MODAL FIBER

Farzana Faiza
Lecturer, AUST
Modal Fibres

➢ Modal fiber is a manufactured fiber of cellulose obtained by process giving high breaking strength
and a high wet modulus. The fiber is manufactured in the same way as viscose spinning technology
using high quality wood pulps and special machines and parameters. In addition to excellent fiber
and processing properties, modal fibers are characterized by high strength and dimensional
stability as well as the softness and brilliance of the fabric and finished garments.

➢ Modal fibers are also spun from viscose and are of two varieties: polynosics and HWM (high wet
modulus). HWM fibers can be spun on conventional viscose spinning equipments, while polynosics
require essential machine modification.

➢ In polynosic fibers, the cellulose crystals are made up of alkali-resistant cellulose. According to
Textile Institute (UK), polynosic is a type of regenerated cellulose fiber characterized by a high initial
wet modulus of elasticity and a relatively low degree of swelling in sodium hydroxide solution.

➢ The HWM fibers are spun in the presence of modifiers, the length of the crystals and their orientation
is somewhat less than those with the polynosics.

Polynosic Rayon
Definition:
Polynosic fibres have been defined as – “ A manufactured cellulosic fibre with a fine and stable
microfibrillar structure which is resistant to the action of 8% NaOH solution down to 00C, which
structure results in a minimum wet strength of 2.2g/denier and a wet elongation of less than 3.5% at
a stress of 0.5g/denier.”
Ordinary viscose staple has several advantages over cotton: it can be spun very uniform in diameter and
therefore in denier or counts, of any desired lustre, and most importantly it can be made much more
cheaply from wood pulp than cotton, which has to be grown, picked and ginned. First popularity of
viscose was due to its continuity of filaments and its resemblance to real silk. But there are some
disadvantages of viscose, notably –
➢ Strength, especially when wet, is low;
➢ Elongation is high as elastic recovery is not good, the rayon suffers from dimensional
instability;
➢ It is too floppy for some purposes;
➢ Not stiff or crisp enough;
➢ Absorbs too much water and swells much more than cotton when wet;
➢ It will not withstand mercerizing process
Polynosic Rayon

Two main drawback of viscose which makes the inferior to cotton is –

➢The D.P. of cotton is 2000 – 10,000, that of viscose rayon is 250-270
➢Cotton has a microfibrillar structure; that is if a fibre is broken by bruising or
hammering it splits into thinner fibrils, and these in turn into microfibril.
Viscose rayon does not; each filament is solid and when it has been bruised,
shows little signs of a microfibrillar structure.
➢The polynosic fibres are a new kind of viscose rayon; in their manufacturing,
steps are taken to maintain a higher D.P. by reducing the severity of the
chemical processing so that a value of 500- 700 is retained, and also to obtain a
microfibrillar structure by precipitating the viscose gently and slowly, in
particular carrying out the stretching before the xanthate has been reconverted
to cellulose. The fibres made like this are much more like cotton; the degree of
their disadvantages have been greatly reduced, while they still retain their
advantages of uniformity in size, length, lustre and cheapness.

Toramomen Fibers:
This fibre was first developed in Japan. The main features of this process of making the polynosic
were:
➢Ageing of the alkali cellulose was eliminated
➢The cellulose xanthate was dissolved in water instead of 3% dilute alkali
➢Ripening of the cellulose xanthate was eliminated
➢The spinning bath consisted of acid of only a very low concentration and little or sometimes no
salt.
A comparison between the stages of manufacturing ordinary viscose and toramomen

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