May - August 2019
SITRA e -Techletter
INSIDE THIS ISSUE...
PRODUCTIVITY CONCEPTS...1
TECHNICAL NOTES....3
KNOW YOUR INSTRUMENT.....5
SEMINARS AND CONFERENCES..6
TRAINING PROGRAMMES....7
NEW SERVICE BY SITRA.....8
NEW PUBLICATION RELEASED...9
TITBITS....10
CONSULTANCY OFFERED.....12
PAPER REVIEW....14
STAFF NEWS....15
No. 3.
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...News during the last four months
PRODUCTIVITY CONCEPTS
Production pattern and product diversification in spinning mills
Recently SITRA conducted a study on 'Production Pattern and Product Diversification'
in 105 mills covering data for the period October – December 2018. The following are
some of the salient findings of the study.
Counts and varieties of yarns
On an average, a 30000 spindle mill manufactured 9 different counts and varieties of
yarns at ring frames. Between mills, they ranged widely from a low of 1 to a high of 52
per 30000 spindles (Table 1).
Table 1 Number of counts and varieties of Normally, for good working of a mill, the
yarns manufactured per 30000 spindles average number of counts and varieties
of yarns manufactured at ring frames
Group Average % mills must be restricted to a maximum of 8
per 30000 spindles. Nearly three-
Up to 5 4 39 fourth of the mills have restricted the
6 – 10 8 38 number of counts and varieties of yarns
11 – 15 12 13 as being suggested by SITRA.
16 – 20 18 3 Range of counts
21 – 25 23 3 Range of counts is the difference
26 – 30 29 2 between the minimum and maximum
Above 30 4 2 counts spun by a mill. For instance, if a
mill produces 18s, 24s, 60s and 80s
Overall avg. 9 – counts, the count range is 62. The range
of counts spun by a mill is largely
determined by the mill size, market demand, profit margin and availability of
adequate preparatory as well as post spinning machinery. Many mills equip
themselves with the necessary infrastructure, which would enable them to produce a
May - August 2019 No. 3.2

PRODUCTIVITY CONCEPTS

wide range of counts. Of the total mills that participated in the study, more than one-third of the mills produced a narrow
range of counts and the remaining mills manufactured both medium and wide range of counts in equal proportion.
This pattern of count range is observed to be changing continuously in recent years. It clearly implies the changing
scenario and highly volatile market conditions of the spinning industry.
Table 2 Range of counts
Count range Product diversification
%
Group (difference between
mills In view of better yarn quality and remunerative prices, as high as 77% of
max. & min. counts) the mills have combed yarn manufacturing facilities, which account for
Narrow range Less than 20 40 59% of total yarn production. About 56% of the mills have compact
system attachment which has contributed to around 31% of the total
Medium range 21 – 40 27 yarn production (Table 3). About half of the mills produced hosiery as
Wide range Above 40 33 well as doubled yarns.
Though slightly more than half of the mills exported yarns, nevertheless
Table 3 Product diversification (ring yarn) they accounted for only about one-fourth of the total yarn production.
Of the total yarn production, cotton yarns amount to 79%, non-cotton
As % of total
Type of yarn % mills yarns 6% and non-cotton and blended yarns the balance 15%.
production
Production pattern
Combed 77 59
In ring spinning system, mills manufactured as high as 269 different
Compact 56 31
counts (7s to 135s) and varieties of yarns such as carded, compact,
Hosiery 49 28 combed, hosiery, melange, doubled, etc. In some counts, the varieties
of yarns manufactured are high ranging from 1 in 10s to 33 in 30s. In the
Doubled 53 8 rotor spinning system, mills manufactured 11 different counts and
varieties of yarns (Table 4).
Chemical processed 3 1
Types of value added yarns
Export 51 22
Spinning mills towards improving their profitability have been exploring
Table 4 Counts and varieties of yarns the markets – both domestic and overseas – to manufacture value
manufactured at packing stage added yarns. Various types of value added yarns being manufactured
by the mills are summarised below.
Type Total no. of counts
Count Total no.
of and varieties of
range of counts 1. Combed yarn 9. Dyed yarn
yarn yarns
2. Compact yarn 10. Eli-twist yarn
Ring 10s – 135s 54 258
3. Hosiery yarn 11. Organic cotton yarn

Rotor 7s – 32s 8 11 4. Gassed/mercerised yarn 12. Speciality yarn

5. High twist yarn - Polyester/Modal
Total 62 269 6. Slub yarn - Modal/Cotton
7. Multi-ply yarn - Cotton/Acrylic
8. Melange yarn

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May - August 2019 No. 3.2

TECHNICAL NOTES

A novel approach of new comber lap preparation for combed yarn quality - Part I
It is a well-known fact that carding is the heart of a spinning process. Many researches have shown that the combing
process also plays a predominant role in determining the quality of the yarns. In fact, the combing process overcomes
some of the deficiencies of carding process. In general, fibre hooks such as trailing hooks, leading hooks and hooks at both
the ends are generated in the carding process and the majority of the leading hooks are straightened in the combing
process. The method of lap preparation and the direction of feeding the hooks in the comber are determined by the
number of process stages between carding and comber.

In this research work, two methods of comber lap preparations have been attempted. The first method is the preparation
of comber lap by the existing practice that is followed in the mills (i.e) carding, sliver lap, ribbon lap & comber. In the second
method, a novel approach of introducing a manual reversal of card sliver along with an additional drawframe passage is
included after the carding process followed by sliver lap/ribbon lap preparation for comber (i.e) carding, manual card
sliver reversal, draw frame, sliver lap, ribbon lap and comber. The purpose of this work is to increase the draft between
card and comber & to study the effect on noil extraction in comber followed by a drawing passage prior to sliver lap and
ribbon lap. Three different noil indices of 7, 9 & 11 were kept in comber for both 'Normal' and 'Reverse' processes. The noil
levels extracted in 'Normal (N)' process with noil indices of 7, 9 & 11 were 15.7%, 19.5%, and 23.9%. In 'Reversal (R)'
process, the noil levels extracted for noil indices 7, 9 & 11 were 15.0%, 18.1% & 22.6% respectively. The yarn samples
produced in a conventional ring spinning system by this novel technique and the existing method of lap preparation were
compared for their yarn quality attributes.

Yarn quality results

The yarn quality attributes such as yarn mass irregularity, imperfections and hairiness of 'Normal (N) and 'Reversal (R)'
processes of ring spun yarns for the three noil indices at three noil levels are given in Table 1
Table 1 Yarn quality results of Ne 40 Normal (N) and
Reversal (R ) in ring spun yarns It may be observed from Table 1 that the
unevenness and normal imperfections of the
Yarn properties Noil Index 7 Noil Index 9 Noil Index 11 yarns produced out of 'Reversal' process do
(Ne 40). N R N R N R not show significant difference when
compared to that of the yarns spun by the
Noil % 15.7 15.0 19.5 18.1 23.9 22.6 'Normal' process in all the three indices of 7, 9
Unevenness (U%) 10.46 10.28 10.33 10.42 10.51 10.22 and 11. However, in extra sensitive
Thin (-50%) 0 2 3 3 3 5 imperfections, 'Reversal' process has shown
improvement by about 17% and 21% in noil
Thick (+50%) 24 26 22 20 17 18 indices of 7 & 11 respectively than that of the
Neps (+200%) 35 32 21 32 19 18 'Normal' process. Similarly, in hairiness (S3)
Total normal IPI/km 59 60 46 55 39 41 values, there is an improvement of about 25%
& 49% in the noil indices of 9 and 11
Thin (-40%) 92 65 64 99 96 67
respectively of the yarns spun by 'Reversal'
Thick (+35%) 345 293 276 316 277 235 process when compared to that of 'Normal'
Neps (+140%) 137 120 96 112 88 61 process.
Total Ex. Sens. IPI/km 574 478 436 527 461 363
Tensile properties
Hairiness (H) 4.49 4.43 4.46 4.38 4.46 4.41
Zweigle (S3) 843 848 894 667.2 1311 662 The yarn tensile properties such as single yarn

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May - August 2019 No. 3.2

TECHNICAL NOTES
tenacity, elongation, lea strength and CSP of 'Normal' Table 2 Tensile properties of Ne 40 ring spun yarn of Normal (N)
and 'Reversal' processes are given in Table 2. and 'Reversal' (R) processes

Yarn tensile Noil Index / Noil levels (Ring spun yarn)

From Table 2, it is observed that the single yarn
tenacity of the yarns spun from 'Reversal' process properties 7 9 11
have shown improvement to the extent of about 9%, (Ne 40s). N R N R N R
2.7% & 7% respectively for the 3 noil indices such as 7,
9 & 11 than that of the yarns produced out of 'Normal' Noil % 15.7 15.0 19.5 18.1 23.9 22.6
process. The improvement is due to the removal of Tenacity (g/tex) 20.95 22.89 21.88 22.48 22.80 24.56
fibre hooks which has resulted in the increase in fibre
CV% of tenacity 9.71 9.75 11.14 9.87 10.72 9.81
extent in the 'Reversal' process. Further, the lea CSP
of the yarns spun out of 'Reversal' processes was Elongation% 5.69 5.40 5.83 5.67 5.94 5.90
higher by about 5%, 3.5% and 2% respectively than CV% of elongation 6.68 7.34 7.35 6.96 7.23 7.22
that of the 'Normal' process. CSP 2895 3048 2920 3025 3073 3146
Classimat yarn faults CV% of CSP 2.84 2.24 3.12 3.55 2.80 5.50

The infrequent yarn faults of the yarns produced from From Table 3, it may be observed that there is a marked
'Normal' and 'Reversal' processes is given in Table 3. improvement in Classimat total yarn faults (NSL) /100 km in
the yarns spun out of 'Reversal' process than that of the
Table 3 Classimat yarn faults of Ne 40 spun yarns of
yarns produced by 'Normal' process by about 6%, 50% and
'Normal(N) and ' Reversal (R) processes
32% respectively in all the three noil indices. Similarly, in long
Noil Index and Noils % (Ring spun yarn) thin faults (T) /100 km also, the 'Reversal' process has shown
Classimat yarn improvement by about 93%, 3% and 66% respectively than
7 9 11 that of the 'Normal' process.
faults (Ne 40s).
N R N R N R
Conclusions
Noil % 15.7 15.0 19.5 18.1 23.9 22.6
The major findings of this study are as follows:
Total faults 457.3 427 509.8 250.5 350.6 238 - In ring spun yarns; 'Reversal' process did not show
(NSL) /100 km
significant difference in normal yarn imperfections
Long Thin faults 116.6 7.3 26.4 25.6 126.2 42.5 when compared to that of the 'Normal' process.
(T)/100 km However, an improvement of about 17% and 21% was
observed in extra-sensitive imperfections at the two noil
indices of 9 & 11 respectively.
- Zweigle (S3) hairiness of the 'Reversal” process yarns was substantially lower by about 25% & 49% in the 9 and 11
noil indice level than that of the 'Normal' yarns.
- Single yarn tenacity and lea strength of the yarns spun through 'Reversal' process have shown higher tenacity values
by 9%, 2.7% & 7% and 5%, 3.5% & 2% in all the three noil indices than that of the 'Normal' process ring spun yarns
respectively.
- Total Classimat yarn faults (NSL) /100 km in the yarns spun out of 'Reversal' process were lower by about 6%, 50% and
32% in 7, 9 & 11 noil indicelevels respectively than that of the yarns produced by 'Normal' process. In long thin faults
(T), the 'Reversal' process has shown improvement by about 93%, 3% and 66% in all the three noil indices respectively
than that of the 'Normal' process yarns.
SPINNING DIVISION

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May - August 2019 No. 3.2

Know Your Instrument SITRA Puncture Resistance Tester (SPRT)

Puncture resistance denotes the relative ability of a material or object to inhibit the intrusion of a foreign object.
Medical textile products like protective gloves, geo textile material and bulletproof vests require this property to
protect the wearer against extraneous material penetrating through the fabric.
SITRA has developed a Puncture resistance tester that can test various technical fabrics.

SPRT is used to assess the puncture resistance property of

?
Medical Textile products (Surgical Gloves) & Geo Textiles.
The Machine can be operated as per the following
?
standards.
International Purpose
S.No
standards

1) ASTM F 1342 Protective textiles

2) ASTM F 2878 Surgical gloves

3) ASTM D 4833 Geomembranes

4) ASTM D 6241 Geotextiles

5) ASTM F 2132 Container material - discarded

medical needles

6) BS EN ISO 12236 Geosynthetics

Specifications

a. Capacity of penetration force : 0 to 1500 Kgs

b. Velocity of penetration force : 1” – 25”/min
c. Accuracy of deflection measurement : ± 1 mm
d. Sample size required : 1 sq. mtr fabric

Special features

üVersatile instrument to assess the puncture resistance of materials from surgical

gloves to geotextiles
üProvision to mount syringe needles of various gauges.
üEasy to change sample holders and puncture probes
Provide peak puncture force and its corresponding deflection point.

The above instrument is available at SITRA and mills can make use of the facility to test their textile samples.

Distinguished Visitor to SITRA

Dr. Kannan Krishnan – University of New Castle – Australia.

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May - August 2019 No. 3.2

SEMINARS AND CONFERENCES

SITRA's 32nd Technological Conference

SITRA's 32nd Technological Conference was held at SITRA on 31st July, 2019. Shri
K.V.Srinivasan, Chairman. Council of Administration, SITRA inaugurated the Conference. He
highlighted how SITRA has been concentrating on research projects not just confined to its
core specialitiy of spinning but has also diversified itself into speciality areas like processing
and medical textiles. He also briefed the delegates the various activities carried out by SITRA
and exhorted them to utilize them in greater measure in the coming years.

Shri P.Nataraj, Chairman, SIMA, who delivered the Keynote address sought to highlight the
issues faced by the textile industry and thanked SITRA for offering its services that would
mitigate some of them. He observed that the papers discussed in the conference are a
reflection of SITRA's efforts to address some of the areas that are relevant to the industry in
the region.

The technical sessions involved the following 7 papers which were chaired by
Mr.A.Kanthimathinathan, Vice President, Patspin India Ltd., Palakkad and
Mr.Kamatchisundaram, Vice President, Voltas Limited, Textile Machinery Division,
Coimbatore respectively.

1. Studies on yarn contraction in cotton yarns in conventional and compact ring

spinning systems – D.Jayaraman

2. Staffing pattern in Spinning Mills – N.Ravichandran

3. Study of energy consumption in ultra modern spinning Mills – N.Vasantha Kumar

4. Development of a reliable quantitative method for determination of sugar content

in cotton -fibres and measures to minimize the stickiness - S.Sivakumar

5. A study on effect of surface modification in apron on yarn quality – S.Balamurugan

6. Case studies in defect analysis of woven and knitted fabrics – S.Sounderraj

7. Impressions of ITMA -2019 - D.Jayaraman, M.Muthukumaran & S.Sivakumar

The conference was attended by 145 delegates.

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May - August 2019 No. 3.2

SEMINARS AND CONFERENCES

One day Interactive Workshop on

“Towards Zero defects in wet processing”

SITRA , in collaboration with The Karur Textile Manufacturer Exporters' Association, conducted a one-day
interactive workshop on 10th April 2019 with an aim to educate dyers on some of the key issues in wet processing
and measures to be taken to ensure defect- free fabrics. The treatment of textile effluents and disposal of sludge,
major challenges faced by this industry for some time now, were also addressed during the workshop. Actual case
studies of various kinds of defects in the industry handled by and rectified by SITRA were discussed in detail.

Around 75 participants took part in the workshop.

TRAINING PROGRAMMES

Training Programme on Functional skills for quality control

A 3-day training programme for the technicians working in quality control / testing laboratories, merchandisers,
exporters, etc. was conducted in May 2019. Totally 7 participants attended this programme which covered topics like
sampling techniques, testing of construction parameters of woven and knitted fabrics, colour theory & computer colour
matching, colour fastness, inspection of garments and specific tests for garments, care label instructions, eco
parameters, etc. Apart from the theoretical sessions, participants also had the opportunity to have practical
demonstrations at the laboratories.

In-house technical awareness programme.

At the request of M/s. Sri Kannapiran Mills, Coimbatore, SITRA conducted a two day training programme for their
executives, covering a range of topics like Auto clearer setting, type of yarn faults, classification yarn faults, yarn clearer
basic principles, clearer setting optimization. Fifteen executives of the company attended the programme held during
May 2019.

Pre-employment training and retraining programmes for textile workers

One out-station and two local mills availed SITRA's training services for their workers. 52 operatives in spinning and
weaving departments and were trained in 3 batches. The training programmes were conducted in Tamil.

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May - August 2019 No. 3.2

New Service by SITRA

Express Testing facility

Textile fibres are highly susceptive to moisture content in the atmosphere and their
properties affected as a result. The physical parameters of cotton, especially due to their
hygroscopic nature, are likely to be influenced by moisture and humidity. To make
realistic comparisons of the various characteristics of different materials, it is essential
that a standard atmospheric condition be maintained during testing.

SITRA's NABL/ISO 17025 accredited physical laboratories which adopt standard test
protocols like ASTM, ISO, BS, IS, etc., to carry out the tests, maintain a standard
atmospheric condition of 21±1° C and 65 ±1% RH, that ensure that all tests are carried
out only after due preconditioning of the test material.

With its continuous commitment to mills of ensuring speedy testing of test samples,
without in any way compromising on the test standards which insist on preconditioning
of samples, SITRA has established a "Rapid Conditioning System” to condition and
prepare the pre-opened cotton fibres quickly for High Volume cotton testing. This
system ensures that samples received from mills can be quickly pre-conditioned and
sent for testing.

Mills desirous of receiving quick test reports for their fibre samples can now opt for this
new service by SITRA at an additional cost of Rs.50 per sample, whereby test results can
be had on the same day of registration. Currently, the existing facility would permit only
50 samples to be accommodated per day. Samples to be tested under this category
would have to be received by us during the registration window of 9.30 a.m. to 10.30 am
each working day and the results will be made available online on the same day itself
before the labs closes after the second shift.

Mills sending their samples should clearly mark their packages as “Express testing” to
ensure ease in segregation of the sample packets.

We welcome mills to make use of this facility which would enable them to make quick
decisions on raw material procurement based on reliable test data.

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May - August 2019 No. 3.2

New Publication Released

Monograph on “SITRA Norms for Spinning Mills”

SITRA's most awaited publication – the 8th Edition of “SITRA Norms for Spinning Mills” was
released during the SITRA's Technological Conference that was held on 31st July, 2019. This revised
edition, like the previous ones, will provide the combined norms for Quality & Waste, Productivity
as well as General Norms that includes energy and costs among others (for cotton only).

Based on the analysis of data received from mills and after extensive discussions and expert
confabulations, revisions have been done on many of the norms given in the previous editions by
taking into consideration the technological developments that have taken place in the process
machinery. Certain sections have also been newly introduced in this edition.

What's different in this edition :

· Comber and its preparatory machines are included in HOK calculation and accordingly the
conversion factors are being arrived at (Operatives engaged in the above departments
were not included while arriving at the conversion factors till the previous edition).

· In automatic cone winding department, ancillary operatives have been considered for
HOK estimation (Up till the previous edition, HOK was provided only for the tenter
category).

What's new :

· As present day quality requirements are customer driven, Avant-garde method of grading
quality levels has been introduced in place of the practice followed in previous editions of
classifying quality levels as “Good”, “Average” and 'Poor”. Four percentile levels are given
with quality levels suggested at 5 percentile points specifically be helpful for mills
achieving superior quality using richer raw material.

· Standard HOK has been provided for a ultra modern spinning mill having latest generation
machines with high level of automations.

· Prediction formulas are given for yarn contraction for different count ranges with varying
TM's, which were arrived at based on extensive studies carried out at SITRA on the yarn
contraction levels for different level of TM's and different spindle speeds.

The monograph is available for purchase online. Those interested in purchase of the monograph
may place their order using the following link.

click here

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May - August 2019 No. 3.2

TEXTILE TITBITS

In the future, your clothes will clean the air, generate power and save your life
The cutting edge of textile tech, By Rebecca Boyle June 2, 2011, World Textile Information Network, Better Bulletproof
Technology, Courtesy of Wool
Kevlar, a synthetic fiber blend, has been stopping bullets for decades, but body armor could soon get a boost from a
distinctly natural material. Wool added to Kevlar vests can improve their energy and water absorption, making
waterproof, bulletproof vests that are both lighter in weight and cheaper to make, according to a study in Australia. Tightly
woven wool reduces the number of Kevlar layers required to stop a bullet from 36 to 30, and wool expands when it absorbs
water, which improves Kevlar's function when it's wet. Typically, Kevlar's bullet-stopping abilities are hampered in water,
so it must be waterproofed in a lengthy and expensive process. Wool could be a cheap, renewableNOV way to produce better
body armor .
Bread waste to become new textiles, By Jessica Owen 26 June 2019 , WTIN
Bread is one of the most wasted food items. In the UK alone, around 20 million whole slices of bread are wasted every day,
according to the Waste and Resources Action Programme (WRAP) – that's around one million loaves.
But now, Akram Zamani, a senior lecturer in Resource Recycling at the University of Borås, is developing a method to turn
this waste into textiles."We have seen that much of the food waste from grocery stores is from bread and therefore we
wanted to see how we could turn it into a new product," she says.
The project, which is called Fungal Textile, involves growing fungi on bread waste in bioreactors. The fibres can then either
be used to create yarn or they can be directly turned into nonwovens.
"When the bread has become a biomass of fungi, we remove the protein, which in turn can be used as food or animal
feed,” adds Zamani. “We use the fibres in the cell wall to spin a yarn, and partly to create nonwoven fabrics."We have done
a large part of the cultivation already, and it has worked well, so now we are working on a wet spinning process to create
yarn, and we are testing different methods to improve the yarn's properties."The team hope that the fibres can be used in
applications such as clothing, medical textiles and furniture.
First-ever' golf shoe made from upcycled plastic, By Jessica Owen 26 June 2019, WTIN
Adidas Golf has unveiled a limited-edition version of its TOUR360 XT, which is made with yarns spun from upcycled plastic
waste that has been intercepted from beaches and coastal communities.The TOUR360 XT Parley is made in partnership
with the environmental organisation Parley for the Oceans and is the first of its kind for the sport.“Our company is
extremely focused on sustainability and we wanted to incorporate that mission into our sport,” says Masun Denison,
global footwear director, Adidas Golf.
“This is the first golf shoe we've ever made that incorporates upcycled materials and this is just the beginning. In a sport
that's played outdoors and where sustainability is often under the microscope, we
feel this is a massive step forward for the game.”
The ocean blue and aqua green colourway of this limited-edition TOUR360 XT
Parley (US$200) utilises repurposed and upcycled plastic waste that's then
incorporated as raw material into the upper of the footwear. This thread, spun
from the upcycled plastic waste, comprises the entire upper of the shoe.
Adidas works with Parley for the Oceans to intercept plastic waste which is then
transformed into thread used to make high-performance sportswear. The
TOUR360 XT Parley is built on the TOUR360 XT eight-spike outsole with X-Traxion
technology, so golfers will still experience superior traction and stability while

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May - August 2019 No. 3.2

TEXTILE TITBITS

knowing that as they walk the course, they are helping to protect the oceans. The use of upcycled material falls in line with
Adidas' overall strategy to use 100% recycled polyester in all apparel and footwear by 2024.
Indian firm to help Adidas reduce plastics in products, 15 Jun '19 Fibre2Fashion News Desk – India
Polygenta Technology Ltd in Maharashtra will help Adidas eliminate the use of virgin plastics in its products by 2024 by
producing polyester filament yarn from discarded polyethylene terephthalate (PET) bottles at its Nashik factory. The firm,
with a capacity to process 30 tonnes of bottles daily, plans to scale up to 100 tonnes a day in two years to meet demand.
Polygenta would be converting around 8 to 10 million bottles a day in a couple of years from now. The yarn produced by
Polygenta, currently sent to Adidas' manufacturing centres to be converted into sportswear, may also be tapped to
potentially upcycle clothes made from polyester yarn, according to the firm's chief marketing officer Makarand Kulkarni.
At present, the company recycles around two million bottles a day, according to Indian media reports. Kulkarni said the
PET material collection rate in India is nearly 80 per cent—among the best in the world—but a good portion of these
bottles are downcycled, eliminating the possibility of further recycling. Downcycling is reuse of waste in a manner that the
recycled product is of lower value than the original material. The upcycling process consumes 86 per cent less water and
75 per cent less energy than conventional manufacturing, but costs nearly 10 per cent more, Polygenta claims.
Artificial muscles made with textile fibres, 16 July 2019 WTIN
Over the last 15 years, researchers at the University of Texas at Dallas and their international colleagues have invented
several types of strong, powerful artificial muscles using materials ranging from high-tech carbon nanotubes (CNTs) to
ordinary fishing line. A twisted carbon nanotube (CNT) yarn on the left and a sheath-run artificial muscle (SRAM). In a new
study published on July 12th in the journal Science, the researchers describe their latest advance, called sheath-run
artificial muscles, or SRAMs.
The research group's previous muscles were made by twisting CNT yarn, polymer fishing line or nylon sewing thread. By
twisting these fibres to the point that they coil, the researchers produced muscles that dramatically contract, or actuate,
along their length when heated and return to their initial length when cooled. To form the new muscles, the research team
applied a polymer coating to twisted CNT yarns, as well as to inexpensive nylon, silk and bamboo yarns, creating a sheath
around the yarn core.
“In our new muscles, it is the sheath around a coiled or twisted yarn that drives actuation and provides much higher work-
per-cycle and power densities than for our previous muscles,” says Dr Ray Baughman, corresponding author of the study.
In their experiments, a key step to making the finished muscles was to twist the newly coated yarns until they coil, while
the sheath material was still wet.“If you insert twisting or coiling after the sheath has dried, the sheath will crack,”
Baughman explains.
“Optimising the thickness of the sheath is also very important. If it is too thick, the twisted yarn at the core won't be able to
untwist because the sheath is holding it in place. If it is too thin, the untwisting of the yarn will cause the sheath to crack.”
Dr Jiuke Mu, lead author of the study and a research scientist with the NanoTech Institute, first developed the concept of
the sheath-run artificial muscle. In the sheath-run configuration, the outside sheath absorbs energy and drives the
actuation of the muscle. “In our previous twisted and coiled muscles, we applied thermal energy to the entire muscle, but
only the outer, twisted part of the fibre was doing any mechanical work – the central part was doing little,” he says.“Using
the sheath, the input energy can be converted into the mechanical energy of the muscle more quickly and efficiently.
Baughman adds that many materials could be used for the sheath, as long as they have the strength and can undergo
dimensional change under various ambient variables, such as changes in temperature or moisture. When operated
electrochemically, a muscle consisting of a CNT sheath and a nylon core generated an average contractile power that is 40
times that of human muscle and nine times that of the highest power alternative electrochemical muscle.

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TEXTILE TITBITS

“Since the SRAM technology enables the replacement of CNT yarns with cheaper yarns, these muscles are very attractive
for intelligent structures, such as robotics and comfort-adjusting clothing.” To demonstrate possible consumer
applications of sheath-run artificial muscles, the researchers knitted SRAMs into a textile that increased porosity when
exposed to moisture. They also demonstrated a SRAM made from polymer-coated nylon thread that linearly contracts
when exposed to increasing glucose concentration. This muscle might be used to squeeze a pouch to release medication
to counteract high blood sugar.

Philips' Luminous Wallpaper Will Create the Mood Lighting of the Future, By Clay Dillow, Popular Science, July 12, 2011
Philips' Luminous Room of the Future
The future of wallpaper is: glowing? That's Philips' vision for the future it seems, as the company is teaming with Kvadrat
Soft Cells to create a kind of luminous textile for the consumer market that will essentially embed adjustable LEDs in an
acoustic panel that can be hung on the wall to provide ambient lighting like an active piece of artwork, or even be used as a
wallpaper to bathe entire rooms in soft tones of the user's choosing.
The acoustic panels will do a lot to muffle sound and reduce echo in large spaces, but ostensibly they could also respond
visually to sounds--that is, the ambient color of the room might be programmed to respond to the music playing at any
given time or integrated into other entertainment experiences (kind of like those televisions that framed their screens in
ambient color, but on a larger scale). They could also be used for a room's primary lighting, reducing reliance on overhead
fixtures and windows. That could go a long way toward creating a less sterile feel than fluorescent bulbs in the windowless
interior spaces of large buildings.

CONSULTANCIES OFFERED BY SITRA

No. of
S. no. Nature of consultancy service services offered
1. Water consumption and time study of soft flow / Yarn dyeing machines. 45
2. Energy audit. 6
3. Monthly inter - mill surveys 4
4. Air compressor study. 3
5. Man power audit for staff, maintenance operatives & automatic dept. operatives 3
6. Techno-economic viability study 1
7. Machinery valuation 1
8. Preliminary visit for work assignment study 1
9. Work assignment study- Discussion 1
10. Audit meeting 1
11. Maintenance & electrical staff optimisation 1
12. Follow-up visit 1
13. Observation report 1

Besides the above consultancy studies, SITRA made 25 liaison visits to mills, solved 1 adhoc problem regarding UKG
conversion factor, trained 50 persons in textile chemical testing, made 4 liaison visit to mills, tested 829 accessory samples
and also calibrated 764 instruments.

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May - August 2019 No. 3.2
SITRA CALIBRATION SERVICES
ELECTRO TECHNICAL AND THERMAL CALIBRATION
Mills are aware that SITRA's Calibration laboratory has been offering calibration of textile testing instruments for the past
25 years. The services are carried out both In-house as well as On-site on a wide range of instruments with the calibration
certificates traceable to National / International Standards. SITRA will soon be receiving NABL accreditation for these
calibration services. Some of the common electro-technical instruments that can be calibrated are as follows.

Some of the common thermal instruments that can be calibrated are as follows.

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May - August 2019 No. 3.2

PAPER REVIEW

Comparative assessment of Eli-Twist and TFO They observed no significant difference in the unevenness of Eli-Twist
yarns in synthetics and blended yarns and TFO doubled yarns in all the three yarn linear densities and
MadanLalRegar, S.K. Sinha& R. Chattopadhyay, National Institute different compositions. However, the imperfections are reported to be
of Technology , Jalandar, Indian Institute of Technology, New marginally higher in Eli-Twist yarns due to the difference in the stage
Delhi. of doubling and presence of additionally integrated fibres on the
surface of the yarn. In TFO yarns, on the other hand, doubling helps in
In recent years , Eli-twist spinning system has drawn more hiding the imperfections of the individual strands.
attention in the industry, although two for one twister (TFO) is
used for the manufacture of doubled yarns . In most of the The yarn diameter of the Eli-twist and TFO doubled yarns for 100%
application areas, a yarn not only needs to be uniform, but also polyester were compared and are reported to be lesser than that of the
be strong enough to withstand various kinds of forces to be TFO yarns. The authors suspect that the bigger yarn diameter of TFO
applied during the weaving process. Doubling at the preparatory yarns may be due to the reverse twisting (Z over S) which causes the
stage can improve mass uniformity, while doubling of the yarns at single yarns to loose small amount of twist causing diameter of the
the post spinning stage leads to improvement in both mass and individual yarns to increase. On the other hand, in Eli-Twist yarns,
strength variability. Improvement in mass irregularity and the components and the final yarn twist have twist in the same
mechanical properties during post spinning stage is possible direction. Further the suction also compacts the drafted fibreribbon
through doubling and /or suitable finishing treatments. In this before getting twisted.
regard, Eli-Twist spinning system offers a unique opportunity to
exploit the advantages of both Siro and compact spinning systems Hairiness of TFO yarns is reported to be higher than that of Eli-Twist
through fibre doubling during spinning, while compaction of the yarns as the yarn undergoes two additional processes of cop to cone,
structure is assisted by air suction.Although yarn doubling leads cone to cheese conversion, tenacity as well as breaking extension of Eli-
to a reduction in hairiness and mechanical properties, fibre Twist yarns are more than that of the TFO yarns. the condensing zone
doubling is believed to provide more improvement due to the in the Eli-twist spinning helps in integrating the protruding fibres
possibility of randomization than doubling at the yarn stage. within the yarn structure. The integration of short fibres makes more
number of fibres available to share the load during tensile testing. In
In the Eli-twist spinning system, applied air suction helps in TFO yarns.
reducing hairiness and better integration of fibres resulting in
improvement in mechanical properties as well. The authors have The abrasion resistance expressed as Relative Resisatnce index (RRI)
done a comparative assessment of yarns produced by both the eli- is reported to be more for TFO yarns as compared to that of Eli-Twist
Twist and TFO doubled yarns in synthetics and synthetic blended yarns in all the three compositions and yarn linear densities due to the
yarns on conventional yarn properties like mass irregularity, greater degree of trapping of fibres at the interface of two single yarns.
imperfections, tenacity and elongation. In addition, the other yarn The co-efficient of friction of Eli-Twist compact yarns was less than
properties such yarn diameter, coefficient of friction and abrasion that of TFO yarns as the structure being relatively more compact, with
resistance of the yarns. a smooth surface.

Three different compositions of 100% polyester, 50/50 polyester- SPINNING DIVISION

cotton and 100% cotton materials have been used by the authors to
produce three different counts (39.4 Tex, 29.5 Tex and 23.4 Tex).
The yarns produced were tested for their major yarn properties in
standard testing instruments at standard testing atmosphere.

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May - August 2019 No. 3.2

STAFF NEWS
MEETINGS ATTENDED

Dr. Prakash Vasudevan, Director, SITRA attended the following meetings:

– Meeting to review the activities and achievements of TRAs in the last financial year under the Chairmanship of
Shri Nihar Ranjan Dash, Joint Secretary, New Delhi, on 6.6.2019
– 20th Board Meeting of Textile Sector Skill Council TEXPROCIL, Mumbai, on 10.06.2019
– A meeting to review the Technical Textile Sector under the Chairmanship of Hon'ble Minister of Textiles, Smt Smriti
Irani, New Delhi, on 12.6.2019
– The Sub-committee meeting on Exployment Generation, Education, Skills and Livelihood as a Member for the year
2019-20, Chennai, on 27.07.2019

PAPERS PRESENTED

Mr.M.Muthukumaran, Head Textile Engineering & Instrumentation presented the following papers
- "Energy Management in Spinning Mills" during training program for Young Entrepreneurs in the theme of Textile
Management Excellence held at LMW-Unit I, Training Centre, Coimbatore on 21.08.2019.
- "Energy Management in industries" at Lakshmi Electrical Control Systems Ltd., Coimbatore on 28.08.2019.

The South India Textile Research Association

13/37, Avinashi Road, Coimbatore Aerodrome Post, Coimbatore - 641 014,
Phone: 0422-2574367-9, 4215333, Fax: 0422-2571896, 4215300
E-mail:info@sitra.org.in, Website: www.sitra.org.in

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