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Cliff Cox is the Plant Manager at Chargeurs, a multi-national company with a plant in South Carolina that produces superwash and non-superwash wool sliver (combed and carded top). In this two-part series we will use the conversation with Cliff to dive into the deep mysteries of Superwash Wool and the ways it is made.
Interview Notes:
Review…..- The structure of wool and wool scales up close
- Why and how wool felts/shrinks (DFE)
- Wool before and after the chlorine/Hercosett process
- Wool before and after the Chlorination portion
- Chargeurs, where Cliff work
- Wool Pools! I just imagine a swimming pool full of wool that I can dive into and swim in like Scrooge McDuck with his vault of coins
- Wool Mercerization using Silicone Softeners
- Not Cotton Mercerization
- Coated Fleeces can keep Vegetable Matter (VM) down
- Carbonizing of VM for wool
- The enzyme based process study abstract
- UV/Sericin Process for finished fabric
- Life Fiber Eco Friendly Treatment not durable, since it doesn’t bond to the wool surface
- Bio-based polymers for non-shrink wool treatment include Collagen, Chitosan, and Feather Keratin
- Plasma Process, using Ozone, an “organic” process.
- Modified Drum Carder Descaling
- EcoWash Wool available from Spirit Trail Fiberworks
- Comparative Shrink Resistance of different methods
- This slide show was super helpful
- Breeds of wool less likely to felt:
Doreset Down Sheep *squee* Dorset Down Hampshire Down Oxford Down Shropshire Southdown Suffolk Dorset Ham Dorset Poll Clun Forest Cheviot Portland
I want to thank Cliff Cox and Chargeurs for talking to me in such candid detail about how they run their plant.
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This podcast was produced in Salt Lake City UT, with production help from Sid Fallon. Music is by the ever illusive Breakmaster Cylinder.
I’ll see you again in 2 weeks when we have a chat with designer, author, and publisher, Hunter Hammersen.