Tie Dyeing in laboratory

Fiber reactive dyes attach permanently to cellulose fibers using a covalent (electronsharing) bond. These molecules carry a "chromophore" which absorbs varying spectrums of light, allowing only certain spectrums to reflect. Covalent bonding is one of the most fundamental and strongest types of chemical reactions. Formation of these bonds between chromophore and cotton fibers happens gradually over time depending on temperature and/or pH level of surrounding environment. Sodium carbonate pre-soak raises pH level of garment or fabric to approximately 10.5. Soaking fabric or garment in sodium carbonate solution raises level of negative hydroxide ions on surface of cotton fibers. Chemical bonding process uses these ions in reaction. Pre-soaking in sodium carbonate solution is what allows fiber reactive dyes to work at room temperature. Other dying procedures require that color solutions be very hot. Dye is allowed to react in a desirable host environment for up to 24 hours. After this time, bonding sites on cellulose (chemical ingredient in cotton) should be saturated with dye molecules. Excess dye molecules that have not bonded permanently are washed away using warm water rinse. Some dyes, such as kind you can buy in the grocery store here in the US, really just stain clothes, so dye washes out a little every time you wash it. A really good dye actually chemically attaches to molecules of fabric and can never be washed out.

A molecule is much too tiny to see, but we can use models to show what dye molecule is shaped like. This model shows you what blue molecules in this bottle are shaped like. [Note: in drawing, C or Carbon atoms are represented by any corner where two lines come together. All other atoms are spelled out with their own oneor two-letter abbreviation, Cl for Chlorine, O for Oxygen, etc.] Different dye colors are made of different dye molecules. Here is a model of another dye molecule. Water containing that kind of dye molecule is red, as you can see. You
Tie Dyeing in laboratory

can see that models are shaped a little differently. Each different shape of dye molecule absorbs light differently. That's what makes different colors!

Fabric your clothing is made out of is also made of molecules. Cotton, which grows on a cotton plant, is made of long strands of cellulose molecules, all twisted together. Cellulose is the same thing that wood is made of. If you put these two molecules, dye and cotton, together, nothing will happen, unless you can get some of the atoms on the surfaces to come unstuck. If the H comes off of the cellulose, and the Cl comes off of one end of the dye molecule, the molecules will be able to react with each other and stick together. How do we get the H and the Cl to get off of the cellulose and the dye? We just add another chemical, called sodium carbonate. What this does is increase the pH. In other words it makes it less acid. You already know about some acids - vinegar and lemon juice are sour because they are acids. An acid has a low pH. The opposite of acid is called a base. You've probably seen a base in your kitchen, called baking soda. When you put baking soda in water, you get a high pH. You can taste the baking soda in your kitchen, but don't taste these chemicals! A high pH is all that is needed to get the dye and the cellulose ready to react. Sodium carbonate is stronger than baking soda, so it works better for dyeing. All we have to do to make a permanent bond between the dye and the cotton is to put the dye on the cotton and add washing soda (common name for sodium carbonate). After we put the dye and the sodium carbonate on the fabric, we just have to wait a while. While we wait, the reaction is happening - chlorines are coming off of the dye molecules and hydrogens are coming off of the cellulose molecules. If they do this right next to each other, the dye then attaches to the cellulose, and a permanent bond is formed. If we leave it in a warm room for a few hours, we can then wash the excess dye out. We have to rinse it in cold water and wash it with detergent in hot water to get all the extra dye off. After all the excess dye is out, the dye left on the fabric is permanent.

Tie Dyeing in laboratory