Lyocell fibre, a regenerated cellulose fibre produced by dissolving pulp (bleached wood pulp), was pioneered in 1987 by Courtaulds Fibres, UK.
With the increasing purchasing power and evolving lifestyles of domestic consumers, a substantial business opportunity emerges for high-end lyocell-fibre fabrics in the domestic (Indian) market. However, this potential remains largely untapped.
It is crucial to note that the chemical processing of lyocell demands meticulous attention due to the delicate yarn character, lower wet strength, fibrillation, high dye pick-up, and residual shrinkage.
In this study, we focus on optimizing the chemical processing of lyocell fabrics using a jigger.
Special emphasis is placed on devising a chemical-processing technique for lyocell-based fabrics within the existing infrastructure and machinery available in the processing industry in India, particularly in Surat. Currently, the industry in Surat predominantly concentrates on processing polyester varieties alone. Upon processing lyocell fabrics on a jigger machine, the dimensional stability, indicated by % residual shrinkage, was found to be 2.5 and 1.3 for warp and weft, respectively.
The authors are associated with The Man Made Textiles Research Association, Surat, India.
Acknowledgement
Authors acknowledge with gratitude the management of MANTRA for granting permission to publish this paper.
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