The bursting strength properties of knitted fabrics containing recycled polyester fiber

Abstract

The use of recycled materials has become increasingly important in both the textile and apparel industry. Recycling means the breakdown of raw materials from existing products and the re-use of the as-obtained raw material in a new product. Many fibers including cotton, wool, nylon, and even aramids are recycled and are re-used in yarn manufacturing, but polyester is especially the most common fiber used for this purpose. The bursting strength properties of knitted fabrics, having blend yarns at different yarn numbers that contain recycled polyester fiber, were researched in this study. For this purpose, blend yarns containing viscose fiber and recycled polyester (rPET) fiber at different blend ratios, and pure yarns with virgin polyester fiber were produced, and after that, these yarns were knitted. The study results revealed that the rPET fibers provided the bursting strength values which are close to that of virgin PET fibers for the knitted fabrics having coarse yarns, whereas they do not contribute positively to the knitted fabrics having fine yarns. Thus, it is once more proved that the use of rPET fiber is more suitable for the knitted fabrics containing coarse yarns, and it is not definitely proper for the ones having Ne 40 yarns.