Polymers & Processes II

A blanket should provide good thermal insulation in winter and good air permeability in summer, besides being abrasion resistant and soft in handle. Needle punched blankets are better than woven or knitted blankets in terms of thermal insulation, thickness, volume, production cycle and rate of production. However, most of research till date has concentrated on the effect of machine, web and fibre parameters on the tensile, bending or bulk properties of needle punched fabric, but very little has been reported about the effect of these parameters on the stiffness and abrasion resistance. Smith in a study on abrasion resistance of needle punched woolen blankets observed that fabrics with soft handling properties have poor abrasion resistance and vice-versa. A proper understanding on the role of the machine, web and fibre parameters on abrasion resistance and fabric stiffness properties is required for designing a blanket fabric with good abrasion resistance without spoiling the softness and other bulk properties. In this paper, the effect of machine parameters like depth of penetration and punch density, finishing technique, i.e. calendaring, and sandwiching hollow polyester fibres between two layers of fine polyester fibres, on fabric stiffness and abrasion resistance of blankets has been studied.