Analysis of the CIE whiteness and whiteness tint of optically whitened cellulosic fabrics

In this study, the CIE whiteness (CIE WI) and whiteness tint (Tw) of optically whitened woven or knitted cellulosic fabrics (cotton, viscose, modal and tencel) irradiated with xenon arc light was investigated. The fabrics were whitened with four concentrations of eight different commercial optical whitening agents and these fabrics were irradiated with xenon arc light under specific conditions between 0—100 hours at 10-hour intervals. The reflectance of the optical whitened fabrics was measured by using spectrophotometry, while CIE WI and the Tw values were calculated using computer software. The results were investigated by statistical methods using ANOVA and regression curves in which CIE WI of optically whitened cellulosic fabrics were found to decrease seriously depending on irradiation time and Tw was also affected by xenon arc light.