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Stain Repellent
A stain is a discoloration that can be clearly distinguished from the surface, material, or medium it is found upon. They are caused by the chemical or physical interaction of two dissimilar materials. Accidental staining may make materials appear used, degraded or permanently unclean. Intentional staining is used in biochemical research, and for artistic effect, such as in wood staining, rust staining and stained glass. Types There can be intentional stains (such as wood stains or paint), indicative stains (such as food coloring dye, and staining, the use of one or more substances to enhance visibility of samples in a microscope or other imaging device. Numerous naturally-occurring stains exist, such as rust on iron and a patina on bronze, as do accidental stains such as from ketchup and oil on fabrics and other materials. Different types of material can be stained by different substances, and stain resistance is an important characteristic in modern textile engineering. ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Bleach
Bleach is the generic name for any chemical product that is used industrially or domestically to remove color from (i.e. to whiten) fabric or fiber (in a process called bleaching) or to disinfect after cleaning. It often refers specifically to a dilute solution of sodium hypochlorite, also called "liquid bleach". Many bleaches have broad-spectrum bactericidal properties, making them useful for disinfecting and sterilizing. They are used in swimming pool sanitation to control bacteria, viruses, and algae and in many places where sterile conditions are required. They are also used in many industrial processes, notably in the bleaching of wood pulp. Bleaches also have other minor uses, like removing mildew, killing weeds, and increasing the longevity of cut flowers. Bleaches work by reacting with many colored organic compounds, such as natural pigments, and turning them into colorless ones. While most bleaches are oxidizing agents (chemicals that can remove electrons from ot ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Biodegradation
Biodegradation is the breakdown of organic matter by microorganisms, such as bacteria and fungi. It is generally assumed to be a natural process, which differentiates it from composting. Composting is a human-driven process in which biodegradation occurs under a specific set of circumstances. The process of biodegradation is threefold: first an object undergoes biodeterioration, which is the mechanical weakening of its structure; then follows biofragmentation, which is the breakdown of materials by microorganisms; and finally assimilation, which is the incorporation of the old material into new cells. In practice, almost all chemical compounds and materials are subject to biodegradation, the key element being time. Things like vegetables may degrade within days, while glass and some plastics take many millennia to decompose. A standard for biodegradability used by the European Union is that greater than 90% of the original material must be converted into , water and minerals b ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Laundry Detergent
Laundry detergent is a type of detergent (cleaning agent) used for cleaning dirty laundry (clothes). Laundry detergent is manufactured in powder (washing powder) and liquid form. While powdered and liquid detergents hold roughly equal share of the worldwide laundry detergent market in terms of Value (economics), value, powdered detergents are sold twice as much compared to liquids in terms of volume. History From ancient times, chemical additives were used to facilitate the mechanical washing of textile fibers with water. The earliest recorded evidence of the production of soap-like materials dates back to around 2800 BC in ancient Babylon. German chemical companies developed an alkyl sulfate surfactant in 1917, in response to shortages of soap ingredients during the Blockade of Germany (1914–1919), Allied Blockade of Germany during World War I. In the 1930s, commercially viable routes to fatty alcohols were developed, and these new materials were converted to their Orga ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Stain Removal
Stain removal is the process of removing a mark or spot left by one substance on a specific surface like a fabric. A solvent or detergent is generally used to conduct stain removal and many of these are available over the counter. Stain prevention If a stain has "set", it has become chemically bonded to the material that it has stained and cannot be removed without damaging the material itself. It is therefore important to avoid setting stains that one wants to remove. This can be done by avoiding heat (by not pressing or ironing the stain), sponging stained materials as quickly as possible, using the correct solvent (some solvents will act as catalysts on certain substances and cause the stain to set more quickly), and avoiding rubbing the stain. Stain removal is possible due to hydrophilic end and hydrophobic end present in detergents. The hydrophilic end of the detergent attaches itself to the water molecules while the hydrophobic end attaches itself to the material and the ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Laundry
Laundry is the washing of clothing and other textiles, and, more broadly, their drying and ironing as well. Laundry has been part of history since humans began to wear clothes, so the methods by which different cultures have dealt with this universal human need are of interest to several branches of scholarship. Laundry work has traditionally been highly gendered, with the responsibility in most cultures falling to women (formerly known as laundresses or washerwomen). The Industrial Revolution gradually led to mechanized solutions to laundry work, notably the washing machine and later the tumble dryer. Laundry, like cooking and child care, is still done both at home and by commercial establishments outside the home. The word "laundry" may refer to the clothing itself, or to the place where the cleaning happens. An individual home may have a laundry room; a utility room includes, but is not restricted to, the function of washing clothes. An apartment building or student ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Sunlight
Sunlight is the portion of the electromagnetic radiation which is emitted by the Sun (i.e. solar radiation) and received by the Earth, in particular the visible spectrum, visible light perceptible to the human eye as well as invisible infrared (typically perceived by humans as warmth) and ultraviolet (which can have physiological effects such as sunburn) lights. However, according to the American Meteorological Society, there are "conflicting conventions as to whether all three [...] are referred to as light, or whether that term should only be applied to the visible portion of the spectrum." Upon reaching the Earth, sunlight is light scattering by particles, scattered and attenuation, filtered through the atmosphere of Earth, Earth's atmosphere as daylight when the Sun is above the horizon. When direct solar radiation is not blocked by clouds, it is experienced as sunshine, a combination of bright light and radiant heat (atmospheric). When cloud cover, blocked by clouds or dif ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Dry Cleaning
Dry cleaning is any cleaning process for clothing and textiles using a solvent other than water. Clothes are instead soaked in a water-free liquid solvent (usually non-polar, as opposed to water which is a Solvent#Solvent classifications, polar solvent). Perchloroethylene (known in the industry as "perc") is the most commonly used solvent, although alternative solvents such as hydrocarbons, and decamethylcyclopentasiloxane are also used. Most natural fibers can be washed in water but some synthetics (e.g., viscose) react poorly with water and should be dry cleaned if possible. If not, this could result in changes in texture, strength, and shape. Additionally, certain specialty fabrics, including silk and rayon, may also benefit from dry cleaning to prevent damage. History The ancient Greeks and Romans had some waterless methods to clean textiles, involving the use of powdered chemicals and absorbent clay (fuller's earth). By the 1700s, the French were using turpentine-based s ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Ironing
Ironing is the use of an iron (appliance), iron, usually heated, to remove wrinkles and unwanted creases from fabric. The heating is commonly done to a temperature of , depending on the fabric. Ironing works by loosening the bonds between the long-chain polymer molecules in the fibres of the material. While the molecules are hot, the fibres are straightened by the weight of the iron, and they hold their new shape as they cool. Some fabrics, such as cotton, require the addition of water to loosen the intermolecular bonds. Many synthetic polymer, modern fabrics (developed in or after the mid-twentieth century) are advertised as needing little or no ironing. Permanent press clothing was developed to reduce the ironing necessary by combining Wrinkle-resistant fabric, wrinkle-resistant polyester with cotton. The first known use of heated metal to "iron" clothes is known to have occurred in China. The electric iron was invented in 1882, by Henry W. Seely. Seely patented his "electric fl ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Heat
In thermodynamics, heat is energy in transfer between a thermodynamic system and its surroundings by such mechanisms as thermal conduction, electromagnetic radiation, and friction, which are microscopic in nature, involving sub-atomic, atomic, or molecular particles, or small surface irregularities, as distinct from the macroscopic modes of energy transfer, which are thermodynamic work and transfer of matter. For a closed system (transfer of matter excluded), the heat involved in a process is the difference in internal energy between the final and initial states of a system, after subtracting the work done in the process. For a closed system, this is the formulation of the first law of thermodynamics. Calorimetry is measurement of quantity of energy transferred as heat by its effect on the states of interacting bodies, for example, by the amount of ice melted or by change in temperature of a body. In the International System of Units (SI), the unit of measurement for he ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Covalent Bond
A covalent bond is a chemical bond that involves the sharing of electrons to form electron pairs between atoms. These electron pairs are known as shared pairs or bonding pairs. The stable balance of attractive and repulsive forces between atoms, when they share electrons, is known as covalent bonding. For many molecules, the sharing of electrons allows each atom to attain the equivalent of a full valence shell, corresponding to a stable electronic configuration. In organic chemistry, covalent bonding is much more common than ionic bonding. Covalent bonding also includes many kinds of interactions, including σ-bonding, π-bonding, metal-to-metal bonding, agostic interactions, bent bonds, three-center two-electron bonds and three-center four-electron bonds. The term "covalence" was introduced by Irving Langmuir in 1919, with Nevil Sidgwick using "co-valent link" in the 1920s. Merriam-Webster dates the specific phrase ''covalent bond'' to 1939, recognizing its first known ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
