Harmful substances in children's clothing

Oeko-Tex Association has stated that children's clothing that meets the strict requirements of Oeko-Tex Standard 100 does not pose any health risks for consumers, following a study published by the environmental organisation Greenpeace.

In its paper entitled ‘A little story about the monsters in your closet’, the organisation criticised numerous discoveries of harmful substances in children's clothing from renowned brand manufacturers.

Strict requirements

For all the parameters included by Greenpeace in the tested samples, such as nonylphenol ethoxylates, carcinogenic arylamines, phthalates/softeners, organotin compounds, perfluorinated compounds (PFCs) and antimony, the Oeko-Tex Standard 100 requires compliance with strict requirements.

The annually updated test criteria and limit values in many cases go far beyond the valid national and international requirements. Extensive product checks after the certificate has been issued, as well as regular company audits, also ensure that the industry has a globally sustainable awareness of the responsible use of chemicals.

Confidence in textiles

Since 1992, the central focus of the Oeko-Tex tests for harmful substances has been the development of test criteria, limit values, and test methods on a scientific basis. The aim of the Oeko-Tex laboratory tests, however, is not just to detect chemical substances, which can be done down to the smallest µg quantities.

Rather, the decisive factor for the wearer (child) is whether, through usual skin contact when wearing the clothing, for example, substances really can enter the body and cause health problems. Here, Oeko-Tex has created an internationally applicable yardstick that can be easily understood by the consumer through the ‘Confidence in Textiles’ label.

Criticised chemicals

In connection with the Greenpeace report Oeko-Tex also outlined that some of the criticised chemicals are not limited to a use in textiles and can also be found in products in everyday use. Perfluorinated substances (PFCs), for example, can be found in Teflon coatings for various kitchen utensils (e.g. frying pans) or are approved for functional food packaging, where they are subject to far more drastic and sensitive conditions of use than textiles.

Surgical clothing can also be finished with PFCs for barrier protection. Antimony is a component of practically all textile articles made of polyester materials and occurs in most PET beverage bottles and other plastic packaging.

Offering help

With its criteria for hazardous substance testing for textiles (Oeko-Tex Standard 100) - as well as the additionally offered certification of environmentally friendly and socially responsible production facilities (STeP by Oeko-Tex), Oeko-Tex helps all companies and retail chains in the textile industry to optimise their production chains with regard to harmful chemicals.

In addition, in the store, end consumers can find a useful aid to decision-making when buying textile products of all kinds thanks to the label ‘Confidence in Textiles – tested for harmful substances in accordance with Oeko-Tex Standard 100’.

Source: Innovation in Textiles

Recycled fibres and yarns at ITMA 2015

The chapter on fibres and yarns is expected to grow at ITMA 2015, the international textile and garment machinery exhibition that will take place from 12- 19 November 2015 at Fiera Milano Rho in Milan, Italy.

As the textile and garment industry moves towards making a tangible commitment to sustainability, the chapter will now include a new sub-chapter on recycled fibres and yarns.

Fibre and yarn sector

The debut of the fibre and yarn chapter at ITMA 2011 was endorsed as a useful platform by exhibitors, organisers report. The survey conducted among the exhibitors showed that the majority was willing to return to the event with a bigger participation.

In 2011 the sector recorded 37 exhibitors from 14 different countries. It was also one of the top 5 sectors visited, with 94% of the fibre and yarn exhibitors indicated that they will return for the next edition. The survey also showed that 83% of exhibitors established new business relationships during an event.

Integrated business platform

ITMA 2015 is the international business platform for fibre and yarn producers. It attracts an international pool of buyers surcing for end solutions in the production of traditional textile and innovative textile materials.

According to the exhibition’s organisers, MP Expositions Pte, the exhibition features the largest and most comprehensive range of textile and garment technology products and services in one venue.

The strong support has been received from the fibre and yarn industry associations around the world, including Brazilian Association of Producers of Artificial and Synthetic Fibres (ABRAFAS), Discover Natural Fibres Initiative, Gdynia Cotton Association and Taiwan Man-Made Fibre Industries Association.

Source: Innovation of Textiles

BANGLADESH: Damco seeks bank help on sea-air shipments

Global freight forwarder and logistics services provider Damco is seeking help from the central bank of Bangladesh to resolve payment difficulties around its sea-air shipment business.

Damco Bangladesh provides logistics services to global retailers including H&M, Wal-Mart, Sears, JC Penney, Tesco, Target and Macy's - and is represented locally by foreign-owed subsidiary APM Global Logistics (Bangladesh) Limited.

The company has developed an innovative multi-modal transport solution - called sea-air - which has been popular with Bangladesh garment exporters during recent stoppages due to strikes and political unrest.

The sea-air product combines two separate transaction modes in one solution. It shortens the transit time in case of late production allowing the exporters to retain business and avoid penalties, the company says.

Firstly, goods produced in Bangladesh for export are consolidated in a warehouse in the country's port city Chittagong, and sent by container ship to Dubai. The goods are then re-consolidated into air-pallets and airlifted to the final destination countries, particularly in Europe and North America.

In Bangladesh, exporters pay Damco in the local currency for total sea-air shipments. But the airfreight leg has to be settled in US dollars in Dubai in line with the International Air Transport Association (IATA) rules and regulations, the company said in a nine-page paper submitted to the central bank.

Currently, Damco Bangladesh is not allowed to remit US dollars to settle the airfreight, and exporters are not allowed to settle it directly, as the cargo leaves Bangladesh on an original bill of lading (OBL), according to the paper.

Talking to just-style, a senior official of APM Global Logistics Bangladesh said sea-air is comparatively cheaper than pure airfreight, securing higher profits and more foreign exchange earnings for Bangladesh exporters.

Source: Just-Style

Karl Mayer and LIBA merger on track

Karl Mayer has announced that LIBA Maschinenfabrik GmbH, which it acquired recently, is to be renamed Karl Mayer Liba Textilmaschinenfabrik GmbH.

As announced on 1st January 2014, Karl Mayer acquired the majority shareholding in its fellow German competitor and the company reports today that integration of the two leading companies in the areas of development, manufacturing and delivery of warp knitting and technical textiles machinery is being implemented according to plans.

In addition, Karl Mayer reports that the processes that started at the end of last year to work out ‘Best of Both Worlds’ solutions for products, processes and concepts are progressing well and the integration process will be completed by the middle of this year. In the meantime, Karl Mayer says, the business of both parties in terms of products and market approach will be unchanged and all important work will be completed as before.

Following completion of the ‘Best of Both Worlds’ projects full integration of LIBA into the Karl Mayer business unit structure will start, a step which should be finalized at the end of 2015. Customers will then benefit from a strong partner with a unified approach and optimized products and solutions, Karl Mayer concludes.

Source: Innovation in Textiles

Strip Test | Fabric Tensile Strength Test

A common tensile test method for textile materials is the strip test. The strip test method is more closely related to the familiar tensile test and is used to determine the breaking force and elongation of textile fabrics and geotextiles. Unlike the grab test method, the strip test method takes into account edge effects. One method of the textile strip test requires the removal of fabric yarns, running parallel to the direction of force application, to create raveled edges in the test sample. The strip test method also requires clamping of the entire width of the fabric test specimen, so force is being directly applied to the whole sample cross section.

Specimen Preparation

• The fabric should be without any defects like damages or creases.
• Prior to preparing the test specimens carry out Three Wash/ Three Tumble Dry cycles in accordance with the appropriate Home Laundering method 4.02 or 4.03 on full width fabric of suitable length to prepare the necessary specimens for test.
• Prepare the test specimens, randomly selected from the fabric so that they do not contain the same warp and weft threads.
• Cut 3 rectangular specimens parallel to the warp direction and 3 rectangular specimens parallel to the weft direction.
• Each specimen should measure 300mm in length and 60mm in width
• Place a direction line parallel to the warp (length direction) on each specimen prior to removing from the fabric.

Conditioning

Condition the specimens for a minimum of 4 hours in a conditioned atmosphere of 20 ± 2°C and 65 ± 2% RH before testing. Carry out the test in this atmosphere.

Test Procedure

Using an Automatic Constant Rate of Extension Tensile Tester

1. The programme is automatic. The test speed is 100mm per minute.
2. Use the 75mm x 25mm rubber faced grips on the rear and 25mm x 25mmm grips on the front.
3. With the correct grips in place set the distance between upper and lower sets of grips to 200mm, this should be checked using a calibrated metal ruler.
4. Select the correct programme and input the appropriate machine settings and fabric details etc.
5. Fix the specimen in the upper grips, so the specimen hangs perfectly vertical and horizontal to the warp and weft yarns.
6. Close the upper grips.
7. Allow the fabric to hang under its own weight and secure the fabric in the lower grips.
8. Close the lower grips.
9. Set the cross head in motion.
10. The maximum force at which the fabric ruptures (breaks) will be recorded.
11. Repeat the above procedure for the remaining specimens.

Note:

- Any break which occurs within 5mm of the clamping line of the grips it should be reported as a grip break

- If the grip break falls below the lowest normal break results then it should be disregarded and further samples tested

- If it falls above the lowest normal break result, then it can be included

PAN precursor creel for carbon fibre research plant

Fibre processing company Cygnet Texkimp has supplied a 30-position pilot line PAN precursor creel to the $100m Australian Future Fibre Research and Innovation Centre (AFFRIC) at Deakin University in Victoria, Australia.

Texkimp’s creel forms part of the centre’s Carbon Nexus facility, which is said to be the world’s first dedicated carbon fibre research plant capable of producing industrial-scale quantities of aerospace quality carbon fibre, as well as enabling research into carbon fibre production and applications.

Developing Research

The creel was delivered as part of a collaboration with US-based Despatch Industries. It features a mechanical compensator tension control and will be used to unwind and guide packages of PAN fibre into a carbon fibre production line supplied by Despatch Industries.

The aim of Deakin University’s facility, which is part-funded by the Australian Government and the Victorian State Government, is to attract the best experienced and early-career scientists from around the world to develop research into end-user applications for the carbon fibre industry, as well as working with carbon fibre manufacturers to advance production techniques and reduce costs through commercial trials.

Performance and Quality

“Deakin University’s Carbon Nexus facility has exciting implications for the future of carbon fibre production, not only in Australia but throughout the world, and we are delighted to be part of it,” commented Chris Furphy, International Sales Manager at Cygnet Texkimp.

Steve Atkiss, General Manager at Carbon Nexus, said: “We have been impressed by the performance and quality of the equipment supplied by Cygnet Texkimp, and with the level of cooperation and support we have received.”

The creel was designed and tested at Texkimp’s UK headquarters in Northwich, Cheshire, before being shipped to Australia for installation and commissioning.

Cygnet Texkimp

Founded in 1974,Texkimp is an independent specialist creel designer and manufacturer. Cygnet Texkimp is part of Cygnet Group, an expanding specialist engineering group with expertise in designing, developing, manufacturing and selling engineered products into niche global markets.

The family-owned business concentrates solely on the production of creels and related accessories for the handling, unwinding, tensioning and guiding of all types of yarns, tapes and fibres from package to process.

Source: Innovation in Textiles

Effects of Nano-Particles in Textiles

Hohenstein Institute, a leading provider of technical testing and certification for apparel and textile products, presented a webinar entitled ‘Nanotechnology, Human Health, and the Environment: Answers to the Questions Surrounding Silver Nanoparticles’ on 15 January 2014.

The webinar will feature the final results of a multi-year evaluation of the effects of nanoparticles on humans and the environment.

TechnoTox Project

Hohenstein Institute has played a leading role in the emerging science of nano-toxicology, which studies the impact of nano-particles on biological systems.

Since 2010 Hohenstein has been a partner in two large-scale, inter-disciplinary German studies designed to quantify the safety of nanoparticles for people and for the environment. The TechnoTox project assessed risks to human health of nano-functionalised textiles including silver nanoparticle (Ag-NP) enhanced fabrics. The UMSICHT study focused on the impact of silver nanoparticles on the environment if they wash out or rub off of treated products.

Safety Standards

Industry, government agencies, and research organisations like Hohenstein participated in the three-year projects. According to the Institute, the resulting body of data is the most comprehensive information ever generated on nanoparticles and it is expected to guide best practices in industrial applications and influence regulations and safety standards.

During the initial phase, Hohenstein conducted a broad scale wear test with Ag-NP enhanced antimicrobial apparel. Hohenstein determined that while the silver nanoparticles acted effectively upon bacteria introduced via perspiration, the nanoparticles had no effect on the skin’s naturally occurring protective bacteria and caused no irritation.

Next Stage

The webinar will focus on results from the subsequent phases of the two studies. In the next phase of the TechnoTox project, scientists evaluated any additional risks posed to the human body by use of Ag-NP enhanced textiles.

Hohenstein’s cellular modelling was used to understand the effect on lung cells if nanoparticles were inhaled, the effect on skin cells if nanoparticles were absorbed, and the effect on organ cells if nanoparticles were ingested.

Source: Innovation in Textile

Turkey to soon create brand in organic cotton at global level

Turkey is the largest producer of organic cotton in the world today and is gaining more and more perception regarding organic cotton production to create a global brand in organic cotton production.

According to Turkish Nazilli Cotton Research Station’s manager Sadettin Ozturk, Turkey have most suitable weather condition which strongly supports organic cotton farming.

Since 1990s, Turkey has been gradually transcending into a stage of producing organic cotton and slowly the country has become synonymous with organic cotton.

Organic cotton farming is conducted without the use of chemical inputs, and each stage of the production process is carried out through a controlled and certified agricultural method, he added.

Conventional cotton production has a lot of disadvantages, whereas, organic cotton production can translate into several advantages, especially for small cotton growers in the country, Mr. Ozturk said.

The Nazilli Cotton Research Station under the Ministry of Food, Agriculture and Livestock was established in 1934 under the name Cotton Breeding Station, earlier known. The key objective of this institution is to develop projects and conduct research on producing high-quality, disease and pest resistant cotton varieties.

Source: YNFX

Technical Textile

Technical textiles are materials meeting high technical and quality requirements (mechanical, thermal, electrical, durability etc) giving them the ability to offer technical functions.

Technical textiles include textiles for automotive applications, medical textiles (e.g., implants), geotextiles (reinforcement of embankments), agrotextiles (textiles for crop protection), and protective clothing (e.g., heat and radiation protection for fire fighter clothing, molten metal protection for welders, stab protection and bulletproof vests, and spacesuits).

Scope of Technical Textile

An exceptional feature of technical textiles is the use of innumerable varieties of raw materials, processes, products and applications for their production. Some of the materials used for making technical textile are listed below:

• Metals, like steel.
• Minerals, like asbestos and glass.
• Synthetic polymers, like PES, PA, PAN, PP etc.
• Regenerated fibers like rayon fiber and acetate fiber.
• Natural fibers like cotton fiber, jute fiber, wool fiber etc.

Classes of Functions for Technical Textile

1. Mechanical functions
2. Exchange functions
3. Functionalities for living beings
4. Protective functions

1.Mechanical functions:

• Mechanical resistance
• Reinforcement of materials
• Elasticity

2.Exchange functions:

• Filtration
• Insulation and conductivity
• Drainage
• Impermeability
• Absorption

3.Functions of living being:

• Antibacteria
• Antidust mites
• Biocompatibility
• Biodegradability

4.Protective functions:

• Thermal
• Fire
• Mechanical
• Chemicals
• Impermeable - Breathable
• Antistatic
• Particles antirelease

Application Areas/Products

Application Area	Usage	Products
Agrotech	Used in agriculture and landscape gardening, horticulture, forestry, fences, fishing etc.	Shade fabrics, crop protection fabrics against sun, rain, fishing ropes, nets, tarpaulins, horticulture twines etc.
Buildtech	Used in construction of buildings, house structures, dams, tunnels etc.	Reinforcements of walls, facades, house wrap, concrete wraps, waterproof membranes, thermal and sound insulation, sewer and pipe, linings, etc.
Clothtech	Used in garments, shoes, bags etc	Interlinings, wadding and fiber-fills, shoe components, components of bags etc.
Defence	Used in defence clothing, hospitals	Uniforms, bullet proof jackets, high altitude protection clothing, fire retardant clothing, parachutes, tents etc.
Geotech	Used for earth and road construction, drainage system, civil engineering industry etc.	Ground stabilization, soil reinforcement, canal linings, erosion control etc.
Hometech	Used by households	Wipes, floor mops, furniture components, mattress components, upholstery and interior furnishing etc.
Indutech	Used in industrial processes like filtration, cleaning, seals etc.	Woven filters, air filters, dust filters, conveyor fabrics, industrial belts & hose, abrasive products.
Meditech	Used in hospital dressings and for hygiene.	Surgical gowns, drapes, dressings (bandages etc) masks, caps, sutures, medical implants, sanitary napkins, diapers etc.
Mobiltech	Used in automobiles, aircrafts, shipbuilding etc.	Nylon type cord fabrics, seat covers, seat belts, cabin filters, tufted carpet, upholstery etc.
Oekotech	Used for environmental protection	Recycled schemes, products for oil spill treatment, insulation products etc.
Packtech	Used for packaging and protective coverings.	Sacks, twine, FIBC, tea/coffee bags etc.
Protech	Used for protection of persons and properties.	Face masks, chemical protection, dust protection, protection against nuclear radiations, gases etc.
Sporttech	Used in sports equipments, outfits etc.	Sport bags, artificial turf, sport nets, sail cloth etc.

Carding

Carding is a mechanical process that disentangles, cleans and intermixes fibres to produce a continuous web or sliver suitable for subsequent processing. It is called the heart of spinning. The carding machine is set with hundreds of fine wires that separate the fibres and pull them into somewhat parallel form. A thin web of fiber is formed, and as it moves along, it passes through a funnel-shaped device that produces a rope like strand of parallel fibres. Blending can take place by joining laps of different fibres. From carding action sliver is formed.

Objectives of carding

• To open the flocks into individual fibres
• Cleaning or elimination of impurities
• Reduction of neps
• Elimination of dust
• Elimination of short fibres
• Fibre blending
• Fibre orientation or alignment
• Sliver formation

Main actions of carding machine

1. Action between fee roller & taker in
2. Action between taker in and cylinder
3. Action between cylinder and flat
4. Action between cylinder and doffer

Useful sliver hanks of different counts:

Description	Counts
Count of yarns	10s	20s	32s	40s	60s	80s
Hank of carded sliver	0.125	0.125	0.13	0.135	0.145	0.165

Wastage in Carding

• Taker in waste
• Flat strip
• Motes & flies
• Sliver cut
• Filter waste

Spandex | Properties and Manufacturing Process

Spandex is a synthetic fibre or fabric made from a polymer containing polyurethane, used in the manufacture of elastic clothing. It is lightweight, soft, strong and very stretchable. In fact, spandex fibre was developed as an alternative to rubber but has a better quality than it. The name Lycra has also come to be a synonymous of spandex.

Lycra-Spandex Confusion

Lycra is the trademark name for the spandex, created by DuPont and subsequently sold to multinational corporation, Invista. Spandex is the generic name for the elastic fibre category, as defined by the U.S. Federal Trade Commission. The two terms are often used interchangeably in everyday speech, though there are some minor differences between Lycra and generic spandex.

Spandex Fibre Characteristics

• Can be stretched repeatedly and still recover to very near its original length and shape
• Generally, can be stretched more than 500% without breaking
• Stronger, more durable and higher retractive force than rubber
• Lightweight, soft, smooth, supple
• In garments, provides a combination of comfort and fit, prevents bagging and sagging
• Heat-settable — facilitates transforming puckered fabrics into flat fabrics, or flat fabrics into permanent rounded shapes
• Dyeable
• Resistant to deterioration by body oils, perspiration, lotions or detergents
• Abrasion resistant
• When fabrics containing spandex are sewn, the needle causes little or no damage from “needle cutting” compared to the older types of elastic materials
• Available in fibre diameters ranging from 10 denier to 2500 denier
• Available in clear and opaque lusters

Manufacturing Process of Spandex Fibre

Spandex fibres are produced in four different ways including melt extrusion, reaction spinning, solution dry spinning, and solution wet spinning. Each of these methods involve the initial step of reacting monomers to produce a prepolymer. Then the prepolymer is reacted further, in various ways, and drawn out to produce a long fibre. Since solution dry spinning is used to produce over 90% of the world's spandex fibres, it is described.

1. The first step in the production of spandex is the production of the prepolymer. This is done by mixing a macroglycol with a diisocyanate monomer. The compounds are mixed in a reaction vessel and under the right conditions they react to form a prepolymer. Since the ratio of the component materials produces fibres with varying characteristics, it is strictly controlled. A typical ratio of glycol to diisocyanate may be 1:2.
2. In dry spinning fibre production, the prepolymer is further reacted with an equal amount of diamine. This is known as a chain extension reaction. The resulting solution is diluted with a solvent to produce the spinning solution. The solvent helps make the solution thinner and more easily handled. It can then be pumped into the fibre production cell.
3. The spinning solution is pumped into a cylindrical spinning cell where it is cured and converted into fibres. In this cell, the polymer solution is forced through a metal plate, called a spinneret, which has small holes throughout. This causes the solution to be aligned in strands of liquid polymer. As the strands pass through the cell, they are heated in the presence of a nitrogen and solvent gas. These conditions cause the liquid polymer to chemically react and form solid strands.
4. As the fibres exit the cell, a specific amount of the solid strands are bundled together to produce the desired thickness. This is done with a compressed air device that twists the fibres together. In reality, each fibre of spandex is made up of many smaller individual fibres that adhere to one another due to the natural stickiness of their surface.
5. The fibres are then treated with a finishing agent. This may be magnesium stearate or another polymer such as poly(dimethyl-siloxane). These finishing materials prevent the fibres from sticking together and aid in textile manufacture. After this treatment, the fibres are transferred through a series of rollers onto a spool. The windup speed of the entire process can be anywhere from 300-500 mi (482.7-804.5 km) per minute depending on the thickness of the fibres.
6. When the spools are filled with fibre, they are put into final packaging and shipped to textile manufacturers and other customers. Here, the fibres may be woven with other fibres such as cotton or nylon to produce the fabric that is used in clothing manufacture. This fabric can also be dyed to produce a desired color.

Spandex Fibre Uses

• Garments where comfort and fit are desired: hosiery, swimsuits, aerobic/exercise wear, ski pants, golf jackets, disposable diaper, waist bands, bra straps and bra side panels
• Compression garments: surgical hose, support hose, bicycle pants, foundation garments
• Shaped garments: bra cups

Spandex Fibre Care Tips

• Hand or machine wash in lukewarm water
• Do not use chlorine bleach on any fabric containing spandex. Use oxygen or sodium perborate type bleach
• Rise thoroughly
• Drip dry. If machine dried, use low temperature
• Ironing, if required, should be done rapidly. Do not leave the iron too long in one position. Use low temperatures setting.

Pigment | Properties and Classification

Pigment is a substance that can absorb light and reflect some lights to show color but it is water insoluble substance. Normally it is used for printing (with the presence of binder) or mas-coloration of the synthetic fibres.

Properties of Pigments

• Chemically inert
• Resistance to acid
• Resistance to solvent
• Pigments have suitable brilliance, hardness and stability
• Good wet, light and moderate abrasion resistance

Classification of Pigments

1. Inorganic Pigments
2. Organic Pigments

Inorganic Pigments:

• Heaviness in weight (because of the mineral content)
• Large particles
• Good wetting properties (because the particles don’t float)
• Leanness (which gives their colors a matte look)
• Low tinting strength
• Mass tones that gray down when mixed with white (creating more natural light effects)
• Light-to-dark shift within a family
• High lightfast rating

Exceptions include Prussian blue and viridian—both are inorganic pigments that have high tinting strengths and small particle sizes.

Organic pigments:

• Lightness in weight (creating high volume)
• Small particle size
• Resistance to wetting (because the particles float and, therefore, need a dispersion agent)
• Fatness (giving them a natural gloss)
• Transparency or semi-transparency
• High tinting strength
• Mass tones that create intense tints when mixed with white (causing them to stay high key unless a complement is added, and creating less-natural light effects)
• Warm-to-cool shift within a family
• Good-to-excellent lightfast ratings

Exceptions are some of the historic organic pigments—such as rose madder and carmine—which have poor lightfast ratings and are prone to fading.

Advantages of using pigments in textile application

• Pigments can be applied to all type of fibres by using suitable binder even to synthetic fibres, their blends and glass fibres which is difficult to color by other dyeing technique.
• No washing is required, so drying and curing is simple.
• Extensive color range with high color fastness.
• No after-treatment is required in pigment printing, whereas it is essential and complex task in dye printing.

Disadvantages of using pigments in textile application

• The quality of dyeing or printing depends on the characteristics of binder used to affix the pigment with the substrate. The chemical and physical properties of binder influences the performance of pigment dyed fabric.
• Adverse effect due to binder as it changes the texture of the fabric as well as lower the rubbing fastness.
• Some solvent used in pigment emulsion like kerosene, white-spirit causes flammability or pollution problems.

Basalt Fibre | Properties and Applications

The fibre is made from basalt stone by pulling fibres from the melt. It is similar to carbon fibre and fibreglass, having better physicomechanical properties than fibreglass, but being significantly cheaper than carbon fibre. It is used as a fireproof textile in the aerospace and automotive industries and can also be used as a composite to produce products such as camera tripods.

Source of Basalt fibre

Basalt is a type of igneous rock formed by the rapid cooling of lava at the surface of a planet. It is the most common rock in the Earth’s crust. Basalt rock characteristics vary from the source of lava, cooling rate, and historical exposure to the elements. High quality fibres are made from basalt deposits with uniform chemical makeup.

The production of basalt and glass fibres are similar. Crushed basalt rock is the only raw material required for manufacturing the fibre. It is a continuous fibre produced through igneous basalt rock melt drawing at about 2,700° F (1,500° C).

Though the temperature required to produce fibres from basalt is higher than glass, it is reported by some researchers that production of fibres made from basalt requires less energy by due to the uniformity of its heating.

Properties of Basalt Fibre

• Low level of micro cracks (up to 90%)
• Increased flexural strength (up to 35%)
• Increased concrete fatigue strength and resistance (> 400%)
• Increased frost resistance (up to 35%)
• Increased water tightness (up to 50%)
• Increased surface endurance of concrete (up to 70%)
• Decreased slivering of corners and edges (up to 90%)
• Provision of tree-dimensional reinforcement
• Lightness, high mechanical strength, corrosion and chemical resistance to alkali and other aggressive Environments
• High friction, frost, heat, and moisture resistance
• Sound absorption
• Ability to filtrate aggressive substances
• Unique chemical resistance
• Resistance to salty sea water
• Resistance to ultraviolet radiation
• Dielectric character
• Eco-friendliness

Applications of Basalt Fibre

• Construction - disperse concrete, mortar, dry mixes and structural products reinforcement for improving concretes and mortar crack resistance , waterproofing, easy concrete pouring, tensile strength at bending and compression, abrasion, steel rebar corrosion resistance in basalt reinforced concretes and as a result - increased durability of concrete structures.
• Mechanical Engineering - composite materials, structural materials, constructions in conditions of high vibration, alternating loads, acoustic insulation, equipment thermal insulation, heat lines, disc reinforcement cutting grids. Filters for cleaning of exhaust gases from dust and industrial wastewater.
• Automotive industry - composite materials, insulation materials for automotive exhaust systems, panels, insulating spacers, screens, reinforcing materials for brake pads and clutch plates, engineering plastics, non-combustible composites, cord for tires, chopped fibres for reinforcement of plastics and other materials. The materials for the fuel tanks manufacturing, cylinders for LPG and compressed natural gas.
• Shipbuilding - composite materials resistant to sea water, thermal and sound insulation of equipment, construction materials, small shipbuilding - construction of hulls and superstructures.
• Rail-car manufacturing - composite structural materials and products, thermal and sound insulation of rail-cars, reinforcement of structural plastics, non-combustible composite materials, electrical insulating materials.
• Aeronautics - composite materials and articles for cabins, thermal and sound insulation of canvases, covered with waterproofing fabric for heat and sound insulation of engine and fuselage, exhaust sound insulation of gas-dynamic channels.
• Energy - insulation of thermal equipment in steam boilers and turbines, electrical insulating materials, the carrier for a high-voltage lines. Materials for Nuclear Power - non-combustible insulation and construction materials. Basalt is also a good anti-radiation protection material.
• Electronics industry - reinforcing material for the production of circuit boards, electrical insulation materials, construction materials of electronic equipment.
• Chemical and petrochemical industry - production of chemical-resistant pipes, protective coatings, storage tanks for corrosive liquids, acids, alkalis, chemical fertilizers, pesticides, toxic substances. Filters for cleaning the exhaust gases from dust and industrial waste water. Pipes for oil pipelines. Fire-resistant composite materials.
• Metallurgy industry - heat-insulating materials of thermal equipment, regeneration bath, piping. Filters for cleaning exhaust gases from dust at the mineral processing and metallurgical plants, filters for water treatment. Grid for filtering molten metals.
• Cryogenic equipment - composite and insulation materials at the liquefied gases and liquid oxygen production, etc.
• Production of construction materials - building construction and facing, reinforcing plaster mesh, waterproofing materials for roofs and underground structures, reinforcing mesh for cut-off wheels, basalt rebar, construction materials that ensure the seismic resistance of buildings, fire resistant materials for the construction of high buildings and critical facilities, basalt rebar for bridges and tunnels, railway sleepers and subway construction.
• Hydraulic engineering - reinforcing materials for the dams construction, land irrigation material. Construction of port facilities, offshore platforms - reinforcing and structural materials of basalt.
• Agriculture - mesh for soil strengthening, containers for storage and transportation of chemical liquids: fertilizers and pesticides.
• Public service - Composite materials and products, materials for waste water filters, treatment plants, large-diameter pipes for water supply and waste water.