A study of the thermal properties of bamboo knitted fabrics

Chidambaram Prakash, Govindan Ramakrishnan & Chandramouli Venkataraman Koushik

Journal of Thermal Analysis and Calorimetry An International Forum for Thermal Studies ISSN 1388-6150 Volume 111 Number 1 J Therm Anal Calorim (2013) 111:101-105 DOI 10.1007/s10973-011-2166-5

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Author's personal copy

J Therm Anal Calorim (2013) 111:101105 DOI 10.1007/s10973-011-2166-5

A study of the thermal properties of bamboo knitted fabrics

Chidambaram Prakash Govindan Ramakrishnan Chandramouli Venkataraman Koushik

Received: 12 October 2011 / Accepted: 15 December 2011 / Published online: 31 January 2012 miai Kiado , Budapest, Hungary 2012 Akade

Abstract In this research, the thermal properties of bamboo single jersey knitted fabrics have been studied in relation to stitch length and yarn linear density in tex. The objective was to determine the inuence of fabric factors like stitch length and the constituent yarn linear density on fabric properties, such as air permeability, thermal conductivity, thermal resistance and relative water vapour permeability. Yarns with linear densities of 19.6, 23.6, 29.5 tex and with the same twist level were used to construct the fabrics of single jersey structure with stitch lengths of 0.27, 0.29 and 0.31 cm. The anticipated increase in air permeability and relative water vapour permeability with decrease in yarn linear density and increase in stitch length was observed. The thermal conductivity and thermal resistance tended in general to increase with constituent yarn linear density but decreased with increase in stitch length. Keywords Thermal properties Yarn count Air permeability Water vapour permeability Thermal conductivity Thermal resistance

Introduction Comfort, which dened as states in which there are no driving impulses to correct the environment by the behaviour [1]. Clothing comfort is closely related to thermal comfort [2, 3]. The body produces lots of heat energy and the body temperature increases. To reduce the high temperature, the body perspires a lot in liquid and vapour form. Whilst this perspiration is transmitted to atmosphere, the body temperature reduces and then the body feels cool. So the garments should allow the perspiration to pass through, otherwise it will result in discomfort. Comfort plays a vital role in the selection of apparel. It is considered as a fundamental property when a clothing product is evaluated. The comfort provided by clothing depends on several factors. One of them is thermal comfort; other factors include softness, exibility, moisture diffusion, etc. Thermal comfort properties of textile fabrics are actually inuenced by the gamut of bre, yarn and fabric properties. Fibre type, spinning technology, yarn linear density, yarn twist, yarn hairiness, fabric thickness, fabric cover factor, fabric porosity and nish are major factors that determine the comfort properties of fabrics [1]. Knitted fabrics are known to possess excellent comfort properties. They not only allow for stretch and ease of movement, but they also have good handle and facilitate easy transmission of water vapour from the body. These attributes make knitted fabrics the commonly preferred choice for sportswear, casual wear and underwear. Knitted structures offer several advantages. Physically, they present properties of comfort, such as high stretch and elasticity, snugness of t to body shape, soft and pleasing handle, feeling of freshness and the like. Knitted fabrics have therefore long been preferred as fabrics in many kinds of clothing. Efforts are on to make knitted fabrics more

C. Prakash (&) C. V. Koushik Department of Fashion Technology, Sona College of Technology, Salem 636005, India e-mail: dearcprakash@rediffmail.com C. V. Koushik e-mail: cvkoushik@yahoo.com G. Ramakrishnan TIFAC-CORE, Department of Fashion Technology, Kumaraguru College of Technology, Coimbatore 641049, India e-mail: g.ramki.15@gmail.com

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comfortable by incorporating different bres, altering yarn parameters like twist, bulk, count and nishing treatments, and knitting factors like stitch length, CPI, WPI and fabric weight and adopting new or different nishes [4]. In todays context, the naturally renewable resources are increasingly being sought after owing to mans commitment to protect nature. Chemical processes are being devised to produce new biodegradable materials. Such materials can successfully replace or improve the existing articial or natural materials. Bamboo bre is a regenerated cellulose bre, of relatively recent origin, produced from the bamboo plant. Bamboo is an important forest biomass resource [5]. A bamboo textile product has a host of incredible properties. It is breathable, cool and extremely soft; it has a pleasant lustre; it rapidly absorbs water and is antibacterial. Yarns of bamboo bre provide the desirable properties of high absorbency, antimicrobial behaviour and a soft feel in textiles and made ups [6]. It is also very hygroscopic, absorbing more water than other conventional bres, such as cotton and polyester. The most prominent attribute of bamboo material is its remarkable ability to breathe and its inherent coolness. The transverse section of bamboo bre is predominantly lled with innumerable microgaps and microholes, a characteristic that confers on the bre-enhanced moisture absorption and ventilation. Intimate clothing like sweaters and bathing suits, and household textiles, such as blankets and towels are increasingly being made from bamboo material. Bamboobre clothing products display good water absorption and are comfortable; they have a pleasing lustre and are bright in colour [7]. Bogun et al. [8] analysed the thermal properties of sodium alginate and calcium alginate bres containing nanoadditives. When ceramic nanoadditives (MMT, SiO2 and bioglass) are added to the material of calcium alginate bres, the nature of the thermal processes is not affected. Xu et al. [9] studied the characteristics of the regenerated bres depended on the procedure and raw materials, that clearly affected the material structure and, thereby properties. They found that thermal decomposition can facilitate to understand the relationship between the properties and structures of new regenerated cellulosic bres. Extensive research has been carried out to investigate the thermal comfort behaviour of knitted fabrics [38]. Oglakcioglu et al. [10] analysed the thermal properties of cotton and polyester basic knitted structures and found that each knitted structure trends to show quite different thermal comfort properties. Hu et al. [11] examined the effect modied organicinorganic hybrid materials on thermal properties of cotton fabrics. Both of the organic and inorganic parts of the coating contributed to the increase of char layers and a positive effect on the thermal stability for cotton fabrics. Ozdil et al. [12] conclude that whilst the thermal

resistance values decrease, water vapour permeability values increase with yarn twist and yarn count. Gun et al. [13] analysed the properties of fabrics made from 50/50 bamboo/ cotton yarns and compared them with those of fabrics made from 50/50 viscose/cotton and 50/50 modal/cotton yarns. The study compared the weight per unit area, thickness, bursting strength, air permeability and pilling of the fabrics, and it was found that fabric weight, thickness and air permeability was independent of bre type. This research investigates the inuence of different stitch lengths and different yarn linear densities in 100% bamboo knitted fabric on the thermal comfort properties of the single jersey fabrics. With this aim in mind, single jersey structures were produced with yarns of three different linear densities to three different stitch lengths in the fabric and their thermal comfort properties were evaluated and analysed.

Materials and methods Preparation of fabric samples Single jersey fabric was produced from 100% bamboo yarns of linear density 19.6, 23.6 and 29.5 tex possessing the same twist coefcient (ae = 3.6). Table 1 lists the properties of the bamboo bre used. The fabrics were produced in a Meyer and Cie knitting machine of the following details: Single jersey machine, model MV4, gauge 24 GG, diameter 2300 , speed 30 rpm, feeders 74 and number of needles 1728. The knitting-room atmosphere had a humidity of 65% and a temperature of 30 2 C. Samples were produced with three different stitch length values of 0.27, 0.29 and 0.31 cm. The knitting process was achieved with constant machine settings and the samples were kept in standard atmosphere for 24 h to allow for relaxation and conditioning. Evaluation of fabric properties Structural properties like weight (mass per unit area) and thickness were evaluated. Thermal comfort properties, namely thermal conductivity, thermal resistance, water vapour permeability and air permeability were also evaluated. The Alambeta instrument was used to measure thermal conductivity, fabric thickness and thermal resistance; water vapour permeability was measured on a
Table 1 Properties of the bamboo bre Fibre length/mm Fibre neness/dtex Tenacity/cN tex-1 36 1.52 19.87

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A study of the thermal properties 103
Air permeability/cm3 cm2 s1 700 600 500 400 300

Permetest instrument working on the simulated skin principle as recommended in ISO 11092; fabric air permeability was measured according to the TS 391 EN ISO 9237 using Tester FX3300. All measurements were performed under the standard atmospheric conditions.

Results and discussion The fabric properties are given in Table 2. Air permeability The air permeability of the fabrics is depicted in Fig. 1. It may be seen that the fabric composed of 19.6-tex yarn and with 0.31-cm stitch length is the most permeable fabric of all. The yarn neness in combination with the large loop length results, as expected, in an open structure. The obvious decrease in fabric thickness and weight may also be clearly seen in Table 2. The results show that fabric thickness has a signicant effect on the air permeability values of the bamboo fabric, as air permeability tended to increase as thickness decreased, irrespective of yarn linear density and stitch length. The lower thickness and mass per square metre also facilitate the passage of air through the fabric. The lower hairiness of the bamboo blended yarns may be another contributing factor towards the better air permeability [9]. Fabrics made from ner tex show higher air permeability consistently. The mass per square metre and thickness of the fabrics made from the ner tex are lower. All these factors contribute towards the higher air permeability. Thermal conductivity It is observed from the Fig. 2 that as the linear density and stitch length of bamboo bre increases, the thermal conductivity of the knitted fabrics reduces. For the same stitch

200 100 0
0.27 cm 0.29 cm 0.31cm 0.27 cm 0.29 cm 0.31 cm 0.27 cm 0.29 cm 0.31 cm

29.5 Tex

23.6 Tex

19.6 Tex

Fig. 1 Inuence of loop length and linear density on air permeability

length, ner tex yarns show lower thermal conductivity. Thermal conductivity is calculated using the following expression. Qh k Wm1 K1 ; ADTt where Q is the amount of conducted heat (J), A is the area through which the heat is conducted (m2), t is the time of conductivity (s), DT is the drop of temperature (K) and h is the fabric thickness (m). The amount of bre in the unit area increases and the amount of air layer decreases as the weight increases. As is known, thermal conductivity values of bres are higher than the thermal conductivity of entrapped air. The lower thermal conductivity of fabrics made from the ner counts could be ascribed to the higher porosity value of the fabrics made from the ner yarns [3]. Thermal resistance As can be seen from the Table 2, as the fabric thickness decrease, the thermal resistance values decreases. This situation might be explained by the fabric thickness. The fabric thickness value is signicantly lower in 0.31-cm

Table 2 Effect of stitch length and yarn linear density on the thermal properties of the single jersey fabrics Linear density in tex 29.5 Loop length/ cm 0.27 0.29 0.31 23.6 0.27 0.29 0.31 19.6 0.27 0.29 0.31 Fabric thickness/ mm 0.598 0.572 0.563 0.552 0.542 0.529 0.540 0.528 0.519 Weight in unit area/ gm-2 176 149 128 110 101 97 94 85 80 Air permeability/ cm3 cm-2 s-1 304 364 389 402 467 499 542 558 574 Relative water vapour permeability/ % 43.01 42.05 40.44 46.04 44.97 42.33 49.28 48.04 46.68 Thermal conductivity/ Wm-1 K-1 9 10-3 42.22 41.13 40.77 42.94 41.87 40.02 42.1 40.1 38.1 Thermal resistance/ m2 KW-1 9 10-3 18.44 17.99 17.03 18.32 17.74 17.01 16.78 16.35 16.05

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Relative water vapour permeability/% 60 50 40 30 20 10 0
0.27 cm 0.29 cm 0.31 cm 0.27 cm 0.29 cm 0.31 cm 0.27 cm 0.29 cm 0.31 cm

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Thermal resistance/m2 KW1 103 19 18.5 18 17.5 17 16.5 16 15.5 15 14.5
0.27 cm 0.29 cm 0.31 cm 0.27 cm 0.29 cm 0.31 cm 0.27 cm 0.29 cm 0.31 cm

29.5 Tex

23.6 Tex

19.6 Tex

29.5 Tex

23.6 Tex

19.6 Tex

Fig. 2 Inuence of loop length and linear density on thermal conductivity

Fig. 4 Inuence of loop length and linear density on relative water vapour permeability

Thermal conductivity/Wm1 K1 44 43 42 41 40 39 38 37 36 35
0.27 cm 0.29 cm 0.31 cm 0.27 cm 0.29 cm 0.31 cm 0.27 cm 0.29 cm 0.31 cm 29.5 Tex 23.6 Tex 19.6 Tex

facilitate the easy passage of the water vapour through the fabrics.

Conclusions In this study, the thermal properties of single jersey fabrics knitted with 19.6-, 23.6-, 29.5-tex 100% bamboo yarns with different stitch lengths were investigated. The increase of linear density and stitch length in the fabric affected thermal comfort properties. So thermal resistance and thermal conductivity values of these fabrics were compared and it was found that as the yarn gets ner the thermal resistance and thermal conductivity decrease. The water vapour permeability and air permeability shows concomitant increase as the linear density and stitch length increases.

Fig. 3 Inuence of loop length and linear density on thermal resistance

loop length with 19.6-tex linear density (Fig. 3). Therefore, with the decreasing of fabric thickness, thermal resistance will decrease as it is given in Eq. 1. h m ; R m2 KW1 k Wm1 K1 1

where h is thickness (m) and k is the thermal conductivity (W/m K). Relative water vapour permeability Figure 4 illustrates the values of water vapour permeability with respect to stitch length and different linear density. According to the results, there is no signicant difference between the relative water vapour permeability values of bamboo fabrics. The water vapour permeability is highly dependent on the macroporous structure of constituent bres. According to the results, as the linear density of bamboo bre increases, the water vapour permeability increases. The water vapour permeability is higher for the fabrics made from ner tex yarns. The higher water vapour permeability of bamboo fabrics can be attributed to the lower values of mass per square metre and thickness, which

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