S Y N T H E T I C FIBER 4. No change in character of fabric, even after repeated wearing or cleansing. Among considerations are surface character, handle, luster, etc. Many comments are heard about “pilling,” and this must be considered seriously. 5. Resistance to soiling. Any contribution which will lengthen service life between cleansings will promote ease of living. If spot cleaning will care for minor soilage, without later evidence of the operation, a real contribution has again been made. 6. Resistance to various abrasions. This is important, as longer wear life with acceptable appearance will be demanded by the consumer. 7. Resistance t o wrinkling and rapid recovery if there is wrinkling. This again incremes service life between maintenance operations. 8. Permanent pleats and creases. Styles will call for heat-
set applications, whice need to be permane methods. 9. Insectproof. This is to eliminate all storage problemq. 10. Mildewproof. Storage problems and fabric damages will thus be eliminated. 11. Resistance to chemical actions, stains, etc. Recent publicity was had in mid-town Manhattan when numerous nylon hose were casualties. 12. Flame resistant. The recent agitation caused by a long-haired, untreated brushed-rayon fabric is a familiar story to all. Proper legislation should be passed. 13. Antistatic problem. This is a serious problem common to all hydrophobic fibers. A permanent built-in antistatic is the true solution. This lacking, the cleansers of garments made of hydrophobic fabrica must be taught to apply a n antistatic treatment. RE~CEIVED for review April 24, 1952.1
ACCEPTED July 8, 1952.
Woven Apparel Fabrics ARTHUR M. SPIRO Robbins Mills, Inc., I407 Broadway, New York 18, N . Y .
N DISCUSSING the uses of the newer chemical fibers in
I
woven apparel fabrics, t h e raw material will be referred to as man-made fiber, since these new fibers, as well as the relatively older man-made fibers, are not artificial substitutes for any particular thing, Thus the description synthetic does not really apply here. Another point to be understood is that the consumer wears fabrics in his woven apparel suitings-he does not wear fibers. Today, however, everyone is fiber conscious, so the transition from fiber t o fabric for men’s and women’s suiting-type constructions will be developed. FACIDRS AFFECTING CHOICE OF SUITING FABRIC
There are, in general, four basic considerations a purchaser looks for in fabric when purchasing a suit. The relative degree of importance placed on each of these factors varies among individuals, but to one extent or another the ultimate choice of fabric is based on price, appearance, touch, and performance. If there were only some guarantee to each of these four conditions, it is unlikely t h a t anyone would be concerned with the fiber content of the fabric a t all. There is no question but that the average consumer will be confused during the next few years when the new fibers are introduced. There are today six new chemical fibers under discussion, which, together with viscose and acetate rayons, wool, cotton, mohair, silk, and other fibers, form the basic component raw materials of the woven apparel fabric industry. There are two roads t o follow in the development of new fabrics with these man-made fibers. The manufacturers could flood the consumer public with a barrage of promotional material every six months, or perhaps supply charts, diagrams, and slide rules with each suit, so that the public can follow in detail this great potential race of the fibers. Of course, this is not the answer which we are looking for. Textile manufacturers must now apply the same type of engineering thinking to fabric construction as the chemists have done in their laboratories in order t o ensure the future and long life of the new man-made fibers. This is much easier said than done, September 1952
since the project must be carried on further t o the cutter, retailer, tailor, and dry cleaner as well. With this type of approach, however, the industry can accept this challenge, which would lead only t o increased consumer satisfaction in woven apparel fabrics. Barring limited end uses, and with few important exceptions, there is no universal fiber in existence today for application in men’s and women’s woven apparel suiting fabrics. I n other words, for general use in suitings, there is no basic fabric made from 100% of any fiber which could not be improved from the standpoint of price, touch, appearance, or performance through the addition or substitution in part of some percentage of another fiber. BLENDS FOR OPTIMUM RESULTS
Since there is no universal fiber for suiting purposes, then blends of two or more fibers in a given fabric will provide the basic general concept of our engineered fabric development. Wherever scientific engineering research has been applied in other fields, blends provide optimum results. Fuels, lubricants, metals, paints, adhesives, insulating materials, concrete, glasa, and rubber are but a few illustrations. I n much the same manner as the addition of manganese to carbon steels increases abrasion and makes an ideal product for grinders and crushers, small percentages of nylon add greatly to the strength and abrasion resistance of woven apparel fabrics. Raw materials t o provide proper blending tools t o engineer these fabrics have until now been slow in development. Research in general has been applied to air travel, electronics, atomic energy, and other fields of development. Now, with machine-gun rapidity, the textile industry finds itself faced with such magical products as nylon, Acrilan, Orlon, Dacron, dyne], Vicara, and others. Going back t o the four basic characteristic8 which consumers look for in buying woven apparel suiting fabrics-appearance, touch, cost, and performance-the new chemical fibers will be discussed with respect t o these factors.
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touch or handle in t h a t they are not limited by nature. Orloi Appearance. I n the last analysis, appearance is more a funcand Acrilan with their low specific gravity can be used to design tion of styling and manufacturing techniques, such as spinning, and manufacture suiting fabrics with high bulking power. Thip weaving, dyeing, and finishing, than it is of fiber content. -4 will result in garments with greater coverage and lighter weight. good technician with flexible equipment can style fabrics utilizing fibers which have certain limitations as to appearance characFor best results, such bulky fibers should lend themselves best to long staple spinning so that the fabrics can be brushed by teristics. The relative ease of doing so, however, and the cost mechanical trchniques to bring the desirable fiber properties tn involved i~ definitely related t o fiber content and may eventually determine whether or not the fabric will live after the initial the surface. Dynel, while it is not quite so bulky as Orlon or Acrilan, promotional effort has faded. By present commercial standards, it is h o r n t h a t many of the imparts good handle properties to a woven apparel fabric, in addition to highly improved strength and abrasion resistance new chemical fibers do not dye readily. When they do dye, there is often lack of uniformity and difficulty in retaining color. Vicara, however, of all the man-made fibers shows the greatest promise from the standpoint of contributing a rich luxurioub Also, the techniques required to obtain dyestuff penetration may either damage one of the other component fibers in the blend or oashmere touch to suiting fabrics at a fractional cost of the natural fiber. make the cost of handling prohibitive on a practical basis. T h e problem of dyeing nylon has already been solved and Vicara Touch i s in somewhat of a state of transition, and what is considered t o be a good handle in a woven apparel suiting fabrir does not seem to present any major dyeing problems at this time. Some of the acrylic types have had a natural off-white or yellow today may be completely changed in 5 to 10 years from now. cast in the raw which has imposed color restrictions. Cost. Cost may today be the determining factor in the purWith regard t o fabric appearance in suitings, dyestuffs and chase of woven apparel suiting fabrics. Despite all of the other bechniques must be developed for Orlon, Acrilan, dynel, and wonderful characteristics of touch, appearance, and performance Dacron, by which each fiber component or type in a blended that a fabric may have, it must be priced so that the consumer fabric can be selectively dyed b y practical piece-dye methods can afford it. There is no question but t h a t it we are to make great inroads in using large poundages of the new chemical to get cross dye or union match color effects with other manmade or natural fibers. The industry has faith in the ability fibers in suiting fabrics, i t must be larnelv a t the exDense of wool ab'the chemists to produce which today is holding forth. t3hese chemicals and techWith 64's wool (the general niques, and it is, therefore, grade of prepared wool foi he new chemical fibers will contribute greatly to the today taking many devious medium- to high-priced development of better performing suiting fabrics because methods in fabric developsuitings) top selling today of their outstanding functional properties. Just as nylon, ment in order to use the new at lower prices than Orlon, among the older fibers, contributes improved strength and fibers with their general Acrilan, and Dacron, the abrasion resistance, the acrylic types offer a luxurious hand dyeing limitations. synthetic fabrics industry is and high bulk or coverage, which can be utilized in developTouch. What is a good a t a decided disadvantage. ing fabrics that have warmth without weight. These fibers handle or fabric touch? Is Much more can be done, also offer stability, improved recovery power, and strength however, n 4 h the basic it soft, harsh, cool, warm, qualities which, although varying from one producer's acetate and viscose fibers smooth, rough, bulky, or is product to another, nevertheless equal or surpass the peras well as with new styling it some combination of these formance of natural fibers. In suiting fabrics Dacron and manufacturing techCactors? Actually, touch is contributes outstanding w-rinlde-recovery and creaseniques. These fibers are B matter of tradition and in retention properties, while Vicara has the touch of cashavailable in quantity at less woven apparel suiting mere at a fractional cost. Disadvantages of the newer than 25% of the cost of habrics, the consumer, in chemical fibers are principally in the field of dyeing and many of the new chemical general, is used t o feeling finishing, where the progress in development of chemicals fibers. wool of some type. Deand techniques is somewhat behind the production of the The thought of being able pending on the nature of fibers. New systems of yarn manufacturing have been to consume the large quantiOhe fabric, woolens and and will be developed by machinery manufacturers and ties of Orlon, Acrilan, worsteds can be made t o textile mills to lend themselves toward getting optimum Dacron, dynel, Vicara, feel soft, harsh, cool, warm, performance of these new fibers. Garment rnanufac&hin,or lofty by manipulatX-51, and others, planned turers and dry cleaners should be educated to modify their ing such factors as fiber for use in the woven apmethods of handling as well. There is no one natural or iength and count, yarn size, parel field is a frightening man-made universal fiber for woven suiting fabrics. The twist, construction, and one, based on present prices development of the new functional chemical fibers gives of these fibers as compared above all, finishing techthe fabric technician added tools to work with, so that t o wool, acetate, and visaiques. The same relative h e may intelligently combine them in blends with other approach can be taken with cose rayon. This author fibers, old and new, in proper percentages which will reman-made fibers by changdoes not profess to be an sult in engineering better end-use performance of the paring denier per filament, economist, nor can he gaze ticular desired type of suiting fabric. into a crystal ball and deterataple length, yarn count, mine what affect world conand twist. As t o finishing ditions or foreign markets kechniques, many of the can have on wool prices. It woolen and worsted prochas bean our experience, esses, such as fulling, sanding, napping, brushing, and shearing, actually make the touch however, t h a t a price differential of 50 cents per pound in raw material costs of a year-round weight suiting fabric can translate or handle of a fabric, and this same approach and more can itself easily into a difference of $5 to 810 cost to the consumer be applied t o man-made fibers. The propaganda statements t h a t rayon fabrics feel cold has long been disproved by continued in one medium-priced retail suit. This difference may mean iaboratory and wear tests which have resulted in complete conthe sale of the garment in volume brackets. Sumer satisfaction is this respect. It is probable that manufacturers of the new chemical fibers The new chemical fibers open wide fields for developing better will have to see their cost aligned to such an extent that, their 2152
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products will be reduced from 25 to 50% in selling price, in order to compete with wool a t today’s levels for wide use in woven apparel suiting fabrics. Performance. Until the recent introduction of many of the uew functional chemical fibers, manufacturers of woven apparel d t i n g fabrics placed relatively little emphasis on the basis of performance of a fabric for a given end use. The limiting factor, by and large, is due to the fact that natural fibers cannot inherently b e changed as such. Today, however, fabrics can be designed which will outperform those of 100% natural fibers in almost every respect through blending. With a view toward the future of woven apparel suiting fabrics, there is no question but that performance will be the major factor for consideration by the consumer and that repeat sales of garments will be Iargcly iieoided on this basis. RECOVERY AND STABILITY PERFORMANCE
The manufacture of man-made fiber suiting fabrics today requires chemical-resin finishing techniques which are applied to the surface of a fabric, principally in a n effort to obtain crease resistance, recovery powers, and stability. Dacron, dynel, Orlon, and Acrilan today enable the building of some of these properties into the yarn structure and weave of the fabric with ‘L view toward ultimately eliminating the surface coat application. The best of the chemical resin finishes lose their initial effects of itability and recovery power after some period of time. By engineering these properties into the body of the cloth, the fabric will continue t o perform effectively in this respect for the life of the garment. The fact that the addition of small quantities of nylon to blends of fibers for woven apparel fabrics greatly increases strength and abrasion resistance has already been discussed. Dacron and dynel also impart higher strength characteristics than can be achieved with natural fibers. Orlon, Acrilan, and Vicara, to our knowledge, are not outstanding in this respect but they nevertheless can hold their own compared t o natural fibers from the standpoint of strength and abrasion resistance. There is a definite tendency to manufacture fabrics for woven apparel suitings in the direction of lighter weight garments. The higher coverage or bulking power of Orlon and Acrilan makes it possible to do just that, so that ultimately the consumer will carry less weight on his back in suits and topcoats. Many of the new chemical fibers offer outstanding functional performance characteristics from the standpoint of maintaining their properties under humid conditions. Severe wrinkling occurs from perspiration or when the air is damp. Here Dacron c‘omes quickly to the fore with its ability to hold its shape under all atmospheric conditions. The fabric technician, however, must on the other hand allow in this construction for a certain amount of porosity, so that the garment will breathe and be cdomfortableto wear a t the same time. The industry has not yet really begun to develop all of the functional fiber improvement characteristics which are apparent in the new chemical fibers, but more is being learned about their unlimited possibilities every day. FUNCTIONAL DISADVANTAGES
Although the merits of the new man-made fibers are many, there are several problems relating to performance as well. Low melting properties, particularly with regard to dynel in suiting ftlhrics, limits the use of the fiber to blends of 25 to 35% maxi-
September 1952
must be weighed by the fabric technician in engineering a construction, against the advantages of strength and abrasion resistance. Pilling of nylon and Dacron, particularly, can definitely shorten the life of a fabric, unless the technician engineers his construction to compensate for this tendency in blending by changing deniers per filament and twists, or by other manufacturing techniques. Static is a problem with all the new chemical fibers which do not readily absorb moisture. This can be compensated for by engineering blends of oppositely charged fibers and then applying static-eliminating finishing techniques. Glazing of the new fibers in finishing operations is a problem which is recognized. While it can be compensated for in manufacturing of the fabric, it must later be dealt with by educating the garment manufacturer, tailw, and dry cleaner to new handling techniques. Based on these points of discussion, i t is then seen that blending of fibers according to their functional performance characteristics to meet the end-use specification of the fabric become8 t,he key to engineering better woven apparel suitings. NEW MANUFACTURING TECHNIQUES
Man-made fibers have until recently been made almost exclusively into yarns on the cotton, worsted, or woolen systems of spinning. Systems t o take advantage of the fact that these fibers are initially made in pzrallel form are being and will continue to be developed. Robbins Mills has just completed the construction of a new 400,000-square-foot, fully refrigerated spinning and weaving plant a t Raeford, N. C. The plant is equipped with a unique yarn manufacturing system t h a t was specifically designed to translate the functional performance characteristics of the new man-made fibers into the best types of woven apparel suiting fabrics. This plant was built after 2 years of concentrated research and development in laboratories and pilot plants, and represents the faith of Robbins Mills in the new chemical fibers for woven apparel suiting fabrics. Chemical fibers were born in research laboratories and good fabrics made from them will stem from further research and development. The garment manufacturer, tailor, and dry cleaner as well now must be exposed t o the same type of thinking if the consumer is to have complete satisfaction from his manmade fiber suit. The new chemical fibers apparently do not have the immediate spring or elasticity under light loads which is present in wool. Therefore, unless the garment is properly tailored to compensate for this behavior, normal body movement can be somewhat restricted and the suit may feel tight. Pressing temperatures and pressures will also have t o be modified somewhat, in order to give proper care to man-made fiber suiting fabrics. Research and development of these new chemical fiber products does not end in the yarn producer’s laboratory. The yarn producer, textile manufacturer, cutter, and tailor must join together in an effort to put across the development of manmade fibers in woven apparel suiting fabrics, so that the consumers will get better performing, better looking and feeling, and lower cost suiting fabrics than they had ever imagined with 100% natural fiber garments. By guaranteeing these factors to the consumer, then suiting fabrics, woven of man-made fibers, will be in his life for good.
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RECEIVED for review March 31, 1952.
INDUSTRIAL AND ENGINEERING CHEMISTRY
ACCEPTED July 8, 1952.
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