Which Procion H dyes are pure unmixed colors? How do they compare, from one retailer to another?

Procion H are hot water dyes, often used by painting on fabric and then steaming. They must not be substituted in cool water dyeing recipes, such as the tie-dye and batik recipes popular for Procion MX dyes. Note that the H-E series is distinct from the H series, though both can be used together. Both H and HE series dyes are included in the table below.

Which Procion H dyes are pure unmixed colors, and which mixtures?

All of the colors in the table below that have a Color Index Reactive name in the leftmost column are pure unmixed colors, unless they have for some reason been replaced by a particular retailer with a mixture. To be certain, you must call your dye supplier and ask whether or not a specific dye is a mixture. If a dye lacks a manufacturer's code, then it is a mixture prepared by the dye retailer, but a dye with a manufacturer's code may still be a mixture. You can also allow a drop of the dye to spread on a dampened coffee filter to see whether it separates out into more than one color.

The table below is listed with dyes in color order, from yellow through orange, then red, violet, blue, green, brown, and finally black. The 'H' in the dye name code indicates that a dye is a aminochlorotriazine (or monochlorotriazine) or Procion H type dye, while the 'HE' indicates a bifunctional dye which is classified as a bis(aminochlorotriazine), or a Procion H-E type dye. The data in the table below is drawn from many sources and represents my best guesses; please let me know if you can contribute any corrections.

C. I. reactive name	H or HE code	G&S Dye (5%+^*)	ProChemical	Jacquard	Synthesia Ostazin H	notes	CAS number (if available)
reactive yellow 85	yellow H-8G				yellow H-8G
same as above or mix?	yellow H-8GNA			Procion H 600 Brilliant Yellow 40%
reactive yellow 135	yellow HE-6G		Pro H-E6G Sun Yellow			Bright Greenish Lemon-Yellow
reactive yellow 95	yellow H-6G				yellow H-6G
reactive yellow 18	yellow H-4G
reactive yellow 105	yellow HE-4G
reactive yellow 2	yellow H-5G	P050 - Yellow			yellow H-5G
reactive yellow 179	yellow HE-5G					Bright Greenish Lemon-Yellow	CAS: 93376-16-0
reactive yellow 3	Yellow H-A	P100 - Yellow			yellow H-A
reactive yellow 18	yellow H-4G
reactive orange 12	yellow H-R				yellow H-R
reactive orange 13	orange H-2R
probable mixture	yellow H-3RNA			Procion H 601 Gold Yellow 40%
reactive yellow 84	yellow HE-4R		Pro H-E4R Gold Yellow
reactive orange 5	orange H-G				orange H-G
reactive orange 84	orange HE-R		Pro H-ER Real orange			Bright orange	CAS 91261-29-9
reactive orange 13	orange H-2R				orange H-2R
reactive red 33	scarlet H-RN	P200 - scarlet
probable mixture	scarlet H-RMA			Procion H 602 Bright scarlet 25%
reactive red 24	red H-B
reactive red 45	red H-3B
reactive red 29	red H-3BNA			Procion H 604 True Red 25%
reactive red 31	red H-8B	P400 - Red
same as above or mix?	red H-8BA			Procion H 605 Fuchsia 40%
reactive red 120	red HE-3B		Pro H-E3B Basic Red			Bright blueish red
reactive red 29	red H-3BN	P320 - Red				Cerise Red
reactive red 141	red HE-7B		Pro H-E7B Fuchsia			Bright Blueish Red
reactive red 58	red H-8B				red H-8B
reactive red 58 or 31	red H-8B		Pro H-8B Magenta
reactive red 152	red HE-8B			Jacquard Red Label 715 Magenta
reactive violet 1	violet H-3R				violet H-3R
reactive blue 198	blue HE-GN		Pro H-EGN Basic Blue	Procion H 607 Bright Blue 40%		Bright Royal Blue; Not Discharge- able
reactive blue 5	blue H-BR or GR				blue H-BR
reactive blue 160	blue HE-RD		Pro H-ERD Bright Blue				CAS 71872-76-9
reactive blue 172	blue HE-2R
reactive blue 49	blue H-3R				blue H-3R
same as above or mix?	blue H-3RN			Procion H 608 Royal Blue 40%
reactive blue 248	blue HE-4R
reactive blue 234	blue H-5R	P555 - Blue	Pro H-5R Reddish Blue		blue H-5R
reactive blue 13	blue H-5RA or H-5R			Procion H 609 Blue Violet 25%
probable mixture	blue H-4RDA			Procion H 610 Navy Blue 40%
probable mixture	navy HE-W	P560 - Navy
reactive blue 171	navy HE-R	P570 - Navy	Pro H-ERN Full Navy			Navy; Good for pale depths	CAS 77907-32-5 ?
reactive blue 25	turquoise blue H-5G
reactive blue 3	turquoise blue H-7G
reactive blue 14	turquoise blue H-GL
reactive blue 71	turquoise H-A	P500 - turquoise	Pro H-A turquoise	Procion H 606 turquoise 25%		turquoise; Not Discharge- able
reactive green 19	green HE-4BD		Pro H-E4BD Forest Green			Blueish Forest Green	CAS 61931-49-5
reactive green 8	olive H-G or H-7G				olive H-G
reactive brown 17	brown H-4RD	P730 - brown	Pro H-4RD Dark brown			Reddish brown; Not Discharge- able
probable mixture	brown HE-RA		Pro H-ERA Neutral brown			Blueish brown
reactive brown 9	brown H-5BR
reactive orange 35	brown H-GR	P180 - brown			brown H-4R
reactive brown 2	brown H-2G
reactive black 8	black H-N				black H-N
probable mixture	black HE-GN	P850 - Black
probable mixture	black SP-LA			Procion H 613 Toning Black 25%
probable mixture	black H-GDA			Procion H 614 Deep Black 40%
probable mixture	black HE-GA		Pro H-EGA Basic Black
mixture	black HE-BL

*G&S Dye includes all needed auxiliary chemicals; others are concentrates without auxiliaries. Synthesia H dyes are available in one-kilogram quantities of dye powder only; PRO Chemical & Dye sells H and H-E dyes in powder form, in quantities ranging from 2 ounces to 5 pounds per package. Others are in liquid form.

More about Procion H dyes

The great advantage of Procion H dyes is that, because they are less reactive, they will stay good in liquid solution for a year, so there is no need to mix your own dye powder. G & S Dye, in Toronto, takes this convenience even farther by pre-mixing their Procion H dyes with all of the auxiliary chemicals needed, so they are ready to go right out of the bottle, just like fabric paint. Their dyes are typically 5% strength. The Jacquard dyes range in strength from 25 to 40%, but auxiliary chemicals must be purchased separately, including Ludigol, metaphos, urea, and sodium bicarbonate, plus sodium alginate if you wish to thicken your dye paint. The Procion H dyes sold by Dharma Trading Company were Jacquard Procion H dyes.

[Note: Jacquard Products has discontinued their Procion H line of dyes; they recommend that you now substitute their 'Vinyl Sulphon' line of dyes. Dharma no longer carries the Procion H dyes. PRO Chemical & Dye has also phased out their sale of Procion H dyes. G&S Dye in Toronto still carries their Procion H dye mixtures. Procion H dye powders should stay good for years if stored in tightly sealed containers at room temperature, but the pre-mixed liquids have an expected shelf life of no more than one to two years. Test old products that you may have on hand before using them.]

Most suppliers carry only a limited number of the Procion H and/or HE dyes. G&S Dye also carries a large number of pre-mixed colors which are not included in the table above.

Although you can find instructions for setting Procion H dyes at room temperature with sodium silicate solution, expert dyers say that steam-setting these dyes results in richer, more brilliant colors. Immersion dyeing works best at 175° Fahrenheit (80°C).

Recipes for using Procion H dyes

Last updated: June 30, 2012

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