Characterization and Evaluation of the Levelness Parameters of Natural Dyes on Natural Fabrics

Abstract

The objective of this paper is to establish a quantitative method to determine the levelness (L) of coloration by spectrophotometric measurements. Previously, the L of coloration is mainly evaluated by visual assessment.

Hence, we are not able to produce quantitative L data because the visual evaluation of the same colored material obtained from different observers can be quite different. Color levelness is actually a description of the uniformity of color shade in different places of the fabric. It is a very important parameter for the quality of textile coloration, quality control, and communication between laboratories.

Thus, this research work evaluates the L parameters by using different variables, including: a) three different natural fabrics; namely, wool, silk and cotton dyed with yellow natural dye from onion skins under the effect of different mordants, and b) three different natural dyes; namely, onion skins, turmeric and madder applied on wool fabric samples under the effect of different mordants.

The obtained results show that dyed samples with the highest color strength (K/S) have the highest unlevelness (U) and the lowest color difference (ΔE) values (i.e. the highest light fastness). These results are obtained regardless of the fabric type or dye used.

Citation

Osman, E.M., El-Ebissy, A.A. and Michael, M.N. (2009), "Characterization and Evaluation of the Levelness Parameters of Natural Dyes on Natural Fabrics", Research Journal of Textile and Apparel, Vol. 13 No. 2, pp. 61-68. https://doi.org/10.1108/RJTA-13-02-2009-B007