What is Carbonising ?

Carbonising :

Wool may still contain impurities of plant origin that cannot be removed by mechanical
means. A treatment known as carbonisation is used to remove them, usually in the scouring
mill. The wool is soaked in a solution of sulphuric acid, heated to concentrate the acid and
baked to carbonise the impurities. These are then crushed between rollers to aid removal.
Wool – polyester blends are treated with gaseous hydrochloric acid (or source thereof) as the
polymer is sensitive to sulphuric acid. In this form HCl presents a risk to the respiratory
systems of workers (Stringer and Johnston 2001).