Introduction to Textile Science

At the end of the course, students should be able to: 1. describe the processes involved in fibre, yarn and fabric manufacture; 2. identify methods of identification of fibres; 3. determine colour fastness; 4. describe basic textile terminologies, textile production processes and properties of different types of textile materials; 5. identify textiles’ physical properties tests; and 6. demonstrate the determination and interpretation of textiles’ physical properties.

Basic understanding of fibre, yarn and fabric manufacture. Study of the nature of materials. Structure and properties of fibre forming polymers. Textile processing, bleaching and mercerisation. Chemical methods of identification of fibres, analysis of blends, estimation of damage to fibre materials, determination of amount of size and filing material in fabrics. Understanding of colour fastness: fastness to washing, light, perspiration, crocking, gas fading and other parameters of assessing dye quality. Introduction to textile testing. Moisture relations in textiles, fibre testing (length, fineness, maturity), yarn testing, strength of textile materials. Fabric testing. Standards and specifications. Fibre and fabric failures and detection. Physical property tests: strength, abrasion resistance, crease recovery, stiffness, drapability, static charge, thermal conductivity, air permeability, water repellence, thickness, shrink resistance, pilling resistance. Methods of determining the physical properties and interpretation of test results.