Mercerized cotton: features and properties

Cotton is one of the oldest natural plant fibers on earth. It is obtained from cotton, the fruit-box of which opens and, together with the seeds, a fluff appears, similar to cotton wool lumps. Cultivation of cotton as a cultivated plant was first started in India 7 thousand years ago. But only in the Middle Ages it became widespread in Europe. Now it is already impossible to imagine our daily life without products made from this fiber - various fabrics, cotton wool, paper.

Mercerization is a short-term treatment of fabric with a concentrated sodium hydroxide solution. This technology gets its name from the surname of the English chemist John Mercer. This scientist in 1844 invented a process for enriching cotton fibers with sodium hydroxide. As a result, the fiber swelled, and the fabric became more durable, easily dyed, although it reduced in size. In 1890, another scientist - Horace Lowe - began to stretch the canvas so that it did not lose its size and brought this process to perfection.

The mercerization process consists of several stages and is fully automated. First, the yarn is processed with caustic soda - this is mercerization. Then the cotton fiber is dyed and bleached, while neutralizing the alkaline pH. The final stage is burning the fiber in a gas burner so that it gets rid of excess lint and becomes smooth and silky.

The best long-staple and extra-long staple cotton is selected for mercerization, therefore, after this process, the fabric acquires the following remarkable qualities:

• becomes durable and wear-resistant, tolerates a large number of washings;
• perfectly retains the shape of the product, does not form pellets;
• obtains bright saturated colors that do not fade or fade;
• gets a beautiful noble shine;
• becomes soft and silky;
• hygroscopicity is fixed even more;
• almost does not wrinkle, easy to iron;
• does not shrink during washing.

You will learn more about the properties of mercerized cotton by watching the following video.

Mercerized cotton is used to sew casual clothes: T-shirts, T-shirts, blouses, underwear. It is ideal for sewing a variety of children's clothing. Bed linen made from this wonderful material is comfortable and durable. Mercerized fabrics are often used for sewing home textiles: tablecloths, napkins, towels. And also yarn for hand and machine knitting is made from its fibers.

This material has several advantages over conventional cotton. They are as follows.

• Mercerized cotton is much more durable than regular cotton.
• Mercerized cotton yarn can be easily dyed in any color. In addition, the paint lasts longer, does not fade from sunlight and does not fade for several years.
• Mercerized fabric is excellent at absorbing moisture, which is very important for underwear such as T-shirts or underwear.
• The treated fiber is silkier and more pleasant to the touch than regular cotton and has a beautiful sheen.
• Mercerized fabrics practically do not wrinkle, and after washing they never shrink.

The disadvantages include only the high price for products made from this material. And this is natural, because only elite varieties of cotton are taken for mercerization. In addition, the processing process takes place on expensive equipment using an expensive production technology.

There are some simple tricks to differentiate a mercerized 100% cotton fabric from a regular one.

1. The treated fabric always has a brighter color.
2. Outwardly, it is very similar to synthetic or silk fibers.
3. Run your hand over the surface of the fabric. Mercerized cotton products are smooth to the touch, while ordinary ones have rough edges.
4. You can crush the edge of the fabric in the palm of your hand, and then sharply unclench the brush. Processed cotton won't crumple. If you do the same with regular cotton, it will be very wrinkled.
5. A string of mercerized cotton burns instantly to the base, and you will smell burnt paper.
6. If you put on a thing made of mercerized fabric, then you will feel the coolness from it.

If the label of the item you bought says mercerized cotton or 100% mercerized cotton, then you have got a wonderful and easy-care material. You just need to wash and iron it at high temperatures.

Natural materials are of much higher quality than artificial ones, and cotton is deservedly called "white gold". Mercerized cotton fabrics are bright, strong and durable. With the help of mercerization, you can create an environmentally friendly natural material with excellent properties. Products made from this material are very comfortable and easy to clean.Despite the high price, with proper care, things made from this unique fabric will delight you for a long time with their beautiful appearance.