Introduction to Textiles

SHRADDHA-a non-profit organisation

Introduction to Textiles

  • Kapada or clothing or fabrics” is one of the three basic needs of mankind , along with Roti, and Makkan .
  • Aborigines were using bark of trees and leather of animals for protecting themselves from extreme cold and heat in the nature.
  • Climatic and geographical conditions (temperature to be specific based on latitude and altitude of the region) as well as social, Cultural and Religious practices have influence on the use and production of textile
  • Science & technology have profound impact on the production of textiles to weaving by power loom and even nonwovens.
  • Textiles mark one of the most fascinating features in the evolution of human civilisation.
  • Form an integral part of rituals, festivals,
    culture, and tradition.

Evolution of Textiles

Fabrics is woven by interlacing two sets of fibers, warp (tana) along the length with weft (bana) along the width.

Till industrial revolution, fabrics was being woven only by handloom.

The textiles industry underwent revolutionary changes by weaving in machine operated looms, processing and garmenting with fashion.

Modern textiles industry has seven major components –      

  • Fibre -Natural and Man-made
  • Yarn by spinning fibre
  • Fabrics by weaving yarn either plain or with designs
  • Processing fabrics with dyes and chemicals – Natural and Synthetic
  • Apparel and garments stitched from fabrics
  • Non-woven and
  • Technical textiles

Fibres type

  • Spun: Cotton, Jute, Flax, etc. (from short staple length fibers)
  • Filament: (i) Natural – Silk, Tassar, etc.
  • (ii)Manmade (Synthetic) – Polyester, Nylon, Rayon, etc.
  • Textured: A continuous filament yarn, processed to introduce durable crimps, coils, loops or other fine distortions.
  • Fancy Yarn

Source of natural fibres

From animals – 

  • Animal hair fibers consist of keratin, a protein formed by repeating units of amino acids.
  • Presence of nitrogen makes burning of the fiber slow with emission of a pungent smell.
  • Examples: Wool from sheep and
  • Silk by reeling cocoons of silkworms

From plants –

  • Consist of carbohydrates , which burn rapidly without any smell.
  • Seed hair fibers like cotton
  • Bast of stem like Jute and hemp
  • Miscellaneous fibers.

Cotton

 

  • Cotton influenced the destiny of humankind • Like Perhaps no other natural product
  • It has clothed nations, enslaved men and women, monopolized labor, and given direction to entire industries.
  • First historical mention of cotton in the writings of Herodotus. In 484 B.C., he described trees with fleece growing in them in India.
  • Use of cotton in India date back to 3000 B.C. or earlier.
  • Cotton spread by trade to the Middle East, particularly Egypt, and later, in7-8thcenturies  brought to Spain by the Moors.
  • New World explorers found cotton fabrics being manufactured in Peru, Mexico, and what is now the southwestern United States.
  • Carbon 14 tests have dated the use of cotton in Peru as far back as 2500 B.C.
  • Europeans first planted cotton in the New World in Virginia, using seeds from the West Indies. The need to harvest cotton when the weather is perfectly dry meant at first that the European colonists had to spend long days working in the hot sun. They eventually circumvented their dislike for this labor by importing slaves to do the work for them.
  • In 1793 a young inventor named Eli Whitney developed the cotton gin, which allowed cotton seeds to be rapidly separated from the fiber
  • This single invention raised cotton exports from 400 bales a year in 1791 to 30,000 bales in 1800 and 180,000 bales in 1810.
  • As a corollary, between 1790 and 1800, the slave population of the United States increased by 33%.
  • By 1810 there were more than a million slaves in the Southern states; by 1860 the number had risen to more than 4 million. Since the end of World War II, demand for cotton has been largely supplanted by one for synthetic fibers,
  • particularly polyester and nylon.
  • Incursions into the cotton market are due in part to the dwindling availability of land to raise cotton.

Silk

 

  • A continuous protein filament, spun by the silkworm to form its cocoon.
  • Mulberry silkworm (Bombyx mori), which feeds on the mulberry leaf (Morus alba) is the major silk from commercial production point.
  • Production of Silk originated in China about 4,000 years ago. The Chinese used silk for clothing, wall hangings, paintings, religious ornamentation, interior decoration, and to maintain religious records.
  • Knowledge of the silkworm passed from China to Japan through Korea and played amajor role in the initial phase of its transformation as a global power.
  • Importance of silk in international trade is evident form the fact that the most ancient international trading route is known as “Silk Route”. Silk reigned  the global women’s hosiery market till the  World War II, after which it was overtaken by manmade synthetic fiber nylon.
  • India produces four types of silk, Tassar, Eri, Muga, and Mulberry,out  of which  first three are reared outdoor. Muga rearing is typical to the northeast. As Eri cocoon can not be reeled, it is spun without killing the worm and is known as  “Ahimsa” (non-violent) silk.
  • Mulberry yarn is the main source of silk yarn for handloom weaving which is supplemented by tassar produced in the tropical forests of Odisha, Madhya Pradesh, Jharkhand  and Telangana .

Wool & miscellaneous fibers

Wool forms the protective covering of sheep, screening them from heat and cold,  and allowing them to maintain even body temperatures.

Important characteristics : 

1-14 in (2.54-35.56 cm) or more in length, with diameters of 1/600th-1/3,000th in (0.04-0.008 mm) chemical compositions carbon, 50%; hydrogen, 7%; oxygen, 22-25%; nitrogen, 16-17%; and sulphur, 3-4%.  extremely flexible and can be bent 20,000 times without breaking.  naturally resilient.

capable of trapping air and providing insulation  absorb up to 30% of their weight in moisture thermally stable and begin to decompose only at 212°F (100°C).

Leaf fibers : 

  • come from the leaves of monocotyledonous plants. They are primarily used for cordage.

Bast Fibers : 

  • Bast fibers come from the bast tissue or bark of plant stem. They are primarily used for textiles, thread, yarn, and twine.
  • come from the sheathing leaf-stalks of palms, stem segments, stems, and fibrous husks
  • used primarily for brush and broom bristles, matting, and stuffing.

Man-made fibres (MMF)

Are produced on the commercial scale by machines Falls under two broad categories , namely

1. Synthetic

Synthetic fibers are produced from crude oil.

  • produced polyester, acrylic and polypropylene

2. Cellulosic

Cellulosic fibers are produced from wood pulp.

  • produced viscose fibre, modal, etc.

Fibers of Mineral Origin

Fiber Uses Place of Origin
Asbestos safety clothing, thermal insulation jacketing fabrics, barbecue mitts, commercial laundry and dry-cleaning press covers, conveyor belts, dust filters, heating and ventilating ducts, electrical insulating tapes, yarns for electric wire insulation, fireproof draperies, fire-smothering blankets, brake linings Canada, former Soviet Union
Glass composites, insulation, draperies, tire cord, filters United States
Aluminum Silicate packings and insulation for high temperatures United States

Global Textile Industry

Production USD 920 billion (in 2018)

  • Estimate around 6,500,000 crores INR (I Bln USD=7,000 INR

Growth 4.4%CAGR of approximately during the forecast period

Reach  USD 1,230 billion (by 2024)

Textile industry is an ever-growing market

  • Key players China, the European Union, the United States, and India.
  • China is the world’s leading producer and exporter of both raw textiles and garments.
  • The United States is the leading producer and exporter of raw cotton, while also being the top importer of raw textiles and garments.
  • The textile industry of the European Union comprises Germany, Spain, France, Italy, and Portugal at the forefront with a value of more than 1/5th of the global textile industry, and it is currently valued at more than USD 160 billion.
  • India is the third-largest textile manufacturing industry.

Indian textile industry

 

  • Has enormous social and economic significance
  • Employment in
  • Unorganised, informal  rural and cottage
  • Handloom, Khadi, Jute , silk wool segments  for highly skilled weavers and unskilled workers
  • Next to agriculture in rural area
  • offers direct employment to over 4.3 million
  • Organised, Formal
  • Mill, Power loom, Spinning, Weaving, Processing, Apparel & Garments
  • 2,500 textile weaving factories and 4,135 textile finishing factories  
  • Wealth and foreign exchange
  • Exports (US$ 55 billion )
  • India was ranked as the fourth most promising market for apparel retailers
  • Cotton production- second
  • Silk production – second
  • Jute production- First ( 63% of the global Jute)
  • Textile machine manufacturing- second in the world