1. Water Retention Capacity of Different Fabrics
A Research Presentation by
Josh Leary and Vyom Buch
SVSM 2012, Appalachian State University
Good Morning. My name is Vyom Buch and *I’m Josh Leary*, and we are here to present our results and findings on the water retention capacities of different fabrics.

2. Introduction Clothing is vital Plethora of options to choose from
Material
Weave
Blend of different fabrics
Clothing is an important aspect of society. There are a multitude of clothing options to choose from. The material, weave, and blends of fabrics provide us this variety. Each type of fabric has different properties that make it ideal for specific situations.

3. Factors to consider Knots Per Square Inch
The 3 main factors to consider when buying clothes:
Transfer of heat
Transfer of air
Transfer of water/humidity
Of the three main factors to consider when buying clothes, the transfer of water was the one we chose to base our research on. This factor can be the major determining factor when buying clothes for specific situations.

4. The Materials ProScope HR ImageJ Five 10X10 samples of cloth
100% Cotton- Navy Blue with Stripes
100% Polyester- Red
100% Rayon- Black
50% Polyester 50% Nylon- Polka Dots
65% Polyester 35% Cotton- Pink
Got this down!

5. The Method The Apparatus Soaking in water Draining water
Got this down too!
Draining water

6. The Results
Some of the results were expected whereas some of them caught us by surprise
We tabulated
Amount of water absorbed
Amount of water expelled
Percent of water retained
Percent of water lost to evaporation
We received mixed results. Some results, like the cotton one, were perfectly in line with our expectations. On the other hand, the results for the blends caught us by surprise.

7. Amt. of Water Absorbed
The darker colors show the weight of the fabrics whereas the lighter color shows the weight of the water they held. The pure cloths, that is the 100% fabrics, held more water than their own weight whereas the blends held less water than their own weight.

8. Amt. of Leftover Water
This slide has the same color scheme but it shows the amount of water left in the cloths after they were allowed to dry for 30 minutes.

9. Amt. of Leftover Water
This table shows the amount (in percentage) of water still in the fabric as compared to the amount that has been lost to evaporation.
The table represents the percent of water retained and the percent of water lost to evaporation. The cotton-polyester blend lost the most water, followed by the pure cotton fabric.

10. Knots Per Square Inch

11. KPSI vs. Water Left
The table below shows no direct correlation between the knots per square inch of a cloth and the amount of water it holds.
Our assumption was that the knots per square inch of a cloth would be directly correlated to the amount of water it held. However, our results proved us wrong. The table above shows that there is no direct correlation between the knots per square inch of a cloth and the percent of water left.

12. Conclusion 100% Cotton- Great at absorbing and expelling water
100% Rayon- Inefficient at absorbing and expelling water
100% Polyester- Moderate at absorbing and expelling water
50% Polyester and 50% Nylon- Good at absorption but bad at expulsion of water
65% Polyester and 35% Cotton- Very bad at absorbing water but very good at expelling water

13. References
[1] Pamuk, Otkay, “Clothing Comfort Properties in Textile Industry”, New World Science Academy, University of Ege, 2008
[2] Das, A. and Ishtiaque, S.M., “Comfort Characteristics of Fabrics Containing Twist-less and Hollow Fibrous Assemblies in Weft”, Journal of Textile and Apparel Technology and Management, Volume:3, Number:
[3] Campbell, Neil A. Biology. 3rd ed. California: Benjamin Cummings, 1987: 790.

14. Acknowledgements Questions? Dr. Rahman Tashakkori Sina Tashakkori
Ahmad Ghadiri
Lori Tyler- SVSM Coordinator
Questions?