Varsity researchers spin yarns with low residual torque

27 May '15

2 min read

Researchers at the Hong Kong Polytechnic University have developed a new yarn manufacturing technology, that can spin low-twist yet high-strength singles yarns with low residual torque.

To develop the technology, Professor Xiaoming Tao and her colleagues first created a new, unique structure for singles yarns by modifying the existing ring spinning machine.

“Secondly, the team invented a series of spinning devices for raw yarn materials ranging from coarse to fine counts and cotton to wool fibres,” a statement from the University said.

The researchers then developed a new method to accurately control the yarn's residual torque on the ring spinning machine.

"With acceptable quality and efficiency, our method can reduce yarn twist by 20-40 per cent compared to conventional methods, being the lowest among all ring spinning methods," Professor Tao said.

The Nu-Torque technology is capable of manufacturing improved yarns with a unique structure while reducing energy consumption by 3.77 million kilowatts per 10,000 tons of yarn.

"If half of the spindles in China installed a low twist device, 2.5 billion KWh of electricity would be saved," Professor Tao observed.

Unlike normal yarns, this process does not require any finishing process such as singeing, smoothing or flattening, thus saving even more energy.

The technology is also environmentally friendly, as no steam, water or chemicals are needed during the spinning process.

Furthermore, a modification unit, which produces yarns with a unique structure, can be installed on existing ring spinning machines, making it readily available for use.

Nu-Torque is currently used by 19 companies including Luthai Textile Co Ltd, a leading manufacturer of yarn-dyed fabrics headquartered in China.

Moreover, the technology is listed among China's national plan to enhance the core competence of the country's textile industries.

"We will continuously focus on the improvement of this technology and our technology can be applied to produce finer yarns and a variety of staple materials also," she informed. (AR)

Fibre2fashion News Desk - India