Pilling of Textiles
Pilling of Textiles
Pilling of Textiles
Agenda
What is pilling? Definition Measurement of Pills (Testing) Factors affecting pill formation Yarn (Open-end; Ring spun yarn and air-jet) Fabric (Woven and Knitted fabric)
Pilling
The pills are formed during wear and washing by the entanglement of loose fibres that protrude from the fabric surface. Under the influence of rubbing action, these loose fibres develop into agglomerations anchored to the fabric by a few unbroken fibres.
Definition
Pilling is a fabric surface fault in which pills of entangled fibres cling to the cloth surface, giving a bad appearance to the garment. The entanglements of loose fibres that appear on the fabric surface are called pills. The International Fabricare Institute defines pilling as the formation of small tangles of fibres or balls on the surface of fabric. Pilling changes the appearance and texture of the fabric.
Pilling appearance
Measurement of Pills
The measurement of pills is in two stages. The first stage is the formation of pills by means of laboratory-test apparatus. The second stage is the evaluation of pills (subjectively by experts) Objective methods characterize pills in terms of their number, weight and size. The combination of counting the pills as a measurement of pilling propensity and weighting the number with respect to their size is quite complex.
Pilling Tester
Random Tumble Pilling Tester ICI pilling box tester
During testing, apiece of fabric is sewn in place firmly round a rubber tube. It is rotated in the pilling box at 60r/min for 5 hours. After tumbling, the extent of pilling is assessed visually by comparison with arbitrary standard.
2. Yarn Twist
1. The higher the twist in yarn, the less is the pilling because of the compactness and because there is less protruding fibre in the yarn. 2. Doubled yarn gives less pilling than singles yarn
C) Fabric type
1.
2. 3. 4.
5.
Knitted fabrics tend to pill more readily than woven fabrics. Since knitted constructions are composed of a series of loops, a greater amount of yarn surface is exposed, making them more susceptible to abrasion in wear. Moreover, knitted fabrics are more often constructed of low-twist yarns made of staple fibres to give a soft, bulky feel and appearnace. Again, the staple fibres have a greater chance of working their way to the surface of fabric to form pilling Dry relaxed knitted fabrics made from yarns with a higher proportion of acrylic fibres exhibit a greater pilling tendency. The incidence of pilling considerably reduces with an increase in twist and the tightness factor after full-relaxation treatments
E) Weave Structure
The twill-woven fabric gives substantially more pills than the plain-woven fabric. The greater number of interlacings and shortlengths in the plain-woven fabric probably reduce the opportunity for the free ends to emerge on the fabric surface and thus reduce pilling. The long floats in a twill weave expose longer lengths of fibres to the surface and increase the chance for pilling. This means that pilling can be reduced by the correct choice of weave
Discussion
What is pilling? What are the effects of yarn count and yarn twist on pilling? Why knitted fabric tends to pill more often than woven fabric? Which woven structure will cause more pilling, plain weave or twill weave?
Reference
Pilling by J.O. Ukponmwan Textile Progress, Vol 28, No. 3 by Textile Institute (TS1300 .T515, V. 28, No. 3) Physical testing of textiles, B.P. Saville, the Textile Institute