Multifibre Adjacent Fabric Staining Assessment
topic
Multifibre adjacent fabric staining assessment evaluates the cross-staining transfer from dyed test specimens to a composite undyed adjacent fabric (multifibre DW or TV) during washing, rubbing, and perspiration fastness tests — providing simultaneous staining information for 6 fibre types in a single test. SDC multifibre DW (standard for ISO 105-C06, ISO 105-E04 perspiration): 6-strip composite — Strip 1: diacetate; Strip 2: bleached cotton; Strip 3: nylon 6.6; Strip 4: polyester (PET); Strip 5: acrylic; Strip 6: wool. ISO multifibre TV (alternative composition, European preference): wool, acrylic, polyester, nylon, cotton, viscose. Staining severity on adjacent fibres indicates dye-fibre affinity: reactive dye on cotton specimen → cotton strip staining grade 3–4 (moderate affinity), nylon strip grade 2–3 (moderate affinity via hydrogen bonding), polyester strip grade 4–5 (low affinity — disperse affinity mechanism absent for reactive dye); acid dye on wool → nylon strip grade 2–3 (significant — nylon similar protein-like affinity), cotton strip grade 4–5 (minimal — cellulose lacks amine groups). Selective staining pattern diagnosis: high staining on nylon and wool strips (protein/polyamide affinity) indicates unfixed reactive or acid dye presence; high staining on polyester strip indicates disperse dye contamination or carry-over; high staining on cotton strip indicates direct dye or hydrolysed reactive dye not properly washed off. Fixing agent impact on staining: cationic fixing agent (Fixapret, 2% owf) improves cotton staining from grade 3 to grade 4-5 for reactive dyes but may cause colour change shift of 0.5 grade (yellow cast from cationic agent deposition). OEKO-TEX 100 staining limits: all adjacent fabric strips minimum grade 3 after ISO 105-C06 for baby and direct skin contact product categories.
Role
Multifibre adjacent fabric staining assessment provides the cross-contamination quality intelligence that diagnoses dye fixation inadequacy, wash-off insufficiency, and dye class contamination in dyed textiles — the staining pattern on specific fibre strips is a dye class fingerprint that quality technicians use to diagnose root causes of washing fastness failures without requiring expensive HPLC dye analysis, making multifibre assessment the most cost-effective diagnostic tool for dyehouse quality problem-solving.