Development and Investigation of Hybrid Knitted Structures for Sensorial Comfort Properties. Part I - Tuck Stitches

Abstract

Sensorial evaluation plays an important role in the identification of materials in addition to technical specifications for the wearer. The current study focuses on the development of different hybrid knitted structures with different percentages of knit stitches and tuck. Hundred percent cotton was used to develop unique structures on the 4-cam track single jersey knitting machine. A total of 15 hybrid weft knitted structures are developed with different combinations of knit and tuck stitch percentages. The effects of different amount of knit and tuck stitches on physical parameters, e.g. area density, stitch density, and thickness, were characterized. Sensorial comfort, e.g. resilience, softness, smoothness, drape, and wrinkle recovery rate, were evaluated with the standard test method. After testing and data analysis, it was concluded that percentages of stitch types have a significant effect on the physical parameters and sensorial comfort properties of the fabrics.

Keywords

• knitting
• single jersey
• sensorial comfort
• resilience
• softness
• smoothness
• drape
• wrinkle recovery
• cotton