Abstract
Certain investigations on the thermophysiological and tactile comfort properties of silk/lyocell blended fabrics have been carried out. A series of yarns were produced as 100% silk (S 100), 75% silk and 25% lyocell (S/L 75:25), 50% silk and 50% lyocell (S/L 50:50), 25% silk and 75% lyocell (S/L 25:75) and 100% lyocell (L 100) and converted to woven fabrics keeping the same fabric set. FTIR study on silk, lyocell and silk/lyocell blended fabrics show the characteristic functional groups for the respective fabrics. The effects of blend compositions on thermophysiological and tactile comfort properties were examined and the results show that thermal resistance of the fabrics containing silk has a higher value in comparison with lyocell-rich blends. Water vapour permeability, absorbency and wickability for lyocell and lyocell-rich blends are found to be superior as compared to 100% silk fabrics. With respect to drape, bending length and crease recovery the lyocell rich fabrics are good in comparison with 100% silk fabrics. The results are discussed using one way ANOVA with 5% significant level. Keywords: silk, lyocell, blending, comfort, eco-friendly.
Highlights
Clothing comfort is considered as a fundamental need for consumers and is defined as a pleasant state arising out of physiological, psychological and physical harmony between a human being and the environment
Absorbency and wickability for lyocell and lyocell-rich blends are found to be superior as compared to 100% silk fabrics
Fourier transform infrared spectra (FTIR) spectra for S/L 25:75 clearly show peaks at 3285 cm-1 which corresponds to the –OH stretching band of cellulose, peak at 2925 cm-1 which corresponds to the C-H stretching, peak at 1620 cm-1 which corresponds to the NO2 groups, peak at 1530 cm-1 which corresponds to nitrile compounds and a peak at 1443 cm-1 which corresponds to CH alkane group [13]
Summary
Clothing comfort is considered as a fundamental need for consumers and is defined as a pleasant state arising out of physiological, psychological and physical harmony between a human being and the environment. The literature generally classifies clothing comfort into three broad categories namely, aesthetic comfort, thermo-physiological comfort and tactile comfort. Aesthetic appeal or psychological comfort is mainly based on subjective feelings and fashion trends that influence customer preferences. Thermophysiological comfort relates to the ability of the fabric to maintain thermal equilibrium between the human body and the environment. Thermal, moisture and air resistance properties of the clothing material collectively contribute to the state of thermophysiological comfort of the wearer. The tactile comfort is related to the feel of the fabric against the human body and is an intrinsic and essential performance requirement in clothing. Numerous systems have been developed to test the fabric tactile properties such as bending and drape [1, 2]
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