International Journal of Textile

and Fashion Technology (IJTFT)

ISSN(P): 2250-2378; ISSN(E): 2319-4510
Vol. 6, Issue 5, Oct 2016, 1-8
TJPRC Pvt. Ltd

HAND OF SOYA - WOOL BLENDED KNITTED FABRICS

SHALINI JUNEJA & SUMAN PANT
Clothing and Textiles, Faculty of Home Science, Banasthali University, Rajasthan, India
ABSTRACT
Hand of soya bean: wool knitted fabrics has been reported in this study. Soya bean fibre (S) has been blended
with merino wool (M) in three different ratios, viz 80:20,70:30 and 50:50 and yarns were prepared on ring spinning
system. Knitted fabric samples were prepared on flat bed hand knitting machine. Fabric handle was objectively assessed
by Siro Fast.
KEYWORDS: Compression, Dimensional Stability, Bending Rigidity, Formability

Received: Aug 10, 2016; Accepted: Aug 26, 2016; Published: Sep 02, 2016; Paper Id.: IJTFTOCT20161

INTRODUCTION

colorful outfit. In this new era, fabric and fibre are also considered as a part and parcel of the terminology
"design". Fabric assessment may be expressed as the mechanism of testing a fabric for its characteristic features
and charisma. Visual characterization or demarcation of the nineteenth century flags can be tedious,
time-consuming, and invasive, and can further lead to further damage given the fabrics relatively larger size.
Conventional methods of assessing a fabric may require a close association with the fabric, extensive manual

Original Article

The world has now come to a standby, where we consider mens fashion as a means of more than just a

operations which would be a more complicated process and various other simple tools and techniques.
The fabric was merely under a subjective assessment and there was a distinguished equipment which was
used to assess the properties of the fabric. There were quite some difficulties involved in the preparation of
samples due toits varied sizes used on different equipment. Knowledge of fabric properties and their behavior in
the process of transforming the fabric into an article of clothing is the most valuable information for garment
manufacturers, which was unanimous till date
The idea of using an objective measurement of properties for the prediction of a fabric performance is not
at all a novel technique. Certain measurements are being put into use in order to predict certain aspects of the
fabrics performance for several years. The tests are designed to predict the success or failure of a fabric after
enhancing the look of the fabric and repairing the wear and tear of the fabric. This requires very subtle
measurements that are much more accurate. Of late, various techniques have been developed to measure the
mechanical properties of the fabric and further use these measurements quantitatively to predict the performance
of the fabric in terms of its quality during the manufacture of a garment and its appealing nature.
However, mechanical properties alone cannot be considered as the properties that determine the
aesthetics of a fabric. The dimensional stability of the fabric (perhaps more correctly known as the dimensional
instability) is also a critical factor, not only in the manufacturing process but also to determine the subsequent
appearance of the garment when it is worn by a person. The need for tests to predict or assess subjective aspects of

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Shalini Juneja & Suman Pant

fabric aesthetics has considerably seen an increase in recent years for three vital reasons: The trend towards light-weight
clothing has resulted in an increased usage of fabrics that are difficult to be modified and may further require new handling
skills, The trend towards shorter seasonal changes and the use of some rapid systems (such as just-in-time manufacturing)
have meant that the delivery of fabrics that are difficult to be modified may further disrupt the production schedules. For
this reason it is even more important that garment manufacturers are able to predict the fabrics performance. The increased
use of automation in garment manufacture eliminates the opportunity to rectify the difficult and variable fabrics by skilled
artisans(Kannan,2007).
Fabric hand or handle as it is often called is defined as the human tactile sensory response towards fabric, which
involves not only physical but also physiological/perceptional and social factors; this very fact complicates the process of
fabric hand evaluation tremendously (Binns,et al). The importance of this fabric quality perceived through tactile sense is
indisputable. It is hard to imagine a consumer buying a textile product without even touching it. A poor hand is often the
reason why a consumer rejects a product. The success of any new fibre, new finish or new textile product is largely
dependent on the acceptance of its fabric hand. Knowledge of fabric properties and their behavior in the process of
transformation into an article of clothing are a vital source of information for the garment manufacturers
(Amirbayat, 1995).
Soya bean fiber is a botanical regenerated protein fiber, a new finding which serves as a guardto shield the human
skin. It is also known as Vegetable cashmere or Soy silk. The fabric made from this fiber can give cashmere like soft
hand, silk like sheen, cotton like moisture absorption and wool like warmth (Janarthanan, 2013). Since the major raw
material finds its source from natural soya bean cake, the quantity of raw material is large and can be readily regenerated.
Furthermore, it will not cause waste development. It is plentiful in supply and is also cheap. Although price of petroleum
increased 21 times over last 50 years, the price of soya bean expanded only 6.5 times (Vynias, 2006).
Literature survey revealed that soya fiber is compatible while blending with other fibers such as organic cotton,
spandex and silk (Vynias, 2011). An attempt has been made to blend soya bean in a certain proportion with wool fiber and
study its handling mechanism by an objective technique.

METHODOLOGY
Soya bean fiber and merino wool were purchased from R.S.W.M. New Product Development, Banswara. Physical
properties viz. fiber length (ASTM -5103), diameter (IWTO-47:2013), strength (ASTM D: 3822), and crimp (IWTO-17) of
both the fibers have been tested. Blending and spinning of fibers was done at R.S.W.M., New Product development,
Banswara on ring spinning system. Soya bean and merino fibers were blended in three different proportions
viz.80/20,70/30,50/50 of soya bean/wool. Yarns of 30 Ne count were prepared. 100% soya and 100% merino yarn was also
prepared for base reference. Thus total five yarn samples were prepared. Various properties of yarns such as single yarn
strength, elongation (IS0 2060-2009) and yarn evenness (ASTM D- 1425) were measured. Further, five knit samples were
prepared, i.e. Soya100, Merino 100, and Soya80:merino 20,Soya 70:merino 30, Soya 50: merino 50from these blended
yarns. Knitted fabric samples were woven on a 10-12 gauge, flat bed hand knitting machine. Fabric handle was further
objectively assessed by a sophisticated equipment known as SIROFast
SIROFast consists of three instruments and a testing methodology
SIROFAST-1 is a compression meter which is used to measure the thickness of the fabric
Impact Factor (JCC): 3.8329

Index Copernicus Value (ICV): 6.1

Hand of Soya - Wool Blended Knitted Fabrics

SIROFast 2 is a bending meter used to measure the length to which the fabric can be bent.
SIROFAST-3 is an extension meter that measures the extensibility of the fabric.
SIROFAST-4 is a test procedure which is used for measuring the dimensional properties of the fabric.
Test samples of nearly measuring 150 mm X 50 mm are used for SiroFAST-1, 2, and 3, Utmost 5 replicates are
required for SIROFast - 1 Compression. 3warp and 3 weft replicates are needed for SIROFast 2 Bending, 3 warp, 3 weft,
and 6 bias replicates (3 left-bias and 3 right-bias) for SIROFast- 3Extension and a separate sample of 300 X 300mm is used
for SiroFAST-4.
All measurements using the FAST instruments (apart from the FAST - 4 dimensional stability test) were made
under standard atmospheric conditions (200C Temp and 65% RH).

RESULTS AND DISCUSSIONS

Table 1: Thickness and Surface Thickness of Fabric
S. No.

Blend Percent

1
2
3
4
5

S100
M100
S80:M20
S70:M30
S50:M50

T2
(MM)
0.93
1.8
1.65
1.8
1.61

T 100
(MM)
0.62
1.2
1.26
1.39
1.26

ST
(MM)
0.31
0.5
0.39
0.43
0.34

T2R
(MM)
0.69
1.4
0.41
1.52
1.29

T100R
(MM)
0.49
1.10
0.10
1.19
1.05

STR
(MM)
0.20
0.33
0.30
0.32
0.23

Thickness of fabrics were measured under two different pressures, 1gf/cm2 (T2) and 100gf/cm2 (T100). ST is
thickness of surface layer which is difference of T2 and T100. T2R and T100 R is released thickness i.e. thickness after
removal of pressure. The STR refers to released surface thickness. The released surface thickness is often expressed as a
measure of stability of the fabric. Surface thickness and released surface thickness themselves may have a huge impact on
the tailoring performance of a fabric but are often considered as useful indicators of any change or variation in the fabric
handle. If however the value of surface thickness is assessed against the value of released surface thickness, then the result
will assume much greater significance (Kannan et al, 2007).
The surface thickness values of pure and blended soya/merino knit fabric ranges from 0.31 to 0.5 mm. Soya 100
recorded the lowest value while Merino 100 has recorded the highest value. Among blended soya/wool fabrics, the
maximum level of surface thickness has been found for S70:M30 and lowest value is for S50:M50. The STR values of all
the fabrics range between 0.2 and 0.33mm. Among blended fabrics the highest value has been found for Soya 70:30 and
minimum for Soya 50:50. A higher difference between surface thickness and released surface thickness clearly indicates
that there are more variation in fabric handle (Kannan, 2007). Merino 100 has a difference of 0.17 indicating more
variation in fabric handle when compared to all other fabrics. S80:M20 did not show much of a difference (0.09) indicating
better stability of the fabric. However, not much difference has been found in values of other fabrics. The STR value for
blended fabrics is more when compared with pure Soya fabric. This indicates better stability of blended knit fabrics than
pure knitted fabrics.

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Table 2: Bending Rigidity and Shear Rigidity

S. No.

Blend Percent

1
2
3
4
5

S100
M100
S80:M20
S70:M30
S50:M50

Bending Rigidity (uN.m)

Wale Wise
5
15.7
13.1
14.6
14.8

Course Wise
2.6
12.4
5.7
10.2
7.9

Shear Rigidity
(N/m) G
6.3
8.7
6.2
6.3
6.2

The table 2 exhibits the bending and shear rigidity of pure as well as knit fabrics in wale wise and course wise
direction. Fabrics with high value of bending rigidity will not generally because any huge variations in the fabric
manufacture process, but will be more stiffer and so bending rigidity may serve as a useful indicator of changes or
variations in fabric handle. The value of bending rigidity ranges from 5Nm to 15.7 Nm in wale wise direction and 2.6 to
12.4 in course wise direction. S100 recorded lowest value while M100 recorded the highest.
This might be due to the fact that soya is softer and pliable than wool fiber for the reason that the value of bending
rigidity is more for Merino 100. Among blended fabrics, the incorporation of wool fiber has a profound impact on bending
rigidity of fabrics i.e. bending rigidity has increased after the incorporation of wool fiber in soya fiber. It is clear that
maximum value of bending rigidity is for S50:M50 and minimum is for S80:M20 in wale wise direction. Thus it can be
inferred that as soya content decreases the bending rigidity decreases in wale wise direction. However, in course wise
direction similar trend is observed except in case of S50:M50 whose value is between the two blend fabrics that is
S80:M20 and S70:M30 category.
Fabric shear ability is one of the major concerns when making-up a wearable, as the fabric needs to be stretched
and sheared to a certain extent in order to achieve the intended structure of the garment. The ability of a two dimensional
fabric to be converted to form a three dimensional product is related to the ability of the fabric to be sheared in its existing
nature. This is most importantly characterized by shear rigidity, a parameter derived from bias extensibility if the shear
rigidity is too low, the fabric can be easily distorted and can be skewed or bowed during handling, laying up and sewing. If
the shear rigidity is too high, the fabric will be difficult to form, mould, or shape at the sleeve head(Kannan et al, 2007)
stated that all fabrics having shear rigidity higher than 55.3N/m are known to cause shaping and re-moulding difficulties,
though the maximum limits for lightweight wool suiting is 80 N/m and the minimum is 30 N/m.
The above table shows that the values of shear rigidity of all the fabrics tested ranged from 6.2 to8.7 N/m. Shear
rigidity of soya pure fabrics is less than merino pure fabrics. For blended fabric the shear rigidity value is same for

S80:

M20 and S50: M50 but there is slight in increase in shear rigidity for 70:30 fabric. No particular trend has been found for
blended fabrics. Similar values have been observed for pure soya fabric and blended fabrics. Fabrics having higher value of
shear rigidity will further lead to shaping and moulding difficulties while sewing.

Impact Factor (JCC): 3.8329

Index Copernicus Value (ICV): 6.1

Hand of Soya - Wool Blended Knitted Fabrics

Table 3: Extensibility of Fabrics

S. No.

Blend Percent

1
2
3
4
5

S100
M100
S80:M20
S70:M30
S50:M50

E5
Wale
(%)
5.2
4.9
3.6
6.4
4.7

E5
Course
(%)
20
16.9
20
20
17.4

E20
Wale
(%)
18.7
20
14.2
17.9
14.7

E20
Course
(%)
20
20
20
20
20

E100
Wale
(%)
20
20
20
20
20

E100
Course
(%)
20
20
20
20
20

EB5
Bias
(%)
19.6
14
19.9
19.4
20

Extensibility is often expressed as a measure of ability of the fabric to be stretched further during making up of
the fabric. Both excessive and insufficient extensibility is known to pose difficulties during the manufacture of the
garment.
The ability of a fabric to stretch at low loads is critical to garment and other sewn products making up procedures.
Low value of extension give problems in moulding, and give difficulties, produce seam pucker. Though the minimum limit
is 2% in either ways, maximum limits are known to be 4% and 6% in warp and weft respectively for lightweight suiting.
The fabrics with less than 1.84% are known to cause difficulties during seam over feeding. Extensibility greater than
2.53% in warp and 4.07% in weft indicates that the fabric can be easily stretched further while spreading and sewing
unsupported seams. Fabric may shrink or relax after being cut. The higher the extensibility the more difficult will be the
laying up, cutting and sewing (How et al, 1995).
The data in table 3 depicts extensibility value for knit and woven fabrics. For knit fabrics, it is clearly evident that
at 5 gm. load, extensibility value ranges between 1.9 to 3.2% in wale wise direction and 16.9 to 20 in course wise direction.
The extensibility values ranges from 14.2 to 18.7% in wale wise direction and is constant (20%) in course wise direction at
20 gm load. At 100 gm load the value is constant i.e. 20% in both the directions. The constant value might be due to some
error in equipment parameters. In bias the extensibility value is from 14 to 20%. No specific trend has been found among
extensibility of knit fabrics.
Table 4: Dimensional Stability and Formability

S. No.

Blend
Percent

1
2
3
4
5

S100
M100
S80:M20
S70:M30
S50:M50

Relaxation
Shrinkage RS %
Wale
Course
Wise
Wise
0.0
0.0
-2.1
1.3
3.4
1.8
2
1.2
6
4.8

Hygral Expansion
HE %
Wale
Course
Wise
Wise
3.3
3.3
3.4
4.8
4.2
3.1
3.1
3.1
.4
.8

Formability
Wale
Wise
4.6
16.2
9.4
11.4
10.03

Course
Wise
0.0
2.65
0.0
0.0
1.38

The dimensional stability of a given fabric is expressed as a measure of the extent to which the fabric is able to
maintain its original dimensions subsequent to its manufacture. Fabric shrinkage may lead to further difficulties, either
during garment manufacture or in subsequent laundering by the ultimate customer. Shrinkage is considered as the foremost
quality problems in the garment industry. Dimensional change may be due to relaxation or hygral expansion.
Hygral expansion is termed as a reversible change in the dimension of the fabric. Excessive hygral expansion may
result in poor garment appearance as the garment panels increase in dimensions as the moisture level increases in the
fabric. In some cases, seam puckering may also happen if different panels have different expansion levels.
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Hygral expansion or contraction is caused by the swelling or de-swelling of hygroscopic fibers in atmosphere of
changing humidity. Relaxation shrinkage is due to the recovery of fibers strained during manufacturing process. Some
relaxation shrinkage is necessary, for reducing the bulk in eased seams (armholes etc.) though high levels may get
problematic. (Kannan et al showed that shirting fabrics having hygral expansion higher than 1.53 per cent in warp and/or in
weft leads to garment appearance problems.
It is evident that relaxation shrinkage of merino 100 knit fabric is more than soya 100 fabric in course wise
direction where as in wale wise direction the merino 100 knit fabric shows expansion. Soya100 fabric neither shrinks nor
expands in wale wise and course wise direction. Among blended fabrics, the maximum relaxation shrinkage is for soya
50:50 and minimum is for 80:20 knit fabric. The value of 70:30 is in between the blended fabrics thus no particular trend is
found that is, when ratio of wool fibre increases till 30 % the relaxation shrinkage decrease but above 50 % it tends to
increase. This trend is found in both wale wise and weft wise directions.
In case of hygral expansion, the merino 100 knit fabric has more value than soya 100 knit fabric. Among blended
fabrics, hygral expansion decreases as % of wool increases in both the directions.
Fabric formability can be used in the prediction of the limit of overfeed before buckling. Lower the formability
more is the likelihood of seam pucker because the fabric is unable to accommodate even a small compression exerted on
the fabric by the sewing thread.
Formability is a term coined by Lindbergh, in relation to the correlation between fabric properties and
performance of the fabric in garment manufacture. Formability is often expressed as a measure of the extent to which
fabrics can be compressed in plane before buckling and thus can be used in the prediction of a seam pucker. Formability is
related to bending rigidity and extendibility as a tailoring parameter, and is relevant to the amount of overfeed possible in
eased seams(sleeve cap, neckline). The maximum and minimum limits of fabric formability will also depend on the sewing
thread, needle size and thread tension, as well as the skill of the operators. Kannan (2007) reported that for shirting fabrics,
the minimum limit of fabric formability is lower than that of the lightweight suiting (0.25mm2 in both directions).
Puckering or sleeve-setting problems are known to occur easily only in fabrics with formability less than 0.18mm2 in either
directions(How et al, 1995)
Formability has considerably reduced after blending the wool. In course wise direction it remains more or less
same i.e. zero. It is evident that formability of knit fabrics of merino 100 is more than soya 100 fabrics. Among blended
fabrics in wale wise direction when compared with soya100, the formability increases but no particular trend is found as
the ratio is increased. It has increased up to 30 % addition of wool in blended fabric but decreases when % of wool
increases above a certain level. In course wise direction for the blended fabric, the value of formability is 1.38 for soya
50:50 and 2.65 for Merino 100 and it is more or less the same for soya 100, soya 80:20 and soya 70:30 fabric i.e. zero.

CONCLUSIONS
Knitted fabric's behavior and performance during garment manufacture can be assessed with the adoption of
objective measurement of fabric mechanical properties. It is a known fact that knitted fabrics require special care in
handling of fabrics while cutting and stitching due to their structure. SIROFast test conclude that all five fabrics 100% soya
100% merino and soya-wool(80:20,70-30 and 50-50)) blended fabrics sends warning signs to the garment maker in terms
of warp and weft relaxation shrinkage of knitted fabrics. It is found that S50:M50 has maximum relaxation shrinkage and
Impact Factor (JCC): 3.8329

Index Copernicus Value (ICV): 6.1

Hand of Soya - Wool Blended Knitted Fabrics

minimum is for S70:M30. Hygral expansion increases as % of wool component increases. It is found that possible fusing
problems may take place. Weft formability is too low it may cause poor seam performance and difficulties in inserting
sleeves. Formability has considerably decreased after blending the wool. Warp and weft extensibility are high that it
becomes difficult to match checks, care should be taken in laying the fabric. As warp and weft bending rigidity is
high-moulding may be difficult. Bending rigidity increases due to incorporation of wool in the blend. Shear rigidity is low
so lays may require pinning. Care will be required in cutting and sewinge specially in shoulder seams.
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Amirbayat (1995). A New Approach to Fabric Assessment, International Journal of Clothing Science and Technology. 7(1),
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Janarthanan, M. (2013). Soya protein fibre for textile applications. The Indian Textile Journal. 123(4), 23-28.

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Kannan, M. (2007). Assessment of properties of shirting fabrics using fast. The Indian TextileJournal. 118(1), 146-154.

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How et al. (1995). Subjective and Objective Evaluation of Men's Shirting Fabrics International Journal of Clothing Science
and Technology. 7 (4), 17-29.

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How et al. (1996). The Application of Fabric Objective Measurement in Shirt manufacture. International Journal of Clothing
Science and Technology. 8(4), 44-64.

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Vynias, D. (2006). An investigation into the wet processing and surface analysis of soybean fabrics,Ph.D.thesis, University of
Manchester, U K.

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Vynias, D. (2011). Soya bean fibre - A novel fibre in industry. Retrieved September 15, 2013 from
http://www.intechopen.com/books/soybean-biochemistry-chemistry-and-physiology/soybean-fibre-a-novelfibre-in-the-textileindustry.

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