Textile Notes related to fiber, yarn, fabric knowledge, spinning, weaving, processing, projects, knitting, Indian Traditional Textiles and denim manufacturing
Sunday 27 December 2009
Micro spinning or How to produce yarn at 40% cheaper than the conventional ring frame
Saturday 19 December 2009
Direct TV
Tuesday 15 December 2009
Ringframe Productivity
Wednesday 9 December 2009
Textile Used in Trade Displays
It is trendy to use textiles specifically designed to display company information. This is specially useful when exhibiting the company’s products in trade shows and trade fairs. The most commonly used articles of display are trade show flooring, trade show carpets, logo mats and logo canopies.
Trade show flooring is primarily used in trade shows, it comes in a variety of styles and shapes. There is even a line of printed flooring, so that end users can add a logo or message to the flooring.
Trade show carpets are a great help for exhibitors and add to a nice comfortable touch to any exhibit.
Logo mats are primarily used in offices, stores, retail outlets and retail chains. These can be printed in several different ways. Inlaid logos are common and full digital images can be produced.
Printed logo canopies using EZ Up products and other styles of printed tents are used by a wide variety of companies selling products on the go. Great for outdoor events, these canopies are the mainstay of presenters at all types of fairs and festivals.
Needless to say, Textiles customized for the exhibitors can go a long way in capturing the prospective customers in an elegant and non-obtrusive way.
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Sunday 6 December 2009
Count, Construction and Width of common Cotton Fabrics
Cotton Drill Fabrics
16 X 12 /96 X 48 / 48",63", 93" , 98", 120"
20 X 20 / 108 X 56 / 48", 63", 93" , 98" , 120"
20 X 16 / 108 X 56 / 48", 63" , 93 ", 98" , 120"
30 X30 / 124 X 64 / 48", 63", 93", 98", 120"
40 X 40 / 144 X 72 / 48", 63 ", 93" , 98 " , 120"
Linen/Cotton Fabrics
88 X 64 / 20s X 20s Linen / 63"
72 X 68 / 20s X 16s Linen / 63"
Cotton Oxford Fabrics
84 X 38 / 2 / 20s X 2/ 20s / 48", 63"
84 x 28 / 16 X 8 / 48 " , 63"
108 X 72 / 20 X 16 / 48", 63"
Cotton Poplin Fabrics
92 X 88 / 40 X 40 / 50" , 63"
100 X 80 / 40 X 40 / 50" , 63"
100 X 92 / 40 X 40 / 50" , 63"
124 X 64 / 40 X 40 / 48" , 63"
124 X 72 / 40 X 40 / 48" , 63"
132 X 72 / 40 X 40 / 48" , 63"
Cotton Twill Fabrics
124 X 64 / 30 X 30 / 48 " to 120"
132 X 72 / 40 X 40 / 48 " to 120"
144 X 74 / 40 X 40 / 48 " to 120"
144 X 74 / 50 X 50 / 48 " to 120"
Cotton Voile Fabrics
92 X 88 / 80 X 80 / 48 ", 63 "
92 X 104 / 80 X 80 / 48 ", 63 "
80 X 80 / 80 X 80 / 48 ", 63 "
100 X 92 / 80 X 80 / 48 ", 63 "
Cotton Satin Fabrics
100 X 80 / 40 X 40 / 98 " , 120"
132 X 72 / 40 X 40 / 120"
124 X 64 / 30 X 30 / 120"
144 X 72 / 40 X 40 / 120"
175 X (56 X 2) / 60 X 60 / 120 " - 300 TC
175 X (50 X 4) / 60 X 80 /120 " - 400 TC
195 X ( 72 X 4) / 80s X 100s X 120 " -500 TC
195 X ( 86 X 4) / 80s X 100S X 120" - 600 TC
175 X 146 / 4 / 120s X 2 / 120s / 120" - 1000 TC
Cotton Bedford Fabrics
132 x 72 / 40x40 / 48" & 63"
144 x 100 / 60x60 / 48" & 63"
124 x 100 / 40x40 / 63"
144 x 72 / 50x50 / 63"
Cotton Cambric Fabrics
132 X 108m / 60 X 60 / 48",54",63"
92 X 88 / 60 X 60 / 48" , 54", 63"
132 X 72 / 50 X 50/ 48" , 63"
124 X 100 / 50 X 50 / 63 "
Cotton Plain Fabric or Cotton Sheeting Fabrics
44 X 40 / 10 X 10 / 48", 63", 93", 98" , 120" to 143"
60 X 60 / 16 X 16 / 48 " , 63 ", 93" , 98" , 120" to 143"
60 X 60 / 20 X 20 / 48 " , 63 ", 93" , 98" , 120" to 143"
68 X 68 / 30 X 30 / 48 " , 63 ", 93" , 98" , 120" to 143"
72 X 68 / 30 X 30 / 48 " , 63 ", 93" , 98" , 120" to 143"
Friday 4 December 2009
Fiber Length and Spinning Performance
Sunday 29 November 2009
Influence of Fiber Fineness and Maturity in spinning Process
Wednesday 25 November 2009
Fiber Identification - Burning Test- Man-made Fibers
Sunday 22 November 2009
Identification of Natural Fibers by Burning Test
Cotton
When cotton is brought near the flame it scorches and ignites readily. In the flame it burns quickly with yellow flame. Upon removing from flame it continues to burn rapidly and shows afterglow. It emits a smell of burning paper. The Ash is light, feathery and grayish. If the ash is black it denotes mercerized cotton.
Linen
Linen like cotton when brought near the flame scorches and ignites easily. In the flame it burns slower than cotton with yellow flame. Upon removing from flame it continues to burn with a smell of burning paper. The ash residue is feathery and gray.
Wool
Wool when brought near the flame smolders. In flame it burns with small and slow flickering flame. Also in flame it sizzles and curls. When removed from flame it ceases to burn. The Odor is like that of burning feather or hair. It gives crisp, dark and irregular shaped ash that can be crushed easily.
Pure Silk
Pure silk smolders when brought near the flame. In the flame it burns slowly with sputtering. When removed away from flame it continues to burn but with difficulty and ultimately extinguishes. The smell that is emitted is like that of burning feathers or hair but it is less pronounced than wool. It gives out a round, crisp, shiny black beads that can be crushed easily.
Weighted Silk
Weighted Silk smolders when brought near the flame. In the flame it burns with a glow. When removed from flame the burned part becomes briefly incandescent then it slowly chars. The smell is like that of pure silk i.e. burning feather or hair. The ash brings a screen like skeleton of original sample.
The following guide is very handy in identifying the fibers by burning test:
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Sunday 15 November 2009
13 things to ensure while cutting
Cutting Room Procedures ( Image Source)
1. Knife guard should be adjusted according to the height of the lay.
2. The correct position of the blade, its sharpness and the reciprocating speed of the machine should be ensued.
3. Cut the lay of fabric by propelling the cutting machine on the marking line with accuracy.
4. Projections for each pattern section should be provided to facilitate the sorter in numbering the cut sections.
5. Provide notches at appropriate places with required depth.
6. Mark the position of pockets, embroidery, logo etc. by drilling small hole through the lay with correct drill bit .
7. Frayed, serrated, fused or scorched edges, ripped or pulled yarns, overcut and undercut should be avoided while cutting.
8. On Bend knife machine, use ready patterns aided by appropriate fixtures for carrying out precision cutting.
9. Sections which need to be cut individually (e.g. checks to be aligned in the front panel) are to be respread and folded by aligning the checks/stripes.
10. Use appropriate fixtures to ensure the matching of the folded sections.
11. Discard the cut scrap into the caster bins positioned near the table.
12. Tie the cut lay along the cut sections of the master marker in a bundle.
13. Erase the splicing and the end marks after the spread is cut and bundled.
Safety Instructions in Handling Cutting
a. Areas near cutting tables should be clearly marked, and their access restricted should be restricted by barriers.
b. On motorised and automatic cutting tables the warning signals should be fitted to indicate when blade is in motion.
c. The machine ideally should be fitted with automatic adjustable guards to fully cover the exposed part of the cutting blade.
f. The five finger chain blades should be available to all the operator working on knife and should be worn on all times during cutting work.
g. There should be a regular check on the condition of the light, guard, and table fittings.
h. Only fully trained operatives should be allowed to work on knives.
i. The operators' standards should be checked against the published operating practice on a regular basis and should be corrected wherever a deviation is found.
j. There should be an effective cleaning system in operation that prevents build up of fluff, fly and off cuts, thus reducing fire, health & trip hazards?
A complete of list of safety measures can be found here
For those who want to go in for technical details they can click here for round knife and here for straight knife .
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Sunday 8 November 2009
The Sari- Some Facts, Methods, Techniques and Measurements
The Sari has not lost its appeal in modern India. Despite the growth of Women Western and other modern outfits, the charm of Sari remains.
A users manual on How to Wear a Sari can be found here or here . A visual guide to various styles is presented here.
An amazing classification of Different Saris of India can be found on the site of Indiangarment.com. You can find a complete manual of Indian Saris here.
A very nice manual on the measurement for various Indian garments such as Churidars, Parallels, Sharara, Lehnga Chunni or Ghahgra Choli and blouses is given on the same site.
And of course, an interesting concept of Automatic Sari is also given.
Now that you've finished reading this post, what are you going do? You should go join the Forum.
Tuesday 20 October 2009
Animation- Weaving Principles and Fabric Structure
1. Relationship between Draft, Peg Plan, Denting Plan and Design- Click Here
2. Weave and Color Combination - Click Here
3. Principle of Double Cloth Formation- Click Here
4. Principle of Tubular Fabric - Click Here
5. Double Cloth based on Exchange Principle- Click Here
6. Principle of Terry Towel Weaving- Click Here
7. Principle of Weaving Leno Fabric- Click Here
8. Principle of Weaving Velvets and Corduroys- Click Here
9. Principle of Jacquard- Click Here
Now that you've finished reading this post, what are you going do? You should go join the Forum.
A Few Notes About Fiber Chemistry
1. All fibers are formed from polymers, are not the only products containing polymers
2. Polymer means many units. Each individual molecule is known as monomer and the process of joining all the monomers together to form long chain molecules (polymers) is known as polymerisation.
3. The degree of polymerisation is the number of monomers units in the polymer. These may be of same type ( a homopolymer ) or two different randomly arranged monomers ( a copolymer)
4. There are two types of polymerisation: addition polymerisation, where all the atoms present in the monomers are also present in the polymer and condensation polymerisation where some small molecules are eliminated during polymerisation.
5. Polypropylene and acrylic polymers are produced by addition polymerisation.
6. Polyester, polyamide, wool, silk, cotton, flax, jute and viscose polymers are produced by condensation polymerisation.
7 There are three types of intermolecular forces. In decending order of strength: they are hydrogen bonds, polar bonds and Van der Waal's forces.
8. The properties of polymers for good fiber formation are: high degree of polymerisation, good intermolecular forces, linear and regular arrangement of monomers, high orientation of molecules and an inflexible repeat unit.
9. Crystalline regions are highly ordered areas within the fibers. They give the fiber its tensile and rigidity properties.
10. Amorphous regions are where the molecules are not closely packed within the fibers. They give the fiber its flexibility, extensibility and elasticity.
11. In natural fibers, crystalline regions develop as the fiber grows. In MMF, the ratio of crystalline to amorphous regions can be altered by drawing and heat setting.
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Sunday 18 October 2009
Cloth setting and Fabric Geometry Theories
Wednesday 14 October 2009
Why Wool Feels Warm
Tuesday 13 October 2009
Why Fiber Fineness is so Important
Saturday 10 October 2009
8 Things to Remember While Spreading Fabric
Things to remember While Spreading
Now that you've finished reading this post, what are you going do? You should go join the Forum.
Additional Reading: Indian Textile Journal
Friday 2 October 2009
Comparison of Various Printing Techniques
Tuesday 29 September 2009
Major Warping Defects- On Sectional warping
Snarlings and Overlappings
These are caused by irregular yarn tension. The broken end is not tied-up by the operative with the yarn end on the drum.
Different lenghts of sections, High Wastage Rate
This is caused by over-or-under warping of sections, untimely laying of lease cords due to faulty operation of the counter and the carelessness of operative.
Overlapping/Excessive Distance
The sections overlap each other or there is an excessive distance between them. This is caused by support improperly set and the careless of warper operative.
Stripiness in the Warp
This is caused by improper mixing of raw material
Irregular Winding
Irregular winding on the warper's beam which is displaced towards one end. This is due to improper position of the weaver's beam in warp beaming.
Different lenghts of Ends
It also includes irregular distribution of the section in the weaver's beam width. This is caused by improper fixing of section ends to the weaver's beam.
Excessive or insufficient number of yarn ends in the warp
This is caused by improper calculation at gaiting.
Warp Beaming on a defective weaver's beam
This is caused by carelessness of the assistant foreman and the warper operative.
Incorrect Laying of lease cords, or their absence in some sections
Again this is caused by carelessness of the warper operative.
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Monday 28 September 2009
Suitability of a fiber for a blend
Fibers in a blend are chosen keeping in mind various properties of the constituent fibers. Thus a blend is chosen which gives the best of properties of the different constituents of the blend. The properties that are considered can be strength, absorbency,crease resistance, resistance to abrasion, resistance to heat, bulkiness,resistance to pilling and Dimensional stability.All the fibers do not have all the properties that are desired. This is the very reason why blend is chosen.
Cotton has moderate strength and dimensional stability. However, it is excellent in absorbency, resistance to heat and pilling. It has an average resistance to abrasion and poor bulkiness properties and crease retention.Thus it is added in the blend to have excellent absorbency properties.
Viscose Rayon has excellent absorbency, resistance to heat and pilling. Thus it is similar to cotton in these properties.It has however, poor resistance to abrasion, bulkiness, crease retention and stability. It has an average strength. It has absorbency properties similar to cotton. It is also cheaper than cotton.
Acetate Rayon has excellent resistance to pilling and stability. It has moderate resistance to heat and average absorbency, crease retention and stability. However its resistance to abrasion is very poor.
Wool has excellent absorbency, bulk and wrinkle resistance. However, it has poor stability. It has moderate abrasion and heat resistance. Its crease retention, resistance to pilling and strength can only be considered as average.
Nylon has excellent strength, stability and abrasion resistance. However, It has poor absorbency and bulk. It has moderate crease retention and average resistance to heat and pilling.
Polyester has excellent strength, stability, crease retention and abrasion resistance. However it has poor absorbency, bulkiness properties and resistance to pilling. Its resistance to heat is average.
Acrylic has excellent bulk and stability. It has moderate resistance to heat and average crease retention and strength. Its resistance to abrasion and pilling and absorbency are very poor.It is similar to wool in most of the properties. It is also cheaper than wool.
Modacrylic has excellent stability and bulk properties. However its absorbency, resistance to heat and pilling is very poor. It has average strength, resistance to abrasion and crease retention.
Polypropylene and Polyethylene have excellent stability and strength. They have poor absorbency, bulk and heat resistance. The have average crease resistance and resistance to pilling.
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Tuesday 1 September 2009
Seam Strength Vs. Seam Slippage
Difference Between Seam Strength and Seam Slippage
Both the parameters measure the performance of seam. Seam strength referes to the strength when seam finally ruptures or when the fabric breaks.
However before rupturing there is an unacceptable opening in the seam which makes the seam 'failed' commercially even when there is no visible rupture. Seam slippage measures that.
Seam strength depends upon stitch type, thread strength, stitches per inch, thread tension, seam type and seam efficiency of the material.
Seam slippage depends upon the stitch rate, the weave structure of the fabric and the width of the seam allowance.
There is another term called 'yarn slippage' which measures the shifting of warp yarn over weft yarn to render the garment unusuable.
Yarn slippage depends upon a low number of warp or filling yarn, two shallow seam allowance, too tight a fit and improper seam construction.
Find Pictures of Seam Quality Defects here.
Sunday 16 August 2009
Fabric Parameters
Woven fabric parameters
There are four basic parameters that are essential for every woven fabric.
2. Yarn count
3. Crimp
4. Weave or Fabric Structure or Design
It is a measure of thread density. The normal method used to determine thread density is to use a pick glass.
2. Yarn count
EPI and PPI affects the compactness of the fabric. It is also known as thread count or cloth count. Thread counts range from as low as 20 threads per inch as used in tobacco cloth to as high as 350 threads per inch, found in type writer ribbon fabrics. Normally EPI and PPI of a fabric are described as EPI×PPI. Thus a fabric of 74×66 means 74 EPI×66 PPI.
Balanced constriction
A fabric is said to be well balanced if the number of warp yarns and weft yarns per inch are almost equal.
3.Crimp
Crimp refers to the amount of bending that is done by thread as it interlaces with the threads that are lying in the opposite direction of the fabric. Crimp is defined as the ratio of difference of length of yarn (Ly) taken from length of fabric (Lf) to the length of fabric (Lf).
Crimp = (Ly-Lf)/Lf
Often it is more convenient and preferable to use percentage values. Thus we can define crimp percentage as:
Crimp% = (Ly-Lf)/Lf
A crimp will normally give values ranging from 0.01 to 0.14 ie. (1% to 14%).
Crimp is related to many aspects of the fabric. It affects the cover, thickness, softness and hand of the fabric. When it is not balanced it also affects the wear behaviour and balance of the fabric, because the exposed portions tend to wear at a more rapid rate than the fabric. The crimp balance is affected by the tensions in the fabric during and after weaving. If the weft is kept at low tension while the tension in warp directions is high, then there will be considerable crimp in the weft and very little in the warp.
4. Weave
It refers to the arrangement of warp and weft in the fabric.
OTHER FABRIC PROPERTIES
1. Fabric weight (W)
Weight of the warp is calculated as (per square m):
W1= [n1 x 100 (1+c1%)/100] x [N1/1000] g
Where
n1 = Ends per cm
N1 = Warp count in Tex
C1% = Warp crimp percentage.
Similarly weight of the weft is calculated as (per square m)
W2= [n2 x 100 (1+c2%)/100] x [N2/1000] g
Total weight per square meter = W1+W2
weight/piece = (W1+W2) × piece length × piece width in gram.
Example
30×24; 12 tex × 15 tex; 5%×8%
Warp weight per square m = [30 x 100 x (1+5)/100] x [12/1000] = 37.8 gms
Weft weight/square m = [24 x 100 x (1+8)/100] x [15/1000] = 38.8 gms
Piece weight
= 76.68 × 120× 1.3
= 11962.08 gm or 11.96 kg.
2. Cover factor
(K) it is defined as the area covered by the yarn when compared with the total area covered by the fabric.
The warp cover factor can be found by using the formula.
k1= n1 x sqrt(N1)/10
Where
n1 = Ends/cm
N1 = Count of warp in tex
Similarly the weft cover factor can be found by the formula
k2 = n2 x sqrt(N2) /10
So the total cover factor is
K = K1 + K2
Thus with fabric (30×24; 12 tex×15 tex) the values are
k1= (30 x sqrt12)/10 = 10.39
k2 = (24 x sqrt15)/10 = 9.30
K = K1+K2 = 10.39+9.30 = 19.69
3. Fabric Thickness
For a wide range of fabric, this parameter is not important, but it becomes critical for fabrics that are to be used as belts and felts.
Want to Take a Quick Test on this Topic. Click Here
Friday 7 August 2009
Care of Linen Fabrics
Care of Linen Garments
1. Washing
Washing is recommended. One can use hand or machine washing but take care of the following points
- Use a gentle wash cycle and use a gentle soap.
- Use cool to warm, not hot water.
- Wash colored linens in cool water.
- Use soft water
- Use oxygen bleaches ( hydrogen peroxide) for white linen. Chlorine bleaches can cause yellowing.
- Never wash darker-colored pieces together with the lighter colored articles.
2. Drying
Can use any of the drying methods, but bring linen in while it is still damp. If linen dries thoroughly, it may become brittle. Damp Linen also helps in ironing. If a linen has become thoroughly dried, put them in a plastic bag in the refrigerator before ironing.
3. Ironing
Iron with lot of steam at a medium to hot setting. Iron Linen until smooth but not dry. Once wrinkles are gone, hang the linen items until it is bone dry.
4.Storing
Clean linen items before storing .
-Avoid folding linen garments. Linen clothing should be hung on a padded clothes hanger in a cool dry environment.
- If you decide to warp the linen, use bags of linen, cotton or muslin, never plastic bags.
Monday 3 August 2009
Career in Journalism
Being a specialist helps. It helps more if you can deliver that specialised knowledge to the general audience in a way that is interesting and that they can understand. A career in Journalism is one of the options that a Textile Technologist or a Textile specialist can pursue. This is all the more relevant because entertainment and media are one of the hottest careers in the days to come.
Sunday 2 August 2009
How to Resist Print using Reactive Dyes
In resist printing using reactive colors, non-carbonic acids such as Tartaric Acids or Citric acid can be used.These acids act as resist agents. As acids are used therefore such a thickner is selected that does not degrade in acid. Here Methylhydroxy-ethylated cellulose ethers are used.
The following resist paste formula is used to print on the fabric:
For White Resist
Citric Acid- 50 gms
Water- 50 gms
Thickener- 600 gms.
To recognise the the printed design, sometimes tints such as CI Acid Blue-1 can be used. Also Fluorescent Brightening Agent can also be used which is visible in UV light.
After printing, the substrate is padded with concentrated solution of reactive colors, containing very less amount of Sodium Bicarbonate.The color is fixed after drying the cloth.
The following formule is used to:
1. Pad the cloth:
Reactive color: 20 gms
Resist Salt: 7 gms
Hot Water: 393 gms
Mix the three, let the solution to cool and then add the following chemicals:
3% Sodium Bicarbonate: 500 gms
Thickner: 80 gms
Make it to 1 kg.
2. Fixation Solution:
Caustic Soda -32.5%: 20ml
Glauber's Salt : 200 gms
Common salt: 100 gms
Make it to 1 liter.
Now steam the fabric for 20 seconds after padding with fixation solution.
For Color Resist
Thickner (Cellulose Ether): 100 gms
Emulsifier: 8 gmsWater: 110 gms
Pigment Binder:140 gms
White Spirit: 617 gms
Phosphoric or if Roller printing then Tartaric Acid: 120 gms
Print the fabric with the formula as given above. Then pad with reactive colors and Dry. Then Steam the cloth for 2-10 minutes, rinse and dry.
Disclaimer: Please test on a small piece before going for full fledge project. The receipe is meant to be used by professionals who know the behaviour of various chemicals and their interactions. Take all the precautions in handling chemicals. Don't use any combination of chemicals about which you don't know the outcome.