| Processing of Cotton | | | | Mercerising |
| Cotton Manufacturing Processes (after Murray 1911) | | | | Main article: Mercerized cotton |
| Bale Breaker | | | | A further possibility is mercerizing during which the |
| Blowing Room | | | | fabric is treated with caustic soda solution to cause |
| Willowing | | | | swelling of the fibres. This results in improved lustre, |
| Breaker Scutcher | | | | strength and dye affinity. Cotton is mercerized under |
| Batting | | | | tension, and all alkali must be washed out before the |
| Finishing Scutcher | | | | tension is released or shrinkage will take place. |
| Lapping | | | | Mercerizing can take place directly on grey cloth, or |
| Carding | | | | after bleaching. |
| Carding Room | | | | Many other chemical treatments may be applied to |
| Silver Lap | | | | cotton fabrics to produce low flammability, crease |
| Combing | | | | resist and other special effects but four important |
| Drawing | | | | non-chemical finishing treatments are: |
| Slubbing | | | | Singeing |
| Intermediate | | | | Main article: Singe#Textiles |
| Roving | | | | Singeing is designed to burn off the surface fibres |
| Fine Roving | | | | from the fabric to produce smoothness. The fabric |
| Mule Spinning | | | | passes over brushes to raise the fibres, then passes |
| Ring Spinning | | | | over a plate heated by gas flames. |
| Spinning | | | | Raising |
| Reeling | | | | Another finishing process is raising. During raising, the |
| Doubling | | | | fabric surface is treated with sharp teeth to lift the |
| Winding | | | | surface fibres, thereby imparting hairiness, softness |
| Bundling | | | | and warmth, as in flannelette. |
| Bleaching | | | | Calendering |
| Winding | | | | Main article: Calender |
| Warping | | | | Calendering is the third important mechanical process, |
| Cabling | | | | in which the fabric is passed between heated rollers to |
| Sizing/Slashing/Dressing | | | | generate smooth, polished or embossed effects |
| Gassing | | | | depending on roller surface properties and relative |
| Weaving | | | | speeds. |
| Spooling | | | | Shrinking (Sanforizing) |
| Cloth | | | | Main article: Sanforization |
| Yarn (Cheese)- - Bundle | | | | Finally, mechanical shrinking (sometimes referred to as |
| Sewing Thread | | | | sanforizing), whereby the fabric is forced to shrink |
| Cotton is the world's most important natural fibre. In the | | | | width and/or lengthwise, creates a fabric in which any |
| year 2007, the global yield was 25 million tons from 35 | | | | residual tendency to shrink after subsequent laundering |
| million hectares cultivated in more than 50 countries. | | | | is minimal. |
| There are five stages | | | | Dyeing |
| Cultivating and Harvesting | | | | Main article: Dyeing |
| Preparatory Processes | | | | Finally, cotton is an absorbent fibre which responds |
| Spinning | | | | readily to colouration processes. Dyeing, for instance, is |
| Weaving | | | | commonly carried out with an anionic direct dye by |
| Finishing | | | | completely immersing the fabric (or yarn) in an |
| Cultivating and harvesting | | | | aqueous dyebath according to a prescribed procedure. |
| Cotton is grown anywhere with long, hot dry summers | | | | For improved fastness to washing, rubbing and light, |
| with plenty of sunshine and low humidity. Indian cotton, | | | | other dyes such as vats and reactives are commonly |
| gossypium arboreum, is finer but the staple is only | | | | used. These require more complex chemistry during |
| suitable for hand processing. American cotton, | | | | processing and are thus more expensive to apply. |
| gossypium hirsutum, produces the longer staple | | | | Printing |
| needed for machine production. Planting is from | | | | Main article: Textile printing |
| September to mid November and the crop is | | | | Printing, on the other hand, is the application of colour in |
| harvested between March and May. The cotton bolls | | | | the form of a paste or ink to the surface of a fabric, in |
| are harvested by stripper harvesters and spindle | | | | a predetermined pattern. It may be considered as |
| pickers, that remove the entire boll from the plant. The | | | | localised dyeing. Printing designs on to already dyed |
| cotton boll is the seed pod of the cotton plant, | | | | fabric is also possible. |
| attached to each of the thousands of seeds are fibres | | | | Economic, environmental and political consequences of |
| about 2.5 cm long. | | | | cotton manufacture |
| Ginning | | | | The growth of cotton is divided into two segments i.e. |
| The seed cotton goes in to a Cotton gin. The cotton | | | | organic and genetically modified. . Cotton crop provides |
| gin separates seeds and removes the "trash" (dirt, | | | | livelihood to millions of people but its production is |
| stems and leaves) from the fibre. In a saw gin, circular | | | | becoming expensive because of high water |
| saws grab the fibre and pull it through a grating that is | | | | consumption, use of expensive pesticides, insecticides |
| too narrow for the seeds to pass. A roller gin is used | | | | and fertiliser. GM products aim to increase disease |
| with longer staple cotton. Here a leather roller captures | | | | resistance and reduce the water required. The organic |
| the cotton. A knife blade, set close to the roller, | | | | sector was worth $583 million. GM cotton, in 2007, |
| detaches the seeds by drawing them through teeth in | | | | occupied 43% of cotton growing areas.. |
| circular saws and revolving brushes which clean them | | | | The consumption of energy in form of water and |
| away. | | | | electricity is relatively high, especially in processes like |
| The ginned cotton fibre, known as lint, is then | | | | washing, de-sizing, bleaching, rinsing, dyeing, printing, |
| compressed into bales which are about 1.5 m tall and | | | | coating and finishing. Processing is time consuming. The |
| weigh almost 220 kg. Only 33% of the crop is usable | | | | major portion of water in textile industry is used for |
| lint. Commercial cotton is priced by quality, and that | | | | wet processing of textile (70 per cent). Approximately |
| broadly relates to the average length of the staple, and | | | | 25 per cent of energy in the total textile production like |
| the variety of the plant. Longer staple cotton (2 in to 1 | | | | fibre production, spinning, twisting, weaving, knitting, |
| in) is called Egyptian, medium staple (1 in to in) is called | | | | clothing manufacturing etc. is used in dyeing. About 34 |
| American upland and short staple (less than in) is called | | | | per cent of energy is consumed in spinning, 23 per |
| Indian. | | | | cent in weaving, 38 per cent in chemical wet |
| The cotton seed is pressed into a cooking oil. The | | | | processing and five per cent in miscellaneous |
| husks and meal are processed into animal feed, and | | | | processes. Power dominates consumption pattern in |
| the stems into paper. | | | | spinning and weaving, while thermal energy is the |
| Issues | | | | major factor for chemical wet processing. |
| Cotton is farmed intensively and uses large amounts | | | | Processing of other vegetable fibres- other processes |
| of fertiliser and 25% of the worlds insecticide. Native | | | | Flax |
| Indian variety were rainwater fed, but modern hybrids | | | | Main article: Flax |
| used for the mills need irrigation, which spreads pests. | | | | Flax is a bast fibre, which means it comes in bundles |
| The 5% of cotton-bearing land in India uses 55% of all | | | | under the bark of the Linum usitatissimum plant. The |
| pesticides used in India. Before mechanisation, cotton | | | | plant flowers and is harvested. |
| was harvested manually and this unpleasant task was | | | | Retting |
| done by the lower castes, and in the United States by | | | | Breaking |
| slaves of African origin. | | | | Scutching |
| Preparatory Processes- Preparation of yarn | | | | Hackling or combing |
| Ginning, bale-making and transportation is done in the | | | | It is now treated like cotton. |
| country of origin. | | | | Jute |
| Opening and cleaning | | | | Main article: Jute |
| Platt Bros. Picker | | | | Jute is a bast fibre, which comes from the inner bark |
| Cotton mills get the cotton shipped to them in large, | | | | of the plants of the Corchorus genus. It is retted like |
| 500 pound bales. When the cotton comes out of a | | | | flax, sundried and baled. When spinning a small amount |
| bale, it is all packed together and still contains | | | | of oil must be added to the fibre. It can be bleached |
| vegetable matter. The bale is broken open using a | | | | and dyed. It was used for sacks and bags but is now |
| machine with large spikes. It is called an Opener.In | | | | used for the backing for carpets. |
| order to fluff up the cotton and remove the vegetable | | | | Hemp |
| matter, the cotton is sent through a picker, or similar | | | | Main article: Hemp |
| machines. A picker looks similar to the carding machine | | | | Hemp is a bast fibre from the inner bark of Cannabis |
| and the cotton gin, but is slightly different. The cotton is | | | | sativa. It is difficult to bleach, it is used for making cord |
| fed into the machine and gets beaten with a beater | | | | and rope. |
| bar, to loosen it up. It is fed through various rollers, | | | | Retting |
| which serve to remove the vegetable matter. The | | | | Separating |
| cotton, aided by fans, then collects on a screen and | | | | Pounding |
| gets fed through more rollers till it emerges as a | | | | Other bast fibres |
| continuous soft fleecy sheet, known as a lap. | | | | These bast fibres can also be used: kenaf, urena, |
| Blending, | | | | ramie, nettle. |
| Mixing & Scutching | | | | Other leaf fibres |
| Carding | | | | Sisal is the main leaf fibre used; others are: abac and |
| Main article: Carding | | | | henequen. |
| Carding machine | | | | Processing of Protein fibres |
| Carding: the fibres are separated and then assembled | | | | Wool comes from domesticated sheep. It forms two |
| into a loose strand (sliver or tow) at the conclusion of | | | | products, woolens and worsteds. The sheep has two |
| this stage. | | | | sorts of wool and it in the inner coat that is used. This |
| The cotton comes off of the picking machine in laps, | | | | can be mixed with wool that has been recovered |
| and is then taken to carding machines. The carders line | | | | from rags. Shoddy is the term for recovered wool that |
| up the fibres nicely to make them easier to spin. The | | | | is not matted, while mungo comes from felted wool. |
| carding machine consists mainly of one big roller with | | | | Extract is recovered chemically from mixed cotton |
| smaller ones surrounding it. All of the rollers are | | | | wool fabrics. |
| covered in small teeth, and as the cotton progresses | | | | The fleece is cut in one piece from the sheep.This is |
| further on the teeth get finer (i.e. closer together). The | | | | then skirted to remove the soiled wool, and baled. It is |
| cotton leaves the carding machine in the form of a | | | | graded into long wool where the fibres can be up to 15 |
| sliver; a large rope of fibres. | | | | in, but anything over 2.5 inches is suitable for combing |
| Note: In a wider sense Carding can refer to these four | | | | into worsteds. Fibres less than that form short wool |
| processes: Willowing- loosening the fibres; Lapping- | | | | and are described as clothing or carding wool. |
| removing the dust to create a flat sheet or lap of | | | | At the mill the wool is scoured in a detergent to |
| cotton; Carding- combing the tangled lap into a thick | | | | remove grease (the yolk) and impurities. This is done |
| rope of 1/2 in in diameter, a sliver; and Drawing- where | | | | mechanically in the opening machine. Vegetable matter |
| a drawing frame combines 4 slivers into one- repeated | | | | can be removed chemically using sulfuric acid |
| for increased quality. | | | | (carbonising). Washing uses a solution of soap and |
| Combing is optional,but is used to remove the shorter | | | | sodium carbonate. The wool is oiled before carding or |
| fibres, creating a stronger yarn. | | | | combing. |
| A Combing machine | | | | Woollens: Use noils from the worsted combs, mungo |
| Drawing the fibres are straightened | | | | and shoddy and new short wool |
| Several slivers are combined. Each sliver will have thin | | | | Worsteds |
| and thick spots, and by combining several slivers | | | | Combing: Oiled slivers are wound into laps, and placed |
| together a more consistent size can be reached. Since | | | | in the circular comber. The worsted yarn gathers |
| combining several slivers produces a very thick rope | | | | together to form a top. The shorter fibres or noils |
| of cotton fibres, directly after being combined the | | | | remain behind and are removed with a knife. |
| slivers are separated into rovings. These rovings are | | | | Angora |
| then what are used in the spinning process. Generally | | | | Silk |
| speaking, for machine processing a roving is about the | | | | The processes in silk production are similar to those of |
| width of a pencil.Next, several slivers are combined. | | | | cotton but take account that reeeled silk is a |
| Each sliver will have thin and thick spots, and by | | | | continuous fibre. The terms used are different. |
| combining several slivers together a more consistent | | | | Opening bales. Assorting skeins:where silk is sorted by |
| size can be reached. Since combining several slivers | | | | colour, size and quality, scouring: where the silk is |
| produces a very thick rope of cotton fibres, directly | | | | washed in water of 40 degrees for 12 hours to |
| after being combined the slivers are separated into | | | | remove the natural gum, drying:either by steam heating |
| rovings. These rovings (or slubbings) are then what are | | | | or centrifuge, softening: by rubbing to remove any |
| used in the spinning process. | | | | remaining hard spots. |
| Generally speaking, for machine processing, a roving is | | | | Silk throwing (winding). The skeins are placed on a reel |
| about the width of a pencil. | | | | in a frame with many others. The silk is wound onto |
| Drawing frame: Draws the strand out | | | | spools or bobbins. |
| Slubbing Frame: adds twist, and winds on to bobbins | | | | Doubling and twisting. The silk is far too fine to be |
| Intermediate Frames: are used to repeat the slubbing | | | | woven, so now it is doubled and twisted to make the |
| process to produce a finer yarn. | | | | warp, known as organzine and the weft, known as |
| Roving frames: reduces to a finer thread, gives more | | | | tram. In organzine each single is given a few twists per |
| twist, makes more regular and even in thickness, and | | | | inch (tpi), and combine with several other singles |
| winds on to a smaller tube. | | | | counter twisted hard at 10 to 14 tpi. In tram the two |
| Spinning- Yarn manufacture | | | | singles are doubled with each other with a light twist, 3 |
| Main article: Cotton-spinning machinery | | | | to 6 tpi. Sewing thread is two tram threads, hard |
| Spinning | | | | twisted and machine-twist is made of three hard |
| The spinning machines take the roving, thins it and | | | | twisted tram threads. Tram for the crepe process is |
| twists it, creating yarn which it winds onto a bobbin. | | | | twisted at up to 80 tpi to make it 'kick up'. |
| In mule spinning the roving is pulled off a bobbin and | | | | Stretching. The thread is tested for consistent size. |
| fed through some rollers, which are feeding at several | | | | Any uneven thickness is stretched out. The resulting |
| different speeds.This thins the roving at a consistent | | | | thread is reeled into containing 500 yd to 2500 yd. The |
| rate. If the roving was not a consistent size, then this | | | | skeins are about 50 in in loop length. |
| step could cause a break in the yarn, or could jam the | | | | Dyeing: the skeins are scoured again, and discoloration |
| machine. The yarn is twisted through the spinning of | | | | removed with a sulphur process. This weakens the silk. |
| the bobbin as the carriage moves out, and is rolled | | | | The skeins are now tinted or dyed. They are dried and |
| onto a cop as the carriage returns. Mule spinning | | | | rewound onto bobbins, spools and skeins. Looming, and |
| produces a finer thread than the less skilled ring | | | | the weaving process on power looms is the same as |
| spinning. | | | | with cotton. |
| The mule was an intermittent process, as the frame | | | | Weaving. The organzine is now warped. This is a |
| advanced and returned a distance of 5ft.It was the | | | | similar process to in cotton. Firstly, thirty threads or so |
| descendant of 1779 Crompton device. It produces a | | | | are wound onto a warping reel, and then using the |
| softer less twisted thread that was favoured for fines | | | | warping reels, the threads are beamed. A thick layer |
| and for weft. It requires considerable skill, so was | | | | of paper is lain between each layer on the beam to |
| womens work. | | | | stop entangling. |
| The ring was a descendant of the Arkwright water | | | | Processing of man made fibres |
| Frame 1769. It was a continuous process, the yard | | | | Discussion of types of man made fibres |
| was coarser, had a greater twist and was stronger so | | | | Main article: Synthetic fibre |
| was suited to be warp. Requiring less skill it was mens | | | | Synthetic fibres are the result of extensive |
| work. Ring spinning is slow due to the distance the | | | | development by scientists to improve upon the |
| thread must pass around the ring, other methods have | | | | naturally occurring animal and plant fibres. In general, |
| been introduced. These are collectively known as | | | | synthetic fibers are created by forcing, or extruding, |
| Break or Open-end spinning. | | | | fibre forming materials through holes (called spinnerets) |
| Sewing thread, was made of several threads twisted | | | | into the air, thus forming a thread. Before synthetic |
| together, or doubled. | | | | fibres were developed, cellulose fibers were made |
| Checking | | | | from natural cellulose, which comes from plants. |
| This is the process where each of the bobbins is | | | | The first artificial fibre, known as art silk from 1799 |
| rewound to give a tighter bobbin. | | | | onwards, became known as viscose around 1894, and |
| Folding and twisting | | | | finally rayon in 1924. A similar product known as |
| Plying is done by pulling yarn from two or more | | | | cellulose acetate was discovered in 1865. Rayon and |
| bobbins and twisting it together, in the opposite direction | | | | acetate are both artificial fibres, but not truly synthetic, |
| that that in which it was spun. Depending on the weight | | | | being made from wood. Although these artificial fibres |
| desired, the cotton may or may not be plied, and the | | | | were discovered in the mid-nineteenth century, |
| number of strands twisted together varies. | | | | successful modern manufacture began much later in |
| Gassing | | | | the 1930s. Nylon, the first synthetic fibre, made its debut |
| Main articles: Singe#Textiles and Gassing | | | | in the United States as a replacement for silk, and was |
| Gassing is the process of passing yarn, as distinct | | | | used for parachutes and other military uses.[citation |
| from fabric very rapidly through a series of Bunsen | | | | needed] |
| gas flames in a gassing frame, in order to burn off the | | | | The techniques used to process these fibres in yarn |
| projecting fibres and make the thread round and | | | | are essentially the same as with natural fibres, |
| smooth and also brighter. Only the better qualities of | | | | modifications have to be made as these fibers are of |
| yarn are gassed, such as that used for voiles, poplins, | | | | great length, and have no texture such as the scales in |
| venetians, gabardines, many Egyptian qualities, etc. | | | | cotton and wool that aid meshing.[citation needed] |
| There is a loss of weight in gassing, which varies' | | | | Additional processes associated with man made fibres |
| about 5 to 8 per cent., so that if a 2/60's yarn is | | | | See also |
| required 2/56's would be used. The gassed yarn is | | | | Glossary of textile manufacturing |
| darker in shade afterwards, but should not be | | | | References |
| scorched. | | | | ^ a b c Majeed, A (January 19, 2009). "Cotton and |
| Mule spinning | | | | textiles the challenges ahead". Dawn-the Internet |
| Mule spinning | | | | edition. Retrieved 2009-02-12. |
| Ring spinning | | | | ^ "Machin processes". Spinning the Web. Manchester |
| Ring spinning | | | | City Council: Libraries. Retrieved 2009-01-29. |
| Measurements | | | | ^ a b c "Handicrafts India.". Craft Revival Trust,. |
| Main article: Units of textile measurement | | | | Retrieved 2009-02-12. |
| Cotton Counts: The number of pieces of thread, 840 | | | | ^ "Cultivating and Harvesting". Spinning the Web. |
| yards long needed to make up 1 lb weight. 10 count | | | | Manchester City Council: Libraries. Retrieved |
| cotton means that 10x840 yd weighs 1 lb. This is | | | | 2009-01-29. |
| coarser than 40 count cotton where 40x840 yards | | | | ^ Collier 1970, p. 11 |
| are needed. In the United Kingdom, Counts to 40s are | | | | ^ a b Collier 1970, p. 13 |
| coarse (Oldham Counts), 40 to 80s are medium | | | | ^ "Preparatory Processes". Spinning the Web. |
| counts and above 80 is a fine count. In the United | | | | Manchester City Council: Libraries. Retrieved |
| States ones to 20s are coarse counts. | | | | 2009-01-29. |
| Hank: A length of 7 leas or 840 yards | | | | ^ Collier 1970, pp. 66,67 |
| Thread: A length of 54 in (the circumference of a | | | | ^ Collier 1970, p. 69 |
| warp beam) | | | | ^ Collier 1970, pp. 70 |
| Bundle: Usually 10 lb | | | | ^ Hills 1993, p. 4 |
| Lea: A length of 80 threads or 120 yards | | | | ^ Collier 1970, pp. 71 |
| Denier: this is an alternative method. It is defined as a | | | | ^ Saxonhouse, Gary. SST Seminars "Technological |
| number that is equivalent to the weight in grams of | | | | Evolution in Cotton Spinning, 1878-1933". Stanford |
| 9000m of a single yarn. 15 denier is finer than 30 | | | | University. SST Seminars. Retrieved 2009-01-26. |
| denier. | | | | ^ Collier 1970, pp. 79 |
| Tex: is the weight in grams of 1 km of yarn. | | | | ^ "Spinning". Spinning the Web. Manchester City |
| The worsted hank is only 560 yd | | | | Council: Libraries. Retrieved 2009-01-29. |
| Weaving-fabric manufacture | | | | ^ Curtis 1921, p. 1 |
| The weaving process uses a loom. The lengthway | | | | ^ Curtis 1921, p. Cotton count |
| threads are known as the warp, and the cross way | | | | ^ Collier 1970, p. 3 |
| threads are known as the weft. The warp which must | | | | ^ Collier 1970, p. 74 |
| be strong needs to be presented to loom on a warp | | | | ^ "Weaving". Spinning the Web. Manchester City |
| beam. The weft, passes across the loom in a shuttle, | | | | Council: Libraries. Retrieved 2009-01-29. |
| that carries the yarn on a pirn. These pirns are | | | | ^ Fowler, Alan (2003). Lancashire Cotton Operatives |
| automatically changed by the loom. Thus, the yarn | | | | and Work, 1900-1950: A Social History of Lancashire |
| needs to be wrapped onto a beam, and onto pirns | | | | Cotton Operatives in the Twentieth Century. Ashgate |
| before weaving can commence. | | | | Publishing, Ltd.,. pp. 90. ISBN 0754601161, |
| Winding | | | | 9780754601166. Retrieved 21 Jan 2009. |
| After being spun and plied, the cotton thread is taken | | | | ^ Curtis 1921, p. Shed |
| to a warping room where the winding machine takes | | | | ^ Curtis 1921, p. Ends |
| the required length of yarn and winds it onto warpers | | | | ^ Collier 1970, p. 118 |
| bobbins | | | | ^ "Finishing". Spinning the Web. Manchester City |
| Warping or beaming | | | | Council: Libraries. Retrieved 2009-01-29. |
| A Warper | | | | ^ GREENHALGH, DAVID (2005). "Cotton finishing". |
| Racks of bobbins are set up to hold the thread while it | | | | Retrieved 2009-02-12. |
| is rolled onto the warp bar of a loom. Because the | | | | ^ a b Collier 1970, p. 155 |
| thread is fine, often three of these would be combined | | | | ^ Collier 1970, p. 157 |
| to get the desired thread count.[citation needed]. | | | | ^ Collier 1970, p. 159 |
| Sizing | | | | ^ "Cotton: From Field to Fashion Facts behind the |
| Slasher sizing machine needed for strengthening the | | | | Fiber". Talent2Trade. Retrieved 2009-02-12. |
| warp by adding starch. | | | | ^ Collier 1970, p. 16 |
| Drawing in, Looming | | | | ^ Collier 1970, p. 17 |
| The process of drawing each end of the warp | | | | ^ Collier 1970, p. 19 |
| separately through the dents of the reed and the eyes | | | | ^ "Silk manufacture". Antiques Digest: Lost Knowledge |
| of the healds, in the order indicated by the draft. | | | | from the Past. Old and Sold. Early 1900s. Retrieved |
| Pirning (Processing the weft) | | | | 2009-07-04. |
| Pirn winding frame was used to transfer the weft | | | | Bibliography |
| from cheeses of yarn onto the pirns that would fit into | | | | Barfoot, J. R. (1840). The Progress of Cotton. Barfoot's |
| the shuttle | | | | series of coloured lithographs of 1840 depicting the |
| Weaving | | | | cotton manufacturing process.. Spinning the Web, |
| Main article: Power loom | | | | Manchester Libraries: Darton. pp. 12. Age of the |
| At this point, the thread is woven. Depending on the | | | | it=submit. Retrieved 11 Feb 2009. |
| era, one person could manage anywhere from 3 to | | | | Collier, Ann M (1970). A Handbook of Textiles. |
| 100 machines. In the mid nineteenth century, four was | | | | Pergamon Press. pp. 258. ISBN 0 08 018057 4, 0 08 |
| the standard number. A skilled weaver in 1925 would | | | | 018056 6. |
| run 6 Lancashire Looms. As time progressed new | | | | Curtis, H P (1921), "Glossary of Textile Terms", Arthur |
| mechanisms were added that stopped the loom any | | | | Roberts Black Book. (Manchester: Marsden & |
| time something went wrong. The mechanisms | | | | Company, Ltd. 1921), retrieved 2009-01-11 |
| checked for such things as a broken warp thread, | | | | Gurr, Duncan; Hunt, Julian (1998), The Cotton Mills of |
| broken weft thread, the shuttle going straight across, | | | | Oldham, Oldham Education & Leisure, ISBN |
| and if the shuttle was empty. Forty of these Northrop | | | | 0-902809-46-6, |
| Looms or automatic looms could be operated by one | | | | Hills, Richard Leslie (1993). Power from Steam: A |
| skilled worker. | | | | History of the Stationary Steam Engine. Cambridge |
| A Draper loom in textile museum,Lowell, | | | | University Press,. pp. 244. ISBN 052145834X, |
| Massachusetts | | | | 9780521458344. Retrieved January 2009. |
| The three primary movements of a loom are shedding, | | | | Nasmith, Joseph (1894), "Recent Cotton Mill |
| picking, and beating-up. | | | | Construction and Engineering", Recent Cotton Mill |
| Shedding: The operation of dividing the warp into two | | | | Construction and Engineering. (John Heywood, |
| lines, so that the shuttle can pass between these lines. | | | | Deansgate, Manchester, reprinted Elibron Classics), |
| There are two general kinds of sheds-"open" and | | | | ISBN 1-4021-4558-6, retrieved 2009-01-11 |
| "closed." Open Shed-The warp threads are moved | | | | Roberts, A S (1921), "Arthur Robert's Engine List", |
| when the pattern requires it-from one line to the other. | | | | Arthur Roberts Black Book. (One guy from |
| Closed Shed-The warp threads are all placed level in | | | | Barlick-Book Transcription), retrieved 2009-01-11 |
| one line after each pick. | | | | External links |
| Picking:The operation of projecting the shuttle from | | | | Cotton Year Book 1910 (Textile Mercury) Descriptions |
| side to side of the loom through the division in the warp | | | | and calculations for purchasing all cotton processing |
| threads. This is done by the overpick or underpick | | | | machines. |
| motions. The overpick is suitable for quick-running | | | | 1921 John Hetherington & Sons Catalogue |
| looms, whereas the underpick is best for heavy or | | | | Descriptions and illustrations of principal machines. |
| slow looms. | | | | Profile of the Textiles Industry: US EPA |
| Beating-up: The third primary movement of the loom | | | | Guidebookv d e |
| when making cloth, and is the action of the reed as it | | | | Fibers |
| drives each pick of weft to the fell of the cloth. | | | | Natural |
| The Lancashire Loom was the first semi-automatic | | | | Animal |
| loom. Jacquard looms and Dobby looms are looms | | | | Alpaca Angora Bison Down Camel hair |
| that have sophisticated methods of shedding. They | | | | Cashmere Catgut Chiengora Guanaco Llama |
| may be separate looms, or mechanisms added to a | | | | Mohair Pashmina Qiviut Rabbit Silk Sinew |
| plain loom. A Northrop Loom was fully automatic and | | | | Spider silk Wool Vicua Yak |
| was mass produced between 1909 and the mid 1960s. | | | | Vegetable |
| Modern looms run faster and do not use a shuttle: | | | | Abac Bamboo Coir Cotton Flax Hemp |
| there are air jet looms, water jet looms and rapier | | | | Jute Kapok Kenaf Pia Raffia palm Ramie |
| looms. | | | | Sisal Wood |
| Measurements | | | | Mineral |
| Ends and Picks: Picks refer to the weft, ends refer to | | | | Asbestos Basalt Mineral wool Glass wool |
| the warp. The coarseness of the cloth can be | | | | Cellulose |
| expressed as the number of picks and ends per | | | | Acetate Art silk Bamboo Lyocell (Tencel) |
| quarter inch square, or per inch square. Ends is always | | | | Modal Rayon |
| written first. For example: Heavy domestics are made | | | | Synthetic |
| from coarse yarns, such as 10's to 14's warp and weft, | | | | Acrylic Aramid (Twaron Kevlar Technora |
| and about 48 ends and 52 picks. | | | | Nomex) Carbon (Tenax) Microfiber Modacrylic |
| Associated job titles | | | | Nylon Olefin Polyester Polyethylene (Dyneema |
| Piecer | | | | Spectra) Spandex Vinalon Zylonv d e |
| Scavenger | | | | Textile arts |
| Weaver | | | | Fundamentals: |
| Tackler | | | | Applique Crochet Dyeing Embroidery Fabric |
| Draw boy | | | | (textiles) Felting Fiber Knitting Lace |
| Pirner | | | | Nlebinding Needlework Patchwork |
| Issues | | | | Passementerie Plying Quilting Rope Sewing |
| When a hand loom was located in the home, children | | | | Spinning Tapestry Textile printing Weaving |
| helped with the weaving process from an early age. | | | | Yarn |
| Piecing needs dexterity, and a child can be as | | | | History of... : |
| productive as an adult. When weaving moves from | | | | Clothing and textiles Silk Quilting Textiles in the |
| the home to the mill, children were often allowed to | | | | Industrial Revolution Timeline of textile technology |
| help their older sisters, and laws have to be made to | | | | Regional and ethnic: |
| prevent child labour becoming established, | | | | Andean Australian Aboriginal Hmong Korean |
| Knitting- Fabric manufacture | | | | Mori |
| A circular knitting machine. | | | | Related: |
| Close-up on the needles. | | | | Blocking Fiber art Mathematics and fiber arts |
| Knitting by machine is done in two different ways; | | | | Manufacturing |
| warp and weft. Weft knitting (as seen in the pictures) | | | | Preservation Terminology Textile industry Textile |
| is similar in method to hand knitting with stitches all | | | | Museums Units of measurement Wearable fiber |
| connected to each other horizontally. Various weft | | | | artv d e |
| machines can be configured to produce textiles from a | | | | Spinning |
| single spool of yarn or multiple spools depending on the | | | | Materials |
| size of the machine cylinder (where the needles are | | | | Noil Rolag Roving Sliver Staple Top Tow |
| bedded). In a warp knit there are many pieces of yarn | | | | Woolen Worsted |
| and there are vertical chains, zigzagged together by | | | | Techniques |
| crossing the yarn. | | | | Carding Combing Long draw Short draw Twist |
| Warp knits do not stretch as much as a weft knit, and | | | | per inch |
| it is run-resistant. A weft knit is not run-resistant, but | | | | Hand spinning tools |
| stretches more, this is especially true if spools of Lycra | | | | Distaff Niddy noddy Spindle Spinning wheel |
| are processed from separate spool containers and | | | | Spinners weasel |
| interwoven through the cylinder with cotton yarn giving | | | | Industrial spinning |
| the finished product more flexibility making it less prone | | | | Cotton-spinning machinery Open end spinning Ring |
| to having a 'baggy' appearance. The average t-shirt is | | | | spinning Spinning frame Spinning jenny Spinning |
| a weft knit. | | | | mule Throstle frame Water frame Wool combing |
| Finishing- Processing of Textiles | | | | machinev d e |
| The grey cloth,woven cotton fabric in its loom-state, | | | | Weaving |
| not only contains impurities, including warp size, but | | | | Weaves |
| requires further treatment in order to develop its full | | | | Basketweave Charvet Coverlet Double weave |
| textile potential. Furthermore, it may receive | | | | Even-weave Lampas Oxford Pile weave |
| considerable added value by applying one or more | | | | Piqu Plain weave Satin weave Twill Gabardine |
| finishing processes. | | | | Components |
| Desizing | | | | Textiles Warp Weft Yarn |
| Depending on the size that has been used, the cloth | | | | Tools and techniques |
| may be steeped in a dilute acid and then rinsed, or | | | | Chilkat weaving Fingerweaving Heddle Ikat Inkle |
| enzymes may be used to break down the size. | | | | weaving Jacquard weaving Kasuri Loom |
| Scouring | | | | Navajo rug Shuttle Tablet weaving Tniko |
| Scouring, is a chemical washing process carried out on | | | | Tapestry |
| cotton fabric to remove natural wax and non-fibrous | | | | Types of looms |
| impurities (eg the remains of seed fragments) from the | | | | Dobby loom Jacquard loom Hattersley loom |
| fibres and any added soiling or dirt. Scouring is usually | | | | Lancashire loom Northrop loom Power loom |
| carried in iron vessels called kiers. The fabric is boiled in | | | | Roberts Loom Warp weighted loom |
| an alkali, which forms a soap with free fatty acids. | | | | Weavers |
| (saponification). A kier is usually enclosed, so the | | | | Acesas Ada Dietz Micheline Beauchemin |
| solution of sodium hydroxide can be boiled under | | | | Pamphile John Rylands Brigitta Scherzenfeldt |
| pressure, excluding oxygen which would degrade the | | | | Clara Sherman Judocus de Vosv d e |
| cellulose in the fibre. If the appropriate reagents are | | | | Cotton |
| used, scouring will also remove size from the fabric | | | | Architects |
| although desizing often precedes scouring and is | | | | Stott Sidney Stott (later Sir Philip) Edward Potts |
| considered to be a separate process known as fabric | | | | Potts, Pickup & Dixon F.W. Dixon & Son |
| preparation. Preparation and scouring are prerequisites | | | | Engine makers |
| to most of the other finishing processes. At this stage | | | | Daniel Adamson Ashton Frost Ashworth & |
| even the most naturally white cotton fibres are | | | | Parker Boulton & Watt Browett & |
| yellowish, and bleaching, the next process, is required. | | | | Lindley Buckley & Taylor Carel Earnshaw |
| Bleaching | | | | & Holt Goodfellow Fairbairn W & J |
| Main article: Textile bleaching | | | | Galloway B Goodfellow Hicks Musgrave J |
| Bleaching improves whiteness by removing natural | | | | & W McNaught Petrie of Rochdale George |
| coloration and remaining trace impurities from the | | | | Saxon Scott & Hodgson Urmson & |
| cotton; the degree of bleaching necessary is | | | | Thompson Yates of Blackburn Yates & |
| determined by the required whiteness and absorbency. | | | | Thom Whilans J & E Wood Woolstenhulmes |
| Cotton being a vegetable fibre will be bleached using | | | | & Rye |
| an oxidizing agent, such as dilute sodium hydrochlorite | | | | Machinery makers |
| or dilute hydrogen peroxide. If the fabric is to be dyed | | | | Brooks & Doxey Butterworth & Dickinson |
| a deep shade, then lower levels of bleaching are | | | | Dobson & Barlow John Hetherington & |
| acceptable, for example. However, for white bed | | | | Sons Joseph Hibbert Howard & Bullough |
| sheetings and medical applications, the highest levels of | | | | Geo. |
| whiteness and absorbency are essential. | | | | |