Evaluation of the tensile stress relaxation of biaxial warp-knitted fabrics regarding fabric interweaving structure

Abstract

Stress relaxation is a time-dependent mechanical behavior of textile materials, which can affect the performance of the fabrics in various applications, especially technical applications such as tensile structures, geotextiles, and medical textiles. The present study aims to consider the effect of fabric structure (Tricot, Locknit, Satin, Queen’s cord, Reverse Locknit, and Sharkskin) on the tensile stress relaxation of biaxial warp-knitted fabrics. According to the results, the fabric structure remarkably influences its stress relaxation. The stress relaxation of the fabric in the course direction increases by increasing the length of underlaps in the front and back guide bars. Using elastic yarns as weft yarns in the fabric structure reduces the stress relaxation of the fabric in the course direction without affecting the fabric’s stress relaxation in the wale direction. Finally, to improve the functionality of pressure garments under stress relaxation, using elastic weft yarns in the fabric structure and bounding the warp and weft yarns in the biaxial warp-knitted fabrics by the Tricot structure is proposed.