MOISTURE

RELATIONS
 SIGNIFICANCE OF MOISTURE

TECHNOLOGICAL COMMERCIAL

 Cotton
price

RECOMMENDED ALLOWANCE


Utility in keeping the skin dry


Act as heat reservoir ( Protect body from sudden changes)


Quick drying effect


Change of properties [swelling, mechanical, friction & static]


Wet treatments as in setting
PROCESSING & USE
 Factors on moisture ABSORPTION


Chemical and physical FEATURES


Atmospheric condition

CRYSTALLINE/AMORPHOUS

POROUSITY

HYDROPHILIC/HYDROPHOBIC

STANDARD TESTING ATMOSPHERE

 DESCRIBING moisture

MOISTURE REGAIN AND MOISTURE CONTENT

Mass of absorbed water in specimen x 100

Mass of dry specimen

Mass of absorbed water in specimen x 100

Mass of Undried specimen

For R = regain, M = moisture content, D = dry mass and W = mass of absorbed water
 Equilibrium absorption OF WATER
When a textile material is placed in a given atmosphere, it takes up or loses water at a
gradually decreasing rate until it reaches equilibrium, when no further change
takes place.

Number of water molecules evaporating from the specimen in a given time

becomes equal to the number condensing and being absorbed.
ADSORPTION - DESORPTION CURVE

HYSTERESIS
Initially dry specimen retains a higher number of crosslinks & less water
molecules than initially wet specimen in the same atmosphere.

Intermediate curves

Change in humidity required

Ease of moisture management

 RH-REGAIN RELATIONS FOR DIFFERENT FIBERS

Hydrophilicity

Sigmoidal shape
Crystallinity

Attachment

Rapidly increasing regain at low humidity, followed by linear

portion, and more rapid rise at high humidity.
 COMPARISON OF MOISTURE ABSORPTION
Fiber Absorption regain* Hysteresis gap
Cotton 7-8 0.9
Viscose rayon 12 - 14 1.8
Acetate 6,6.9,4.5** 2.6
Wool 14, 16 - 18 2
Silk 10 1.2
Nylon 4.1 0.25
Polyester 0.4 -
Acrylic 1-2 -
Polyolefin* ~0 -
* 65%RH @ 200C.
 INFLUENCING FACTORS
Origin and state of fiber PRIMARY DESORPTION CURVE

Fiber manufacturing effect

Wet processing effect

Heating effect
Cotton and wool of different varieties

Scouring and other pretreatments

Removal of absorbing impurities

Mercerization

Chemical treatment & extent of drawing

Dry & wet heating
 INFLUENCE OF TEMPERATURE & STRESS

 As absorption is exothermic process it

is favored at low temperatures.

 Very high temperature and humidity

cause change in internal structure.

 External stress and internal stress

affect moisture absorption of fibers.

 Compression result of stress decrease

moisture absorption of fibers.

 Tension for high degree of orientation

decrease moisture absorption.
 HEAT OF SORPTION

Absorption results evolution of heat

Differential heat of sorption, Q [Heat of absorption]

The heat evolved when one gram of water is absorbed by an infinite mass of
the material at a given moisture regain.

It is expressed as in joules per gram (of water absorbed)

QV
Fiber + Vapour Fiber + Absorbed water

L Ql
Fiber + Liquid
Q = Qv= Ql + L
 Integral heat of sorption, W [Heat of wetting]

The heat evolved when a specimen of the material at a given regain ,whose dry
mass is one gram, is completely wetted.

It is expressed as in joules per gram (of dry material).

Heat evolved = dw = Ql.dr/100

W =∫Ql.dr/100

[From regain r to saturation regain]

 Heat of wetting from zero regain [J/g]

Cotton 46
Viscose rayon 106
Acetate 34
Wool 113
Silk 69
Nylon 31
Polyester 5
Acrylic 7
Greatest for highly absorbing fibers & small in non-hygroscopic fibers

Proportional to standard regain 14

14
 EFFECT OF HEAT EVOLUTION

Psychological advantage in going from low humidity to high humidity

Heat evolved by 1Kg of material in going from 40 to 70% RH [KJ]

Cotton 84
Viscose rayon 168
Wool 159
Acetate 50
Nylon 42
Polyester 4
Conditioning
 SWELLING

Dimensional stability

Permeability

Processing such as dyeing

Diameter, area, length, or volume

SWELLING ANISOTROPY [K]= SD/Sl

 General Features

Swelling anisotropy is related to orientation; range from infinity for perfectly
oriented arrangement to unity for a completely random one.


Diameter swelling is only suitable for fibers of uniform crossection. Area
swelling used for transverse swelling for fibers with irregular crossection.


All moisture absorbing fibers show a large transverse swelling.


In some moisture absorbing fibers the axial swelling is so small
that the swelling anisotropy is high.


Skin-core fibers such as nylon show higher axial swelling as a
result of limited transverse swelling by the skin.
HYSTERISIS IN SWELLING
 RATE OF MOISTURE ABSORPTION

Diffusion of moisture

 Longer time to come to equilibrium

 DIFFUSION

 Fick’s equation: Mass transport vs. concentration gradient

D --- Diffusion coefficient

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DIFFUSION COEFFICIENT: FIBER MATERIALS

AMOUNT OF WATER & SWELLING STRESS

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22
 dc/dt α dm/dt α -[(C – Co)]

dC/Co – C = dt/T

T – A time constant indicative of how

much time required

Diffusion from a conditioning solution to an absorbent through
an air gap:

T = M/(dm/dt) = Ml/D(Co–C1)A
C1 --- Initial concentration at the surface of absorbent
Co --- Concentration at surface of conditioning solution

General Equation: T = L2/D [Time involved in diffusion

process] 23
Diffusion stages in conditioning:


Diffusion in the air from source of water vapor to surface of mass of fibers

Diffusion in the air in interstices between fibers to the surface of fibers

Diffusion from the surface of a fiber to its interior

For a hygroscopic fibers at medium humidities ~ 10 -7cm2/s [T = 5s]

For 100g of dry cotton in a package [10cm long & 2cm in radii ] ~ [T = 5h]
Shorter than practical times of conditioning

Example: 5hrs for single cotton fiber, and 5days for a cop
  Diffusion of moistur
 Conduction of heat

P DM P’
T DH T’

DISSIPATION OF HEAT GENERATED

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