Facile fabrication and comparative exploration of high cut resistant woven and knitted composite fabrics using Kevlar and polyethylene

Anam Ali Memon,Mazhar H Peerzada,Iftikhar Ali Sahito,Sadaf Abbassi,Sung Hoon Jeong

doi:10.1186/s40691-017-0122-0

Anam Ali Memon, Mazhar H Peerzada + Show 3 more

Open Access

https://doi.org/10.1186/s40691-017-0122-0

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Abstract

Composite materials offer a number of distinct advantages in a wide range of low and high technology engineering applications. Considering the fact, in this study, a facile fabrication method of highly cut resistant composite fabrics using Kevlar and polyethylene is reported. 100% Kevlar, 100% Polyethylene and 50% Kevlar/50% Polyethylene composite fabrics are fabricated by weaving and knitting techniques. These fabrics were tested for cut index, abrasion, and puncture resistance for comparative exploration. Owing to higher mechanical strength and greater number of interlacements; the woven fabrics demonstrated twice cut resistance in contrast to knitted fabrics. The surface morphology of deformed samples investigated by Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM) also proved that the woven fabrics of all types offered much resistance towards cutting than the knitted fabrics. Moreover, it is found that greater thickness of fabrics leads to intensification of the cut resistance. Furthermore, the effect of fiber type on cut resistant property of the fabrics was also measured and it was found that the composite fabric exhibited double cut resistance than 100% Kevlar and 100% Polyethylene fabrics. The 50% Kevlar/50% Polyethylene composite woven fabric resisted up to 35 consecutive strokes of sharp steel cutter whereas the knitted fabric completely torn apart at 20 strokes only. Thus, the as synthesized 50% Kevlar/50% Polyethylene composite woven fabric exhibiting superior cut resistance property offer a judicious choice for the preparation of efficient cut resistant fabric for industrial and domestic applications.

Highlights

IntroductionDomestic, and workplace activities put personnel at a danger of injuries to their arms, hands or fingers which might be harmful superficial cuts or deep lacerations. the injuries incurred during domestic chores are not given much attention, whereas wounds instigated at industries (Ceballos et al 2014; van Holland et al 2015), sports, like snowboarding, skiing etc. (Loyd et al 2015) and medical centers (Fritzsche et al 2012) have attracted a great deal of researchers.Memon et al Fash Text (2018) 5:5The conventional protective clothing based on metallic wires, ceramics, rubber or leather were thick, bulky and rigid (Chediak et al 1998; Stansbury 1980); reducing both dexterity and grip of the wearer
To understand the cut behaviour of the fabrics, FE-Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM) was used and the images of cut woven and knitted composite fabrics are presented in the Fig. 3
It is concluded that the woven fabric possess better cut resistance property compared to the knitted fabric of same gauge

Summary

Introduction

Domestic, and workplace activities put personnel at a danger of injuries to their arms, hands or fingers which might be harmful superficial cuts or deep lacerations. the injuries incurred during domestic chores are not given much attention, whereas wounds instigated at industries (Ceballos et al 2014; van Holland et al 2015), sports, like snowboarding, skiing etc. (Loyd et al 2015) and medical centers (Fritzsche et al 2012) have attracted a great deal of researchers.Memon et al Fash Text (2018) 5:5The conventional protective clothing based on metallic wires, ceramics, rubber or leather were thick, bulky and rigid (Chediak et al 1998; Stansbury 1980); reducing both dexterity and grip of the wearer. The protective clothing’s are mostly based on high performance fibers Special organic fibers such as para aramids, carbon, high molecular weight polyethylene (HMWPE) and inorganic fibers like glass are used for such purpose (LaBarre et al 2015). Mayo et al reported different cut resistance behavior of organic and inorganic fibers due to their isotropic and anisotropic structure of fibers. They highlighted the cut resistance dependency on various factors like blade sharpness, slice angle and pre-tension in the yarn. Among the various high strength polymer fibers, Kevlar and polyethylene are widely used for the manufacturing of protective materials. Polyethylene (PE) is one of the most versatile and widely used thermoplastics in the world because of its toughness, near zero moisture absorption, excellent chemical inertness, low coefficient of friction, ease of processing and unusual electrical properties (Cwik et al 2016; Golovin and Phoenix 2016; Huang et al 2007; O’Masta et al 2015)

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