Difference Between Scouring and Souring

Don’t confuse these two terms. They are not the same at all. There is a crucial difference between scouring & souring.

Scouring is a pre-treatment process by which all the impurities from textile materials are removed. Mainly scouring is required for natural fibers like cotton, wool, hemp etc. Synthetic fibers or blends of synthetic fibers also require a scouring process but this practice is less in this case.

Strong alkali is used as a result of some changes that occur in the fabric. But it doesn’t cause any significant harm to the fabric. Without proper scouring, the dyeing procedure can’t be carried out effectively. Poor scouring leads to patchy dyeing. As scouring is an essential step before dyeing, bio-scouring is better than chemical or alkaline scouring.

Whereas souring is an after-treatment process to neutralize the residual alkali. This process is accomplished with a mild acidic solution.

Wanna know more about the difference between scouring & souring? Find out below!

7 Difference Between Scouring and Souring

Scouring

Souring

Removes oil, wax, gum and soluble impurities

Don’t remove any impurities, it’s just an alkali neutralization process

Scouring is done at strong alkaline solution

Souring is done at dilute acidic solution like H2SO4, HCL

Scouring is carried out at boiling temperature

Souring is done at normal temperature

Requires heat

No requirement of heat

Needs definite time

No need of definite time

Scouring improves fabric absorbency

Souring has no impact on absorbency

Pre-treatment process

After-treatment process

You may also check this article to know about the Difference Between Bio-scouring and Alkaline scouring

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