Dow launches silicone-based water and oil repellent emulsion for textiles

Dow has launched DOWSIL IE-5619 DWOR Emulsion, a silicone-organic hybrid durable water and oil repellent for the global textile industry, positioned as a fluoro-alternative to fluorinated chemistries facing restrictions. The 30% solids concentrate is designed for conventional textile finishing across synthetic, natural and blended fibers. Typical use levels are 1–3% based on fabric weight, with 1–3 minutes curing at 150°C minimum, and repellency is claimed to hold through 20+ home laundering cycles. Dow is sold globally through textile chemical formulators, mills and brands.

Key facts

Market context

Durable water and oil repellent (DWOR) finishes are applied to fabrics so that liquids beads up and roll off, a property valued in outdoor apparel, workwear, uniforms, home textiles and technical fabrics. Long used in this role have been fluorinated chemistries, which have faced tightening regulatory scrutiny over persistence in the environment, pushing brands and mills to look for alternatives. Silicone-based and hybrid systems are one such route, and they are typically applied by textile chemical formulators and finishing mills through padding and curing steps already common in the industry. For buyers, the appeal of a drop-in option is that it can reduce the need to re-engineer finishing lines or reformulate from scratch. For suppliers of fluorinated DWOR agents, sustained adoption of non-fluorinated options could gradually erode share, while competition among repellent chemistries is likely to increase over time.

Source: official release on corporate.dow.com. Summary and context written by Market Krystal.