Step 1: Understanding the Concept:
Starching is a laundry finishing process used to stiffen fabrics, improve soil resistance, and provide a smooth, crisp appearance.
Different starch sources (rice, wheat, maize) have distinct granule sizes and chemical properties that affect how they interact with fabrics.
Step 2: Detailed Explanation:
Let us match the starches with their laundry properties:
- (A) Rice Starch $\rightarrow$ Suitable for cold water starching (II): Rice starch has the smallest granule size ($2-8\ \mu\text{m}$) among common starches.
Because of their small size, these granules can easily penetrate fabric interstices without requiring hot water to swell and burst them, making rice starch highly suitable for cold-water starching.
- (B) Wheat Starch $\rightarrow$ Very expensive (IV): Wheat starch produces an exceptionally smooth, flexible, and high-quality finish, but it is expensive to extract and refine, making it less economical for bulk commercial laundering compared to maize.
- (C) Maize (Corn) Starch $\rightarrow$ Produces undesirable stiffness (I): Maize starch is cheap and widely used, but it can produce a stiff, thick, and rough texture if the concentration is not carefully controlled.
- (D) Dip Starch $\rightarrow$ Gives stiffness that lasts (III): Commercial dip starches or plastic/synthetic sizing agents contain modified polymers that adhere firmly to the fibers, providing a semi-permanent stiffness that resists several washings.
This gives the sequence: (A) - (II), (B) - (IV), (C) - (I), (D) - (III).
This matches Option (B).
Step 3: Final Answer:
The correct matching sequence is (A) - (II), (B) - (IV), (C) - (I), (D) - (III).