Hair Severity Statistics: A new process tool
by V.Srinivasan1 & S.Balamurugan2, Premier Evolvics Pvt Ltd, India
This is a second of the four series article on Hair Severity - a new yarn hairiness parameter introduced by Premier.
1- Mr. V Srinivasan is a B.Tech (Electronics and Communication) and has been with Premier Evolvics for the last twenty years. As the head of R&D for lab products, he is responsible for the conceptualization, design and ongoing technical support for Premier Lab Products. He is an active member of the ITMF spinners committee and has presented several papers at international forum like Bremen Fibre Conference. He also has 3 patents in his name.

2- Mr.S.Balamurugan is a Textile Technologist with more than 18 years of experience. He has worked with leading manufacturers & mills like Super Sales, Precot-Hindupur and Isparta Textiles –Turkey. At Premier Evolvics he has contributed extensively towards development of the Hair Severity parameter. His key area of excellence includes quality and maintenance in spinning.

Introduction

Hairiness is a key parameter that affects the yarn performance in the subsequent processes and degrades fabric appearance. This necessitates a precise yarn hairiness measurement and control. Yarn hairiness measurement has been discussed for several years, but it still remains a complex subject, which requires further in-depth understanding. The distribution of hair length is one of the most important characteristics of the yarn. To an extent, hairiness is required for further processing and to give a soft feel to the fabric. At the same time more number of long hairs on the yarn surface leads to pilling and fuzzy fabric appearance.

Hair Severity (HS) represents the severity of the long length hairs, which is measured by Premier iQ QualiCenter™.

Hair Severity shows a good correlation with key raw material characteristics

• What are the cotton parameters to be considered?
• What is the relationship between Raw material properties and Hair Severity?
• What are the statistical levels achieved by mills?

To address all the above questions and to gain a better understanding of the effect of Raw material characteristics on Hair Severity, quantitative studies have been conducted for different count and material. The following are the critical raw material quality parameters which have been considered:

• Uniformity Index(UI).
• Micronaire (Mic).
• Short Fibre Index(SFI).

Hair Severity (HS) Vs Uniformity Index (UI)
Lower the Uniformity Index, Higher will be the Hair Severity.

Cotton fibre is a highly variable material whose intrinsic quality cannot be changed after harvesting. The variability in fibre length plays a crucial role in the process performance, as reflected in UI. The Uniformity Index contributes significantly towards Hair Severity (as observed in var­­­ious count and material).

In all the graphs illustrated in this article, the following format is used:

• X1 represents the statistical level achieved by mills who have participated in the study
• X2 represents the count and material
• Y1 represents the raw material property/process parameter ( e.g. Uniformity Index in the above graph)
• Y2 represents the Hair Severity

It is clear from the above graph that, lower the uniformity Index, higher will be the Hair Severity. For a detailed understanding, please refer to the Table 1.

Hair Severity (HS) Vs Micronaire (Mic)
Coarser Micronaire leads to higher Hair Severity

Fibre fineness is considered as the most important parameter impacting the yarn quality. The number of fibres in the cross section determines the yarn irregularity. For a given yarn count, yarn irregularity comes down when there is an increase in no. of fibres. Similarly finer micronaire also result in increased level of yarn neps which leads to dyeability issues. Studies carried out in various count and material reveals that the Micronaire has a high influence on Hair Severity.

Coarser Micornaire leads to higher Hair Severity. However, the reverse trend observed in 60s CW is due to the imported cotton used by mills.

Hair Severity (HS) Vs Short Fibre Index (SFI)
Lower the SFI, Lower is the Hair Severity

Traditionally, Short Fibre Content (SFC) is an indication of cotton quality: defined as a percentage of fibres less than 12.7mm. Raw material with higher SFC is inferior as it leads to high waste % in the process and yarn produced from this cotton will have low strength, more unevenness and high hairiness. Studies conducted for various count and material shows that SFI has a good correlation with Hair Severity.

However Premier recommends using only True Short Fibre - TSF, instead of SFI and SFC (n) because two different raw materials will have similar SFI/SFC (n), but the TSF is more representative of the short fibre as illustrated in Table 2.

Hair Severity is a significant indicator of critical process parameters

In general, the preparatory machines do not contribute towards hairiness except in a few cases where fibre rupture takes place, thereby increasing the short fibres. Other process parameters such as Draw Frame settings and passages, Hank selection in Roving Frame, Spacer size in Ring Frame, TM applied in Ring frame, Spindle speeds, combination of Rings and Ring travellers affects yarn Hairiness. Among all the above, following are the critical process parameters which shows a significant impact on Hair Severity.

• TSF at Draw Frame stage..

• Spacer size in Ring frame.

• Ring Frame Spindle speed

Hair Severity (HS) Vs TSF at Draw Frame stage
HS increases when the TSF at Draw Frame stage increases

TSF is a new parameter which represents the most appropriate short fibre against the fixed length of 12.7 mm. TSF is a relative measure of short fibre length based on the Fibre length distribution. This provides a true representation of the Short Fibre as compared to the existing absolute measurement, as shown in Table 2. TSF has a bearing on yarn strength, evenness and Hairiness. TSF influences Hair Severity as substantiated by studies conducted for various count and material.

Hair Severity (HS) Vs Spacer size in Ring Frame
Optimum Spacer size delivers yarn with the lowest HS value

Spacer size plays a significant role in the reduction of Hair Severity. In general, there is a tendency to use thin spacers in order to reduce Imperfections and Unevenness. An optimum spacer delivers the yarn with a least Hair Severity. Any smaller spacer used beyond a limit increases the Hair Severity due to the excessive force applied on the fibre fleece.

Table 4 provides the statistical levels for Hair Severity for various spacer size.

Hair Severity (HS) Vs Spindle speed at Ring Frame
Lower the Spindle speed, lower the Hair Severity.

Yarn hairiness is greatly influenced by the increased tension created by the balloon. Higher spindle speed exerts higher load on the yarn, which increases hair severity. The trend between Ring Frame spindle speed and Hair Severity is well brought out by the studies done for various count and material.

Table 4 provides the statistical levels for Hair Severity for different spindle speed.