0. Fibers & Textiles

1. Fibers & Textiles Fiber - the smallest indivisible unit of a textile.
Textile - flexible, flat material made by interlacing yarns or threads.

2. Fabric Production
Fabrics are composed of individual threads or yarns that have been woven or knitted together.
The degree of stretch, absorbency, water repellence, softness and durability are all individual qualities of the different fabrics.

3. Weave Terminology
Yarn - a continuous strand of fibers or filaments that have been spun together
Warp - lengthwise yarn
Weft - crosswise yarn
Blend - a fabric made up of two or more different types of fiber.

4. Weave Patterns The simplest and most common weave pattern
Plain Weave
The simplest and most common weave pattern
The warp and weft yarns pass under each other alternately
Design resembles a checkerboard

5. Weave Patterns Alternating pattern of two warp & two weft threads
Basket weave
Alternating pattern of two warp & two weft threads
Open & porous weave
Not very durable

6. Weave Patterns
Twill Weave
The warp yarn is passed over one to three weft yarns before going under one
Makes a diagonal weave pattern
Denim is one of the most common examples

7. Weave Patterns The yarn interlacing is not uniform Creates long floats
Satin Weave
The yarn interlacing is not uniform
Creates long floats
Interlacing weave passes over four or more yarns

8. Fibers
Natural or Synthetic?

9. Fiber Classification
Natural Fibers – come from animals, plants & minerals that are mined from the ground.

10. Natural Fibers
Animal Fibers – provide fibers from 3 sources: hair, fur & webbing.
All animal fibers are made of proteins.
Silk is made from the cocoon part of the silk moth.

11. Natural Fibers
Plant Fibers – grouped according to the part of the plant they come from.
All plant fibers are made of cellulose.
Include: seed fibers, fruit fibers, stem fibers & leaf fibers.
Flax is the fiber used to make linen.

12. Plant Fibers Seed Fibers – come from the seed of a plant
Cotton - from seed hairs, looks like a flattened, twisted ribbon.
A cotton fiber

13. Plant Fibers Stem Fibers – come from the stem of a plant.
Grow as bundles.
Common examples include: jute, flax & hemp (seen at right).

14. Natural Fibers Mineral Fibers – neither proteins nor cellulose.
Fiberglass – a fiber form of glass.
Asbestos – naturally occurring mineral.
Asbestos as seen with a scanning electron microscope.

15. Fiber Classification
Synthetic Fibers (man-made) regenerated fibers or polymer fibers
A scanning electron micrograph of fibers of a dacron polyester material used in sleeping bags. The core of each fiber has up to seven air cavities that increase its insulating ability.

16. Synthetic Fibers
Produced by joining many monomers together to form polymers
Polymer – substance composed of long chains of repeating units
Monomers – small molecule that may bond to other monomers to form a polymer

17. Synthetic Fibers
Regenerated fibers (or modified natural fibers) derived from cellulose, mostly plant in origin
Imitate natural fibers, generally smooth & silky in appearance
Rayon – most common example

18. Synthetic Fibers
Polymer fibers – originate with petroleum products & are non-cellulose based fibers
Shape determined by manufacturing process

19. Filament Cross-Sections
Synthetic fibers are forced out of a nozzle when they are hot, and then they are woven. The holes of the nozzle are not necessarily round; therefore, the fiber filament may have a unique shape in cross-section.

20. Polymer Fibers
Polyester - made of ester monomers, added to many natural fibers to provide additional strength
Nylon - first introduced as artificial silk
Acrylic
Spandex

21. Testing for Identification
Microscopic observation
Burning - observation of how a fiber burns, the odor, color of flame, smoke and the appearance of the residue
Thermal decomposition - gently heating to break down the fiber to the basic monomers
Chemical tests - solubility and decomposition