Textiles Fibres theory

Spinning - the fibres into yarns. e.g. S twist, Z twist, textured

Structure - of the fabric: woven ( plain, twill, jacquard) : knitted (warp,weft)

Finishing - that can be applied to the material during manufacture Physical, Biological or Chemical.

What is a fibre?

- A fibre is a fine, hair like structure, fibres are copnsidered the raw materials of textiles.

- Originally fibres came from plants and animals. in the 1940's - 50's synthetic or manufactured fibres derived from chemicals were introduced.

What is a Microfibre?

- A microfibre is a fibre that is approximately 60-100 times finer than a human hair.

Natural- Vegetable - Cellulosic

- Cotton (seed)

- Linen, Hemp, Jute, Banana (bast)

- Bamboo (bast and leaf)

- Soya (soya bean)

Natural- Animal - Protein

- Wool (hair)

- Fine hair : Alpaca, Llama, Camel, Angora, Mohair, Cashmere

- Insect: Silk (cultivated and wild)

Man-Made- Natural Polymers - Cellulosic

- Viscose, Rayon

- Acetate

- Lyocell

Man-Made- Synthetic Polymers

- Polyester

- Nylon (Polyamide)

- Aramid

-Elastine (Lycra)

- Acrylic

- Single celled elongated fibres of natural cellulose grow around the seeds within a cotton ball on a cotton plant. Which burst open to expose the cotton fibre.

- Cotton fibres are staple fibres (2-5cm)

- One of the most important properties is its absorbency- It can absorb 20% water vapour without feeling wet and can hold up to 65% of its own weight without dripping.

- It conducts heat away from the body, therefore is naturally breathable.

- It is the most important natural fibre grown in the world.

- Calico is the name for a cheap woven fabric used for toile making.

- Cotton can be used for bleaching or dying.

Advantages

• Absorbent and conducts heat away from the body
• Naturally breathable
• Non-static as it contains some moisture
• Comfortable to wear due to its soft feel
• Relatively strong due to its twisting of fibres
• Durable
• Biodegradable

Disadvantages

• Can shrink when washed
• Very Flammable
• Creases badly as is non-elastic
• Will go mouldy if left damp
• Dries slowly due to its high absorbency

Fabrics

• Calico
• Courduroy
• Denim
• Gingham
• Drill
• Terry Towelling
• Chintz
• Cambric
• Lawn
• Gabradine
• Velvet
• Poplin

- Cellulosic chains of molecules are extracted from the stem of the flax plant.

- Linen fibres are staple fibres- average 30-40cm

- One of its most important properties is its absorbency

- It conducts heat away from the body and therefore is naturally breathable

- Linen is most used for summer collections, as the fibre is cool and has an interesting sub texture and has a distinctive creased look. 

Advantages-

• Absorbent
• Stiffer, harder than cotton and less supple
• Strong due to legth of fibres
• relatively resistant to abrsastion- durable & hardwearing
• Biodegradable
• Washes well
• Lustrous and lightweight

Disadvantages

• Non elastic therefore creases badly
• Highly flammable
• Prone to damage by mildew and perspiration
• Will shrink a lot - up to 15%
• Bad at ironing

Fabrics

• Crash
• Duck
• Huckaback
• Interlining
• Holland
• Mattress Ticking
• Union (half linen)
• End Uses -
• Shirts
• Skirts
• suits
• dresses
• household linen- tablecloths, curtains, tea towels
• Geotextiles
• Ropes & Sewing thread

- Hemp fibres are extracted from the stem of the hemp plant.

- Hemp fibres are staple fibres

- One of its most important properties is its absorbency

- Hemp grows well and quickly without the use of herbicides or pesticides, making hemp an organic crop production.

- Bleahced hemp tops prior to fabric production

Advantages

• Absorbent and naturally breathable
• Non-Static as contains some moisture
• Anti-bacterial because of a naturally occuring compound found within it
• effective at blocking out uv rays
• less prone to fading
• Strong and Durable
• Resistant to mildew and mould
• naturally lustrous
• biodegradable

Disadvantages

• Possible breakages as it is fully organic

Fabrics

• Plain hemp
• Canvas
• Corduroy
• Gauze
• Blends- Linen, Silk, Cotton, Llyocell, Lycra
• End uses
• Rugs
• Carpets
• Ropes
• Mattress filling
• Loft insulation
• Sails
• Awnings
• Carpets
• Clothing

Advantages

• Absorbent
• High in tensile strength with low extensibility
• Effective at blocking out uv rays
• Good thermal insulation
• Anti-Static
• Biodegradable
• Fibres are long, sost and shiny
• Grows quickly- little need for herbicides and pesticides
• End uses-
• Bags
• Sacking
• Geo textiles
• Yarn
• Twine
• Carpets

Advantages

• Grows well with little or no herbicides and pesticides
• Soft and fine- ideal for wearing next to the skin
• Naturally breathable
• Anti-static
• Anti microbial as it naturally prevents the growth of bacteria or germs
• Effective at blocking out UV rays
• Strong and durable
• naturally lustrous
• biodegradable
• crease resistant with good elasticity

End Uses

• Shirts

• Cellulosic soy fibres are derived from food product waste; they are made from the hulls of soy beans
• The soy protein is liqueified and spun into long filaments
• Soy fibre is very absorbent and cool to wear
• Crease resistant with good tensile strength
• resistant to UV rays so it has good fastness
• Anti-static
• Soft, Smooth and light; comfortable next to the skin and has additional health benefits because of the amino acids content
• naturally luxurious in appearance with god draping qualities
• Shrink resistant
• Biodegradable
• It is a filament fibre
• End uses-
• Clothing: Dresses, Cardigans, Jumpers
• Soft furnishings

• Also known as the musa fibre are long cellulosic fibres
• Banana fibres have different weights depending on what part of the bark they come from
• Has similar structure to bamboo- can absorb and release moisure very fast
• Has a shiny appearance but this depends upon the extractin and spinning process
• Eco-friendly and Biodegradable
• Harvested quite fast and not too labour intensive
• Very strong and durbale
• very absorbent
• lightweight and comfortable to wear
• fire and heat resistant
• has a satin-like apperance

End uses

• Clothing
• Home furnishings
• Bags
• Ropes, rugs and mats

• The most common wool fibre comes from the sheep- different breeds of sheep make slightly different wool
• Wool fire is both hygroscopic- absorb moisture and hydrophobic- repel water
• Good insulators due to the scales, length of fibre and knitting process
• Adequete strength yet not very durable
• should be dried flat to avoid stretching
• good elasticity
• Anti-static
• Low-Flammabilty

Finishes

• Shrink resistant- chlorine
• brushing
• Anti-felting
• Moth proofing
• Flame retadant

• The silk fibre comes from the mulberry silk moth.
• It is the only natural continuous filament
• Raw silk is produced by the caterpillar. when it begins to pulpate. The silk fluid (fibroin) is secreted from the caterpillars mouth.
• Unbroken filaments can be up to 1000m in lenth
• Spun silk into staple fibres arent as strong or lustrous as raw silk

Properties

• Absorbent
• cool to wear
• strong and resilient
• comfortable to wear
• naturally lustrous and smooth
• Anti-static
• a conductor of heat
• biodegradable

• Ramie comes from the stems of nettle plants
• Similar to cotton but a stiffer fabric
• not used much in fashion products
• Its uses are rope, twine and commercial products
• Ramie is a strong fibre both wet and dry which means it will launder well.
• quite silky in apperance
• It is quite absorbent takes the damp away from the skin, leaving the wearer fresh and cool.
• It is stiff and creases easily
• very flammable as it is plant based

• Polyester fibres are not absobent
• can be engineered to add breathable comfort in clothing
• strong and durbale
• They are lightweight, hydrophobic and water repellent
• good elasticity
• can be permanently be shaped using heat
• polyester is by far the most widely used man made fibre- accounting for 93% of all synthetic fibre production
• combines easily with other fibres
• easy care- can be washed at home at low temperatures
• very strong
• good crease resistance
• can be recycled

• Elastane is stretchy and can return back to its original shape
• elastane can be added to a textile product to create comfort and support a better fit
• Elastane fibres cannot be used on their own, they are combined with other fibres by core spinning
• Elastane has a continuous filament core, which is the elastane and stple fibres are spun around the centeral filaments.

Propeties

• Helps make fabrics become crease resistant
• improves body shaping and drape
• resistant to chlorine, suntan oils and perspiration
• keeps the shape of the garment
• elastine is easy care; it can be washed easily.

• Nylon has similar properties to polyester
• it was originally used for products such as parachutes, tents and tights
• it is lightweight and adds strength to fabrics
• strong, tear resistant and durable
• tights were the first ever nylon fabric

• Originally designed as a cheap substitute for wool when acrylic filaments emerge from the spinneret, they are cut intom short staple fibres, so that they copy the properties of wool
• warm, full, soft handle, good drape
• good at crese shedding
• good resistance to abrasion
• lustrous
• acrylic can be used or fake fur and velvets and upholstry fabric but most popularly used for its knitted products

- POLY VINYL CHLORIDE

• In fashion it is used as a fake leather fabric and mostly used for interiors as a water resistant fabric. Its a flexible plastic finish, bonded onto a knitted base.
• strong
• flexible
• durable
• used for wipe clean tablecloths and in fashion used for accesories mainly.

• Viscose is one of the most importat regenerated fibres
• it becomes wood pulp of eucalyptus, pine or beech wood
• Viscose can also be made from short cotton fibres called cotton linters - a waste product from cotton
• viscose fibres are very absorbent and can absorb up to 14% water vapour
• viscose fibres are comfortable next to skin as the fibres are soft and fine

• Lyocell is the generic name for a new group of fibres derived from the plants cellulose
• one of the most important fibres is tencel developed by courtauld
• lyocell is initilly produced as long smooth continuous filaments
• textiles made from tencel are considered more absorbent than cotton, cooler than linen and softer than silk
• lyocell fibres are absorbent and wick away moisture allowing them to appear breathable

• Aramid is the generic name for a group of synthetic fibres developed by petro-chemicals
• aramid products are available as filament yarn, staple fibre or pulp
• high-tch aramid fibres can be engineered to make woven, knitted, non woven and technical textiles providing strength and heat resistance
• aramid fibres are 5 times stronger than nylon
• they are resistant to abrasion and durable
• heat and flame resistant