The present invention relates to a textile material, particularly for the provision of wadding, padding and the like.

The invention also relates to a method for providing such a material and a padding comprising such material.

Currently, products with high thermal insulation capacity, made at least in part of components of natural origin, such as for example wool fibers, are used increasingly.

It is commonly required that such products can be washed in a domestic environment, for example, in water or in a washing machine.

This characteristic is naturally present among wadding made of synthetic fibers, while in the case of wool particular treatments are required to prevent deterioration and shearing during processing and to make it washable with household equipment.

Such treatments usually comprise chlorine-based processes and/or the surface application of polymer coatings.

Moreover, the wool is commonly treated to ensure that the textile material gives a pleasant sensation to the touch and upon contact with the skin.

Such treatments often entail the use and/or development of substances that are toxic to humans and the environment, such as, for example, chlorine-derived compounds, which require specific disposal procedures.

The deterioration of wool fibers, under certain conditions, is mainly due to its structure with barbed flakes, which can intertwine with each other, causing the phenomenon known as 'felting'.

The treatments to which wool is subjected act on the structure and are adapted to make it smoother. The basic characteristics of wadding, used as thermal insulators, are porosity, insulating property and resistance to pressure and/or shaking.

Maintaining these characteristics over time is important to ensure the thermal insulation performance of the material for a long time.

To this end, wool fibers are normally mixed with two-component synthetic polymer fibers.

In the present description, the term "two-component fibers" means fibers that have two components, respectively:

- a high-melting core, with a melting point above 250°C,

- a low-melting sheath of said core, with a melting point on the order of 110°C.

The two-component fibers mixed with the wool fibers undergo a step of heating to the melting point of the sheath, which by melting binds and incorporates the neighboring wool fibers, stabilizing them.

Stabilization of the wool fibers by association with two-component fibers has the purpose of avoiding:

- horizontal shearing of the wadding,

- at least partially three-dimensional compression, factors which reduce its thermal insulation capacity.

Some commonly used two-component fibers are constituted by polymers of synthetic origin, such as polyethylene terephthalate (PET) and copolyester (CoPET), or polymers of natural origin, such as polylactic acid (PLA).

In the present description, the expression "synthetic origin" means obtained by means of artificial synthesis, for example starting from petroleum derivatives.

In the present description, the expression "natural origin" means derived from raw materials obtained from waste of vegetable crops such as, for example, wheat, corn or sugar cane and sugar beet.

By comparing two-component fibers of synthetic origin, such as PET/CoPET-type fibers (PET core/CoPET sheath) with two-component fibers of natural origin such as PLA/PLA-type fibers (PLA core/PLA sheath), the former have better mechanical strength for an equal weight, higher fiber resilience, and greater stability of thermal insulation capacity over time.

The higher strength of PET/CoPET two-component fibers is most evident when the material is washed in water and then dried.

Moreover, PET/CoPET two-component fibers retain their characteristics longer than PLA, in particular when subjected to heat, moisture, bacteria, and mold: conditions that often occur upon contact with the human body.

However, the use of PET/CoPET fibers has the drawback that such fibers are obtained from petroleum derivatives, which have a high environmental impact.

Moreover, some substances used during the production of the polymers that constitute such fibers are toxic, and therefore lengthy, inconvenient and costly operations are required for their disposal.

The different washing resistances of the fibers also depend on the different melting points of the cores of two-component fibers, i.e.:

- about 220°C for PET/CoPET fibers,

- about 160°C for PLA/PLA fibers.

Two-component fibers of natural origin, such as those of the PLA/PLA type, are widely used nowadays due to their natural origin and their environmental sustainability, which reduces the environmental impact of wadding.

However, the use of such fibers is also not without drawbacks.

The biggest limitation of using two-component fibers of natural origin is the degradation of the thermal insulation capacity over time of wadding made of wool mixed with two-component fibers of natural origin, especially of the PLA/PLA type. Moreover, such wadding comprising wool fibers and PLA/PLA two- component fibers has difficult maintenance, especially with home techniques such as washing in water or in a washing machine.

Still another drawback of wadding of the known type based on wool fibers and two-component fibers of natural origin is the use of fibers derived from GMO (Genetically Modified Organism) crops and/or crops intended to be used for human or animal food use, which increase the environmental impact of the material and whose use is restricted by European Community (Ec No. 10/2011) and/or U.S. (FDA 21 CRF) and/or Chinese (GB 9685- 2016) regulations.

Additionally, in wadding of the known type based on wool fibers, these fibers require that the treatments to which they are to be subjected do not leave residues of substances that are toxic to humans and/or the environment, such as absorbable organic halogenated compounds (AOX), thus increasing production cost.

Furthermore, some fibers of synthetic origin require expensive production methods to eliminate any residues of toxic substances.

The aim of the present invention is to provide a textile material, particularly for providing wadding, padding and the like, that is capable of improving the background art in one or more of the above cited aspects.

Within this aim, an object of the invention is to provide a textile material based on wool fibers whose thermal insulation performance is better than, or in any case comparable with, that of similar materials of the known type.

Another object of the invention is to provide a textile material based on wool fibers whose characteristics are more stable over time than, or in any case comparable with, similar textile materials of the known type, but with a lower environmental impact for its production.

A further object of the invention is to provide a textile material that allows easy maintenance, for example by washing in water or in a washing machine, without being degraded by it.

Another object of the invention is to provide a textile material that has a more environmentally friendly production method than the production methods of similar materials of the known type, is less polluting and has a reduced environmental impact.

A further object of the present invention is to overcome the drawbacks of the background art in a manner that is alternative to any existing solutions.

Not least object of the invention is to provide a method that is highly reliable, relatively easy to provide, and at competitive costs.

This aim, as well as these and other objects that will become better apparent hereinafter, are achieved by a textile material, comprising wool fibers, characterized in that it comprises two-component fibers of the type of:

- two-component fibers of natural origin,

- two-component fibers of synthetic origin, said two-component fibers supporting said wool fibers, forming a three-dimensional lattice, said three-dimensional lattice enclosing said wool fibers, said two-component fibers being joined by thermal bonds in the regions of contact.

This aim, as well as these and other objects which will become better apparent hereinafter, are achieved by a method for the provision of such a material.

Further characteristics and advantages of the invention will become better apparent from the description of a preferred but not exclusive embodiment of the textile material according to the invention.

Such textile material comprises wool fibers.

One of the particularities of the invention resides in that the textile material comprises two-component fibers of the type of:

- two-component fibers of natural origin, - two-component fibers of synthetic origin.

The two-component fibers support the wool fibers, forming a three- dimensional lattice which encloses said wool fibers.

The two-component fibers are joined by thermal bonds in the regions of contact.

In particular, said two-component fibers of natural origin are PLA/PLA fibers.

Such PLA/PLA fibers are present in a percentage comprised between 5% and 30% by weight.

PLA/PLA two-component fibers have:

- a high-melting PLA core, with a melting point on the order of 160°C,

- a low-melting PLA core sheath, with a melting point on the order of 130°C.

Such two-component fibers of synthetic origin are PET/CoPET fibers.

The PET/CoPET fibers are present in a percentage comprised between 5% and 30% by weight.

The PET/CoPET two-component fibers have:

- a high-melting PET core, with a melting point on the order of 250°C,

- a low-melting CoPET core sheath, with a melting point on the order of 110°C.

Preferably, wool fibers have a fineness substantially comprised between 23 pm and 29 pm.

The fineness is advantageous, since such wool fibers are on average finer than other wool fibers, such as for example some of European origin such as wools from Tyrol and Switzerland, which have considerably higher finenesses comprised substantially between 30 pm and 38 pm and tend to escape from products with polyamide fabrics in which they are used, such as padded jackets for clothing or sportswear. Advantageously, the wool fibers originate from Merinolandschaf sheep farms of the Bavarian consortium "LOCWOOL".

The wool fibers are treated to prevent degradation over time and felting.

An example of fiber processing method includes washing and combing the wool fibers, removing plant impurities and the most ordinary parts, to obtain tops, then treating the tops for washability and domestic and/or industrial maintenance.

In the present description, the term "tops" refers to a ribbon of combed wool fibers from washed staple: the main purpose of this step is to select the fibers according to their length, eliminating those shorter than a certain limit, for example, 5 mm or 10 mm or 15 mm from the combed ribbon.

Such processing perfects the straightening and parallelization of the fibers themselves and allows, to a large extent, to eliminate the so-called "buttons" (tangles of fibers of various sizes) and other impurities still present on the fed ribbons.

This produces a ribbon with a regular cross-section (tops), which is wound in spools.

A chlorine-free anti-felting and washability treatment is then carried out on said spools.

It should be noted that said anti-shrinkage treatment is carried out on a wool ribbon instead of the traditional staple treatment, because the wool ribbon is penetrated and squeezed by an aqueous solution without chlorine gas and is more controllable and verifiable throughout the process, since this is a continuous process and not in a tub.

In this way, all the parameters related to ribbon shrinkage, from PH to treatment uniformity, from effective oxidation of the wool fiber, to a mixing of the treated ribbons before the final drying step, can be continuously controlled. In particular, the chlorine-free anti-felting wool treatment consists of the following steps:

- applying to the wool a solution with an oxidizing agent based on peroxymono sulfuric acid and a surfactant,

- allowing the solution to act on the wool to complete the oxidation process,

- washing the reaction products off the wool,

- treating the wool with a reducing agent,

- and washing again.

These passes are performed continuously.

Natural peroxymonosulfuric acid salts or combinations thereof are used in this innovative treatment, with a percentage by weight comprised between 0.5% and 25%, preferably between 1% and 20%.

Moreover, a surfactant with a total negative charge or a neutral charge of the surfactant part of the molecule is used in this treatment.

This surfactant is chosen from the group of nonionic surfactants and has a percentage by weight comprised between 0.3% and 5%, preferably between 0.5% and 4%, on the basis of the mass of the wool.

The solution applied in the treatment has a pH value<7 and its temperature in the step of application on the wool can reach 60° and is preferably comprised between 15°C and 45°C.

The step of applying the solution to the wool is comprised between 5 and 10 minutes.

Moreover, the reaction time of the step for washing the reaction products of the wool and for treating the wool with a reducing agent is preferably comprised between 30 s and 60 s.

The new treatment avoids the risk of formation of organochlorine agents (AOX), and therefore no chlorine-based compound is detected either on the treated top or in the wastewater, thus achieving a totally environmentally friendly method. Moreover, such treatment does not change the morphological characteristics of the wool, as occurs instead with chlorine-based staple treatments, but keeps it similar to untreated wool, increasing its hydrophilicity.

This treatment occurs by means of processes that leave no chlorine residues and are environmentally sustainable, for example in terms of energy consumption, water consumption, and carbon dioxide emissions.

Moreover, the processes ensure the product's compatibility with direct contact with human skin, leave no residual odors or traces, and allow wool to be washed and dried with domestic methods.

In these processes, oxygen can advantageously be used as an oxidizing agent for wool, eliminating the use of chlorine and allowing adjustment of anti-felting characteristics.

The tops are then cut, broken up, and mixed with two-component fibers of synthetic and natural origin.

Preferably, in the textile material according to the invention, PLA/PLA two-component fibers are derived from non-GMO crops.

For example, said PLA/PLA fibers comprise a PLA/PLA staple produced using a PLA polymer, for example the one known by the trade name "Luminy PLA" of the company TotalEnergies Corbion bv, based in Gorinchem, Netherlands, and/or the one known by the trade name "Trevira Type 458" of the company Trevira GmbH, based in Bobingen, Germany.

Moreover, the two-component PLA/PLA fibers are produced, for example, from environmentally sustainable crops suitable to not affect cultivations for food purposes.

The invention also relates to a method for providing a textile material, consisting in:

- washing wool fibers,

- combing the wool fibers, removing plant impurities, obtaining tops,

- treating said tops for washability and domestic and/or industrial maintenance,

- cutting said previously treated tops,

- breaking up said previously cut tops,

- mixing the broken-up tops with said two-component fibers of synthetic origin and with said two-component fibers of natural origin,

- thermally binding the wool fibers of the broken-up tops to the two- component fibers of synthetic origin and to the two-component fibers of natural origin, obtaining the textile material.

The invention also relates to a padding for bedding items, clothing and the like comprising textile material as described above.

In another embodiment, the textile material according to the invention comprises wool fibers, of the same type as the embodiment described above, and hemp fibers produced solely from renewable sources, and with GOTS (Global Organic Textile Standard) certification of the company Felde Fibres GmbH, based in Tannenhof, 21368 Dahlenburg, Germany.

In a further embodiment, the textile material, according to the invention, comprises wool fibers of the same type as the first embodiments, described earlier, and two-component fibers of the type described earlier:

- two-component fibers of natural origin,

- two-component fibers of synthetic origin.

It should be noted that hemp has thermoregulating properties by virtue of the fiber's hollow structure, has a higher toughness than cotton, absorbs moisture up to 20% of its own weight, is naturally antibacterial and mold-resistant, and is completely biodegradable.

Moreover, hemp cultivation is environmentally friendly, since it does not require pesticides or chemical fertilizers, it is a highly renewable fiber, and cultivations do not require water.

Mixing with wool, therefore, confers remarkable thermoregulation and moisture management properties.

In practice it has been found that the invention achieves its intended aim and objects, providing a textile material based on wool fibers whose thermal insulation performance is better than, or at least comparable with, similar materials of the known type and whose characteristics are more stable over time than those of the latter.

The invention has obtained a textile material that has better characteristics of porosity and resistance to pressure and/or shaking and/or washing, over time, with respect to similar materials of the known type.

It should be noted that the use of PET/CoPET two-component fibers in the textile material according to the invention enhances its thermal insulation performance.

The presence of two-component PET/CoPET-type fibers in the textile material according to the invention provides better mechanical bonding, better resilience to washing, and better resistance to molds and bacteria with respect to similar wool fiber-based textile materials of the known type.

Moreover, the invention provides a textile material that is more environmentally friendly and less polluting, since it is free from chlorine residues on the wool fibers, with respect to similar materials of the known type.

Moreover, the invention is provided, at least in part, with fibers of natural origin, reducing the component of hydrocarbon- originated fibers and thus the environmental impact of the product.

Furthermore, as described earlier, the material according to the invention reduces the environmental impact of the manufacturing process, compared to manufacturing processes of similar materials, and is a more recyclable and environmentally sustainable product than said materials.

The invention thus conceived is susceptible of numerous modifications and variations, all of which are within the scope of the accompanying claims; all the details may furthermore be replaced with other technically equivalent elements.

In practice, the materials used, as well as the contingent shapes and dimensions, may be any according to the requirements and the state of the art.

The disclosures in Italian Patent Application no. 102022000013927, from which this application claims priority, are incorporated herein by reference.