An investigation about the performance of circular knitted fabrics manufactured with polyproylene continuous filament yarns

Weft knitted fabrics are characterized by a flexible structure accompanied bya soft handle and drapes. They are mostly used in athletic wear and underwear. It isconsidered to combine the comfortability of the knitted fabric with the advantages ofPolypropylene (PP) filament yarn. Therefore, an experimental work is performed toinvestigate the performance of polypropylene knitted fabrics manufactured bycircular knitting technology.In this experimental work, the performance tests (bursting strength,dimensional stability, pilling, snagging and skewness) were evaluated on knits fromPolypropylene (PP) continuous filament yarns. The same performance tests on knitsfrom cotton (CO), viscose (CV), acrylic (PAN) and polyester (PES) fibers weremade to compare results of PP knits. Four different knitting types (s.jersey, ribana,lacoste and interlock) were used for investigation. In order to understand thestatistical significance of the test results ANOVA was performed.Our findings indicated that knits from PP continuous filament yarns havehighest performance in bursting strength in tested samples. The hierarchies ofknitting structure from strongest to weakest are interlock, s.jersey-ribana and lacoste.According to the Pearson correlation bursting strengths of samples are directlyrelated with yarn strength and tightness factor. In this study, dimensional changes ofsamples are determined. Pilling results are given as photographs. Snagging grade ofknits from PP continuous filament yarns is superior than same conditioned knits fromPES continuous filament yarns. Test results show that for knits from PPmultifilaments, skewness and unstable dimension problems occur because of knittingmachines and distinct structures of knitting types.Key Words: PP filament yarns, knitted structures, bursting strength, tightnessfactor, dimensional stability, skewness, snagging.