Effect of enzyme and oxidative treatments on the properties of coarse wool and mohair

Abstract

The main disadvantage of coarse wool and mohair is their harshness, making them unacceptable to the consumer. The best way to improve the softness of coarse fibres is by a chemical treatment. In this regard, a variety of options are available and the current study focused on the effect of enzymes, either alone or in combination with an oxidative (chlorine) treatment, on the softness and other properties of the fibres. It was found that an enzyme treatment reduced the feltability of wool. Furthermore, the scale height of the fibres was reduced by an enzyme treatment and this together with a decrease in the hardness of the fibres, improved the handle of the enzyme treated wool and mohair. The enzyme treatment also resulted in whiter fibres and did not cause any real damage to the wool and mohair. Better results were obtained, in general, if the enzyme treatment was applied to wool that was chlorinated first