Compaction (compacting) is a finishing process used to minimize shrinking in textiles. [1] Textile products that are loosely woven or knitted shrink more, whereas tightly knitted and woven products are more stable. The structure of knitted fabrics is competitively loose and flexible. [2] Compaction, like sanforization for woven fabric, is intended to reduce shrinkage in tube and open width Knitted textiles. [3]
A compactor is a textile finishing machine that is specifically designed for compaction. Compaction has a mechanism that shrinks the fabric forcibly in order to render it shrinkproof, preventing any residual shrinking in the applied fabric. The machine has two cylinders, the delivery cylinder moves faster than the take-off cylinder. [1] Shrinkage in textiles is an undesirable property caused by fiber properties, fabric structure and elongations caused during prior treatments. [4] [2] [5]
A compactor machine is equipped with an entry, small tenter frame, steaming unit and a set of felt and rollers. It may have J Box or rolling at exit. [3] There are Compactors with a metal shoe also (Reference: Tube-Tex.) [6] [7]
Compaction results in smoother surfaces, controlled twisting, and shrinkage of the fabric. Additionally it helps in adjusting width and the GSM of the fabric by manipulating fabric density. [3]
Textile is an umbrella term that includes various fiber-based materials, including fibers, yarns, filaments, threads, different fabric types, etc. At first, the word "textiles" only referred to woven fabrics. However, weaving is not the only manufacturing method, and many other methods were later developed to form textile structures based on their intended use. Knitting and non-woven are other popular types of fabric manufacturing. In the contemporary world, textiles satisfy the material needs for versatile applications, from simple daily clothing to bulletproof jackets, spacesuits, and doctor's gowns.
A selvage or selvedge is a "self-finished" edge of a piece of fabric which keeps it from unraveling and fraying. The term "self-finished" means that the edge does not require additional finishing work, such as hem or bias tape, to prevent fraying.
"Technical textile" refers to a category of textiles specifically engineered and manufactured to serve functional purposes beyond traditional apparel and home furnishing applications. These textiles are designed with specific performance characteristics and properties, making them suitable for various industrial, medical, automotive, aerospace, and other technical applications. Unlike conventional textiles used for clothing or decoration, technical textiles are optimized to offer qualities such as strength, durability, flame resistance, chemical resistance, moisture management, and other specialized functionalities to meet the specific needs of diverse industries and sectors.
In textile manufacturing, finishing refers to the processes that convert the woven or knitted cloth into a usable material and more specifically to any process performed after dyeing the yarn or fabric to improve the look, performance, or "hand" (feel) of the finish textile or clothing. The precise meaning depends on context.
A pill, colloquially known as a bobble, fuzzball, or lint ball, is a small ball of fibers that forms on a piece of cloth. Pill is also a verb for the formation of such balls.
A bolt is a piece of cloth woven on a loom or created by a knitting machine, as it is processed, stored and/or marketed. Consequently, its dimensions are highly variable – flexible and dependent upon the manufacturing, machinery, quantity, size, thickness and quality of the product. It is a unit used in manufacturing, transport and inventory. It is also used as a descriptor for wallpaper, which uses different fabrication machinery. Being encompassing, it is by its nature a generic and ambiguous term of convenience and context, used to describe fabric and wallpaper.
Dimensional stability pertains to a fabric's ability to maintain its initial size and shape even after undergoing wear and care, which is a desirable property. Dimension stability in fabrics or Shrinkage is the change of dimensions in textile products when they are washed or relaxed. The change is always expressed relative to the dimensions before the exposure of washing or relaxing. Shrinkage is also called residual shrinkage and measured in percentage. The major cause of shrinkages is the release of stresses and strains introduced in manufacturing processes. Textile manufacturing is based on the conversion of fiber into yarn, yarn into fabric, includes spinning, weaving, or knitting, etc. The fabric passes through many inevitable changes and mechanical forces during this journey. When the products are immersed in water, the water acts as a relaxing medium, and all stresses and strains are relaxed and the fabric tries to come back to its original state.
Wet Processing Engineering is one of the major streams in Textile Engineering or Textile manufacturing which refers to the engineering of textile chemical processes and associated applied science. The other three streams in textile engineering are yarn engineering, fabric engineering, and apparel engineering. The processes of this stream are involved or carried out in an aqueous stage. Hence, it is called a wet process which usually covers pre-treatment, dyeing, printing, and finishing.
A stenter is a machine used in textile finishing. It serves multiple purposes, including heat setting, drying, and applying various chemical treatments. This may be achieved through the use of certain attachments such as padding or coating.
Greige goods are loom state woven fabrics, or unprocessed knitted fabrics. Greige goods undergo many subsequent processes, for instance, dyeing, printing, bleaching, and finishing, prior to further converting to finished goods such as clothing, or other textile products. "Grey fabrics" is another term to refer to unfinished woven or knitted fabrics.
Hand feel is the property of fabrics related to the touch that expresses sensory comfort. It refers to the way fabrics feel against the skin or in the hand and conveys information about the cloth's softness and smoothness. Hand feel is an estimated and subjective property of different fabrics, but nowadays, hand feel could be measured and assessed statistically.
Plated fabrics are fabrics that have different colors or types of face and back. The fabrics are formed by using different kinds of yarn types or colors to both be invisible on the other side. Different properties of several textile fibers are exploited to obtain various surface interests and patterns. One of the aspects is the thermophysiological and moisture comfort of clothing.
Moisture management or moisture-wicking is a functional property in textiles that enables them to transfer moisture from the skin, by capillary action through the fabric, spreading it over a large external surface area, which helps in drying quickly. The property is one of the most important for thermal comfort of textiles.
Textile performance, also known as fitness for purpose, is a textile's capacity to withstand various conditions, environments, and hazards, qualifying it for particular uses. The performance of textile products influences their appearance, comfort, durability, and protection. Different textile applications require a different set of performance parameters. As a result, the specifications determine the level of performance of a textile product. Textile testing certifies the product's conformity to buying specification. It describes product manufactured for non-aesthetic purposes, where fitness for purpose is the primary criterion. Engineering of high-performance fabrics presents a unique set of challenges.
3D textiles are three-dimensional structures made with different manufacturing methods such as weaving, knitting, braiding, or nonwoven, or made with alternative technologies. 3D textiles are produced with three planar geometry, opposed to 2D textiles that are made on two planes. The weave in 2D textiles is perpendicular. The yarn is fed along two axis: length (x-axis) and width (y-axis), while 3D textiles also have a perpendicular weave, but they have an extra yarn with an angular feeding (z-axis) which creates thickness. 3D weaves are orthogonal weave structures, multilayer structures, and angle interlocks. 3D textiles have more manufacturing opportunities, various properties, and a broader scope of applications. These textiles have a wide range of applications, but they are most commonly used where performance is the primary criterion, such as technical textiles. Composite materials, manufacturing is one of the significant areas of using 3D textiles.
Scouring is a preparatory treatment of certain textile materials. Scouring removes soluble and insoluble impurities found in textiles as natural, added and adventitious impurities, for example, oils, waxes, fats, vegetable matter, as well as dirt. Removing these contaminants through scouring prepares the textiles for subsequent processes such as bleaching and dyeing. Though a general term, "scouring" is most often used for wool. In cotton, it is synonymously called "boiling out," and in silk, and "boiling off."
Aesthetics in textiles is one of the basic concepts of serviceability of textiles. It is determined by the perception of touch and sight. Aesthetics imply the appearance and attraction of textile products; it includes the color and texture of the material. It is a statement about the end user (consumer) and the target market. When combined with fabric construction, the finish of the clothing material, garment fit, style, and fashion compatibility, colours create an aesthetic comfort. All of these elements work together to satisfy our visual perception. Aesthetics incorporates the role of evaluation also.
Plasma treatment is a surface modification process for textiles that imparts various functional properties at a lower cost, with fewer chemical adverse effects, and with a reduced environmental impact all while maintaining important textile properties.
Medical textiles are various fiber-based materials intended for medical purposes. Medical textile is a sector of technical textiles that focuses on fiber-based products used in health care applications such as prevention, care, and hygiene. The spectrum of applications of medical textiles ranges from simple cotton bandages to advanced tissue engineering. Common examples of products made from medical textiles include dressings, implants, surgical sutures, certain medical devices, healthcare textiles, diapers, menstrual pads, wipes, and barrier fabrics.
The London shrunk, or London shrinkage, process was an 18th-century textile finishing process designed to preshrink wool fabrics and minimize their tendency to shrink before being used for making garments. When compared to the traditional steam shrinking method of controlling shrinkage, London shrinkage provided more permanent results in terms of reducing the likelihood of fabric shrinkage. London shrunk was found to be effective for fine worsteds, it was not typically used for woolens.
