Quick dry ability of various quick drying polyester and wool fabrics assessed by a novel method. Issue 5 (4th April 2017)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Hassan, Mohammad Mahbubul; Leighs, Samuel James
• Is Part Of: Drying technology. Volume 35:Issue 5(2017)
• Page Start: 585
• Page End: 592
• Publication Date: 2017-04-04
• Subjects: Contact angle -- FTIR -- quick drying -- test method -- textile fabrics; Drying -- Periodicals; Desiccation; 660.28426
• DOI: 10.1080/07373937.2016.1195405
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 0737-3937

Abstract

ABSTRACT: Modern consumers of textiles are conscious about sustainability of the garments they are wearing. Drying process is an energy-intensive process that has an impact on sustainability. There is no specific standard test method available to measure the dry ability of a fabric. Some of the test methods cited in the literature to measure the quick dry ability use a technique where a small quantity of water is placed on a dry fabric sample and the time taken for the water to evaporate is measured. These methods are not suitable for measuring the dry ability of a washed fabric as in these test methods the dry ability depends solely on the wicking property of that fabric. In the work presented here, we are proposing a new test method to measure the real dry ability of textile fabrics. When examined by this proposed method, it was found that some of the commercially available so-called quick-drying polyester fabrics showed poor dry ability. The surface of the examined fabrics was characterized by measuring contact angle and also by attenuated total reflectance-Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (ATR-FTIR), which reveals the reasons behind their poor dry ability. This proposed method could be used in industry to measure the quick dry ability of various fabrics.