HumpCh02ff.qxd 1/19/08 7:00 PM Page 13 SECTION TWO Textile Fibers 2009934114 Fabric Reference, Fourth Edition, by Mary Humphries. Published by Prentice Hall. Copyright © 2009 by Pearson Education, Inc. HumpCh02ff.qxd 1/19/08 7:00 PM Page 14 2-1 WHAT IS A FIBER? not make fabrics from slivers! Textile fibers are also very thin—long in relation to diameter. To be mechan- Fibers Are Fundamental ically spun into yarn—drawn out and twisted—staple fibers must have sufficient length, strength, and cohe- Most basic of all in selecting fabrics is the behavior of siveness (fiber-to-fiber friction). Many seed fibers are the fibers, the smallest visible components of most too short, weak, and slippery to spin into yarn; kapok, fabrics. for instance, can be used only for stuffing. The two main divisions in textile fibers are Of course, for a fiber to be used a great deal, there natural and manufactured (see Figure 2.1). Nat- must be a reasonable supply and price. ural fibers are those found in nature already usable to make fabrics. The two main sources are plants (with the fibers called cellulosic from the main What’s in a Name? Fiber Generic Names building material, cellulose), and animals (with the fibers called protein from the main building mate- Fibers are classified into groups, each of which is rial). Manufactured (MF) fibers (formerly termed given a generic name or “generic.” For natural “man-made”) are formed from a suitable raw mate- fibers, this generic is the name of the plant (cotton) or rial as a thick, sticky liquid, which is “spun” or animal (camel) from which the fiber comes, or an extruded through spinneret holes, forming streams accepted name, such as wool or mohair. For MF that are solidified into fibers. The raw material for fibers, the generic name is given to a family of fibers MF fibers may be itself a natural substance, or it of similar chemical makeup and is defined in textile may be synthetic (synthesized from basic chemical labeling regulations in the United States, Canada, units), but it is converted into textile fibers by a and many other countries (see also “Fiber Content manufacturing process. While there are MF fibers Labeling,” which follows. Definitions to be used in made of natural rubber (as well as of synthetic rub- the United States may be found in full in the Appen- ber), there is no such thing as a natural rubber dix to Fabric Reference, which shows all of 16 CFR fiber. Similarly, Tencel® lyocell is not a natural Part 303 of Rules and Regulations Under the Tex- 1 fiber; it is an MF fiber made of a natural material, tile Fiber Products Identification Act [TFPIA, often cellulose. called “Textile Rules”]). Textile fibers may be staple or filament. Staple A listing of generics and their relationships is fibers are relatively short, measured in millimeters shown graphically as a textile fiber “family tree” in or inches. Filament fibers are relatively long, mea- Figures 2.1 and 2.2, and as flowcharts in Figures sured in meters or yards. Most natural fibers are 2.3 and 2.4. Only a few of these are used exten- staple; the only natural filament fiber is reeled or sively by consumers; these major generics are cultivated silk. On the other hand, all MF fibers can shown in Figure 2.2 as a “pruned” textile fiber fam- be staple or filament; they begin as filament, and in ily tree. All are summarized and discussed in this this form can give silky or (reeled) silk-like fabrics. section. They can also be cut or broken into staple to give Note that some generic names legitimate in fabrics that look and feel more like wool, cotton, or Europe or Canada are not recognized by the United linen. States in its Textile Fiber Products Identification Act (16 CFR Part 303), although they are allowed to be used if recognized by the International Organization for Stan- Textile Fibers Are Special dardization (ISO-2076-1999). Some of these are: alginate, carbon, chlorofibre, cupro, elastane, elasto- Many fibrous materials are not suitable to make into diene, fluorofibre, metal fibre, modal, polyamide, fabrics, e.g., corn silk or wood slivers. Textile fibers polyethylene, polyimide, polypropylene, vinylal, vis- must have certain properties: flexible, thin (but not cose. Conversely, ISO rejected rayon as a generic too thin), long (enough), cohesive, and strong name in 1971, although it remains a legitimate generic (enough). name in the United States and Canada. Textile fibers must be flexible. Wood fibers (unless Some names are not official in the United States processed, as into pulp) do not bend easily—you can- or Canada: 14 Section Two 2009934114 Fabric Reference, Fourth Edition, by Mary Humphries. Published by Prentice Hall. Copyright © 2009 by Pearson Education, Inc. HumpCh02ff.qxd 1/19/08 7:00 PM Page 15 polynosic (a term for one type of High Wet name. Many names we use indiscriminately for any Modulus [HWM] viscose rayon) of similar products are actually trademarks of well- fibranne (a term for viscose rayon used in known products, such as Coke, Kodak, and Kleenex. France) These are powerful promotional tools, especially PVC (an acronym for polyvinyl chloride, United when they include or use a memorable logo (word in States generic vinyon) distinctive type) or symbol (such as the interlocking rings of the Olympic games). An example is shown in PVA (an acronym for polyvinyl alcohol—vinal) Figure 2.1: the Seal of Cotton symbol (a stylized cot- polyacrylonitrile (PAN) or polyacryl (terms for ton boll) plus the logo used by the trade association acrylic) Cotton Incorporated. DuPont, a company that owned some of the most Fiber Content Labeling famous trademarks in textiles, guided by market research, in 2000 “restructured” the definitions of some of its brands, including one of the best-known in the In the United States, the Textile Fiber Products Identifica- ® tion Act2 (TFPIA), enforced by the Federal Trade Com- world, Lycra (see Figure 2.68), which originally meant mission, specifies requirements for labels, invoices, or the first spandex (elastane) fiber. Because of that restruc- advertising for most textile fiber consumer products turing, the name Lycra, now owned by Invista, does not (there are some exemptions); in Canada, the Textile necessarily connote a spandex fiber, but is attached to Labelling and Advertising Regulations made under the fabrics promising freedom of movement in clothing, no Textile Labelling Act, administered by Industry matter how achieved. Some others no longer associ- 3 ated with a particular generic, type of yarn, or finish Canada, give similar specifications. Labels should ® ® ® state in English (Canada: English and French) the con- are: Coolmax , Supplex , and Thermolite , all now tent by generic name (not capitalized) of each fiber owned by Invista. present in an amount of 5 percent or more, listed in Considerable emphasis in Fabric Reference has descending order of percentage. A fiber present as less formerly been placed on trademark names as carriers than 5 percent, unless it clearly has functional signifi- of specific information, with the generic or chemical cance, and excluding decoration, is labeled “other makeup most basic of all, but this shift has brought fiber.” Generic names are defined in the regulations. A listing of all names into question, and in this edition, trademark name (see the next section) may be added many trademark names have been removed, and vir- in immediate conjunction with and in type of roughly tually all information on names that are obsolete. equal size and prominence to the generic. When the A great deal of money can be invested in estab- fiber content cannot be determined, terms such as lishing a trademark with positive connotations; man- “unknown fibers” and their origin, such as “waste ufacturers naturally wish these to remain distinctive materials” are allowable. A company name or regis- but part of their corporate image, rather than drifting tered identification number must also appear on the into the dreaded area of a generic name, as aspirin label, and each act details declaration of the country has done. In this text, every effort has been made to where the textile product was processed or made. add the appropriate symbol and give the name of the company that owns a trademark in brackets immedi- ately after, at least for the first use on a page; in What Is a Trademark Name? With many fashion-forward, “high tech,” or “Space Age” articles, consumers are more familiar with trade- mark names than those of the maker, in many cases, or the generic type of a fiber. A few for examples: Fortrel®, a polyester fiber; Supplex®, a textured yarn; Ultrasuede® or Gore-Tex®, fabrics; and Scotchgard™, a finish. Trademarks (brand, house, or trade names) are Figure 2.1 The “Seal of Cotton” is a registered names or symbols given to a product by a company servicemark/trademark of Cotton Incorporated. or association that has registered and owns the (Courtesy of Cotton Incorporated) Textile Fibers 15 2009934114 Fabric Reference, Fourth Edition, by Mary Humphries. Published by Prentice Hall. Copyright © 2009 by Pearson Education, Inc. HumpCh02ff.qxd 1/19/08 7:00 PM Page 16 TEXTILE FIBER “FAMILY TREE” fiber generic names in bold polypropylene olefin polyethylene (+ lastol) fluoropolymer fluorofibre vinal vinylal polyester nytril (+elasterell-p) saran vinyon chlorofibre nylon acrylic polyamide modacrylic anidex PLA spandex aramid elastane lastrile PBI rubber sulfar acetate CELLULOSE novoloid COMPOUND SYNTHETIC triacetate rubber azlon protein lyocell CELLULOSE solvent-spun NATURAL alginate carbon rayon POLYMER graphite cuprammonium ceramic viscose glass cupro boron modified INORGANIC high viscose standard metallic tenacity viscose self HWM rayon MANUFACTURED crimp high wet modulus modal FIBERS NATURAL FIBERS CELLULOSE PROTEIN INORGANIC (MINERAL) ALL STAPLE STAPLE FILAMENT STAPLE STEM (BAST) LEAF misc.