MECHANICAL

FINISHING
PRESENTED BY
NIKHIL PATIL
 INTRODUCTION

 Dyeing and printing is not the ultimate steps

 Something is required to make the fabric more suitable for end-

use

 Quality of the fabric in terms of appearance, handle,

functionally enhanced by some physical means or by chemicals

 Therefore, ultimate value addition is done to the fabric by

finishing
 WHAT IS FINISHING ??????

 Finishing is a final process given to a textile material to

 Give a good appearance
 Desirable feel
 Impart certain durable properties
 Stiffness

 Softness

 Wash and wear finish

 Water repelling finish

 Fire proof finish etc.

 To impart some desired functional properties

 Heat Setting
Purpose

To impart stability to polyester and nylon fabrics by heating to

350‐400 degrees F for 20‐60 seconds.

• Uneven moisture causes the fabric to dry unevenly and

therefore to be subjected to uneven heat setting.

• Not effective on cotton or rayon.

• May be performed in fabric or garment form.

• May cause shade variation from side‐to‐side if done prior

to dyeing.

• May cause variations in shrinkage

 The fabric can be heated
by steam, natural gas,
propane or oil.
 The temperature in each
zone can be set
independently
 The temperature profile
for the fabric will also
be affected by its speed
through the frame.
 Actual fabric
temperature and the
dwell time parameters.
 Napper
Purpose
To lift or raise a layer of fibers from the surface yarns of a fabric to
form a raised surface pile to produce warmth and soft hand.

Key Components
• Wire Covered Rolls
• Speed
• Tension
• Softener
• Fabric construction and yarn has big effect on the pile.
• Important to have a napping lubricant on the fabric to aid in pile
raising.

Types of Nappers
• Single acting which gives a long parallel pile.
• Double acting which gives a full, heavy non‐directional pile.
• Knit goods nappers are designed to hold tensions on knits and tuck
nap back into ground.
 The heart of the machine is a large
cylinder containing 24, 30 or 36
worker rolls.

 The worker rolls are designated as

pile and counter‐pile rolls, which
alternate in sequence.

 Cleaning rolls, called fancies, that

are located underneath the large
cylinder away from the fabric path.
 Shearing

Purpose
To smooth a fabric surface by cutting raised fibers to a uniform height.
Napped fabrics are often sheared to give an even pile height.

Effects of Shearing
• Improved pilling resistance
• Smooth surface or patterns (high‐low or random)

Problems in Shearing
• Defects caused by folds, creases, and heavy edges
• Uneven shearing caused by misaligned blades
• Destruction of sewn seams or damage to blade by not jumping seams
• Blade damage by foreign metallic objects
•The process could be considered as an alternative to
biopolishing or singeing.

•Shearing often follows napping to produce a uniform pile

height, but it is also used for fabrics that have not been napped.

•An example is shearing of the terry loop ends in towels to

produce a smooth, plush surface.

•Shearing is accomplished by passing the fabric across a rest bar

in close proximity to a revolving spiral blade in contact with a
ledger plate.

•The contact between the spiral blade and ledger plate cuts the
surface fibers.
 The fabric passes through expander
feed rolls to align and flatten it before
passing across a brush roll cause them
to lie in the same direction to for
cutting.

 The expanded picture of the rest bar

shows a newer design containing
lamella that can automatically adjust
for fabric thickness.

 Most shearing machines also

incorporate a vacuum system to
remove lint from the cutting region
 The cylindrical blade used in
the shearing process.

 Finally the sheared fabric is

collected.
 Sueding
Purpose
To cut surface fibers and produce a fuzz, a suede‐like surface on the
fabric. Fabric is abraded with sand paper covered rolls (emery cloth,
etc.)

Types of Machines
• Large single roll
• Series of small diameter rolls

Variables
• Grit of sandpaper
• Speed of the sanding roll
• Pressure of the sandpaper on the cloth
• Speed of the fabric
• Number and direction of passes through process
• Course paper gives heavier pile whereas fine grit gives a lighter pile.
•The process of sueding is sometimes called sanding.

•The resulting surface is described as similar to suede

leather, often using the term peach skin.

•Problems associated with sueding can be caused by

•Fabric folds and creases,
•Yarn knots and slubs, and
• Softener build‐up in the sandpaper, thus reducing
its effectiveness.
•Wear on the sandpaper necessitates its
replacement on a routine basis to obtain product
consistency.
 The fabric passes between the
sandpaper‐covered roll and a
rubber pressure roll.
 The friction of the process
generates heat, so the cylinder is
often cooled by water circulating in
its interior.
 In some cases, two passes of the
fabric through the machine are
necessary to achieve the desired
results.
 Idle rolls on each side of the
cylinders control the fabric
pressure against the cylinders.
 This machine is better suited for
fabrics that may contain knots,
slubs, or thick selvages
 Another advantage to the
multi‐roll design is that
alternating cylinders can be made
to rotate in opposite directions to
minimize the production of a
directional pile.
 Calendering

Purpose
To flatten fabric, thereby increasing luster and smoothness.

Key Components
• Composition of the calender roll.
• Pressure
• Heat
• Moisture

Types
• Friction
• Schreiner
• Embossing
•Calendering is a continuous physical finishing process that
has traditionally been used on woven fabrics but has also been
used on certain knit fabric styles in recent years.

•The process of calendaring is very similar to ironing a fabric

•Different types of calendars use different roll types and

arrangements. The most popular commercial machine is known
as a three‐roll friction calendar.

•The temperature of the heated rolls typically ranges from

room temperature to 500 degrees F, while the pressure on the
fabric can range from 200 to 2500 psi.
• To increase the luster on the fabric,
the two steel rolls are turned at very
high speeds compared to the center
composition roll.
 The name friction calender comes
from the fact that this type of
machine is capable of both
polishing and pressing the fabric
simultaneously.
 When properly operated, the
process imparts a soft, silky luster
to the fabric.
 Lines oriented at a 26 degree
angle. There are as many as
250‐300 lines per inch engraved
into the roll.
 Various effects can be obtained on
the fabric by varying the
temperature of the rolls, the
pressure on the fabric, and the
moisture content of the fabric.
 It is a two‐roll calender consisting
of a heated metal roll with an
engraved or raised pattern and a
composition roll with the negative
of the pattern.
 It is also possible to have a
composition roll that has no
pattern at all. The composition roll
can be covered with paper or an
elastic covering layer.
 As the fabric is passed between the
two rolls, the pattern is set into the
fabric by heat and pressure
 Compaction
Purpose
To reduce fabric shrinkage mechanically by forcing the structure
of the fabric to compress upon itself.

Process
May be compacted by a rubber blanket and Palmer unit or by a
series of rolls and “shoes”. Steam and proper lubricants are
necessary to allow the yarns to slip by each other.

Fabric Characteristics
• A way of mechanically reducing fabric shrinkage.
• Fabric becomes heavier and yardage yield is reduced.
• As long as the fabric is not stretched, the fabric is stable.
• Over compacting distorts fabric.
•Several different types of machines can be used for the
compaction process. The original compactor was designed
for woven fabrics.

•It was known by the trademark Sanforizer. Today, this

device is known as a blanket compactor.

•However, some modern blanket compactors are designed

for use with tubular knit fabrics. Additionally, there are
other types of compactors that are designed primarily for
knit fabrics.

•The most popular machines are the heated roll and shoe
compactor and the blade compactor.
 As the fabric enters the compactor,
the feed roll is turning at a high rate
of speed compared to the turning rate
of the take‐off roll.
 Often the fabric is damp or
moistened with steam for lubrication
as it enters the machine.
 The heat from the feed roll and shoe
gives a steam ironing effect to the
moist fabric as it is processed.
 This machine was designed to be
used with tubular knit fabrics and
was specifically targeted to be used
with cotton and cotton blend fabrics.
 The blade compactor was originally
designed for processing both tubular
and open‐width knit fabrics. It is
similar in many aspects to the heated
roll and shoe compactor, but the fabric
processing path is different.
 This machine is known as a gull wing
compactor due to the similarity of the
fabric processing path.
 This compactor was also specifically
designed for use with cotton and cotton
blend knitted fabrics, but it can be very
effective for fabrics composed of other
types of fibers.
 This is a typical blanket compactor
designed for knit fabrics. It uses a
continuous rubber blanket that is
approximately one inch thick.
 A compactor designed for woven
fabrics would have a continuous
blanket approximately four inches
thick
 The heated cylinder, sometimes
referred to as a Palmer unit, is
normally covered with a non‐slip
surface.
 With some fabric styles, the
inherent shrinkage potential is
too great to correct with a single
run through a belt compactor.
 This is especially truewith some
knitted fabric styles. For these
products, two passes through a
belt compactor are required to
achieve an acceptable
compacting effect.
 The tandem belt compactor was
designed to achieve the desired
effect on these types of fabrics in
one continuous run through the
compacting machine.
 It is, quite simply, two belt
compactors placed in position so
that the fabric can be compacted
twice in a single pass through
the machine
 Relaxation Drying
Purpose

To minimize shrinkage in knitted fabric during drying

by overfeeding fabric into dryer, minimizing tension,
and allowing fabric to pre‐shrink during the drying
process.

Factors Affecting Shrinkage During Drying

• Mechanical Action
• Overfeed
• Spreading
• Moisture Content
• Temperature
•One way to correct this added shrinkage due to wet processing is to use
relaxation drying. During the drying of the fabric, stress is allowed to
relax out of the fabric.

•Since this knitted fabric is not held tightly in place, overfeeding does not
compact the fabric but allows the knit loops to rearrange or relax back to
their original knitted configuration.

•This drying process does not remove all shrinkage potential from the
fabric, but it does restore it to a stable dimension and stable knitted loop
configuration.

•After this process, additional shrinkage potential can be removed from

the fabric by using the compacting process.
 The most popular type of relaxation dryer
is known as the tensionless conveyer
dryer
 During the drying process, the fabric
forms a series of waves that are similar in
appearance to sinewaves.
 The combination of the overfeeding and
mechanical action of the wave formation
allows the loops of the knitted fabric to
rearrange and relax out the stress that was
placed in the fabric during wet processing