Analyzing Chemical and Physical Variations in Selected Cotton Wires at Ambient Temperatures and Conditions

Abstract

Cotton, a hydrophilic textile fiber, has unstable characteristics and, for this rea-son, it varies its properties according to the environmental changes. Moisture and temperature are the two most important factors that lead a cotton spinning sector and influence its quality. Those two properties can change the entire spinning process. Understanding this, moisture and temperature must be kept under control during the spinning process; once the environment is hot and dry, the cotton yarns absorb moisture and lose the minimal consistency. According to this information, this chapter was developed testing four types of cotton yarns, one kind of cotton from Brazil and the others from Egypt. The yarns were exposed to different temperatures and moisture in five different tests, and in each test, six samples were examined through physical and mechanical tests: resistance, strength, tenacity, yarn’s hairiness, yarn’s evenness, and yarn’s twisting. All the analyses were accom-plished at Laboratório de Mecânica dos Fluidos and at COATS Corrente S.A., where it was possible to use the equipment which were fundamental to development of this chapter, such as the STATIMAT ME, which measures strength, tenacity; Zweigler G566, which measure hairiness in the yarn; a skein machine; and a twisting machine. The analyses revealed alterations in the yarn’s characteristics in a direct way; for example, as moisture and temperature were increased, the yarn’s strength, tenacity, and hairiness were increased as well. Having the results of all analyses, it is possible to say that with a relatively low temperature and high humidity, cotton yarns have the best performance.