Lysinoalanine formation in wool after treatments with some phosphate salts

Treatment of wool with solutions of sodium tripolyphosphate, potassium tetrapyrophosphate, and sodium phosphate results in the formation of lysinoalanine, the amount of which increases from the first to the last reagent. As this may be due to the different pH, solutions of the three salts of the same pH were also tried. This series of experiments suggests that although the hydroxyl ions contribute to the formation of lysinoalanine, the governing factor is the kind of the anions concerned, as the sodium phosphate acts in a more rigorous may than the two other salts, in spite of the smaller concentration and the faster reduction of the pH of the solution during treatment.