Analysis of the effect of UV radiation on the recovery properties of pile carpet after static loading through analytical and viscoelastic modeling

Abstract

Different combinations of spring and dashpot systems are usually considered to model the mechanical behavior of textile materials. In this work, Jeffery’s mechanical model, which is a combination of spring and dashpot components, was used to model the recovery behavior of the pile carpet after static loading. The carpet samples were exposed to different levels of UV radiation. The short-term static loading was applied to the samples. The recovery response or thickness vs. time was then measured. By analyzing this model and using the best curve fitting based on the least square method, the viscoelastic parameters in each UV exposure time were calculated. Four attributes of compression were then studied. The results showed that the thickness loss and the maximum compression under a constant load were mainly dominated by the deterioration of the dashpot elements (Plastic part of deformation). The thickness loss and the maximum compression were both higher at longer UV exposure times. The thickness loss showed a good linear correlation with the inverse of the first dashpot constant, 1/η1. In contrast, the speed of recovery and the potential stored energy were mainly dominated by the parameters of the Voigt–Kelvin body, i.e. the elastic part of the compression.