 | This article is missing information about weaves and weights of Cordura.(January 2025) |
Cordura is a brand of synthetic fiber-based fabrics used in products such as luggage, backpacks, trousers, military wear, and performance apparel. [1]
Cordura was developed and trademarked by E.I. du Pont de Nemours and Company (DuPont) in 1929; it is currently owned by Invista, a subsidiary of Koch Industries. [2]
DuPont introduced Cordura as a type of rayon, [3] [4] a semi-synthetic fiber made from natural sources of regenerated cellulose.
In 1948 DuPont claimed its 'Cordura' high-tenacity rayon was "as strong as mild steel yet able to stand up under repeated flexing": [5]
“DuPont scientists were working to improve on the properties of rayon…when, in 1928, a rubber company asked for a rayon yarn that would be stronger than cotton for tire cords. The problem was given to a team of organic, physical, and analytical chemists, chemical and mechanical engineers and physicists. In developing the new improved rayon, a number of theoretical studies were carried out: for example, (1) rates of diffusion of the coagulating bath into the viscose filaments, (2) the mechanism of coagulation of viscose, (3) the relationship between fiber structure and properties by X-rays, and (4) a phase study of spinning baths. Concurrently, applied research was necessary. This proceeded along many lines, but the main problem was the spinning technique. It was known that a short delay in the bath between the spinneret and the stretching operation allowed greater tension on the filaments. DuPont engineers, therefore, designed a series of rollers, each revolving faster than the previous one, to increase the tension gradually. In addition, a textile finish was developed that combined just the right amount of plasticizing action and lubricating power, allowing the filaments to twist evenly in forming the cord. A new adhesive was prepared to join the yarn with rubber. New twisting techniques for cord manufacture were found, since the usual methods caused loss in rayon strength. Chemical and mechanical engineers were faced with the design and operation of equipment for more than 15 different types of unit operations. Equipment had to operate every minute of the day, yet turn out perfectly uniform yarn. It was necessary to filter the viscose so carefully that it would pass through spinning jet holes less than 4/1000 of an inch without plugging. Some of the most exacting temperature and humidity control applications in the chemical industry were required. Out of the cooperation among scientists—ranging from studies of cellulose as a high polymer to design of enormous plants—came a new product, “Cordura” high-tenacity rayon, as strong as mild steel yet able to stand up under repeated flexing.” Tires made with it are less bulky and cooler running, yet give greater mileage under adverse operating conditions. [1948 DuPond advertisement] [5]
Cordura was further developed during World War II and used in tires for military vehicles.
By 1966, three decades after the arrival of nylon formulations, the Cordura brand name was transferred to nylon products. Eastpak was the first brand to use Cordura fabric in their luggage. [6] By 1979, "soft-sided" Cordura luggage made up about 40 percent of the luggage market.
JanSport used the canvas-like nylon in their original daypacks in the 1970s, and now exclusively uses polyester Cordura. [7] In the 1980s, 1000 denier (D) Cordura nylon was adopted for duffle bags. [8] During the 1990s, European workwear clothing brands adopted the 1000D and 500D fabric for reinforcements. Today, Cordura is used in textile motorcycle jackets and pants for abrasion resistance. [9]
Variants of Cordura fabrics vary in weight, appearance, tear resistance, and color retention. There are also base layer, denim, and canvas fabrics that blend Invista 420 D nylon 6, 6 fiber, and cotton, known as "Cordura Baselayer," "Cordura Denim," and "Cordura Duck," respectively. [10]
Some Cordura fabrics have been specifically designed for military applications and extended outdoor use. [11] [12]
Nylon is a family of synthetic polymers with amide backbones, usually linking aliphatic or semi-aromatic groups.
Yarn is a long continuous length of interlocked fibres, used in sewing, crocheting, knitting, weaving, embroidery, ropemaking, and the production of textiles. Thread is a type of yarn intended for sewing by hand or machine. Modern manufactured sewing threads may be finished with wax or other lubricants to withstand the stresses involved in sewing. Embroidery threads are yarns specifically designed for needlework. Yarn can be made of a number of natural or synthetic materials, and comes in a variety of colors and thicknesses. Although yarn may be dyed different colours, most yarns are solid coloured with a uniform hue.
Velvet is a type of woven fabric with a dense, even pile that gives it a distinctive soft feel. Historically, velvet was typically made from silk. Modern velvet can be made from silk, linen, cotton, wool, synthetic fibers, silk-cotton blends, or synthetic-natural fiber blends.
Rayon, also called viscose and commercialised in some countries as sabra silk or cactus silk, is a semi-synthetic fiber made from natural sources of regenerated cellulose, such as wood and related agricultural products. It has the same molecular structure as cellulose. Many types and grades of viscose fibers and films exist. Some imitate the feel and texture of natural fibers such as silk, wool, cotton, and linen. The types that resemble silk are often called artificial silk. It can be woven or knit to make textiles for clothing and other purposes.
Synthetic fibers or synthetic fibres are fibers made by humans through chemical synthesis, as opposed to natural fibers that are directly derived from living organisms, such as plants or fur from animals. They are the result of extensive research by scientists to replicate naturally occurring animal and plant fibers. In general, synthetic fibers are created by extruding fiber-forming materials through spinnerets, forming a fiber. These are called synthetic or artificial fibers. The word polymer comes from a Greek prefix "poly" which means "many" and suffix "mer" which means "single units"..
Aramid fibers, short for aromatic polyamide, are a class of heat-resistant and strong synthetic fibers. They are used in aerospace and military applications, for ballistic-rated body armor fabric and ballistic composites, in marine cordage, marine hull reinforcement, as an asbestos substitute, and in various lightweight consumer items ranging from phone cases to tennis rackets.
In biochemistry, cellulose acetate refers to any acetate ester of cellulose, usually cellulose diacetate. It was first prepared in 1865. A bioplastic, cellulose acetate is used as a film base in photography, as a component in some coatings, and as a frame material for eyeglasses; it is also used as a synthetic fiber in the manufacture of cigarette filters and playing cards. In photographic film, cellulose acetate film replaced nitrate film in the 1950s, being far less flammable and cheaper to produce.
Lyocell is a semi-synthetic fiber used to make textiles for clothing and other purposes. It is a form of regenerated cellulose made by dissolving pulp and dry jet-wet spinning. Unlike rayon made by the more common viscose processes, Lyocell production does not use carbon disulfide, which is toxic to workers and the environment. Lyocell was originally trademarked as Tencel in 1982.
Acrylic fibers are synthetic fibers made from a polymer (polyacrylonitrile) with an average molecular weight of ~100,000, about 1900 monomer units. For a fiber to be called "acrylic" in the US, the polymer must contain at least 85% acrylonitrile monomer. Typical comonomers are vinyl acetate or methyl acrylate. DuPont created the first acrylic fibers in 1941 and trademarked them under the name Orlon. It was first developed in the mid-1940s but was not produced in large quantities until the 1950s. Strong and warm, acrylic fiber is often used for sweaters and tracksuits and as linings for boots and gloves, as well as in furnishing fabrics and carpets. It is manufactured as a filament, then cut into short staple lengths similar to wool hairs, and spun into yarn.
Ballistic nylon is a thick, tough, nylon fabric with several uses. Ballistic nylon was developed by the DuPont corporation as a material for flak jackets for World War II airmen. It was called ballistic because, together with other components, it was intended to protect its wearers from flying debris and fragmentation from bullet and artillery-shell impacts.
Invista is a fiber, resin, and intermediates company headquartered in Wichita, Kansas, United States. It has about 10,000 employees in over 20 countries worldwide. The predecessor DuPont Textiles and Interiors was formed from DuPont's textile fibers division in February 2003. The company was given the trademarked name INVISTA and was then sold to privately owned Koch Industries on April 30, 2004 for US$4.2 billion. Koch Industries combined the newly acquired organization with their KoSa subsidiary to complete the INVISTA company.
The manufacture of textiles is one of the oldest of human technologies. To make textiles, the first requirement is a source of fiber from which a yarn can be made, primarily by spinning. The yarn is processed by knitting or weaving, with color and patterns, which turns it into cloth. The machine used for weaving is the loom. For decoration, the process of coloring yarn or the finished material is dyeing. For more information of the various steps, see textile manufacturing.
Grasim Industries Limited is an Indian manufacturing company based in Mumbai. Since its inception in 1947 as a textile manufacturer, Grasim has diversified into textile raw materials like viscose staple fiber (VSF) and viscose filament yarn, chemicals and insulators, along with cement and financial services through its subsidiaries UltraTech Cement and Aditya Birla Capital respectively. The company is a part of the Aditya Birla Group.
Nylon 66 is a type of polyamide or nylon. It, and nylon 6, are the two most common for textile and plastic industries. Nylon 66 is made of two monomers each containing 6 carbon atoms, hexamethylenediamine and adipic acid, which give nylon 66 its name. Aside from its superior physical characteristics, nylon 66 is attractive because its precursors are inexpensive.
Artificial silk or art silk is any synthetic fiber which resembles silk, but typically costs less to produce. Frequently, the term artificial silk is just a synonym for rayon. When made out of bamboo viscose it is also sometimes called bamboo silk.
Ripstop is a woven fabric, often made of nylon, using a reinforcing technique that makes it more resistant to tearing and wear. During weaving, stronger reinforcement yarns are interwoven at regular intervals in a crosshatch pattern. The intervals are typically 5 to 8 millimeters. Thin and lightweight ripstop fabrics have a two-dimensional structure due to the thicker yarns being interwoven in thinner cloth. Older lightweight ripstop fabrics display the thicker interlocking thread patterns in the material quite prominently, but more modern weaving techniques make the ripstop threads less obvious. A similar effect can be achieved by weaving two or three fine yarns together at smaller intervals.
Bamboo textile is any cloth, yarn or clothing made from bamboo fibres. While bamboo was historically used only for structural elements, such as bustles and the ribs of corsets, in recent years various technologies have been developed that allow bamboo fibre to be used for a wide range of textile and fashion applications.
Aditya Birla Real Estate is an Indian real estate, textile and paper manufacturing and export company based in Mumbai. The main business activity involves manufacture of cotton textiles, yarn, denim, viscose filament rayon yarn, tire-cords, caustic soda, sulfuric acid, salt, pulp, and paper. The company also has a presence in the international textile markets and exports its products to more than 45 countries.
J. P. Bemberg was a German rayon manufacturer that produced an unusually fine artificial fiber which became known as Bemberg®. J. P. Bemberg came under the control of Vereinigte Glanzstoff-Fabriken and eventually disappeared after a series of mergers and divestitures, but Bemberg™ rayon was still being produced in 2015 by Asahi in Japan,
A blend is a mixture of two or more fibers. In yarn spinning, different compositions, lengths, diameters, or colors may be combined to create a blend. Blended textiles are fabrics or yarns produced with a combination of two or more types of different fibers, or yarns to obtain desired traits and aesthetics. Blending is possible at various stages of textile manufacturing. The term, blend, refers to spun fibers or a fabric composed of such fibers. There are several synonymous terms: a combination yarn is made up of two strands of different fibers twisted together to form a ply; a mixture or mixed cloth refers to blended cloths in which different types of yarns are used in warp and weft sides.