Synthesis and Characterization of Aqueous Chitosan-polyurethanes Dispersion for Textile Applications with Multipurpose Performance Profile

As the use of high performance textiles has grown, the need for chemical finishes to provide the fabric properties required in the special applications has grown accordingly. In this project, a series of water dispersible polyurethanes dispersion (CS-PUs) with multipurpose performance profile was developed using isophorone diisocyanate (IPDI), polyethylene glycol (PEG), 2,2-dimethylol propionic acid (DMPA) and chitosan (CS) for textile applications. In two step synthesis process, NCO functional PU prepolymers prepared by reacting IPDI, PEG, and DMPA were extended with varying molar quantities of chitosan followed by structural characterization through FTIR. The prepared CS-PU dispersions were applied onto the dyed and printed poly-cotton blend fabrics. The performance behavior of the treated fabric in terms of crease recovery, tear strength, tensile strength, and antibacterial properties was evaluated by applying standard test methods. These investigations show that the CS-PU dispersions can be applied as antibacterial textile finishes with significant improvement in the physical and mechanical properties of poly-cotton fabrics.     

Micro-fading spectrometry: A tool for real-time assessment of the light-fastness of dye/textile systems

Micro-fading spectrometry is a technique that combines visible reflectance spectroscopy and accelerated light aging testing. Therefore, it is a useful tool for determining the light-stability of dyes applied on textile substrates in a relatively short amount of time. Traditional accelerated light aging methods usually require controlling many variables such as time and intensity of illumination, correct positioning of the sample during irradiation, and reproducible spot selection for each subsequent spectrocolorimetric measurement. The use of micro-fade testing as an alternative way of conducting light-fastness assessments of dye/textile systems has been explored. The results indicate that the technique is suitable for testing the color stability of cultural heritage materials and industrially manufactured textiles since it is a direct and non-contact method that takes into account the aforementioned experimental variables.     

A comprehensive study of silicone-based cosmetic textile agent

In recent years, textile materials have also found applications in the cosmetic field as more and more commercial cosmetic textile agents are now available in the market. In this paper, one commercially available cosmetic textile agent (CTA) for skin caring benefits was used for making the cosmetic textiles. Systematic characterization methods were established to assess their performance in terms of material identification, fabric performance properties as well as biological safety and biological response to human skin. The experimental results showed that after the treatment of cosmetic textile agent, the fiber surface was covered with a thin layer of smooth material, thereby contributing several alterations to fabric properties and providing a better hand feel to human body. The durability of cosmetic textile was considerably satisfactory with respect to the abrasion resistance and washing cycles. The experimental results also illustrated that the cosmetic textiles might probably enhance the replacement of cells with the newly regenerated ones in the skin structure of human body, and thus provided a more efficient turning-over and replacement of skin components.     

Performance Behavior of Chitosan Based Water Dispersible Polyurethanes: Physicochemical Properties

The research work was carried out to synthesize a series of novel chitosan based water dispersible polyurethanes (CS-WDPUs). The three step synthesis involves the formation of end capped PU-prepolymer was formed through the reaction between polyethylene glycol (PEG) (Mn=600 g/mole, dimethylolpropionic acid (DMPA) and isophorone diisocyanate (IPDI) followed by the preparation of neutralized NCO terminated PU-prepolymer, which lead to the chain extension by using the chitosan. The dispersion of the obtained product was carried out by adding proper proportion of water. The synthesized CS-WDPUs were applied onto the different qualities of plain weave poly-cotton printed and dyed textile swatches by employing pad-dry-cure procedures. The textile assets of the treated and untreated textile swatches were assessed, as color fastness, pilling resistance, tear and tensile strength. The results showed that the chitosan incorporation into PU backbone has significant effect on the assets of treated textiles. These synthesized CS-WDPUs are eco-friendly bio-based finishes with potential applications for polyester/cotton textiles.     

Development of energy generating photovoltaic textile structures for smart applications

The aim of this study is to develop a method with lower application temperature and a device structure to obtain reproducible photovoltaic textiles. Two different kinds of poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene): poly(styrenesulfonate) (PEDOT:PSS) solutions over a silver (Ag) layer was used as anode, a blend of poly(3-hexyl thiophene) (P3HT) and [6,6]-phenyl C61-butyric acid methyl ester (PCBM) as light absorbing layer and a thin aluminum (Al)/Ag layer as semi-transparent cathode. These devices capable of generating electricity from sunlight were fabricated on polypropylene tapes that could be woven into a textile fabric. The short-circuit current density and power conversion efficiency of photovoltaic tapes were increased by using an Ag layer beneath the PEDOT:PSS electrode. The photovoltaic textile structure exhibited remarkable power conversion efficiency (0.29 %) by transmitting the light through the upper electrode. This approach may be used in industrial applications to develop photovoltaic textile materials.     

Effect of dispersing agents on synthesis of nano titanium oxide and its application for antimicrobial property

With the growing demand for comfortable, clean and hygienic textile goods, an urgent need for production of antimicrobial textiles has arisen. In this work, synthesis of nano titanium oxide has been done by sol gel method and the effect of dispersing agents with varying ionic character during synthesis on the particle size of the synthesised nano particles in terms of crystallinity and particle size was studied. It was observed that cationic as well as non-ionic dispersing agents led to reduction in size of the titania particles produced whereas anionic dispersing agent led to increase in the particle size. This method provides a simple method for reduction in size of titanium dioxide particles with a minor modification of a standard process. The synthesized nano titanium dioxide particles were successfully applied onto cotton to obtain Antimicrobial activity. The Durability of the antimicrobial activity was upto 10 washes with the help of Binder. The effect of the application of nano titanium oxide on the physical properties of the substrate, such as tensile strength, bending length, and crease recovery angle has been analysed.     

Analysis of fingertip/textile friction-induced vibration by time-frequency method

Tactile textures of textiles depend on the non-linear friction vibrations which are generated by the fingertip sliding across textile surfaces. It is relatively difficult to understand these complex vibrations, since skin and textile are viscoelastic and their vibration spectra are too redundant. Currently, the method of handling such complex vibrations in the field of tactile evaluation and tactile rendering usually adopts Fourier analysis. Unfortunately, only Fourier analysis can neither trace the multi-scales surface textures nor delete the redundant information. This paper proposed a time-frequency analysis, which extends the recorded 1-D vibration signals to 2-D time-frequency spaces to realize the multi-scales decomposition and dimension reduction. By applying this method to four typical kinds of texture surfaces, such as grille and textiles, the results demonstrated that the time-frequency analysis can accurately capture the major textural features from friction-induced vibration signals and decrease the dimensionality of complex signals. Considering the merits of dimension reduction, the time-frequency analysis could use in the texture synthetic of tactile virtual rendering and the tactile design of textile products.     

The peculiarities of new textile hand evaluation method

The paper presents information concerning metrological and technical characteristics of KTU-Griff-Tester device, the optimization of its parameters and the cases of its application. It was defined that the behaviour of textile material during its extraction through a rounded hole depends upon its structure. Variations of geometrical shape of woven and knitted specimens can be described by mathematical expressions of shortened epicycloids and Cassini ovals. It is shown that waving process of disc shaped specimen can be predicted on the basis of the law of sine curve. The examples of textiles treatment with different types of commercial softeners are presented, herewith showing the suitability (sensitiveness) of the new device to detect the changes of textile hand. Meantime it is shown that the level of materials anisotropy can be decided on the basis of transformations of specimen’s geometrical shape.     

Predicting the influence of seam design on formability and strength of nonwoven structures using artificial neural network

Formability which is also known as drapability is defined as the ability of a planar textile structure to be directly deformed to fit a three-dimensional surface without the formation of wrinkling, kinks or tears. According to human’s desire for comfortable and high quality clothing, formability has a specific place in the textile industry so many studies have been conducted on understanding and predicting formability of textiles. Artificial neural network method is used in this study order to predict the influence of seam design on formability and tensile behavior of nonwoven structures. Our findings and analysis showed that seam design, seam allowance and weight of nonwoven layers are three main parameters significantly affecting the formability and overall tensile of nonwoven structure. Predicted values obtained from the ANN methodology were compared with the experimental data proving very good correlation between examined and predicted values.     

Investigation on air permeability of finished stretch plain knitted fabrics. I. Predicting air permeability using artificial neural networks

Air permeability is one of the most important utility properties of textile materials as it influences air flow through textile material. Air permeability plays a significant role in well-being due to its influence on physiological comfort. The air permeability of textile materials depends on their porosity. There are a lot of structural properties of textile materials also operating parameters (knitting+finishing) influencing air permeability and there are also statistically significant interactions between the main factors influencing the air permeability of knitted fabrics made from pure yarn cotton (cellulose) and viscose (regenerated cellulose) fibers and plated knitted with elasthane (Lycra) fibers. Two types of artificial neural networks (ANNs) model have been set up before modeling procedure by utilizing multilayer feed forward neural networks, which take into account the generality and the specificity of the product families respectively. A virtual leave one out approach dealing with over fitting phenomenon and allowing the selection of the optimal neural network architecture was used. Moreover this study exhibited that air permeability could be predicted with high accuracy for stretch plain knitted fabrics treated with different finishing processes. Within the framework of the work presented, ANNs were applied to help industry to adjust the operating parameter before the actual manufacturing to reach the desired air permeability and satisfy their consumers.     

Carbon footprint reduction in the textile process chain: Recycling of textile materials

It is an important task of people connected with the textiles and clothing sector to work on the feasible ways to trim down the carbon footprint in each phase of a textile product??s life cycle. One of the possible ways to decipher the reduction of carbon footprint of textiles and clothing sector is to recycle the textile process waste and also to recycle at the end-of-life of textile products and these aspects are exemplified in this paper in detail. Detailed investigation of the possibilities, barriers, challenges to recycle textile waste materials are discussed in this paper with relevant case studies. For recycling of process waste, an example was modelled by recycling the process waste and the carbon footprint results were demonstrated with the aid of 7.3 version of SIMAPRO LCA (Life cycle assessment) software. From the results of this case study, it was understood that recycling of process waste would contribute to the direct reduction of carbon footprint. For the second case of recycling at the end-of-life, there are many barriers and challenges to the textile products to be recycled, which are discussed in detail. For this case, two hypothetical situations were defined and the carbon footprint results of them were modeled and demonstrated with the aid of 7.3 version of SIMAPRO software to illustrate the benefits of recycling to reduce the carbon footprint. Designers need to conisder, ??Ecological Design?? in design phase to address most of the difficulties faced by recycling of textile products at the end-of-life, which will of certain help to reduce the carbon footprint of the textile products.     

Development of a versatile controller system for textile machinery

A versatile controller system has been developed that is essential for the automation of textile machinery such as a loom or a braiding machine. Sensors and actuators needed for the automation of general textile machinery were determined and the electronic circuitry for the communication between them and the controller were designed. A dedicated software has been developed that can input and output numerous signals using a simple action-list type user interface. With this interface, any kind of sequential processes can be controlled easily by modifying the list without changing the software or hardware of the controller system.     

Interaction of textile parameters,wash-ageing and fabric softener with mechanical properties of knitted fabrics and correlation with textile-hand. I. Interaction of textile parameters with laundry process

This is a study of the influence of repeated laundering and the use of fabric softener in the context of mechanical properties of fabrics with respect to textile parameters. In the large competitive market of fabric softener, the fabric softener producers claim benefits for fabric hand as well as the mechanical properties of textiles. The main aim of this study is to investigate the influence of ageing and the use of fabric softener on the mechanical properties of textiles during their cradle to grave life with respect to fibre type, fibre fineness, knitting construction and number of wash cycles. The low stress mechanical properties were evaluated by means of the Kawabata Evaluation system for fabric (KES-F) and Universal Surface Tester (UST). The tensile, shear, bending, compression and surface properties and changes in these parameters due to wash-ageing and the use of fabric softener during laundry were evaluated. These mechanical properties or combinations of them are the deciding factors for comfort aspects of apparel during wear. Hence, these mechanical properties need to be correlated with the sensory attributes. In Part I, we examine the change in mechanical parameters due to wash-ageing and the use of softener, while Part II deals with Fuzzy-Logic modelling to correlate these mechanical parameters with sensory attributes.     

Cotton: a flow cycle to exploit

The relation between agricultural resources, industrial activities and the environment has complex aspects because of many dynamic interrelationships. Among the sectors that are showing a certain environmental sensibility, there is the textile one, and particularly the cotton sector. Cotton is one of the most important non-food crops in the world. Its products are destined to different industries: textiles, food, chemicals and so on. In Italy, cotton cultivation encounters economic problems that makes its development quite difficult. In this paper, the development opportunities in agricultural and manufacturing processes are analysed in view of new trends that are characterised by sustainable life-cycle assessments.     

Muscle activity monitoring with fabric stretch sensors

In this paper, development of a fabric stretch sensor embedded system has been proposed for muscle activity monitoring. It is expected that this product will be proper for monitoring a wide range of human activities mainly due to the characteristics of light-weight and high sensitivity. The fabric sensors developed can be easily attached to almost any types of clothing due to their thin and stretchable natures. The mechanism and performance of the sensors have been characterized by measuring the mechanical and electrical performance along with stretch ratio or strain percent. The data collected would be successfully transmitted to mobile phones through low power consumption BLE connection, and thus muscle activities in real time. As expected, the resultant smart muscle pants could achieve realistic goals through monitoring body movements without any significant loss of wear comforts in normal clothing. This work significantly contributed in enhancing the utility of strain/stretch sensors for development of e-textiles and intended to be a starting point for data collection and analysis of smart fabric embedded sensing technologies.     

Development of a textile sensibility evaluation system

As the demand in the market for a product with a high sensibility has dramatically increased, research has been conducted in designing products for better sensibility; however, most studies have employed a paper-and-pencil (P&P) questionnaire in administering a sensibility evaluation, causing a lack of efficiency and systematicity in sensibility research. The present study developed a computerized textile sensibility evaluation system which can be used to efficiently evaluate the visual, tactile, visual-tactile, and auditory sensibilities of textiles and examined its effectiveness in visual sensibility evaluation compared with the traditional P&P evaluation method. The computerized evaluation system has capabilities of managing information of textile properties, designing a sensibility evaluation experiment, administering a sensibility evaluation, and managing evaluation data for post hoc analysis. The test-retest protocol was administered with a within-subject design for 15 females in their 20 s and 30 s to examine the difference in visual sensibility evaluation between the P&P method and the computer-based method. A high correlation (r=.88～.97) was found in sensibility evaluation between the two methods and the computer-based system showed a higher repeatability within a rater in repeated evaluation (a decrease of 25 % in intra-rater SD), which indicates the computer-based method is an effective alternative to the P&P method in visual sensibility evaluation. The findings of the present study support use of a computerized system for practitioners to efficiently identify preferred characteristics of textiles for the design of sensible clothing.     

Cotton yarn engineering via fuzzy least squares regression

Modeling of yarn and fiber properties has been a popular topic in the field of textile engineering in recent decades. The common method for fitting models has been to use classical regression analysis, based on the assumptions of data crispness and deterministic relations among variables. However, in modeling practical systems such as cotton spinning, the above assumptions may not hold true. Prediction is influential and we should therefore attempt to analyze the behavior and structure of such systems more realistically. In the present research, we investigate a procedure to provide a soft regression method for modeling the relationships between fiber properties, roving properties, and yarn count as independent variables and yarn properties as dependent (response) variable. We first selected the effective variables by multivariate test (mtest) and then considered fuzzy least squares regression for evaluating relationship between cotton yarn properties such as tensile, hairiness, unevenness and fiber properties that were measured by HVI system. We also used mean of capability index (MCI) to evaluate the goodness of fit of the fuzzy regression models. The results showed that the equations were significant at very good MCI levels.     

Effect of ultrasonic laundering on thermophysiological properties of knitted fabrics

The paper focuses on the application of ultrasonic energy in textile laundering. In recent years, there has been an increasing interest in ultrasonic energy application in textile industry; however, the effect of ultrasonic laundering on the thermophysiological properties of knitted fabrics has not been studied yet. This study was conducted by using polylactic acid (PLA), cotton, polyethylene terephthalate (PET), and poly acrylic (PAC) fibres containing yarns and their blends. Knitted fabrics, single pique, were made from these yarns by using weft knitting machine. The fabrics were washed ten times for 15 and 60 minutes under 40 °C by using conventional and ultrasonic washing methods. The main aim was to determine the effect of washing methods on the thermophysiological properties of the fabrics. It is also aimed to analyse and evaluate the thermophysiological properties of the PLA fabrics. The incorporation of 100 % PLA and cotton/PLA yarns into single pique knitted fabrics has been attempted to produce for the first time and studied their thermal comfort properties. The results show that the washing processes have a critical importance for the tested fabrics in terms of thermal conductivity, thermal resistance, thermal absorbtivity, water vapour permeability, and heat loss. It has been also demonstrated that the fabric cleaning by using ultrasonic method enhanced the properties of tested fabrics such as thermal conductivity and % recovery. It was also noted that 15 minutes ultrasonically washed fabrics had significantly lower thermal resistance as compared to conventionally washed fabrics.     

Synthesis of core-shell fluorinated acrylate copolymers and its application as finishing agent for textile

Core-shell fluorinated acrylate copolymers emulsion was thus synthesized via the core-shell emulsion polymerization with the fluorinated monomers and acrylic monomers as the main raw materials and its properties were studied. PFMA, the fluorinated acrylate monomers, was synthesized by the esterification of perfluorooctanoyl chloride (PFOC) and hydroxypropyl methacrylate (HPMA). Then the core-shell fluorinated acrylate copolymers emulsion with a poly(MMA/BA/St) core and a poly(PFMA/MMA/BA) shell was synthesized via a starved semi-continuous core-shell emulsion polymerization method by using KPS and sodium bicarbonate as the initiator/buffer system and SDS/Twain 80 as the commixture emulsifier. Lastly, the synthesized copolymers was applied as textile finishing agent for cotton textile. The results of FT-IR and NMR indicated that PFMA had been synthesized as expected and effectively combined in the emulsion copolymerization. The GPC, zeta potential, TEM and DSC showed that the particles had uniform spherical core-shell structure with a diameter of 65-150 nm, and the distribution and emulsion stability was satisfactory. As XPS, FESEM and AFM shown, a hydrophobic structure which was similar to the structure of the lotus leaf were formed and the surface hydrophobicity of the films can be improved. Based on the analysis of DSC, thermal stabilities of the films were enhanced with the increase of fluorine content. Besides, FESEM of textiles showed that the surface of treated textiles were smooth and the edges were clear and visible, indicating significant improvement of the performance on water and oil repellent.