Performance of woven fabrics

containing spandex
Spandex yarn increases the elongation of the stretch fabrics depending on the direction of
the elasticity in the fabric and also enhances the crease recovery of the cotton and blend
stretch fabrics, aver Yasser M E Hassan , Ahmed EL-Salmawy, and Alsaid A Almetwally.

Spandex (also known as elastane) is a manufactured fibre in which the fibre-forming

substance is a long chain synthetic elastomer consisting of at least 85% by weight of
segmented polyurethane. While many different soft-segmented chemistries for spandex
have been evaluated over the years, only polyether and polyester chemistries remain in use
today. Also for major commercial spinning processes (solution dry spinning, solution wet
spinning, reaction spinning, and melt spinning) for spandex have been practiced over the last
30 years. The various processes yield fibres with distinctively different attributes including
cross-sectional geometry and stress-strain properties[1,2,3].

Today there are many spandex producers all over the world and several brands, types and
costs of spandex in the market[4,5,6]. The main types of spandex yarns that are used in
weaving and knitting machines together with other yarns are bare, single-covered, double-
covered, core-spun, and core plies yarns. Each form of spandex properly used, provides for a
high elasticity in fabric[7].

Various previous studied have reported the physical and chemical properties of spandex
fibres. An elastic fibre has been characterised by high breaking elongation (exceeding 100%
and generally 50 to 800%), a low modulus of elasticity (approximately 1/1000 that of a
conventional "Hard fibre, such as nylon, cotton, and so on) and both a high degree and a
high rate of recovery from 100% stretching (about 95%)[8,9]. Spandex fibres are resistant to
hydrolysis (Lycra had power retention of 100% after boiling for 1 hour in water at pH 3 to
11). In addition the spandex fibres have good resistance to ultraviolet radiation, oxygen, heat,
and oil[10].

Fabrics containing spandex yarn have a wide application value, especially because of their
increased extensibility, elasticity, high degree of recovery, good dimensional stability, and
simple care[11,12,13]. In apparel industry, these kinds of fabrics are used for sport cloths,
and leisure cloths, hosiery, underwear and swimwear, so therefore for body-confirming
garment which ensure stable shape under loading during wearing[9].

The objective of this study was to investigate the performance of randomly selected woven
fabrics from the market, which containing spandex. Fabric breaking load in two directions,
ie, warp and weft direction, and crease resistance were considered the most important
properties that must be found in spandex fabrics. Fabric breaking load and elongation versus
the drawing ratio will also be investigated.
Experimental
Materials
In this study 28 commercial fabric samples listed in Tables 1a, 1b and 1c were obtained.
Total number of samples involves 7 weft-stretch, 8 warp-stretch, 3 bi-elastic, and 10 non-
stretch fabrics. Important characteristics of these fabrics, such as raw material, weave
structure, yarn count, warp and weft densities, and weights are also given in tables 1a, 1b and
1c.
Assessment of fabric properties
Laboratory tests of all samples were carried out at North Carolina State University College of
Textiles Physical Testing Laboratory. These tests were carried out under standard conditions
of air 20 2C temperature 65% 2% relative humidity. The breaking strength and
elongation of the fabrics were measured according to BS 2576. The recovery from creasing
of the fabrics was measured according to BS 3086.

To investigate the effect of drawing ratio of spandex yarn on the performance of stretch
fabric such as fabric shrinkage, extension, and fabric growth, four different drawing ratios
were used. The properties of the fabrics are shown in Table 2.

According to Dupont boiling test procedure, the grey fabrics were marked and boiled half an
hour at 95C and laid to dry on a flat surface. Then the fabrics were measured and the
shrinkage of the fabrics was calculated.

Fabric growth "The difference between the original length of a specimen and its length
after the application of a specified tension for a prescribed time and the subsequent removal
of the tension can be calculated as follows:

% Fabric growth = X 100

Where,
B = distance between bench marks, mm, measured after release of the tension force
following 1 hour recovery.
A = original distance between bench marks prior to tension force.
2.3: Statistical analysis
All test results were assessed statistically using one way analysis of variance at significance
levels of 0.01 and 0.05. The regression models were used to predict fabric extension,
fabric shrinkage, and fabric growth at the different levels of drawing ratios of spandex yarn.

Results and discussion

Breaking load
Figure 1 shows breaking load in warp and weft direction of the 28 commercial fabric
samples. From Figure 1, it is shown that a significant difference between fabric samples was
detected. It is apparent that fabric breaking load in warp direction is more than that of weft
direction for all fabric samples. Weftstretch fabric demonstrated higher breaking load than
warp-stretch fabric in warp and weft direction. On the contrary, bi-stretch fabrics showed
breaking load in the two direction more than that of warp-stretch ones. Non-stretch fabric
demonstrated higher breaking load in warp direction than that of the other fabric samples.
Generally, the breaking load of fabric samples has the following order non-stretch > bi-
stretch > weft-stretch > warp-stretch in warp and weft directions.

Breaking extension
Comparing fabric breaking extension, it was obvious from Figure 2 that weft-stretch fabric
had higher extension in weft direction than that in warp direction. By contrast, warp stretch
fabric demonstrated higher extension in warp direction than that in weft one. Where as bi-
stretch fabric showed higher breaking extension in the two direction compared to weft-
stretch. This means that spandex enhanced breaking extension significantly. It is also shown
that non-stretch fabric showed lower extension in the two direction compared to other fabric
samples.
 In general, the breaking extension in weft direction of the fabric samples has the
following order, bi-stretch > weft-stretch > warp-stretch > non-stretch fabric. Whereas,
in the warp direction the breaking extension can be ordered as: warp-stretch> bi-
stretch> non-stretch> weft-stretch fabric.

Fabric breaking extension in weft direction versus different levels of drawing ratios of
spandex yarn was presented in Figure 3. The statistical analysis proved that drawing ratio has
a significant influence on breaking extension at 0.01 significance level. A decreasing trend is
detected confirming that as the drawing ratio increases fabric breaking extension in weft
direction decreases.

Increasing drawing ratio from 2 to 3.5 leads to a reduction of breaking extension from 13.9%
to 4.9%. The regression line, which correlates breaking extension to spandex drawing ratio
has the following linear form:

Breaking extension (%) = -2.93* Drawing ratio +18.15

The coefficient of determination of this model is 0.86, which means that this model fits the
data very well.

The reduction of fabric breaking extension with drawing ratio may be related to the high
tension under which the cotton fibres were wrapped on spandex fibres. Therefore, the
stretchable range of the elastic complex yarn will be low under high drawing ratio.

Crease recovery
Creases are defined as the fabric deformations based on its viscoelastic properties. These
creases not only have undesirable effect on the appearance of fabrics but also lead to wear
damages to the fabrics. Consumers prefer that the clothing be free from creases during wear.
Therefore, the crease recovery is one of the fundamental properties of fabrics affecting
product properties.

In this study, crease recovery of fabric samples was evaluated using the crease recovery
angle. Crease recovery angle in warp and weft direction versus fabric type was shown in
Figure 4. The statistical analysis showed a significant difference between different fabric
samples respecting crease recovery. Due to the presence of spandex, weft-stretch fabric has
crease recovery in weft direction more than that of warp direction. Whereas the warp-stretch
fabric demonstrated higher crease recovery in warp direction than that in weft one.

Bi-stretch fabric samples had higher crease recovery angle in warp and weft direction
compared to warp-stretch and weft-stretch ones. This shows that spandex enhanced fabric
crease resistance in the two directions. It is also shown that non-stretch fabric samples gave
lower crease recovery in warp and weft direction compared to bi-stretch ones because of the
absence of spandex content.

The statistical analysis proved that the average values of crease recovery angles in weft
direction for weft-stretch, warp-stretch, bi-stretch and non-stretch fabrics are 107, 105,127
and 95 respectively. Whereas, in warp direction the average values of crease recovery
angles for the same fabrics are 87, 121,128 and 91 respectively. It is also noticed that the
crease recovery in warp direction of no-stretch fabric samples is more slightly than that of
weft-stretch fabrics.

Shrinkage
Effect of drawing ratio of spandex yarn on fabric shrinkage in warp and weft direction was
shown in Figure 5. It is seen that drawing ratio has a significant effect on fabric shrinkage in
weft direction, whereas shrinkage in warp direction did not affect significantly by the
drawing ratio.

A positive correlation between drawing ratio and fabric shrinkage in weft direction was
noticed, on the other hand, a negative correlation in warp direction is detected. Increasing the
drawing ratio leads to an increase of fabric shrinkage in weft direction and a decrease of
shrinkage in warp direction. Fabric shrinkage in weft direction has been augmented by
23.6% by the increase of drawing ratio. In fact, the more considerable spandex draw ratio is,
the more considerable the retraction forces are, and consequently the more notable the fabric
shrinkage in weft direction is.

The regression relationship between fabric shrinkage in weft direction and drawing ratio of
spandex yarn has the following linear form:

Shrinkage in weft direction = 2.09 * drawing ratio +23.4

Whereas the same relation for the warp direction is as follows:
Shrinkage in warp direction = -0.08 * drawing ratio +13.85
The coefficients of determination for these models are 0.9 and 0.68 for weft and warp
directions respectively, which mean that these models fit the data very well. These regression
models can be used to predict the fabric shrinkage at different levels of spandex drawing
ratios.

Fabric growth
The influence of drawing ratio of spandex yarn on fabric growth was illustrated in Figure 6.
The statistical analysis proved that drawing ratio has a significant influence on fabric growth
at significance level 0.05. A decreasing trend is detected assuring that as the drawing ratio
increases the fabric growth in weft direction decreases. Increasing spandex drawing ratio
from 2% to 3.5% leads to a decrease of fabric growth by 50%.

The regression relationship between drawing ratio of spandex yarn and fabric growth has the
following simple form:

Fabric growth = - 0.07 * drawing ratio + 0.44

This model fits the data very well with a high coefficient of determination value of 0.89. This
model can be used to predict the fabric growth at different values of spandex drawing ratios.
The inversely effect of drawing ratio on fabric growth can be attributed to the lower
stretchable ranges of the elastic complex yarn, which associated with higher drawing ratio.
The reduction of fabric growth can be showed in a good fit of fabrics containing spandex.
Conclusion
This paper was focused in studying the performance of woven fabrics containing spandex, as
well as the effect of spandex ratio on fabric breaking extension, fabric shrinkage and fabric
growth was investigated. The following conclusion can be drawn.
1) The results confirm that spandex yarn increases the elongation of the stretch fabrics
depending on the direction of the elasticity in the fabric.
2) Spandex yarns enhanced the crease recovery of the cotton and blend stretch fabrics.
3) The inclusion of spandex in woven fabric has beneficial effect on its wrinkling
performance.
4) As spandex drawing ratio increases, the fabric breaking extension decreases.
5) The more considerable spandex ratio is, the more considerable the retraction forces are, as
a result, the woven fabrics become more compact. Thus drawing ratio of spandex yarn was
found to have a significant effect on fabric shrinkage, fabric and fabric growth.

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Note: For detailed version of this article please refer the print version of The Indian Textile
Journal March 2010 issue.

Yasser M E Hassan
Apparel Department, Faculty of Applied Arts
Helwan University, Cairo, Egypt.

Ahmed EL-Salmawy
Apparel Department, Faculty of Applied Arts
Helwan University, Cairo, Egypt.

Alsaid A Almetwally
Textile Eng Dept, National Research Center
Dokki, Cairo, Egypt.
published March , 2010