Correlation of shearing properties with the structure of garment leathers

Abstract

Shearing property is of fundamental importance in influencing the complex deformations of a garment leather during use. The properties such as stretch, shape retention etc., are closely related to the shearing behaviour of garment leather. Although, textile fabrics have been investigated extensively for their shearing properties(1-3), the studies on leather have been limited. It is logical to expect the three-dimensional structure of leather and the intrinsic properties of collagenous fibre would be markedly different from those of other textile fabrics. The shearing property of a fabric can be expected to be influenced by its weave and matrix structure. An attempt has now been made to correlate the ultra and micro structural details of a garment leather with its shearing properties.A simple instrument has now been developed to assess the shearing behaviour of a soft fabric like garment leather. The shear test on garment leather involves the radial deformation of a sample piece by small degrees and measurement of the resultant shear stress and strain levels. Full chrome grain garment and suede garment leathers obtained from sheep skins were used for measurement of shearing properties.