Key factors to control the Cloth Barriness

Rd & +b values of cotton -vs- barrie fabric

TFA
In textile industry, one of the most common and perplexing quality
control problems is Barre (repetitive yarn direction streaks). In this
exclusive meet with Mr. Balaji – VP at Vishwanath Spinnerz –
given his elaborated view at departmentwise, the causes of barre
effects in resultant fabrics.
Barre is defined as "unintentional, repetitive visual pattern of
continuous bars or stripes usually parallel to the filling of woven
fabric or to the courses of circular knit fabric "Barre is sometimes
used as a synonym for WARP STREAKS.

Barre can be caused by physical, optical or dye differences in the

yarns, geometric differences in the fabric structure or by any
combination of these differences.

Barre is basically a visual phenomenon and any property of yarn

which makes it 'look' different from the adjacent yarn in a fabric
would result in this defect.

The properties which are the causes of Barre are given below.
1. Fiber Micronaire variation
2. Fibre color variation
3. Yarn liner density variation
4. Yarn twist variation
5. Yarn Hairiness variation
6. Knitting Tension variatin
7. Improper mixing of cotton from different origin
8. Improper mixing of cotton from different varietes
9. Improper mixing of cotton grown in different seasons
Zellweger Uster has published the following details regarding Barre

Caused due to - Barre

Fibre 70%

Yarn Count variation 10%

Twist variation 10%

Micronaire:
 The difference in Micronaire average of the mixings of the entire lot
should not be more than 0.2
 The range of the Micronaire of the individual bales used in the
mixings should be same
 the C.V.% of Micronaire of individual bales within the mixing should
be less than 12 %
 Same micronaire bales should not be placed side by side and a group
should be formed with the different micronaire bales and it should be
repeated in the bale laydown
Cotton Colour grade :
Monitoring of colour grade is also a very important job to control the
barre problem in the resultant yarn & fabric. The following guidelines
might be useful for better control on colour grade of cotton.

. Rd value : Usually in Indiana cotton Rd values lie between 72 and

82. For better Control, it is advisable to maintain Rd value range
below 5 in daily mixing plan.
. +b : +b value significally differs region-wise and variety-wise. In
Indian cotton, +b lies in Range of 6.0 and
11.0. It is better to maintain the +b range between 2.5 in
one variety of Cotton mixing.
Yarn properties:
 It has been widely accepted that it is the inconsistency or the
variation aspect of the yarn properties which is a prime cause for
'Barre"
 Of the various quality characteristics tested, variation in hairiness,
count and twist are considered to be three important properties
which need proper control to avoid barre.
 Slippage of spindle tape is the main reason for the TPI variations. If
the TPI is more in yarn then the yarn diameter will reduce and
number of helical angle will increase. If the diameter of the yarn is
low then more light will pass through that region of cloth because the
gap between the two yarn is more.When more ridges are present,
then more light reflects from the surface of the yarn. Hence regions
with high TPI yarn appear light coloured after dying.
Knitting:
A bar or stripe may be caused by several variables shown below
 Tight loops: This may take the form of a shaddow ( several courses
involved) or a discreet line ( one course involved). It will normally
show up as a dark or dense line or shaddow
 Slack loop: Similar to above, but it shows up as a sheer or light line.
 improper stich length at a feed
 improper tension at a feed
 variation in fabric take-up from loose to tight
 Worn needles, which generaly produce length direction streaks
 Uneven cylinder height needles(wavy barre)
 Uneven loops: In this the "average" stitch length is the same in all
cases but the distribution of the length of yarn between the dial and
the cylinder of knitting machine is not balanced on a particular
course. Thus it will appear as a tight or slack course on one side but
analysis will not show up the fault.
Weaving:
 Uneven warping tension
 Uneven take-up tension
 Uneven let-off motion
 Uneven tension on filling
 Scuffing or filling yarn on the beam
 Bent beam gudgeons
The influence of three important parameters - yarn count, fibre
micronaire and fibre colour - on the intensity of the barre defect in
cotton knitted fabrics are discussed. Of the fibre parameters, the
degree of yellowness of cotton seems to have a relatively more
significant effect on the Barre intensity in fabrics than the micronaire.
However even deviation of micronaire value to the extent of +0.15
results in a visible barre defect. Deviations in yarn count also shows
up significantly as Barre defects. Avoidance of the Barre effect,
therefore, requires proper control on all these parameters.
Cotton yarn: Quality depends on mixing strategy

A systematic mixing plan by maintaining the lowest possible variation in cotton quality
parameters ensures trouble-free yarn production with consistent yarn quality, affirms Sunil
Kumar Sharma.

In a spinning mill control over cotton quality is involved in

the three steps stated below:

1. Approval of cotton bales: It is very important to

purchase the right quality cotton bales according to defined
quality standards. As cotton is a natural fibre and also a
commercial commodity, its availability, prices and quality
vary time to time based on supply and market demand, and
therefore it is very important to select the required quality
cotton bales at reasonable prices which should be viable for
spinning industries. Approval of cotton bales should be very
strict against its standards, otherwise this will result in stock
of huge quantity of off-standard bales.

2. Grading of cotton bales: After reaching cotton bales in mill, these should be tested and
properly graded according to mill standards. If possible it should be stacked in warehouse grade-
wise.

3. Mixing planning: According to grade-wise, cotton bales stock and spinning count pattern,
cotton bales must be selected for mixing plan with minimum possible variation.

Critical cotton properties

The following are the most common cotton properties, which are measured at the time of
selection of cotton bales:

1. Length: Measured either in inches or in mm.

2. Fineness: Cotton fibre fineness usually measured in micronaire, ie, weight of fibres in
microgram per inch.
3. Strength: Measured as fibre bundle breaking force in gms per tex.

4. Maturity: Measured either in term of maturity coefficient or in maturity ratio.

5. Uniformity: Measured either in % or as an index.

6. Short fibre content: Measured as %.

7. Trash content: Measured as %.

8. Moisture content: Measured as %.

9. Brightness: Represents as Rd value against degree of reflection.

10. Yellowness: Represents as +b value.

11. Colour grade: Colour grade is determined with conjunction of Rd & +b value.

All in one single value - SCI

Spinning Consistency Index (SCI) is a calculated value based on a regression equation. This
equation takes into account all HVI properties and calculates one value to be used on each
sample tested. The SCI is an index derived with data from a large number of cotton samples
having a wide range in properties that is related to test data from yarn spun from each sample. By
multiple regression analysis the contribution of each fibre property to yarn properties is revealed.
Consequently, a single SCI value is influenced by inherent relationships of cotton micronaire,
length, uniformity, strength, Rd and +b.

The following are SCI equation for the most important HVI measurements including colour:

For HVI Calibration Mode:

SCI = - 414.67 + (2.9 x Strength) - (9.32 x Mic) + (49.17 x Length in inch) + (4.74 x Uniformity
Index) + (0.65 x Rd) + (0.36 x +b)

If no colour module is installed then SCI equation is as follows:

SCI = - 322.98 + (2.89 x Strength) - (9.02 x Mic) + (43.53 x Length) + (4.29 x Uniformity
Index)

For ICC Calibration Mode:

SCI = - 414.67 + (2.9 x Strength) - (9.32 x Mic) + (49.17 x Length) + (8.61 x Uniformity Ratio)
+ (0.65 x Rd) + (0.36 x +b)

If no colour module is installed then SCI equation is as follows:

SCI = - 322.98 + (2.89 x Strength) - (9.02 x Mic) + (43.53 x Length) + (7.79 x Uniformity
Index)

Effect of fibre properties

Each cotton characteristic imposes its own influence on

spinning process and ultimately on the yarn quality
explained as below:

Fibre length: Fibre length is the most important factor for

spinning. Selection of cotton fibre is usually based on fibre
length only and it is also the main deciding factor for count
range to be spun. Hence this impacts each and every process

of spinning operation. The following are the main

influencing areas where fibre length impacts on spinning performance and yarn quality.

Count pattern and spinning production rate: Fibre length is the main deciding factor for count
pattern in a spinning mill. Production speeds of spinning machinery also very much depend on
fibre length of cotton. In modern high production spinning set-up cotton fibre length cannot be
selected as per old traditional systems. For modern high production spinning set-up cotton fibre
properties required are as below:

Definition of modern high production spinning set-up:

Spinning set-up running with more than 50 kg/hr carding
production rate, getting 40s converted GPSS above 110 with
a HOK level of below 12 in spinning, equipped with modern
Autoconer.

Working performance: Higher length variation causes poor

working performance of spinning processes, which lead to lower production and huge
disturbance in process. Only achieving average fibre properties as per standard is not guarantee
for better spinning performance; hence it should be ensured that each cotton lot should have
minimum length variation. Cotton lots having higher variation should run in controlled quantity,
which is given in next chapter, ie, Mixing plan.

Higher irregularity or unevenness: If cotton lengths are not suitable to the spin plan or have
higher length variation, eg, to produce the 30s NE count if cotton selected below 28 mm length,
it will lead to high irregularity or unevenness in yarn and will also cause higher autoconer cuts
and fabric defects.

High hairiness: Cotton selected of lower fibre length will cause high yarn hairiness, leading to
high fluff generation in department, more tendency of traveller loading, excessive EYC cuts and
cops rejection at autoconer and pilling or barre problem in
fabric.

Fineness/Micronaire of fibre: The second most important

factor for spinning mills to decide the count pattern is
fineness of cotton fibre that is commonly known as
micronaire. Same as fibre length, it is also the deciding
factor for cotton selection and spin plan of a spinning mill.

Number of fibres in yarn cross-section: Spinning of a

particular fineness of yarn is based on the fibre length of
cotton and its fineness which decide how many fibres will be
in the cross-section of yarn. It seems that below 90 numbers
of fibres in cross-section of ring spun yarn (for coarse &
medium count range) can lead to major working problem at spinning with lower yarn strength
while more than 300 numbers of fibres in cross-section of yarn lead to higher unevenness in ring
spun yarn. Hence it is recommended to use right micronaire value for a particular spin plan.
Table 1 recommends guideline for micronaire value for different count range.

Higher neps generation: Low micronaire value causes high neps generation in blow room and
carding, which lead to higher neps and imperfection in final yarn and white spots or dots in dyed
fabric. Low fineness cotton fibres always have tendency to form fibre entanglement or neps,
hence it is recommended to reduce blow room beaters speed and carding production rate
whenever low micronaire value cotton is being processed.

Barre or shade variation: Too much variation in micronaire values can lead to barre problem or
shade variation in fabric.

Genetic character: Micronaire value of any cotton fibre strongly exhibits its origin variety
genetic character. If a cotton fibre fineness value does not belong to normal distribution of its
origin variety, it means either this fibre is immature or it does not belong to the said variety. This
type of cotton lot should be avoided. Table 2 shows a general trend for critical cotton
characteristics for most common Indian cotton varieties.
Fibre strength: Fibre strength is an important factor for working of
spinning process and yarn strength. Fibre strength is directly
proportionate to yarn strength and working performance of spinning
machines. However it seems that strength of fibre is also related with
others cotton properties like fibre length, micronaire and maturity.
Fibre bundle strength is a deciding factor for spinning machine
speeds. If fibre is not adequately stronger, then there has to be a
compromise with production rate and force to reduce speed of
machines. Similarly ultimate yarn strength will be less as required.

Maturity: Maturity of cotton fibre is related with its growing

process. A fully mature fibre means the fibre has achieved its
complete growth process and has developed in all respects. Mature
fibres achieve and exhibit better fibre properties in all respect as per their origin of variety
characteristics, as described in Table 2. Fibres which are not grown in a normal condition or
picked up before their complete growth will fail to have their specific characteristics and will be
shorter, weak & fine as compared to mature fibres.

In HVI testing, the maturity index is a relative value that is calculated by using a sophisticated
algorithm including other HVI measurements, such as micronaire, strength and elongation. It
indicates the degree of cell wall thickness within a cotton sample. Table 3 shows the average test
results of total 98241 number of bales wrt degree of maturity index.
Hence maturity is a key parameter for cotton selection and spinning process. In various testing
methods it is represented as maturity coefficient, maturity index or as maturity ratio. Higher the
numerical value means higher will be maturity of fibres. Low maturity value impact at spinning
process or yarn quality as below:

Fibre rupture: Immature fibers breaks into multiple pieces

in blow room and carding section during metallic action of
beaters and carding wires cause increase in short fibers &
micro-dust which further reduce the effective length of fiber
and strength. This fibre rupture increases yarn breaks, yarn
defects, spinning waste and yarn imperfection level,
subsequently reducing the working efficiency of spinning
machinery causing lower production, yarn recovery with
lower yarn strength.

Dead cotton neps: Immature fibres create heavy neps during spinning process, which ultimately
reflect as white dots in dyed fabric, causing fabric rejection. Table 3 and Figure 1 showing that
fibre maturity is directly proportionate to fibre length & bundle length of fibres.

Uniformity: Settings of spinning drafting rollers depends on the length of fibres. To obtain
optimised and correct spinning draft roller settings fibre uniformity is very important factor.
Cotton fibre with low uniformity causes very high variation in process and creates difficulties for
spinners to set the right setting for particular cotton mixing.

Short fibre content: Fibre lengths below half inch, ie, below 12.5 mm are considered as short
fibres. High short fibre % in cotton leads to many problems in spinning process such as high end
breaks, excessive yarn defects, very high fluff generation, lower machine efficiency, lower yarn
realisation and higher worker turnover.

Trash content: High trash content in mixing causes higher waste extraction, high end breaks
rate at ring frame, higher yarn imperfection and Classimat faults. It also appears as black dots in
greige fabric, usually known as kitti particles.
Moisture content: Cotton is a hygroscopic fibre, it absorbs moisture from a high humid
atmosphere and evaporates it when stored in dry atmosphere. For smooth spinning operation, the
cotton fibre should have moisture in the range of 6 to 8 per cent. Moisture content below this
limit causes high fluff generation and higher end breaks, while cotton having high moisture
content is difficult to open and clean in blowroom-carding, hence creating very high
imperfection and yarn slubs which again cause end-downs at ring frame stage, lowering the
production efficiency with increase in yarn imperfection and defects.

Colour Grade: Variation in colour grade is a major responsible factor for shade variation in
cotton yarn and fabric.

Grading of cotton bales

It is very difficult to grade a cotton lot based on all 11 parameters mentioned above, and hence
we can decide four major critical parameters for grading of cotton bales, which represent the
overall grading of cotton. These parameters may be utilised for cotton bales procurements,
stacking and finally for selecting the cotton bales for Mixing Plan. If a mill's cotton purchasing is
strictly from a particular region then there will be less chances of too much variation in colour
grade, and so critical parameters for them might be as below:

1. Fibre length: A must requirement to decide the count pattern of spin plan.

2. Micronaire: A must requirement to decide the count pattern of spin plan.

3. Maturity: Required to control the quality of cotton, it also represents to fibre strength.

4. Short fibre %: Required to control the working performance of spinning mill and yarn
realisation. It also represents to uniformity of cotton. Less the SFC more the uniformity of fibre.

If cotton procurement of mill is from different regions, then there might be a possibility of
variation in cotton colour grade. Hence in that case, colour grade also is to be taken into
consideration.
Mixing planning

Object: To mix cotton fibres of different bales in a homogeneous form to overcome the
variations of cotton properties and maintain the uniformity and consistency throughout the
spinning process and in yarn quality.

Making a mixing plan may be a tedious job, but spinning performance totally depends on it.
Hence investing time and skill on mixing plan will pay consistency in spinning wrt working and
quality as a result. A practical mixing plan may be prepared as below:

1. First check the availability of grade-wise cotton bales and spin plan.

2. Then select grade-wise number of cotton bales in ratio of present cotton bales stock and as
required for spin plan. Stock of cotton bales to be utilised in such a manner that long staple
cotton (ie, A ++ in Table 4) to be used for fine count pattern.

3. If present spin plan is not supporting fine count range then it should be preserved for future, if
there is a possibility in future.

4. To control the length variation in a selected mixing plan either we have to consume "A++"
grade cotton first or we have to preserve it till all the bales of "B" grade cotton are exhausted.

5. Refer to cotton grading system as per Table 4, in a mixing plan either there should be top three
grade bales (ie, A++, A+ & A Grade) to be used or lower three grade bales (ie, A+, A & B
Grade) to be used.

6. In a mixing plan fibre length range should not exceed more than 2.5 mm and micronaire range
to be maintained below 0.60. (Refer Table 6.)

7. Low variation in fibre length is required to set right the correct gauges of spinning drafting
rollers and to avoid the fibre rupture and drafting waves. Variation in fibre length causes poor
quality and working of spinning along with high fly generation.

8. Low micronaire range must require maintaining the uniform number of fibres in cross-section
of yarn, which ensures better yarn evenness and single yarn strength.

9. Number of cotton lots in a mixing plan to be selected in such a manner that participation of
each cotton lot bales should not be more than 5 per cent. For example, if we are making a mixing
plan for 100 number of bales than there should be at least 20 number of cotton lots contributing 5
bales each for each batch. This is required to avoid wide changes in the mixing plan, even if
there is change of one single cotton lot then there will be only 5 per cent change in particular
mixing plan.

10. Replacement of cotton lot should be in decreasing and increasing order. If one cotton lot is
going to be exhausted in mixing that should be run out slowly and replacement lot to be inserted
in same way, which ensures minimum variation in process during replacement of cotton lots.
Table 5 shows how one cotton lot should run out and another should replace it.

11. This system ensures very little change in mixing on day-to-day basis. Only one bale
replacement out of 100 bales mixing will be only 1 per cent change in mixing plan, which is
almost negligible.

12. To further minimise the variation during lot change care should also be taken so that same
grade cotton or cotton lot with same characteristics are replaced.

13. If cotton is procured from different station, then try to replace the cotton lot with same origin
or station.

Monitoring of colour Grade: Monitoring of colour grade is also a very important job to control
the shade variation or barre problem in resultant yarn and fabric. The following guidelines might
be useful for better control on colour grade of cotton.

Rd value: Usually in Indian cotton Rd values lie between 72 and 82. For better control it is
advisable to maintain the Rd value range below 5 in daily mixing plan. (Refer Table 6.)

+b: +b value significantly differs region-wise and variety-wise. In Indian cotton +b lies in range
of 6.0 and 11.0. It is better to maintain the +b range below 2.5 in one variety cotton mixing.
(Refer Table 6.)

Colour grade: The colour grade is determined by locating the quadrant of the colour chart in
which the Rd and +b values intersect. For example, a sample with Rd value of 72 and +b value
of 9.0 would have a colour code of 41-3. Colour grade is represented in three digits as xx-y. First
digit represents brightness of cotton. Lower the number higher will be the brightness of cotton.
Second digit represents yellowness of cotton; yellowness increases with increase in second digit
number. There are 25 colour grades and five categories of colour grades. Indian cotton usually
lies in white and light spotted categories with middling to good middling colour grade.

To avoid the shade variation or barre problem it is advisable that only four adjacent cotton grades
be selected for mixing plan, eg, 11, 12, 21, 22 may run together but running 11 with 31 or 11
with 13 should be avoided.

Colour grade categories of spotted, tinged and yellow stained, ie, represented by 3, 4 & 5
numbers in second digit of colour grade should be strictly avoided.
Use of off-standards bales: In spinning mills there should be strict control on purchasing of
cotton bales or passing for quality specification, otherwise a lot of off-standard cotton bales
accumulate in mill godown, which will never allow spinners to prepare a controlled mixing plan.
However even after better control there might be chances of some off-standard cotton bales
lying, which do not belong to normal standard either for any single parameter or due to failure of
multiple parameters. These bales are to be utilised in very controlled manner so that their bad
quality should not affect spinning process and yarn produced. Based on quality parameters of
off-standard bales these may be consumed in controlled manner (ie, in a range of 1 to 5 per cent
according to quality parameter) as below:

1. If there is only a slight variation in any one or two parameters from standard, then such cotton
bales may be considered in mixing with 3 per cent contribution. For example, if standard for
fibre length is above 29 mm and the micronaire is above 3.6 and actual values of a cotton lot
found are 28.5 mm and 3.5 mic value then such cotton bales may be considered with 3 per cent
ratio in mixing.

2. If there is a significant deviation in a single value, such as instead of 29 mm fibre length it is

27 mm while rest other parameters observed are within range, in that case such cotton bales may
be consumed with below 2 per cent ratio.

3. If 2 - 3 parameters fail to meet the standard specs, then such cotton bales should be strictly
consumed with below 1 per cent ratio.

Mixing Plan monitored through Spinning Consistency Index: Instead of monitoring of

several parameters for a mixing plan, it might be more easy to monitor the "SCI" value of cotton
properties obtained from HVI test report. The following guidelines may be adapted for using
"SCI" value in cotton grading and mixing planning:
1. Cotton may be graded in five grades and stored in warehouse according to their SCI value, ie,
as below:

2. According to stock position a mixing plan must be prepared and average, minimum, maximum
and range should be drawn for SCI value.

3. Average SCI value of daily mixing should be maintained constant and there should not be
more than +/-2 deviations on daily basis.

4. It should be tried that maximum and minimum range of SCI value should not be more than 30,
for an ideal mixing plan it should be maintained below 20.

5. The total range of maximum and minimum SCI value should also be monitored on a daily
basis and there should not be too much variation on daily basis.

Conclusion

Cotton is the most favourable fibre for spinning industries. As cotton is a natural fibre, hence
variation in its properties is also an inherent characteristic. To overcome these variations,
scientific and systematic control is required on cotton quality. Control over cotton quality in a
spinning mill is recommended in three stages, ie, approval of cotton bales, grading of cotton
bales and finally selection of cotton bales for mixing plan.
Major cotton fibre properties and their impacts on spinning processes
and yarn quality have been explained in details with examples, data and
graphical representations. More emphasis has been given on SCI and
maturity of fibres. Maturity of cotton fibre is an important parameter
and also impacts on others parameters such as length, strength,
elongation, etc. All in one single value derived from regression equation
Spinning Consistency Index (SCI) is a value influenced by inherent
relationships of cotton micronaire, length, uniformity, strength, Rd and
+b, which may help spinners to monitor only one parameter for decision
making.

Mixing planning is a very important function for spinning operation and investing the time and
skill for systematic mixing plan pays good returns such as consistency in productivity and
quality. A systematic mixing plan by maintaining the lowest possible variation in cotton quality
parameters ensures trouble-free yarn production with consistent yarn quality. Variation in cotton
colour grade is a major responsible factor for shade variation and barre problem in fabric, and
hence control over cotton colour grade is one of the most important functions of mixing plan,
which cannot be ignored. Consuming the off-standard quality bales is a tricky job and it should
be used in a very controlled manner so that performances of spinning process and yarn quality
are not affected.
Micronaire: Micronaire is measured by placing lint in a chamber, compressing
it to a set volume and subjecting it to a set pressure. The micronaire result
measured in this way is in actual fact a function of both fibre maturity and
fineness (linear density). As the reading is an approximate guide to fibre
thickness the trade use the following micronaire ranges to describe samples:

≥ 5.3 G7
5.0 – 5.2 G6
3.5 – 4.9 G5
3.3 – 3.4 G4
3.0 – 3.2 G3
2.7 – 2.9 G2
2.5 – 2.6 G1
≤ 2.4 G0
The premium range is 3.7 to 4.2 and the base range is 3.5 to 4.9 (G5) and
discounts apply for cotton with a micronaire outside the base range. Discounts
for low micronaire can be substantial.

Strength: Fibre strength is highly dependent on the variety, although

environmental conditions can have a small effect. Raingrown cotton strength
is usually not adversely affected by growing conditions. Most Australian
varieties are of high strength and local plant breeders have agreed to
eliminate varieties that do not meet a minimum standard, thus keeping
Australian cotton highly competitive in the world market. Fibre strength is
measured by clamping a bundle of fibres between a pair of jaws and
increasing the separation force until the bundle breaks.

Strength is expressed in terms of grams force per tex with the following
classifications:

 ≤ 23, weak;
 24 - 25, intermediate;
 26 - 28, average;
 29 - 30, strong (most current Australian varieties); and,
 ≥31, very strong.