A new mordant for cotton

Textile Mercury, 27.4.1889

A new mordant for cotton has recently been patented under the name of "Fankhausine" by a Swiss manufacturer, for which many (!) advantages are claimed. It will do away with the boiling of the cotton before mordanting, and so save fuel; it will save the labour involved by reducing the preliminary operations of dyeing; the yarns are more easily worked, and are fine and soft, and lastly, by causing a more complete exhaustion of the dye-bath, less dye-stuffs will be required and more intensive tints obtained. Whether "Faukhausine," which is a mixture of sulphated castor oil, extract of sumac, and soap, will do all that is claimed is we think a matter of doubt; cotton will have to be boiled before dyeing whether "Faukhausine" be used or not, and further its use is limited to stark colours only, it will be useless for pale tints.