© 2019 JETIR March 2019, Volume 6, Issue 3 www.jetir.

org (ISSN-2349-5162)

Influence of Loop length, Lycra Denier and Plating

structure on wicking behaviour of Single Jersey
Bamboo/Lycra Knitted Fabrics
Rajesh Kumar K1 , Karpagam Chinnammal S2
1
Research Scholar, 2 Assistant Professor
1
Textile Technology, Research & Development Center, Bharathiar University, Coimbatore, 641046, Tamil Nadu, India
2
Assistant Professor & Head of the Department, Chikkanna Govt Arts College,
Tirupur – 641602, Tamil Nadu, India.
Abstract : This study has been conducted to find out the wicking behaviour of Single Jersey Bamboo/Lycra differing in loop length,
Lycra Denier and Plating structure. The influence of loop length, Lycra Denier and Plating structure on wicking behaviour were tested
the results indicated that all the three factors had influence on wicking behavior properties. Lower loop length samples have better
wickability. Half Plated structures showed better moisture management properties compared to the Full Plated structures. Lycra Denier
has shown significant influence on the wicking behaviour of Single Jersey Bamboo/Lycra Knitted fabrics.

Keywords: Bamboo, Wicking behaviour, Knitted fabrics, Lycra Denier, Plating Structure.

1. INTRODUCTION

The fabric worn next to skin should have two important properties. The initial and the foremost property is to evaporate the
perspiration from the skin surface and the second property is to transfer the moisture to the atmosphere and make the wearer feel
comfortable. For comfort the rate of evaporation should be as close to the wicking rate as possible infers Rita, et al (1998). Moisture
management often refers to the transport of both moisture vapor and liquid away from the body. So, moisture management can be
defined as the controlled movement of water vapor and liquid water (perspiration) from the surface of the skin to the atmosphere through
the fabric, says Mohan (2007). Moisture management of textiles is dependent on wicking, wetting and drying of textiles.
Wicking is a property, which should be essentially good to get satisfactory moisture management. It is clear that absorption
of water and its transport to different parts of textiles followed by its evaporation is the major requirement. Transport of water to different
parts of fabric is called ‘Wicking’ opines Ghosh (2006) Wetting and wicking are two related processes. A liquid that does not wet fibers
cannot wick into a fabric and wicking can only occur when the fibers assembled with capillary space between them are wetted by a
liquid. Fiber wettability is therefore a prerequisite for wicking remarks Kissa (1996). Wetting and wicking are fundamentally important
to many industrial processes and to the functional performance of fibrous material remarks Miller (1973). Wicking can be categorized
into longitudinal wicking and transverse wicking. Longitudinal wicking is along the plane of the fabric and transverse wicking is
perpendicular to the plane of the fabric says Ghosh (2006).
Sweating is the body’s natural process of cooling itself inherently for any human. The second skin that is the fabric which has
contact to the body skin surface must transport the sweat away from the skin to the outer layer where it can evaporate which leads to
keep the skin dry and the body comfortable. So wicking performance of a fabric is the key factor that decides how fast the fabric is able
to wick the sweat from the skin to the surface. It’s an act of capillary pressure and permeability of a fabric.
Wetting is the displacement of a fiber air interface with a fiber-liquid interface. Wicking is the spontaneous flow of liquid in a
porous substrate driven by capillary forces, says Kissa (1996). Wicking takes place only in wet fabrics and the contact angle decides
the wicking behavior opines Carla, et al (2009). Wicking is highly sensitive to the twist and structure of the yarns, says Murthy and
Sengupta (1985).
Bamboo fibres possess many excellent properties when used as textile materials such as high tenacity, excellent thermal
conductivity, resistant to bacteria, and high water and perspiration adsorption. Regenerated Bamboo fibre, called ecological fibre, has
many good properties such as anti-ultraviolet, anti-bacterial and odour-resistant, and is used for functional textile products. Bamboo
fabric absorbs and evaporates sweat very easily hence it gives a comfortable feel. It can be spun into 100% Bamboo yarn and also
blended with natural and man-made fibres like cotton, polyester, silk etc says Saravanan and Prakash , (2007). Lycra is the brand name
of the polyurethane or spandex fibre made by Du-pont. It is basically a grafted polymeric fibre and the speciality of the fibre is the very
high extensibility (up-to 400%), Ray (2011). Spandex is a synonym of elastane fiber. The generic name ‘spandex’ as defined by FTC
is A manufactured fiber in which fiber forming substance is a long chain synthetic polymer comprised of at least 85% of a segmented
polyurethane Spandex Fiber, (2015)
According to Schwartz et al .,(1982) knitting is defined to be the formation of fabric by the intermeshing of loops of yarn.
While weaving requires a set of yarn, knitting is possible using only a single set of yarn. The set may consist of a single yarn or a single
group of yarn. The properties of knitted fabric - extensibility, ravelling, mass, thickness, shape retention, etc. greatly depends on the
stitch and the kind of yarn used for manufacturing knitted fabric. The simplest and most widely used weft knit fabric is ‘plain’ knit
fabric. It consists of face loop stitches only. The technical face and back sides of a plain knit fabric have a ‘V’- shaped loop appearance
on the technical face side and show a semi-circular loop on the technical back side views Ajgaonkar (2006). Single Jersey is produced
by the needles knitting as a single set, drawing the loops away from the technical back and towards the technical side of the fabric

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defines Spencer (2001). Plating is a technique of simultaneous knitting with two or more yarns differing in colour, material, properties
etc. to produce some special effect on fabric surface. A Plated structure contains loops composed of two or more yarns, often with
differing physical properties, Ray (2011)
The main process performed in any knitting machine is loop formation. The loop forming operation on the needles of the
knitting machine may be carried out consecutively and simultaneously, quotes Kudriavin (1985). The loop length is used to determine
the dimensions and properties of the knits. Spencer (2001) views that loop lengths combine in the form of course lengths that influence
fabric dimensions and other properties including weight. Variations in course length between one fabric and another can produce size
variations, while course length variations within structures can produce horizontal barriers and impair the appearance of the fabric.

1.1 Objectives

1. To produce Single Jersey Bamboo/Lycra fabric varying in loop length, Lycra Denier and Plating structure.
2. To evaluate the wicking behaviour of the produced Bamboo/Lycra Knitted fabrics.
3. To analyze and compare the influence of loop length, Lycra Denier and Plating structure on Wicking Behaviour.

2. METHODOLOGY

The experimental samples were knitted on a Mayer & Cie circular high-speed knitting machine having a cylinder diameter
of 30 inch, needle gauge of 28. The total number of needles was 2640. The number of feeders was 64 and the machine speed was 25
rpm. An ultra feeder tension controller was used to maintain a constant tension of 3 cN on the inlay yarn. Raw materials used were
Bamboo yarn of 30s Ne. To blend with Bamboo yarn, Lycra of 20 and 40 Denier were used. Single Jersey structure with 40 Denier and
20 Denier Lycra, Full Plated, Half Plated structures with 2.9 mm, 3.1 mm and 3.3 mm of loop length was produced.

Table - I
Properties of Bamboo Yarn

Yarn Linear Density 19.68 tex

Diameter (mm) 0.185

Unevenness % 9.33

Thick/Km (+50%) 12

Thin/Km (-50%) 2

Hairiness longer than 3mm/Km 523

Neps/Km 18

Tenacity cN/tex 16.13

Elongation % 9.21

Table - II
Properties of Lycra filaments

Specifications 20 Denier 40 Denier

% Elongation 412 445

Tbreak CN 12.7 26.6

TP200 CN 3.3 - 4.3 5.8 - 7.2

TM200 CN 0.44 - 0.7 0.86 -1.16

% Relaxation 13.5 - 21.5 7.6 - 11.8

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2.1 Nomenclature of Single Jersey Bamboo/Lycra knitted fabrics

Table - III
Nomenclature of Samples

Plate Lycra Loop Length Sample

Structure Denier (mm) Code

2.9 SFA1

Full Plated 3.1 SFA2

3.3 SFA3
40
2.9 SHA1

Half Plated 3.1 SHA2

3.3 SHA3

2.9 SFB1

Full Plated 3.1 SFB2

3.3 SFB3
20
2.9 SHB1

Half Plated 3.1 SHB2

3.3 SHB3

2.2 Evaluation of wickability of Single Jersey Bamboo/Lycra knitted fabrics

Five specimens each of 200 mm x 25 mm were cut along the Wales wise and Course wise directions. The specimen was
suspended vertically with its bottom end dipped in a reservoir of distilled water. In order to ensure that the bottom ends meet the water
level, specimens were immersed vertically at a depth of 30 mm into the water and the bottom end of each specimen was clamped with
a 1.2 g clip, as shown in Figure I. The wicking heights were measured for 10 minutes and recorded for direct evaluation.

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Figure - I
Schematic diagram of a typical vertical wicking apparatus

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3 RESULTS AND DISCUSSIONS
The wicking height of Single Jersey Bamboo/Lycra knitted fabrics were examined and are listed in the table below.

Table - IV
Wicking Height of Single Jersey Bamboo/Lycra knitted fabrics

WICKING HEIGHT (cms)

TIME (min)

SFA1 SFA2 SFA3 SHA1 SHA2 SHA3 SFB1 SFB2 SFB3 SHB1 SHB2 SHB3
Course

Course

Course

Course

Course

Course

Course

Course
course

course

course

course
Wale

Wale

Wale

Wale

Wale

Wale

Wale

Wale

Wale

Wale

Wale

Wale
1 0.6 1.5 0.6 1.5 0.5 1.8 1.7 2.8 1.8 2.2 1.8 2.5 0.7 1.2 0.7 1.3 0.6 1.2 1.5 2.4 0.8 1.7 0.6 1.5
2 1.3 2.4 1.3 2.5 1 2.7 2.5 4.2 2.7 4 2.5 3.9 1.2 2 1.3 2.1 1.4 2 2.1 3.5 1.2 2.8 1.4 3

3 2 3.1 1.8 3.3 1.5 3.5 4 4.8 3.5 4.8 3.5 5.1 2.5 2.4 2.2 2.5 2 2.8 2.8 4.1 2.4 3.2 1.8 3.3

4 2.3 4 2.2 4 1.9 4.1 4.4 5.5 4.2 5.7 4 5.5 3.1 3.6 2.8 3 2.3 3 3.4 4.8 2.7 4 2.5 4.2

5 2.6 4.6 2.5 4.7 2.2 4.6 5.9 6.5 6 6.5 4.8 6.3 3.5 4.2 3.2 3.7 2.8 3.5 3.7 5.2 3 4.8 2.8 4.7

6 3 5 2.8 5.2 2.6 5.1 6.5 7 6.3 7 5.2 6.6 4.3 4.5 3.8 4 3.1 4 4 5.7 3.2 5.2 3 5.6

7 3.4 5.5 3 5.7 2.8 5.8 7 7.2 6.6 7.5 5.7 7.2 4.6 4.8 4.3 4.5 3.5 4.4 4.4 6 3.7 5.8 3.5 6

8 3.7 5.8 3.3 6.1 3 6 7.2 7.5 6.8 7.8 6.1 7.5 5 5.5 4.7 4.7 3.9 4.8 4.7 6.3 4 6.1 3.7 6.4

9 4 6.1 3.6 6.4 3.2 6.2 7.4 8.4 7 8.4 6.3 7.7 5.5 6 4.9 4.9 4.2 5.1 5 6.5 4.6 6.4 4 7

10 4.3 6.4 3.8 6.7 3.5 6.5 7.7 9 7.2 8.7 6.9 8 5.8 6.4 5.1 5.3 4.4 5.5 5.2 6.8 5 6.8 4.1 7.2

From the above Table - IV , it's clearly visible that the course direction has better wickability than the wales direction across all specimens. As expected, as the time
increased the wicking height also increased. Sample SHA1 has the highest wicking height on both the wales and course directions. Sample SFA3 was found to have the lowest
wicking height of 3.5 cm in 10 minutes in wales direction and Samples SFA1 and SFB1 were found to be the lowest in wicking height, that is 6.4cms in 10 minutes in the course
directio

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3.1. Influence of loop length on wicking behaviour of Single Jersey Bamboo/Lycra knitted fabrics.

Figure - II
Comparison of Loop Length - Wales Direction

The above Figure - II depicts the wicking behaviour of Single Jersey Bamboo/Lycra knitted fabrics that have various loop
lengths of 2.9 mm, 3.1 mm and 3.3 mm in Wales direction. It’s apparent that samples with lowest loop lengths have higher wickability.
As the loop length increases, wicking height decreases.

Figure - III
Comparison of Loop Length - Course Direction

The above Figure - III depicts the wicking behaviour of Single Jersey Bamboo/Lycra knitted fabrics that have various loop
lengths of 2.9 mm, 3.1 mm and 3.3 mm in Course direction. For most of the samples lower loop lengths have shown better wickability.

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Figure - IV
Influence of loop length on wicking height at 10th Minute - Wales Direction

The above Figure - IV displays the influence of loop length on wicking behaviour of Single Jersey Bamboo/Lycra Knitted
fabrics in Wales direction in 10th minute. From the figure it’s apparent that samples with lower loop length have shown better wicking
height. As discussed on Figure - II, as the loop length increases, wicking height decreases. Single Jersey Bamboo/Lycra Half Plated 40
Denier with 2.9 loop length (SHA3) has highest wicking height of 7.7 cms and sample SFA3 has the lowest wickability in 10 th minute
that is 3.5 cms.

Figure - V
Influence of loop length on wicking height at 10th Minute - Course Direction

Figure - V shows the Influence of the loop length on wicking height of Single Jersey Bamboo/Lycra samples at 10 minutes in
course direction. In wales direction, wicking height is inversely proportional to the loop length and in the course direction, this was
observed only among samples SHA1, SHA2 and SHA3, that is samples with Half Plated and 40 Lycra Denier. In other samples no
definite pattern was observed while comparing looplength and wicking height, there were variations. It is obvious from the figure that
Single Jersey Half Plated 40 Denier with 2.9 loop length (SHA1) have the highest wickability of 9 cm in 10 th minute and sample SFB2
is found to have the lowest wicking height of 5.3 cm in 10 minutes.

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3.2. Influence of Lycra Denier on Wicking Behaviour of Single Jersey Bamboo/Lycra Knitted Fabrics.

Figure - VI
Comparison of Lycra Denier - Wales Direction

Figure - VI displays the wicking behaviour in Wales direction of Single Jersey Bamboo/Lycra knitted fabrics that have
Lycra Denier of 40 and 20 . It's evident from the figure that in samples with Half Plated structure with 40 Denier have higher wicking
height than the 20 Denier samples. In samples with Full Plated structure 40 denier samples have lower wicking performance than 20
denier samples in Wales direction. Single Jersey Half Plated 2.9 loop length with 40 Denier (SHA1) have highest wicking height and
samples SFA3 have the lowest wicking height.

Figure - VII
Comparison of Lycra Denier - Course Direction

The above Figure - VII displays the wicking behaviour of Single Jersey Bamboo/Lycra knitted fabric that have variance
in Lycra Denier 40 and 20 in Course direction. It can be observed from the figure that samples with 40 denier have better wickability
than 20 denier.

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Figure - VIII
Influence of Lycra Denier on Wicking Height at 10th Minute - Wales Direction

The above Figure - VIII shows the influence of Lycra Denier on the wicking height of Single Jersey Bamboo/Lycra knitted
fabrics in Wales Direction in the 10th Minute. From the figure it's understood that among Full Plated samples 20 Denier samples have
better wickability and among Half Plated samples 40 Denier samples have shown better wicking performance.

Figure - IX
Influence of Lycra Denier on Wicking Height at 10th Minute - Course Direction

Figure - IX depicts the influence of Lycra Denier on the wicking height of Single Jersey Bamboo/Lycra Knitted Fabrics in
Course Direction in the 10th Minute. As the figure shows, 40 Denier samples have better wicking performance than the 20 Denier
samples. Samples SFA1 and SFB both have yielded the same wicking height of 6.4 cm in 10 minutes.

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3.3. Influence of Plating Structure on Wicking Behaviour of Single Jersey Bamboo/Lycra Knitted Fabrics.

Figure - X
Comparison of Plating Structure - Wales Direction

The Figure - X denotes the wicking behaviour of Single Jersey Bamboo/Lycra Knitted fabrics that have variations in
plating structure in Wales direction. It’s obvious from the figure, samples with Half plating structure have yielded higher wicking
heights than the Full Plated samples. Single Jersey 40 Denier 2.9 loop length with Full plating structure (SFA1) have the highest wicking
performance whereas sample SFA2 have the lowest wicking performance.

Figure - XI
Comparison of Plating Structure - Course Direction

The Figure - XI denotes the wicking behaviour of Single Jersey Bamboo/Lycra Knitted fabrics that have variation in
plating structure in the Course direction. As in case of wales, in course direction also Half Plated samples have higher wickability than
the Full Plated samples.

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Figure - XII
Influence of Plating structure - Wales Direction

The Figure - XII displays the influence of Plating structure on wicking behaviour of Single Jersey Bamboo/Lycra Knitted
fabrics in Wales direction in 10th minute. Among 40 Denier samples Half Plated samples have better wickability and among 20 Denier
samples, Full Plated samples have better wickability.

Figure - XIII
Influence of Plating structure - Course Direction

The figure - XIII depicts the influence of plating structure on wicking behaviour of Single Jersey Bamboo/Lycra Knitted
fabric in course direction in 10th minute. In course direction, Half Plated samples have yielded higher wickability than the Full Plated
samples.

4. CONCLUSIONS

This study mainly focuses on the Influence of Loop length, Lycra Denier and Plating structure on the wicking behaviour
of the Bamboo/Lycra knitted fabrics of Single Jersey structure. Loop lengths, Lycra Denier and Plating structure has played an eminent
role and all the three factors have influenced the wicking behaviour as discussed above. According to the results derived from the
discussions, course directions have higher wicking performance than the Wales direction. When it comes to loop length variations,
lower loop length samples have better wickabilty than the higher loop lengths. This is due to the lower tightness factor and more porosity
in the lower loop lengths. Half Plated structure has shown higher performance in wicking the water content than the Full Plated samples
due to presence of Lycra yarn in alternative yarns in Half Plated samples, hence plating structure has greater influence on wickability.
20 Denier samples have produced slower wickability than the 40 Denier samples due to the larger diameter in 40 Denier Lycra. Hence
Lycra Denier has influenced wicking behaviour. Thus, it is evident that the 2.9 mm loop length Half Plated with 40 Denier sample
(SHA1) has the highest wicking performance among other samples.
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5. REFERENCES

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