Continuous process for chlorite bleaching of cellulosic textiles

Claim 1

PROCESS FOR CONTINUOUSLY BLEACHING CELLULOSIC TEXTILES COMPRISING THE STEPS OF PASSING SAID TEXTILE IMPREGNATED WITH ALKALI AT A RATE OF AT LEAST 5000 YARDS PER HOUR THROUGH EACH OF THE FOLLOWING STEPS: (A) CONTINOUSLY PASSING SAID TEXTILE THROUGH A DILUTE AQUEOUS SOLUTIUON OF MINERAL ACID IN EXCESS OF THE AMOUNT REQUIRED TO NEUTRALIZE SAID ALKALI, EXPRESSING THE ACID SOLUTION TO BAOUT 90 TO ABOUT 120 PERCENT OF THE WEIGHT OF THE TEXTILE TO PRODUCE SAID TEXTILE WET WITH ACID SOLUTION; (B) RETAINING SAID TEXTILE FOR A TIME SUFFICIENT TO ALLOW DIFFUSION AND ACIDIFICATION OF THE ALKALINE SOLUTION STILL AT THE CORE OF THE FIBERS AND TO EFFECT UNIFORM ACIDIFICATION OF SAID TEXTILE; (C) CONTINUOUSLY WASHING SAID TEXTILE WITH WATER TO REMOVE EXCESS ACID AND TO PRODUCE SAID TEXTILE WET AT THE CORE WITH A SOLUTIN CONTAINING 0.01 TO 0.25 PERCENT OF ACID BASED ON THE DRY WEIGHT OF THE TEXTILE; (D) CONTINUOUSLY PASSING THE TECTILE THROUGH AN ACID AQUEOUS SOLUTION CONTAINING ABOUT 1 TO ABOUT 50 GRAMS PER LITER OF SODIUM CHLORITE AT A PH OF ABOUT 3 TO ABOUT 5 AT A TEMPERATURE BETWEEN ABOUR ROOM TEMPERATURE AND ABOUT 110*F., AND CONTINUOUSLY EXPRESSING ALL BUT ABOUT 90 TO ABOUT 120 PERCENT OF THE AQUEOUS BLEACHING SOLUTION TO PROVIDE THE TEXTILE WET WITH ABOUT 0.1 TO ABOUT 1.5 PERCENT OF SODIUM CHLORITE BASED ON THE DRY WEIGH OF THE TEXTILE; AND (E) HEATING THE THUS IMPREGNATED AND CONTINUOUSLY MOVING TEXTILE TO A TEMPERATURE OF 180 TO 212*F. FOR 10 TO 120 MINUTES TO EFFECT THE BLEACHING.