Friday, March 29, 2013

Textile Dictonary




FABRIC: A planar textile structure produces by interlacing yarns, fibers, or filaments.

FABRIC CONSTRUCTION: The details of structure of fabric. Includes such information as
style, width, type of knit of weave, threads per inch in warp and fill, and weight of goods.

FABRIC CRIMP: The angulation induced between a yarn and
woven fabric via the weaving or braiding process.

FABRIC CRIMP ANGLE: The maximum acute angle of a single
weaving yarn’s direction measured from a plane parallel to the
surface of the fabric.

FABRIC SETT: The number of warp threads per inch, or other convenient unit.

FABRIC STABILIZER: Resin or latex treatment for scrims used in coated fabric manufacture
to stabilize the scrim for further processing.

FACE: The correct or better-looking side of a fabric.

FACING: A lining or trim that protects the edges of a garment especially at collars, cuffs, and
front closings.

FACONNÉ: A broad term for fabrics with a fancy-type weave made on a Jacquard or dobby
loom.
FADE-OMETER®: Laboratory device used to determine the fastness of a colored fabric to
exposure to light. The test pieces are rotated around a light source simulating the sun’s rays at
45° N latitude in July between the hours of 9 a.m. and 3 p.m. Fabrics are rated by visual
comparison with a gray scale according to degree of fading.

FAILLE: A soft, slightly glossy woven fabric made of silk, rayon, cotton, wool, or manufactured
fibers or combinations of these fibers and having a light, flat crossgrain rib or cord made by using
heavier yarns in the filling than in the warp.

FASCIATED YARN: Yarns consisting of a core of discontinuous fibers with little or no twist
and surface fibers wrapped around the core bundle.

FASHIONING: The process of shaping a fabric during knitting by increasing or decreasing the
number of needles in action. Fashioning is used in manufacturing hosiery, underwear, and
sweaters.

FATIGUE: Refers to the resistance of a material to weakening or failure during alternate
tension-compression cycles, i.e., in stretch yarns, the loss of ability to recover after having been
stretched.

FELL: 1. The end of a piece of fabric that is woven last. 2. In weaving, the last filling pick laid
in the fabric at any time.

FELT: 1. A nonwoven sheet of matted material of wool, hair, or fur, sometimes in combination
with certain manufactured fibers, made by a combination of mechanical and chemical action,
pressure, moisture, and heat. 2. A woven fabric generally made from wool, but occasionally from
cotton or certain manufactured fibers, that is heavily shrunk and fulled, making it almost
impossible to distinguish the weave.

FELTING: 1. The process of exposing wool fibers alone or in combination with other fibers to
mechanical and chemical action, pressure, moisture, and heat so that they tangle, shrink, and mat
to form a compact material. Felting is generally carried out in a fulling mill.

FESTOON DRYER: A dryer in which cloth is suspended in loops over a series of supporting horizontal poles and carried through the heated chamber in this configuration.

FIBER: A unit of matter, either natural or manufactured, that forms the basic element of fabrics and other textile structures. A fiber is characterized by having a length at least 100 times its diameter or width. The term refers to units that can be spun into a yarn or made into a fabric by various methods including weaving,  knitting, braiding, felting, and twisting. The essential requirements for fibers to be spun into yarn include a length of at least 5 millimeters, flexibility, cohesiveness, and sufficient strength. Other important properties include elasticity, fineness, uniformity, durability, and luster.

FIBER ARCHITECTURE: The spatial arrangement of fibers in the preform. Each architecture
has a definite repeating unit.

FIBER DISTRIBUTION: In a web, the orientation (random or parallel) of fibers and the
uniformity of their arrangement.

FIBERFILL: Manufactured fibers that have been specially engineered for use as filling material
for pillows, mattress pads, comforters, sleeping bags, quilted outerwear, etc. Polyester fibers are
widely used.

FIBER NUMBER: The linear density of a fiber expressed in units such as denier.

FIBER PLACEMENT: In general, refers to how the piles are laid into their orientation, i.e., by
hand, by a textile process, by a tape layer, or by a filament winder. Tolerances and angles are
specified. Microprocessor-controlled placement that gives precise control of each axis of motion
permits more intricate winding patterns than are possible with conventional winding and is used
to make composites that are more complex that usual filament-wound structures.

FIBRETS: Very short (1mm), fine (diameter 50) fibrillated fibers that are highly branched
and irregular resulting in very high surface area. Fibrets can be produced from a number of
substances including acetate, polyester, nylon, and polyolefins. By selection of polymer type and
incorporation of additives, they can be engineered to meet a range of specialized requirements.

FIBRIDS: Short, irregular fibrous products, made by mixing a dilute polymer solution with a
nonsolvent with agitation. They can also be made by flash spinning and breaking up the resulting
filaments. Used in felts, in papermaking, for filtration product, etc.

FIBRIL: A tiny threadlike element of a synthetic or natural fiber.

FIBRILLATION: The act or process of forming fibrils. The act of breaking up a fiber, plastic
sheet, or similar material into the minute fibrous elements from which the main structure is
formed.

FILAMENT: A fiber of an indefinite or extreme length such as found naturally in silk.
Manufactured fibers are extruded into filaments that are converted into filament yarn, staple, or
tow.

FILAMENT COUNT: The number of individual filaments that make up a thread or yarn.

FILAMENT NUMBER: The linear density of a filament expressed in units such as denier or
tex.

FILAMENT WINDING: In the fabrication of composites, the process of placing reinforcing
fibers over a rotating form, (mandrel) to make the product shape. Prepreg fibers or dry fibers that
are treated in a resin bath immediately prior to winding may be used. The wound form can be
cured or consolidated after the fiber winding is complete to product specifications.

FILAMENT YARN: A yarn composed of continuous filaments assembled with or without twist.

FILLER: A nonfibrous material added to a fabric to increase its weight or to modify its
appearance or hand. Also referred to as back-sizing. Examples of fillers are insoluble clays or
gypsum, starches, and gums.

FILLET: A long, narrow strip of wire card clothing with which the doffer and cylinder of the
card are spirally wrapped.

FILLING: In a woven fabric, the yarn running from selvage to selvage at right angles to the
warp. Each crosswise length is called a pick. In the weaving process, the filling yarn is carried
by the shuttle or other type of yarn carrier.

FILTER AID: A powder added to a solution to be filtered that forms a porous bed to improve
filtration.

FILTER CLOTH: Any cloth used for filtering purposed. Nylon, polyester, vinyon, PBI, and
glass fibers are often used in such fabrics because they are not affected by most chemicals.

FINDINGS: 1. Miscellaneous items attached to garments and shoes during manufacture.
Included are buttons, hooks, snaps, and ornaments. 2. Miscellaneous fabrics in garments such a
zipper tapes, linings, pockets, waistbands, and facings.
FINE END: 1. A warp yarn of smaller diameter than that normally used in the fabric. 2. A term
for a defect in silk warp yarn consisting of thin places that occur when all the filaments required
to make up the full ply are not present. This condition is generally caused by poor reeling.

FINENESS: 1. A relative measure of fiber size expressed in denier or tex for manufactured
fibers. For cotton, fineness is expressed as the mean fiber weight in micrograms per inch. For
wool, fineness is the mean fiber width or mean fiber diameter expressed in microns (to the nearest
0.001-millimeter). 2. For yarn fineness 3. For fineness of knit fabrics.

FINES: Particles or dust of polymer formed during the process of cutting to produce chip.

FINE STRUCTURE: Orientation, crystallinity, and molecular morphology of polymers,
including fiber-forming polymers.

FINGER MARK: A defect of woven fabrics that is seen as an irregular spot showing variation
in picks per inch for a limited width. Causes are spreading of warp ends while the loom is in
motion and pressure on the fabric between the reed and take-up drum.

FINISH: 1. A substance or mixture of substances added to textile materials to impart desired
properties. 2. A process, physical or chemical, performed on textile materials to produce a
desired effect. 3. A property, such as smoothness, drape, luster, water repellency, flame
retardancy, or crease resistance that is produced by 1 and/or 2 above. 4. The state of a textile
material as it leaves a process.

FINISH COMPOSITION (YARD): Physical and chemical analysis of the lubricant applied to
yarns to reduce friction and improve processibility.

FINISHED FABRIC: Fabric that is ready for the market, having passed through the necessary
finishing processes.

FINISHING: All the processes through which fabric is passed after bleaching, dyeing, or
printing in preparation for the market or use. Finishing includes such operations as heat-setting,
napping, embossing, pressing, calendering, and the application of chemicals that change the
character of the fabric. The term finishing is also sometimes used to refer collectively to all
processing operations above, including bleaching, dyeing, printing, etc.

FINISHING BAR: A noticeable streak across the entire width of a fabric, usually caused by
machine stoppage during processing.

FINISHING SPOT: A discolored area on a fabric caused by foreign material such as dirt,
grease, or rust.

FINISH TURNS: The actual degree of twist in the final
yarn product.

FIRE-BLOCKING LAYER: A fabric layer composed of
fibers with flame-retardant properties used in aircraft seat
cushions and other upholstery constructions to decrease the
overall flammability of the total construction by preventing
access of flame to the body of the construction.

FIRST-ORDER TRANSITION TEMPERATURE: The temperature at which a polymer
freezes or melts.

FISSURE: A very minute crack or opening in a material that frequently leads to the breaking or
rupture of the material.

FIXATION: The process of setting a dye after dyeing of printing, usually by steaming or other
heat treatment.

FLAKE: As used by Celanese, a term that refers to the granular form in which cellulose acetate
and triacetate polymers exist prior to dissolving or feeding into the extrusion or molding unit.

FLAKE YARN: Yarn in which roving or short, soft staple fibers are inserted at intervals
between long filament binder yarns.

FLAKY WEB: A web at the card that shows thick and thin places, approximately 1 to 6 square
inches in size. This indicates that, instead of a free flow of fibers through the card, either an
uneven amount has been fed into the card, or groups of fibers have hesitated in the card and then
dropped back into production.

FLAME RESISTANT: A term used to describe a material that burns slowly or is selfextinguishing
after removal of an external source of ignition. A fabric or yarn can be flame
resistance because of the innate properties of the fiber, the twist level of the yarn, the fabric
construction, or the presence of flame retardants, or because of a combination of these factors.

FLAME RETARDANT: A chemical compound that can be incorporated into a textile fiber
during manufacture or applied to a fiber, fabric, or other textile item during processing or use to
reduce its flammability.

FLATSPOTTING: A characteristic of certain tire cords. It occurs with all materials but is more
noticeable with nylon cord and is associated with nylon cord by users. Nylon exerts a shrinkage
force as it becomes heated in tire operation. When the tire is stopped under load, the cord in the
road-contact portion of the tire is under less tension than that in other portions of the tire, and it
shrinks to conform to the flat surface of the road. When cooled in this position, the cord
maintains the flat spot until it again reaches its glass transition temperature in use.

FLAX: The plant from which the cellulosic fiber linen is obtained.

FLEECE FABRIC: A fabric with a thick, heavy surface resembling sheep’s wool. It may be a
pile or napped fabric of either woven or knit construction.

FLEXIBILITY: 1. The ability to be flexed or bowed repeatedly without rupturing. 2. A term
relating to the hand of fabric, referring to ease of bending and ranging from pliable (high) to stiff
(low).

FLEXURAL FATIGUE: A physical property expressed by the number of times a material can
be bent on itself through a prescribed angle before it ruptures or loses its ability to recover.

FLEXURAL RIGIDITY: This measure of a material’s resistance to bending is calculated by
multiplying the material’s weight per unit area by the cube of its bending length.

FLOAT: 1. The portion of a warp or filling yarn that extends over two or more adjacent filling
picks or warp ends in weaving for the purpose of forming certain designs. 2. In a knit fabric, a
portion of yarn that extends for some length without being knitted in. 3. A fabric defect
consisting of an end lying or floating on the cloth surface instead of being woven in properly.
Floats are usually caused by slubs, knot-tails, knots, or fly waste, or sometimes by ends being
drawn in heddle eyes incorrectly or being twisted around heddle wires.

 FLOCCULATING: Coagulating or coalescing a material into a small, loosely aggregated mass.

FLOCK: The material obtained by reducing textile fibers to fragments by cutting or grinding.
There are two main types: precision cut flock, where all fiber lengths are approximately equal,
and random cut flock, where the fibers are ground or chopped to produce a broad range of
lengths.

FLOCKING: A method of cloth ornamentation in which adhesive is printed or coated on a
fabric, and finely chopped fibers are applied all over by means of dusting, air-blasting, or
electrostatic attraction. In flock printing, the fibers adhere only to the printed areas and are
removed from the unprinted areas by mechanical action.

FLUFFING: A term describing the appearance of a carpet after loose fiber fragments left during
manufacture have worked their way to the surface. Fluffing is not a defect; it is simply a
characteristic of new carpets that disappears with vacuuming.

FLUORESCENCE: Emission of electromagnetic radiation, usually as visible light, that is
caused by the flow of energy into the emitting body. The emission ceases abruptly when the
excitation ceases.

FLY: The short, waste fibers that are released into the air in textile processing operations such as
picking, carding, spinning, and weaving.

FLYER: 1. A device used to insert twist into slubbing, roving, or yarn, and to serve as a guide for winding it onto a bobbin. The flyer is shaped like an inverted U that fits on the top of the spindle and revolves with it.
One arm of the U is solid and the other is hollow. The yarn enters through the top of the hollow arm, travels downward, and emerges at the bottom where it is wound around a presser finger onto the take-up package.

FLYER SPINNING: A method of spinning by means of a driven flyer. It is used primarily for spinning worsted and coarser yarns.

 FLYER WASTE: During the roving operation, flyer waste refers to fibers that free themselves
by centrifugal force from the regular bulk of roving and accumulate on the flyers and adjacent
machinery.

FOAM: Dispersion of gas in a liquid or solid. The gas bubbles may be any size. The term
covers a wide range of useful products such as insulating foam, cushions, etc. It also describes
the undesirable froth in polymer melts, dyebaths, etc.

FOLDED SELVAGE: A curled selvage.

FOREIGN WASTE: Thread waste or lint that is twisted in the yarn or woven in the fabric. If
such foreign matter is of a different fiber, it may dye differently and thus show plainly.

FORMALDEYDE: A one-carbon aldehyde, (CH2O), it is a colorless, pungent gas at room
temperature. This compound is used primarily for disinfectant and preservative and in
synthesizing other compounds and resins

 FOULARD: A lightweight, lustrous 2/2 twill that is usually printed with small figures on a solid
background, foulard is frequently used in men’s ties. Foulards are made of silk, filament
polyester, acetate, etc.

FRAME: 1. A general term for many machines used in yarn manufacturing such as the drawing
frame, roving frame, and spinning frame.

  FRAYING: The slipping or raveling of yarns from unfinished edges of cloth.

FREE-WHEELING: In reference to rolls, spinning without the application of either driving or
braking force.

FRENCHBACK: A fabric with a corded twill backing of different weave than the face. The
backing, which is frequently of inferior yarn, gives added weight, warmth, and stability to the
cloth.

FREQUENCY: In uniform circular motion or in any periodic motion, the number of revolutions
or cycles completed in unit time.

FRICTION SPINNING: A spinning system in which the yarn receives its twist by being rolled along the
longitudinal axis in the nip between two revolving surfaces. The surfaces may rotate at the same or
different speeds in the same or opposite directions depending on the particular machine design. Potential
advantages include high production capacity, low stress on the fiber in processing, and the capacity to produce very fine counts.

FRIEZÉ: 1. A term applied when the pile of a velvet, plush, velour, or other pile fabric is uncut.
A friezé fabric is sometimes patterned by shearing the loops at different lengths. Friezé fabrics
are widely used for upholstery. 2. A cut-pile carpet made of highly twisted yarns normally plied
and heat-set. A kinked or curled yarn effect is achieved. Excellent durability results from the
hard-twist pile yarns.

 FROST MARKS: A defect of woven fabric consisting of surface highlights that give a frosted
appearance. Frost marks are caused by improper sizing or insufficient warp tension as a result of
uneven bending of some warp ends over the picks.

FULL-FASHIONED: A term applied to fabrics produced on a flat-knitting machine, such as
hosiery, sweater, and underwear, that have been shaped by adding or reducing stitches.

FULLING: A finishing process used in the manufacture of woolen and worsted fabrics. The cloth is subjected to moisture, heat friction, chemicals, and pressure which cause it to mat and shrink appreciably in both the warp and filling directions, resulting in a denser, more compact fabric.

FUSED ACETATE: 1. A hard particle of acetate material of almost any shape or size other than recognizable fiber. Sometimes fused acetate particles resemble rock-like,hardened drops of acetate dope; in other cases fused acetate consists of particles covered with fiber clusters and completely hardened in the center. 2. Acetate yarns in which the individual filaments are coalesced.

FUSED FILAMENTS: A group of filaments bonded together in a tow by drips or frictional
effects and thereby resistant to filament separation and crimp deregistering.

FUSED RIBBON: Acetate fabrics in wide widths may be cut into narrow ones by the application
of heat. A hot knife blade caused the edges to sear and bead, thereby doing away with selvages
on the edges of the goods.

FUSING: 1. Melting. 2. Uniting, as by melting together.

 FUZZINESS: 1. A term describing a woven fabric defect characterized by a hairy appearance
due to broken fibers or filaments. Principle causes are underslashed warp; rough drop wires,
heddles, or reed; fabric slippage on take-up drum; rough shuttles; cut glass, dents, or reeds in
warper; and damage in slashing. 2. A term describing a fabric intentionally made with a hairy
surface; such fabrics are usually produced from spun yarns.