore energy consumption is reduced by 25-30% during the drying process.