Dry cleaning means washing clothes without water. It only uses solvents to remove oil stains. Because there is almost no water in the solvent, it is called dry cleaning.
Basic steps of dry cleaning
The first step is pretreatment, which is to remove stains. It uses artificial additives to pretreat seriously polluted dirt and stains insoluble in dry cleaning solvents (such as juice, nail polish, paint, ink, etc.). ).
The second step is the main washing. Put the pretreated clothes into a dry cleaning machine, wash them thoroughly with dry cleaning solvent, and spin them dry.
The third step, post-treatment, the main purpose is to remove the residual dry cleaning solvent in clothes and irons and shape them.
How many kinds of dry cleaning solutions are there? What are the advantages and disadvantages of each?
There are three main categories, which are:
A, chlorinated hydrocarbon synthesis solvent, the most commonly used is tetrachloroethylene (PEKCRO), which has good safety and strong degreasing and decontamination ability, but it has a strong corrosive effect on metals, and its hydrolysis main substances are toxic, which is harmful to soil, water quality and human body. In addition, it has a strong dissolving effect on plastic, nylon and other products, so this kind of jewelry (such as buttons, etc. ) Be sure to remove it when washing.
B. Chlorofluoride solvent, the typical representative of which is trichlorotrifluoroethane (CFC- 1 13), etc. Non-toxic, non-flammable, non-corrosive to rubber and many chemical fibers, and cleaner than tetrachloroethylene. However, such solvents have been banned because they destroy the atmospheric ozone layer.
C. Hydrocarbon solvent, namely petroleum solvent, has good washing effect. Clothes washed with this kind of solvent have no peculiar smell common in tetrachloroethylene washing, and have no pollution to human body and environment. In the past, it was eliminated because of poor security. Now with the development of science and technology, security has been solved, so it is more and more favored by dry cleaners.
4. Some specific problems about dry cleaning.
A. What kind of clothes are not suitable for dry cleaning?
Polypropylene clothing (including rain-proof silk, etc. ), rubber products (including elastic bands), artificial leather, painted ornaments (such as lacquered flowers), metal ornaments, and velvet products bonded with glue.
B. Will frequent dry cleaning shorten the life of clothes?
No, on the contrary, frequent dry cleaning will prolong the service life of clothes. This is because washing first makes the fibers of clothes swell, so that when washing, the detergent will penetrate into the fibers, making it difficult to clean, and the residual detergent will corrode the fibers, making them brittle from the surface, leading to a decrease in the service life of clothes. Dry cleaning will not make the fibers of clothes swell, and dry cleaning agents, especially petroleum solutions, will not penetrate into the fibers, so it will not cause the clothes to become brittle and will not affect the reduction of their service life. Moreover, the stains on clothes will affect the service life for a long time, and once they are cured, they will quickly wear fabric fibers like sandpaper. In addition, bacteria such as spores attached to dust will further damage clothes.
C. Can dry cleaning sterilize?
Yes, but not all bacteria. Generally speaking, microorganisms on clothes can be divided into germs, caterpillars, spores and parasites. In the process of dry cleaning, germs, caterpillars and moth larvae can be killed due to the action of dry cleaning agents. Spores can be peeled off from clothes by mechanical force and then separated by a filter. For lice, it can be killed, but it can't be separated from clothes because of its strong adhesion.
D. Will dry cleaning shrink?
No. Only when it is normal and appropriate in the dry cleaning process, clothes will not shrink. If there is shrinkage, it is because the original garment factory did not do a good job of shrink-proof treatment in advance, and the second is that the dry cleaning agent was mixed with water.
The birth of dry cleaning and the story of its founder
From /Article/ShowArticle.asp? ArticleID= 13 1
Jolly Belan was born in a poor family in Paris. 13 years old, working alone. Because he is young, no factory is willing to hire him. After several years of wandering, he found a noble family and begged the noble lady to let him do odd jobs in the kitchen. His daily job is to kill chickens, fish, mop the floor and clean the toilet. He does almost all the dirty work. He has to work at least 12 hours a day, and the salary he earns can't even buy a chicken, but Jolly still feels very satisfied. He always scrimps and saves his hard-earned money to support his poor family.
One night in the middle of the night, Jolly was awakened by a quick knock at the door. It turns out that your wife is going to an appointment early the next morning and asked Jolly to iron the clothes at once. I was so sleepy that I accidentally knocked over the kerosene lamp, and the kerosene in the lamp dripped on your wife's clothes. Jolly was frightened. Even if he has worked for a year, I'm afraid he can't afford that expensive dress. Your wife insisted on Jolly's compensation and gave her a year's job for nothing! Jolly was very depressed, but when he promised to work for your wife for a year for free, he also got the dress. Actually, that dress is just a little dirty. If you give it to your mother, she will be very happy. But he was afraid to tell his mother about it, and she would be very sad, so Jolly hung this dress in front of his bed to warn himself not to make mistakes again.
One day, he suddenly found that the place where the clothes were soaked in kerosene was not dirty, but the original stain was removed. This discovery made Jolly very excited. After repeated experiments, Jolly added some other chemical raw materials to kerosene and finally developed a dry cleaning agent. A year later, Jolly left your wife's house to open a dry cleaner, and the world's first dry cleaner was born. Jolly's business broke out, and within a few years, he became the king of dry cleaning that attracted the attention of the whole world. Nowadays, there are dry cleaners all over the world, and people remember his name-Jolly Belan while enjoying the dry cleaning agent he found.
In the first 50 years after the birth of dry cleaning, the solvents used were benzene, kerosene, gasoline, camphor terpene and so on. These solvents are flammable and often cause fires. Because of this fatal defect, dry cleaning technology is difficult to popularize. 1897, Ludwig Antlin of Leipzig, Germany, made dry cleaning technology take a step forward. He invented the use of carbon tetrachloride as a dry cleaner. Carbon tetrachloride has good washing effect and is not flammable. But there is a very annoying disadvantage, that is, there is a pungent smell. But also corrosive to equipment. By 19 18, Europe began to replace carbon tetrachloride with trichloroethylene. Since then, the dry cleaning industry has gradually developed.
Modern laundry industry has realized mechanization. Commonly used dry cleaning solutions include Stoddar solvent invented by 1928 and tetrachloroethylene, a solvent extracted from petroleum, which is harmless to human health and has no fire danger. Because the price of dry cleaning solution is relatively expensive, after cleaning, the solvent squeezed out of clothes is often distilled and then filtered. So it can be used repeatedly.