Wash–dry cycle induced changes in low‐ordered parts of regenerated cellulosic fibers

Abstract

AbstractThree regenerated cellulosic fiber types: lyocell, viscose, and modal were subjected to repetitive wet–dry treatments. Simulated treatments showed reorganization of the internal fiber structure which could be determined by accessibility studies. The reduction in liquid water retention capacity was found to be greater for lyocell than that for modal and viscose, sorption of iodine, and water vapor reduced for all studied fibers. The wet–dry treatment did not have influence on chemical reactivity of cellulosic fibers characterized by complexation of iron under highly alkaline conditions. The effect of wet–dry treatment on the tenacity, elongation at break, abrasion resistance, and molecular weight distribution of fibers was also explored in this study. The reduced strength in treated specimens was not accompanied by changes in molecular weight distributions. Based on these results, the changes observed in wet–dry‐treated specimens were observed mainly owing to polymer reorganization in amorphous parts of the fibers. © 2012 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci, 2012