WOLLO UNIVERSITY, KOMBOLCHA

INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY,
DEPARTMENT OF TEXTILE ENGINEERING

Textile Fiber Science

Lecture Note

By Lami Amanuel
Fibre Science Lecture Note (Chapter
One)

1.1. Introduction to Textile fibres

Definition:-

1. Fiber:-
 It is a fine strand of tissue of plant, animal or any synthetic material drawn out in
to very slender filament subsequently out in to required length.

 All fires are not Textile fiber.

2. Textile Fiber:-
 Material of natural or artificial origin which can be converted in to yarn or. fabric
for clothing : also for domestic and industrial purpose

 Textile fibres are the basic structural units of textile materials.

Requirements of fibers to be textile fibers:-

1. Length:-
 A fiber to be a Textile fiber its length should be at least hundred times its
diameter, and this length should not less than 12 mm desirable to be >20mm.
Comparably width or diameter of material will determine its fineness .

2. Strength:-
 During processing of textile fibers, fiber materials will passes different processing
stages (spinning, weaving, and chemical finishing).A fiber to be process able in
different processing stages should have minimal strength. Final fabric strength
also depends on strength of fibre.

3. Flexibility:-
 Flexibility is the ability of a material to be bent repeatedly without break. It is an
essential property of natural fibres. For man-made fibers we can apply different
mechanisms.

4. Cheapness 5. Abundance

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1.2. Classifications of Fibres

Natural Fibers

1. Cotton fiber:-
 Earliest use estimated between 3,000 BC & 5,000 BC.

 Worn by Egyptians earlier than 2,500 BC.

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 Eli Whitney's invention of the cotton gin in 1793 revolutionized the processing of
cotton.

 The development of the power loom in 1884 brought significant improvements

and variations to cotton fabrics.

 Major producers: United States, Soviet States, China and India. Lesser producers
include Pakistan, Brazil, Turkey, Egypt, Mexico Iran and Sudan.

2. Wool:-
 Earliest use estimated between 3,000 BC, and it was used by people of the
Late Stone Age,

 There are 40 different breeds of sheep, which produce approximately 200

types of wool of varying grades.

 Major producers include: Australia, New Zealand, Soviet States, China, South
Africa, and Argentina.

3. Silk:-
 Believed discovered by a Chinese princess.

 Silk is made from two continuous filaments cemented together and used to
form the cocoon of the silkworm.

 Silk culture began about 1725 BC, sponsored by the wife of China's emperor.

 Secrets of cultivation and fabric manufacturing were closely guarded by the

Chinese for about 3,000 years.

 There is a story that two monks smuggled seeds of the mulberry tree and
silkworm eggs out of China by hiding them in their walking sticks.

 India learned of silk culture when a Chinese princess married an Indian prince.

 The major producer and exporter of silk is Japan.

Man-Made Fibres’
Natural fibres do have certain disadvantages: Cotton and linen wrinkled easily silk
had to be handled very delicately Wool shrank and do not moth resistant. So efforts
began to find out more efficient fibers and then rayon cames.

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a. Rayon(artificial silk):-

 It is the first man-made fibre,

 The first commercial production of rayon fibre in the United States was in
1910 by the American Viscose Company.

 By using two different chemicals and manufacturing techniques, two basic

types of rayon were developed. They were viscose rayon and cuprammonium
rayon.

 Today, only viscose rayon is being produced in the U.S.

b. Acetate:-
 The first commercial production of acetate fibre in the United States was in
1924 by the Celanese Corporation.

c. Nylon:-
 Is the first synthetic fibre(its starting polymer is petrochemical)

 The first commercial production of nylon in the United States was in 1939 by
the E. I. DuPont de Nemours & Company, Inc. It is the second most used
man-made fibre in this country, behind polyester.

d. Acrylic:-
 Have wool like appearance

 The first commercial production of acrylic fibre in the United States was in
1950 by E. I. DuPont de Nemours & Company, Inc.

e. Polyester:-
 Produced through condensation polymerization of ethylene glycol with
terephthalic acid.

 Is now the most used fibre and followed by nylon

 The first commercial production of polyester fibre in the United States was in
1953 by E. I. DuPont de Nemours & Company, Inc. Polyester is the most used
man-made fibre in the U.S.

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f. Triacetate:-
 The first commercial production of triacetate fibre in the United States was in
1954 by the Celanese Corporation. Domestic Triacetate production was
discontinued in 1985.

g. Spandex:-
 It is an elastomeric man-made fibre (able to stretch at least 100% and snap
back like natural rubber). Spandex is used in filament form.

 The first commercial production of spandex fibre in the United States was in
1959 by E. I. DuPont de Nemours & Company, Inc

h. Polyolefin/ Polypropylene :-
 The first commercial production of an olefin fibre manufactured in the U.S.
was by Hercules Incorporated.

 In 1966, polyolefin was the world's first and only Nobel-Prize winning fibre.

1.3 Fibre Structure and Properties

1.3.1 Fiber Morphology:-
 Fiber morphology is the study of size, shape, and structure of fiber. it includes
macrostructure, microstructure, submicroscopic structure, fine structure

i. Macro Structure:

These are features of fiber that are discernible to the eye. Properties include (length,
color, and crimp).

Length: - based on length fibers can classified as Natural (short staple fibers) Man-
Made fibers(long filament and filament tows)

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Fig.1.1 comparison in length of natural and that of mam-made fibers

Color:- property of chemical make-up of fibre can also distinguished fibers

Crimp:-is wave, bend, twist, coil, or curls along the length of the fibre. Fibres’ do have
different crimp properties.

Fig1.2 crimp structure of different fibers

ii. Microstructure:

These are features observable with a light microscope (cross-sectional shape, diameter, and

surface contour). Natural fibres have characteristics that are identifiable by microscope. For
Manufactured fibres it is more difficult to identify b/c they look alike under
microscope .Manufactured fibres show controlled cross sectional shape/diameter, while
natural fibres are not uniform.

Diameter is mesured in micrometer, denier or tex. Surface contour refers to the outer surface
of fibre along its length: smooth, serrated, striated, rough, etc

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Fig1.3 Microscopic structures of different fibers

iii.Submicroscopic structure:-

Submicroscopic refers to features identified by electron microscope.

 Natural fibers : Outer cover, Inner area and Central core

 Manmade fibers: Skin and Core

Fig1.4 features which are distinguishable by an electron microscope

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iv.Fine structure:-

 Refers description of arrangement of polymer molecules within the fiber.

 When polymer mol. are closely packed, with a high degree of short range and long
range, they are CRYSTILINE in form.

 When polymer mol. are loosely packed, with a little or no order in their arrangement,
they are AMORPHOUS in form.

 The arrangement of polymer mols. With respect to the fiber axis is called
ORIENTATION

 Amorphous fibres are: -(weak, easily elongated, poorly elastic, good moisture
absorbency, dyeability, and flexibility)

 Oriented and crystalline fibres are :_(strong, stiff, don’t stretch easily, recover from
stretch quickly, non-absorbent and are difficult to dye )

Fig1.5. fiber crystallinity and orientation

FIBER CONSTRUCTION

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Fig1.6 typical models

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1.3.2. Fiber Properties

Fiber properties contribute to the properties of a fabric. For example, strong fibers contribute
to the durability of fabrics; absorbent fibers are good for skin-contact apparel and for towels
and diapers; fibers that are self-extinguishing are good for children's sleepwear and protective
clothing. To analyze a fabric in order to predict its performance, start with the fiber.
Knowledge of the fiber's properties will help to anticipate the fiber's contribution to the
performance of a fabric and the product made from it. Some contributions of fibers are
desirable and some are not. Fiber properties are determined by the nature of the physical
structure, the chemical composition, and the molecular arrangement.
1. Physical Structure
The physical structure, or morphology, of fibers can be identified by observing the fiber
through a light, or electron, microscope. In the text, photomicrographs taken by electron
microscopes at magnifications of 250-1,000 x will be used to clarify details of the fiber's
physical structure.
a. Length. Fibers are sold by the fiber producer as filament, staple, or filament tow.
 .Filaments:- are long continuous fiber strands of indefinite length, measured in yards or
meters. They may be either monofilament (one fiber) or multifilament (a number of
filaments). Filaments may be smooth or bulked (crimped in some way), as shown in
Figure. Smooth filaments are used to produce silk-like fabrics; bulked filaments are
used in more cotton-like or wool-like fabrics.
 Staple fibers: - are measured in inches or centimeters and range in length from 2-46 cm
(% of an inch to 18 inches). All the natural fibers except silk are available only in staple
form. The man-made fibers are made into staple form by cutting filament tow into short
lengths.
 Filament tow: - consists of a loose rope or strand of several thousand man-made fibers
without a definite twist. Tow is usually crimped after spinning

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Fig 1.7 diagram of filament (bulk left, smooth right), staple, and filament tow fibers

b. Diameter, Size, or Denier.

Fiber size plays a big part in determining the performance and hand of a fabric (how it feels).
Large fibers give crispness, roughness, body, and stiffness. Large fibers also resist crushing
this is property that is important in carpets. Fine fiber gives softness and pliability. Fabrics
made with fine fibers will drape more easily.
 Natural fibers are subject to growth irregularities and are not uniform in size or
development. In natural fibers, fineness is a major factor in determining quality. Fine
fibers are of better quality. Fineness is measured in micrometers (a micrometer is
1/1,000 millimeter or 1/25,400(inch).
Diameter Range (micrometers)

Cotton 16-20

Flax 12-16

Wool 10-50

Silk 11-12

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 Man-made fibers, diameter is controlled by the size of the spinneret holes, by stretching
or drawing during or after spinning, or by controlling the rate of extrusion of the
spinning dope through the spinneret. Man-made fibers can be made uniform in diameter
or can be thick-and thin at regular intervals throughout their length. The fineness of
man-made fibers is measured in denier. Denier is the weight in grams of 9,000 meters of
fiber or yarn. Tex is the weight in grams of 1,000 meters of fiber or yarn.

c. Cross-Sectional Shape:-
Shape is important in luster, bulk, body, texture, and hand or feel of a fabric. These shapes
may be round, dog-bone, triangular, lobal, bean-shaped, flat, or straw like. The natural fibers
derive their shape from (1) the way the cellulose is built up during plant growth, (2) the shape
of the hair follicle and the formation of protein substances in animals, or (3) the shape of the
orifice through which the silk fiber is extruded. The shape of man-made fibers is controlled
by the spinneret and the spinning method. The size, shape, luster, length, and other properties
of man-made fibers can be varied by changes in the production process.

d. Surface Contour.
Surface contour is defined as the surface of the fiber along its length. Surface contour may be
smooth, serrated, striated, or rough. It is important to the luster, hand, texture, and apparent
soiling of the fabric. Figure 1.8 shows some of the differences in the surface contours of
different

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Fig 1.8 crossectional shapes and surface contour

e. Crimp
Crimp may be found in textile materials as fiber crimp or fabric crimp. Fiber crimp refers to
the waves, bends, twists, coils, or curls along the length of the fiber. Fiber crimp increases
cohesiveness, resiliency, resistance to abrasion, stretch, bulk, and warmth. Crimp increases
absorbency and skin-contact comfort but reduces luster. Inherent crimp occurs wool. Inherent
crimp also exists in an undeveloped state in bicomponent man-made fibers where it is
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developed in the fabric or the completed garment (such as a sweater) by using suitable
solvents or heat treatment.

2. Chemical Composition And Molecular Arrangement

Fibers are classified into groups by their chemical composition. Fibers with similar chemical
compositions are placed in the same generic group. Fibers in one generic group have different
properties from fibers in another group. Fibers are composed of millions of molecular chains.
The length of the chains, which varies just as the length of fibers varies, depends on the
number of molecules connected in a chain, and it is described as degree of polymerization.
Polymerization is the process of joining small molecules-monomers-together to form a long
chain or a polymer. Long chains indicate a high degree of polymerization and a high degree
of fiber strength. Molecular chains are not visible to the eye or through the optical
microscope. Molecular chains are sometimes described in terms of weight. The molecular
weight is a factor in properties such as fiber strength and extensibility. A fiber of longer
chains has a higher strength than a fiber of shorter chains of equal weight; the fiber of longer
chains is harder to pull apart than the fiber of shorter chains.

Molecular chains have different configurations in fibers. When molecular chains are nearly
parallel to the lengthwise axis of the fiber, they are said to be oriented; when they are
randomly arranged or disordered, they are said to be amorphous. Crystalline is the term used
to describe fibers that have molecular chains ordered relative to each other, and usually, but
not necessarily, parallel to the lengthwise axis of the fiber (Figure 1.9). Different fibers vary
in the proportion of oriented, crystalline, and amorphous regions.

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Fig.1.9.polymer (a), amorphous area (b) crystalline area, but not oriented (c) crystalline and
oriented

The polymers in man-made fibers are in a random, unoriented state when extruded from
the spinneret. Stretching, or drawing, increases their crystallinity and orients them, reduces
their diameter, and packs their molecules together (Figure 1.10). Physical properties of the
fiber-such as strength, elongation, moisture absorption, abrasion resistance, and receptivity
absorption, abrasion resistance, and receptivity of the fiber to dyes-are related to the amount
of crystallinity and orientation.

Molecular chains are held to one another by cross links or by intermolecular forces called
hydrogen bonds and van der Waals forces. The forces are similar to the attraction of a magnet
for a piece of iron. The closer the chains are together, the stronger the bonds are. Hydrogen
bonding is the attraction of positive hydrogen atoms of one chain for negative oxygen or
nitrogen atoms of an adjacent chain. Van der Waals forces are similar but weaker bonds. It is
in the crystalline area that hydrogen bonding and vander Waals forces occur. Cross links and
intermolecular forces help make crystalline polymers stronger than amorphous polymers.

Fig.1.10 Before and after drawing the fiber

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1.4. Fundamental Characteristics of Textile Fibers

Tensile Strength:
Tensile strength is the breaking strength of any material, which is commonly
expressed as force per unit crossectional area, e.g. as dynes per square cm: in these
terms tensile strength is described as the ability of fibres’ to resist breakage under
tension.
When a single fiber is being considered, the strength of the fibre is commonly
described as tenacity, which is measure of specific stress at break i.e. breaking
Load/mass per unit length.
Tenacity is expressed in terms of grams per decitex or centinewtons per tex(cN/tex).

Elongation
When a fiber is subjected to a force it will stretch to a certain degree. This stretching
is described as elongation or extension, in terms of percentage of the fibre’s original
length.
It can be measured either as an elongation under a certain load, or as the elongation
reached when the fibre breaks. Unless specified, the figure given the elongation at
break.
Elastic recovery:
When a fiber is stretched by a small amount, it may exhibit almost perfect elasticity.
That is to say, it will return to original length when it is released.
If, however, the fibre is subjected to a greater degree of stretch, it may react in a much
more complex way. Some permanent deformation may take place, so that when it is
released the fibre will return to an elongated form.
This behaviour of a fibre ids denoted by describing its recovery at certain elongations:

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Thus, in the case of a fibre that returns completely to its original length after say , a 2
% elongation, we can say that the elastic recovery is 100%.
In the case of a fibre, which retains half its extra length after release from an 8%
elongation, we say that it has a 50% elastic recovery at 8% elongation.

Stress-Strain diagram
The tensile and elastic properties of a fibre are usually summarized in stress-strain
diagram. In this diagram, the strain (i.e distortion in the fiber) is plotted against the
stress (i.e force) exerted on the fibre.
A stress-strain diagram gives a much more complete record of the behavior of a fibre
under tension than isolated figures can. Typical stress-strain diagrams are provided
for many fibres.
A straight line on the stress strain diagram may indicate that a fibre is truly elastic.
The extension of the fibre is proportional to the applied load. This is, however, rarely
achieved in practice.
As the load on a fibre increases beyond that needed to causes a few percent extension,
the deformation of fibre is greater than that due to true elasticity. Superimposed upon
the elastic stretch there is some less permanent deformation of the fibre, or plastic
flow.
As the tension increases, the stress-strain curve indicates how the fibre continues to
deform up to the point at which it eventually breaks.
The stress-strain diagram therefore provides a much more complete picture of the
deformation caused in a fibre as tension is applied to it.
1. The diagram includes tenacity and elongation at break.
2. The area below stress-strain curve of a fibre provides a measure of the energy needed
to break the fibre and is called work of rupture. It indicates the ability of the fibre to
withstand sudden shocks, and it is measured in grams per decitex or centinewtons per
tex.

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3. Initial modulus is a measure of the fibre’s resistance to small extensions. A high

modulus means that the fibre has a good resistance to stretching, and a low modulus
means that it requires little force to stretch it. Flexibility and modulus are closely
linked, a low modulus fibre tending to be flexible and a high modulus fibre tending to
be brittle.
4. Average toughness is the ability of a fibre to endure large permanent deformations
without rupture. It is expressed as grams per dtex or cNper tex.
The stress-strain behaviour of a fibre is of great important in practice, and influences to a
large gedree the behaviour of the fibre in textile manufacturer.

Moisture properties
All fibres tend to absorb moisture when in contact with the atmosphere. The amount
absorbed depend depends up on the relative humidity of the air.
In practice, the moisture absorbing properties of a fibre are described by a figure
known as the regain. This is the weight of moisture present in a textile material
expressed as a percentage of its oven dry weight.
The percentage moisture content of a fibre is the weight of moisture it contains,
expressed as percentage of total weight. This is measure of the amount of water held
under any particular set of circumstances.
Fibres vary greatly in the amount of moisture they will absorb. A fibre which absorbs
water readily is often more suitable for use in certain types of clothing fabrics.
The ability of a fibre to absorb moisture will also affect the processing and finishing of
yarns and fabrics, tensile, tensile, static accumulation and other properties.
Thermal properties
All fibres are affected in one way or the other as they are heated. The behaviour of
fibres on heating is of real importance, particularly within the range of temperatures
that are met in practical use.
Fabrics should e.g. withstand the temperatures used in laundering and ironing without
undue deterioration.

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In the presence of air, most fibres will burn. The readiness with which they catch fire
and support combustion is immense importance.
Electrical properties
The dielectric strength of a fabric is important if the material is to be used for
insulation purposes in the electrical industry. It also influences the degree to which
static electricity will accumulate on yarn or fabric during processing or wear.
The electrical resistance of static electricity may be described in terms of mass
specific resistance, i.e. the resistance of 1 gm specimen 1cm long.
Effect of sunlight
Almost every fibre is affected by the powerful radiations of sun light.
Some will decompose and deteriorate fairly rapidly, losing tensile strength and
changing color. Others will resist deterioration for ears, and particularly useful for
fabrics such as curtains, awnings and furnishings which are constantly exposed to
light.
Effects of organic solvents
Solvents such as carbon tetrachloride and trichloroethylene are commonly used for
cleaning fabrics, and the effect of these solvents on the fibre itself is obviously
important.
Effect of acids and alkalis
Textiles are commonly subjected to acid solutions on one, or another and the effects
of different acids under varying conditions are very important.
From the very earliest times alkaline agents have been used for washing and scouring
textiles. Soap itself forms an alkaline solution in water.
Resistance to insects and microorganisms
The cellulose of plant fibres and the protein of animal fibres are substance produced
by living things. They are, as might be anticipated, enjoyed by other living things as
food.
Cellulose is attacked by certain moulds and bacteria, which decompose it and make
use of the degradation products as food.

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Textiles stored in damp water houses are often affected by mildews, which may
discolour and weaken the fibres to the point at which they become useless.

Load-elongation or stress- strain diagram

Work of rupture and Initial mopdulus

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& initial modulus of angle tan

Yield point and crimp

Comparison
At 65% r.h., 20 °C, 1 cm test length, 0.15mNtex–1 s–1

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Effects of Temperature:

When the temperature increases the tenacity and stiffness of fibres is lower. The
breaking extension is usually higher.

Comparison of fibres by their elastic recovery

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Effect of Humidity on Elastic Recovery

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