Textile Testing

MFM Semester-II
Sudeshna Datta Roy
 Specifications
• Fabric Specifications- Specification Sheet
• Fiber Composition
• Fabric Construction
• Weave
• Fabric Width
• Fabric Weight
• Functional specifications like strength,
shrinkage, color fastness
 Specifications
• Apparel Specifications- Techpak
• Design details of front back
• Details of components
• Details of size measurements
• Fabric Consumption
• Stitches and seam details
• Sewing thread Consumption
 Quality Tests
• Durability tests -tensile strength, tear strength,
seam strength, abrasion resistance, resistance to pilling,
snagging etc
• Tests for comfort, safety and health -stretch
properties, test for hazardous dyes and chemicals like
formaldehyde, thermal conductivity, air permeability
• Appearance retention -crease recovery
• Color fastness -fastness of color to washing,
rubbing, dry cleaning, sunlight
• Tests for evaluation of special finishes
-flammability, antimicrobial property, soil repellency,
water repellency
 Yarn Count Measurement
 Weighing a 120 yd lea

Apparatus Required
 Wrap reel
 Weighing balance
 Yarn

Test Procedure
 Prepare a lea of 120 yd
 Weigh out the lea in a weighing
balance
 Calculate out the count of the yarn
 Calculation

Let the weight of the lea is = x lb

Length of x lb = 120 yds
Length of 1 lb = (120 * 840 / x * 840 ) lb

Therefore, the fineness of the yarn is

= 120 / (x * 840) Ne
 Test Procedure using Beeseley
Balance

 Consists of a beam with a sample

hook at one end and a pointer at the
other
 A standard weight is hung in a notch
on the beam
 A template is used to cut short
lengths of yarn, the length
depending upon the count system
required
 The short length are added to the
hook until the pointer opposite the
datum line
 The count is the number of short
lengths required to balance the yarn
Fabric Construction

Ends/inch and
picks/inch counted with
pick glass or digital
pick counter
Weave design
analyzed
GSM

Area of Sample = 100 square

cm
GSM = weight of sample in
gram*100
 Fabric Width
• Full Width
• Cuttable width = Total width-Selvedge
width
• Measured during testing and also online
 Strength of Apparels
• Fabric strength
 Resistance to tensile force-breaking
strength
 Resistance to tearing force
 Resistance to bursting force
• Seam strength
 Fabric Tensile strength
• This test is used for determining the breaking strength and
elongation of most textile fabrics.

• Breaking force - the maximum force applied to a material

carried to rupture.

• Elongation - the ratio of extension of a material to the length

of the material prior to stretching, expressed as percentage.

• Test is divided into two categories

• Grab test
• Strip test
• Grab test is applicable to the determination of
“effective strength” of the fabric; i.e. the strength
of yarns in a specific width together with the
fabric assistance from the adjacent yarns.
Effective Width of the fabric in the jaw = 1 inch

• Raveled strip procedure is applicable to the

determination of force required to break a
specific width of fabric
Effective Width of the specimen in the jaw= 2
inch
Tensile strength (breaking strength)
15*10cm specimen is
placed between two jaws.
Jaws pulled away from
each other creating a
tensile force in the sample.
The force and eongation
at break are noted.
Warpway and weftway
samples tested.
(directional)
 Factors affecting tensile strength
• Strength of warp yarns
• Elongation of yarns
• Strength of weft yarns
• Fabric Finish
 Tearing strength
• 2 tongued sample
• 2 tongues clamped to 2 jaws(upper and
lower)-force required for tear to propagate
• Work done for a slit to propagate
• Not suitable for knits
Elmendorf Tear Strength tester
 Factors affecting tear strength
• Weave
• Fabric construction (ends/inch and
picks/inch)
• Fabric Finish
 Bursting strength
• Multidirectional force
• Diaphragm bursting method
• Ball bursting method
• Suitable for knits, light weight wovensetc
• Gives the minimum pressure that the
fabric will withstand
Hydraulic bursting Strength
Circular fabric sample clamped over
rubber diaphragm.
Hydraulic pressure exerted, diaphragm
along with fabric deforms until rupture
 Seam Strength
Depends on:
• Stich type
• Strength of sewing thread
• Stitches per inch
• Thread tension
• Seam type
• Seam efficiency=seam strength expressed
as %of fabric breaking strength
Seam strength for knitted fabric
• Extensibiliy of fabric greater than that of
seam.
• The breaking point of sewing thread
attained earlier-----seam cracking
Or
• Fabric breaks and seam remains intact
• Balanced seam---80% elongation possible
before cracking
 Test method
• Seam is subjected to transverse load
• Seam opens to certain extent
• Load measured for specific opening
distance
OR
• Opening at specific load measured
 
Martindale Abrasion Tester

                                                                                                                  

                    
 Abrasion test
• Fabric samples subjected to abrasion with
standard abrasive wool fabrics
• The damage visually estimated after
certain number of cycles
• The number of cycles required to produce
hole in the fabric, noted
 Pilling
 Pilling is a process of formation of pill because of entanglement of
surface fibers during wear. The propensity of pilling is determined by the
rates of following parallel processes:
 fiber entanglement leading to pill formation
 development of more surface fiber
 fiber and pill wear off

 Fabric propensity to surface fuzzing and pilling is determined by:

 Martindale Method
 Pill box method
 Random tumble method
 Pilling Test
• The martindale abrasion tester can be
used for pilling test
• Number of pills formed after specific
number of cycles is measured
• The samples are checked after
5000,10,000cycle etc.
Pilling test
 Pill Box Method
 Principle
 Specimen are mounted on polyurethane tubes and
tumbled randomly in a cork-lined box at a constant
rotational speed. Fuzzing and pilling is assessed
visually after a defined period of tumbling

 Any special treatment of the test specimen i.e.

washing, dry cleaning, has to be agreed upon and
shall be stated in the test report.
• Pill testing box:
– A cubical box with internal dimensions before lining of
235 mm. All internal surfaces of the box shall be lined
with cork jointing material of 3.2 mm thickness . The
box shall be rotated at 60 ± 2 /r/min about a horizontal
axis passing through the centers of two opposite
faces. One side of the box shall be removable for
access.
• Polyurethane specimen tubes
– Four each 140 mm long x 35 mm outside diameter x
3.2 mm wall thickness mass 52.25 ± 1.0g
• Self-adhesive polyvinyl chloride (PVC) tape
– 19 mm wide
 Visual Assessment of Pilling
• 5 - No Visual Change
• 4 - Slight surface fuzzing and/ or partially formed pills.
• 3 - Moderate surface fuzzing/or moderate pilling.
– Pills of varying size and density partially covering the specimen
• 2 - Distinct surface fuzzing and/ or distinct pilling.
– Pills of varying size and density covering a large proportion of
specimen.
• 1 - Dense surface fuzzing and / or severe pilling.
– Pills of varying size and density covering the whole of the
specimen
 WOVEN FABRIC SHRINKAGE   AATCC-
135 Method (ISO 3759)

• 1. Sample size   50 cms X 50 cms

• 2. Marking area 35 cms X 35 cms
• 3. Samples weight should be 1.8kg +/- 0.1 kg
• (If the sample weight is less than 1.8kg put the dummy cloth and
maintain the weight of 1.8 kgs).
• 4.Liquour Ratio : 1:50
• 5.Suitable detergent  (0.5%) on the weight of sample i.e 1.8kgs
• 6.At 40deg C for 60 minutes in Washcator.
• 7.Drying at 60degC to 65degC using tumble dryer.
• 8.Pressing in flat bed hot press  at 150deg  +/- 15°C with 30
gms/cm2 pressure.
• 9.Conditioning and measurement.
Shrinkage template & Measuring
Scale
• Shrinkage % = [100 x (a-b)]/a
• where a = Distance between two ends
before treatment
•            b = Distance between two ends
after treatment.
 Washing Machines

Front loading Top loading

Home Laundering Standard
(AATCC)
Drying Standards
 Equipment Needed
• Launder-O-Meter
• A canister and 50 steel balls
• 0.225 g of laundry detergent (.15% of weight of
liquor)
• 0.5 inch strip of the multi-fiber test fabric
• 150mL de-ionized water
• 6” x 2” sample
• AATCC Gray Scale for Color Change
• AATCC Gray Scale for Staining
Launderometer
 Test Method for color fastness to
washing
• Sample Preparation:
• Loading the Launder-O-Meter
• Start the Launder-O-Meter and allow to
run for 45 minutes
• Rinsing, Extracting, and Drying
• Preparation for Evaluation
• Color Change Evaluation
• Staining Evaluation
 Multifiber strip
(for Staining evaluation)
 AATCC Test Methods
Test Temp. C Liquor vol. Steel Time %detergent Canister Sample size
ml balls min. total vol. size ml

1A 40 200 10 45 0.37 500 50 X 100

mm

2A 49 150 50 45 0.15 1200 50 X 150

mm

3A 71 50 100 45 0.15 1200 50 X 150

mm

4A 71 50 100 45 0.15+ 0.015% 1200 50 X 150

available Cl mm

5A 49 150 50 45 0.15+0.027% 1200 50 X 150

available Cl mm
Rubbing Fastness

Crock meter
 Standard cotton fabric is
rubbed against the surface of
colored textile specimen to
Rubbing peg check the transfer of color.

Rubbing area
 Rubbing fastness

White Fabric on finger of Crockmeter

The finger rubs for 10 times (to and fro)
Dry or wet rubbing
The original fabric is rated for color loss and
stained fabric rated using gray sale
 Fastness to perspiration

A specimen of colored textile in contact with multifibre fabric (for

color transfer) is wet out in simulated acid perspiration solution,
subjected to a fixed mechanical pressure and allowed to dry slowly at
a slightly elevated temperature.  After conditioning, the specimen is
evaluated for color change and the other fiber materials are evaluated
for color transfer.
 Perspiration test solutions
• Alkaline Solution:
• Hisidine monochloride monohydrate
• Soium chloride
• Disodiumhydrogen orthophosphate
• Acidic Solution:
• Histidin Monohydrochloride
• Sodium Chloride
• Sodium dihydrogen Phosphate
 Fastness to chlorine bleach
• A method for determining the resistance of the
colour of natural cellulose textiles to the action of
severe bleaching with sodium chlorite as
ordinarily employed in textile processing. A
specimen in contact with one or two specified
adjacent fabrics is treated in a sodium chlorite
solution, rinsed and dried. The change in colour
of the specimen and the staining of the adjacent
fabric(s) are assessed with the grey scale.
 Fastness to dry cleaning
• A specimen in contact with multifiber
swatch and non corrodible steel balls is
agitated in perchloroethylene and then air
dried. Any change in color is then
assessed by using the Gray Scale for
Staining
Grey Scale for Assessing Shade
Change

Note 5 = no visual change (best rating)

to Note 1 = a large visual change (worst rating).
The grey scale has the 9 possible values:
5, 4-5, 4, 3-4, 3, 2-3, 2, 1-2, 1.
 Gray scale for Staining

Note 5 = no visual change (best rating)

to Note 1 = a large visual change (worst rating).
The grey scale has the 9 possible values:
5, 4-5, 4, 3-4, 3, 2-3, 2, 1-2, 1.
 Rating for Color Fastness
• The end result of any colorfastness test is a grade given to the
tested sample.

– Grade 5 - NO CHANGE

– Grade 4 - SLIGHT CHANGE

– Grade 3 - NOTICEABLE CHANGE

– Grade 2 - CONSIDERABLE CHANGE

– Grade 1 - SEVERE CHANGE

 Light fastness
• Light Source: Xenon Arc lamp
• Sample exposed to light simultaneously
with blue wool standards
• Duration upto fading of 4 as per gray scale
• Faded sample graded comparing with
exposed blue wool standards
• Rating L-2 to L-9
 Blue wool Standards

Rating of Sample –
by comparison with
Blue wool
standards

L2 to L9