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Over the past 20 years, in filament draw texturing, very few developments and innovations have been introduced into production machineries. The growing demand for energy efficiency, faster production rates and greater production flexibility have prompted our investigation into non-traditional approaches to improve yarn control during the texturing. Instead of aprons, small individually driven godets are a solution for high-speed manufacturing, yarn control and energy saving. The drawing godets, where the yarn can be considered an elastic coupling element between two consecutive godets, pose a new challenge for consistency in velocity control. Though some machinery manufacturers have introduced the godet system, the yarn quality produced by the godet system is not systematically evaluated and compared vis-à-vis the apron system. The current study prepared textured yarns in both apron and godet systems while maintaining the same texturing parameters. Differences in the yarn’s bulk, modulus, breaking elongation, tenacity and boiling water shrinkage were assessed and compared. Woven and knitted fabrics were prepared from textured yarns, and a comparative analysis of fabric properties was performed with respect to their tearing strength, air permeability, drape and dyeability. Better quality of yarn and fabrics can be prepared in the godet system, which is energy saving, of higher speed and requires low maintenance technology in comparison to the apron system.

Sesbania aculeata (Dhaincha), a lignocellulosic bast fiber, has been explored here as an ultraviolet blocker due to the presence of natural lignin of about 19% on its surface. Various woven fabrics are prepared with various dhaincha/jute-blended yarns as weft to measure ultraviolet (UV) protection ability, drying rate, and thermal conductivity. Effect of linear density of blended yarn, blend ratio, and pick density of the prepared fabrics on UV protection ability, drying rate, and thermal conductivity have been studied and optimized using 33 Box–Behnken response surface design. The optimum level of these parameters to obtain high UV protection, high drying rate, and high thermal conductivity are reported. The UV protection factor (UPF), drying rate, and thermal conductivity of the fabric are achieved as high as 92.68, 0.3589 ml/H, and 0.185754 W/mK, respectively. The presence of lignin in jute and dhaincha fibers is evidenced by FTIR study. This research work establishes the new application of dhaincha fiber in the field of textiles for UV protection and thermal comfort.

Jute fibers are explored here as a raw material of quilt for thermal insulation. Alkali treatment of the jute fibers has been conducted to make the fibers soft, bulky, porous, and crimpy. Process of alkali treatment has been optimized by Box–Behnken response surface design to develop maximum crimp in the fiber structure. A good negative correlation (−0.91) has been observed between fiber crimp and thermal conductivity of quilts prepared thereof. Highest crimp (28.88%) and lowest thermal conductivity (0.378 W/mK) of the jute quilt has been observed when jute fibers are woollenized at low level of reaction temperature, medium level of time and at high level of alkali concentration. Even, thermal conductivity of the woollenized jute quilt is found lower than domestic cotton and commercial polyester fiber quilts. Scanning electron microscope images of woollenized jute fiber reveal that after alkali treatment bundled jute fiber strands are individualized due to removal of surface binder lignin creating bulky and porous morphology.

Elastic performance coefficient (EPC) and recovery behavior of denim fabrics prepared with cotton/lycra core spun stretch yarns have been presented in this article. The denim fabrics are woven as broken twill weaves in an air-jet weaving machine by the insertion of core spun yarns (lycra filament in core, cotton fiber on sheath) as weft and using 100% cotton yarns as warp. The effect of linear density and stretch percentage of the core spun weft yarns on tensile and recovery behavior of denim fabric have been investigated by employing full factorial design of experiments. It has been observed that the tensile strength and EPC of fabric increase with decrease in linear density and stretch percentage of the core spun stretch yarn. The immediate elastic recovery and delayed elastic recovery increase with decrease in linear density and stretch percentage of the yarns.

This work deals with the study of the oil sorption behaviour of needlepunched nonwoven fabrics produced from natural fibres such as cotton, cotton fl at waste, cotton/kapok blend, and nettle fibres. Polypropylene nonwoven fabric, which is used as a commercial oil sorbent, was also prepared using the same needling parameters for comparison purposes. The effect of the type of fibre, oil, and fabric parameters on oil sorption and retention capacities was investigated. All of the fabrics displayed higher oil sorption capacities for engine oil (high viscosity) than diesel oil (low viscosity). Among natural fibre nonwovens, cotton and cotton/kapok nonwovens displayed higher oil sorption capacities than that of polypropylene nonwovens, while nettle fibre nonwoven fabric displayed poor oil sorption capacity. An increase in kapok content in cotton/kapok nonwovens led to an increase in oil sorption behaviour. More than 95% of the diesel oils adsorbed by the nonwoven fabrics could be recovered by simple compression. Oil sorption capacity of the nonwovens were reduced significantly during repetitive cycles of use due to higher thickness loss. This study indicated that cotton and cotton/kapok nonwovens displayed better oil sorption behaviour than polypropylene, and may be used as an alternative natural oil sorbent material.

Thermal resistance and moisture management characteristics are important attributes of textile materials for the characterisation of their ability to provide thermal comfort. Nettle fibre consists of a hollow core that is expected to enable good thermal and moisture regulation properties. Nonwoven fabrics of three different mass per unit area values, made from nettle, polyester and blends thereof, were prepared on a needlepunching machine, maintaining the same punch density and depth of penetration. The thermal conductivity, water vapour permeability, water retention, wicking, moisture management, drying rate and air permeability of these fabrics were evaluated. Nonwoven fabric prepared with 100% nettle fibres exhibited good thermal conductivity, while polyester fabric demonstrated good thermal insulation. The nettle fibre fabric showed good water retention, drying rate and moisture management properties. On the other hand, polyester-enriched fabric exhibited good wicking behaviour.

The novel Sterculia foetida fruit shell fibres were extracted by following a traditional method of water retting. The fibres were found to be lignocellulosic, comprising around 14.28 ± 0.2% of lignin in it. Its α-cellulose and hemicellulose contents were measured to be 45.44 ± 0.2% and 27.27 ± 0.2%, respectively, which are in a favorable range of textile fibres. The novel fibre exhibits good tensile strength and low extensibility, which can be used for making ropes, yarns, sacs, textile fabrics, composite materials, etc. Resin-based fibre reinforced composites were prepared with the fibres as reinforcement and compared with conventional jute fibre reinforced composites. It was observed that Sterculia foetida fruit shell fibre-based composites showed breaking stress, breaking elongation, and E-Modulus 16.912 MPa, 2.767% and 1011.67 MPa, respectively, which are comparable with the jute fibre-based composites (19.38 MPa, 2.23%, and 1017.33 MPa, respectively).

On the eve of the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic, there is a tremendous increase in the production of facemasks across the world. The primary raw materials for the manufacturing of the facemasks are non-biodegradable synthetic polymers derived from petrochemicals. Disposal of these synthetic facemasks increases waste-load in the environment causing severe ecological issues for flora and fauna. The synthesis processes of the polymers from the petrochemical by-products were also not eco-friendly, which releases huge greenhouse and harmful gases. Therefore, many research organizations and entrepreneurs realize the need for biodegradable facemasks to render similar performance as the existing non-biodegradable masks. The conventional textile fabrics made of natural fibers like cotton, flax, hemp, etc., can also be used to prepare facemasks with multiple layers in use for general protection. Such natural textile masks can be made anti-microbial by applying various herbal anti-microbial extracts like turmeric, neem, basil, aloe vera, etc. As porosity is the exclusive feature of the masks for arresting tiny viruses, the filter of the masks should have a pore size in the nanometre scale, and that can be achieved in nanomembrane manufactured by electrospinning technology. This article reviews the various scopes of electrospinning technology for the preparation of nanomembrane biomasks. Besides protecting us from the virus, the biomasks can be useful for skin healing, skincare, auto-fragrance, and organized cooling which are also discussed in this review article.

This work deals with the preparation and characterization of electrically conductive needle-punched non-woven composites for heat generation. Electro-conductive non-woven composites were prepared through the in situ chemical polymerization of pyrrole with FeCl3 (oxidant) and p-toluene sulfonic acid (dopant). A two-stage double-bath process was adopted for the in situ chemical polymerization of pyrrole. The effect of parameters such as fibre fineness, needle-punching density and depth of needle punching on a polypyrrole add-on, and surface resistivity were studied by employing the Box-Behnken response surface design. It was observed that fibre fineness was the most influential parameter of the polypyrrole add-on. The lowest surface resistivity of the polypyrrole coated sample (200 g/m2, prepared with a punch density of 200 punch/cm2, a punching depth of 6 mm and fibre fineness of 2.78 dtex) was found to be 9.32 kΩ/□ with a polypyrrole add-on of 47.93%. This non-woven composite demonstrated good electrical conductivity and exhibited Joule’s effect of heat generation. Due to the application of a 30 V DC power supply, the surface temperature of the non-woven composite rose to 55 ºC from a room temperature of 37 ºC. Optical and electron microscopy images of the non-woven composites showed that PPy molecules formed a uniform coating on the non-woven surface. FTIR studies evidenced the coating of PPy on a polyester surface. These coated non-woven composites were highly electrically conductive and practically useful for the fabrication of heating pads for therapeutic use.

Palmyra (Borassus flabellifer L.) is one of the natural fruit fibers that are available in plenty. This fiber has many advantages, such as biodegradability, renewability, low density, and low cost, which offer greater opportunities to develop new applications. Imparting electrical conductivity to this fiber may open up avenues for various novel applications. In the present study, Palmyra fibers are made electro-conductive by in situ chemical polymerization of pyrrole with FeCl3 oxidant and PTSA dopant. Prepared electro-conductive fibers show average electrical resistivity 2.96 kΩ cm−1. A positive correlation is found between fiber-length and electrical resistance, whereas a negative correlation is found in between fiber-diameter and electrical resistance. FTIR study is conducted to understand the chemical interaction between lingo-cellulose and polypyrrole. Tensile properties and thermal degradation behavior of the prepared electro-conductive fibers are evaluated, and significant deterioration of both tensile properties and thermal stability is observed. Due to this reason, these electro-conductive fibers are unsuitable for mechanical processing and high-tech applications. But the response of these fibers in different pH solution is investigated, and their possible application as a pH sensor has been explored.