UNIT-II: FIBER TESTING

Fiber analysis-length-Baer sorter Technique ,Fiber fineness-Methods of measuring

fineness-Airflow method by Micronaire.Fiber maturity-Determination of maturity-Caustic soda
swelling method,Fibre trash-Shirley trash analyser,Moisture content-Shirley Moisture tester,
Moisture regain-Wet and dry bulb hygrometer.

Fiber analysis-length-Baer sorter Technique

Fiber length is directly related to the spinning performance .Longer

cottons –spun into fine counts Among the various properties which determine the
quality of cotton, fibre length occupies a dominant position as it influences, to a
large extent, the spinnability of a cotton.

Moreover fibre length can be easily estimated. Hence, this

characteristic of cotton has assumed great importance in commercial transactions
and the price of a cotton sample is largely based on this characteristic. Any
sample of cotton will contain fibres varying in length from 2mm onwards, the
upper limit being decided by the variety of cotton under consideration and the
conditions under which it has been grown

MEASUREMENT OF FIBRE LENGTH

Single Fibre Measurement It is possible, with patience, good lighting, a

microscope slide over a scale, and medicinal paraffin to control the fibres, to
measure the length of individual cotton fibre. Each fibre is taken and gently
straightened over the slide with the tips of the little fingers; the length is then
recorded. This method is obviously tedious and time consuming and not used in
the mill laboratory. At least 400-500 fibers are measured in case of cotton to
arrive at mean length due to large variation in the sample.
Baer Sorter –Fiber Length Measurement

A comb sorter instrument which enables the sample of fibers to be

fractionalized into small length groups

• PRINCIPLE OF BAER SORTER

A numerical sample of fibres is arranged in the form of an array in the

descending order of length and form a tracing of this array of length, mean
length, percentage of short fibres and dispersion are calculated.

DESCRIPTION

The Baer Sorter consists of a abed of combs which control and enable the
sample of fibres to be fractionalized into length groups. The Baer Sorter has
12 bottom combs are hinged at one end and are supported by a rod,
extending the width of the frame at the other end. The rod can be moved
from its position and when it is drawn, the rod can be dropped one by one.
The needles of the bottom combs are pointing upwards and in between the
bottom combs, three top combs are placed.
• The space between the two bottom combs is ¼ inch except the first two
bottom combs which will be 3/16 inch apart. The top combs, when placed
between the two bottom combs, the distance between them will be 1/8
inch. Manipulation of the fibres is done by a grip called tweezer, depressor
and a blunt needle.

PROCEDURE

• The position of fibre unit in the instrument is the representative sample of

cotton is made into sliver by drawing and doubling several times with the
fibres strengthened and parallelised. The bundle of fibres must be as
narrow as possible through out the whole process.

• 1. The sorter is placed with the back facing the operator. The prepared
sample is slightly twisted and placed on the bottom combs at the right hand
side of the sorter, with a small tuft protruding.

• 2. From the protruding end, all the loose fibres are removed by means of
the tweezer until, the ends are aligned. The removed loose fibres are kept
separately and introduced in the original sample later.

• 3. A tuft of fibres all pulled out, combed and transferred to the left hand
side of the sorter so that the comb nearest to the operator forms the
starting line for the tuft, while at the other end the longest fibres protrude
out. The tuft is pressed into the combs by means of depressor

• 4. The process is repeated till all fibres on the right side, all combings are
transferred to the let hand side.

• 5. The top combs are inserted in their position to grip and to control the
slippage of the fibres.

• 6. The sorter, is then turned round so that the front faces the operator.

• 7. The bottom combs are dropped one by one successively till the tips of
the longest fibres are seen.
 After the pattern is built up, a transparent scale, with 1/8 inch lines is
placed over the pattern. Reading on the transparent scale, the values of the
co-ordinates are marked on a graph sheet and the pattern is drawn. The
diagram is called “SORTER DIAGRAM”.1. Effective Length 2. Mean length 3.
Percentage of short fibres 4. Dispersion are calculated from the sorter
diagram

• Fibre Sorter Methods

As single fibre measurement takes time and hand stapling requires

experience (although even then this is a subjective test), alternative
methods have been developed.

One of the most popular is the use of the fibre sorter, examples of which
are the Baer, the Shirley, and the Suter Webb. The fibre sorter is an
instrument which enables the sample to be fractionalised into length
groups. Basically, the operation involves four main steps:

1. The preparation of a fringe or tuft with all the fibres aligned at one end.

2. The separation or withdrawal of fibres in order of decreasing length.

3. The preparation of a sorter diagram by laying the fibres on a black velvet

pad in decreasing order of length, the fibre parallel and their lower ends
aligned along a horizontal base line.

4. The analysis of the diagram

1. Q is the mid-point of OA, i.e. OQ = OA.

2. From Q draw QP’ parallel to OB to cut the curve at P’.

3. Drop the perpendicular P’P.

4. Mark off OK equal to ¼ OP and erect the perpendicular K’K. This is a firs
approximation to the effective length.

5. S is the mid point of K’K.

6. From S draw SR’ parallel to OB to cut the curve at R’.

7. Drop the perpendicular R’R.

8. Mark off OL equal to ¼ OR.

9. Erect the perpendicular L’L. This is the effective length.

• Average or Mean Length The sum of the base line readings divided by the
base line length gives the mean length in units of 1/8 in. or mm, the class
interval. Multiplying by 4 expresses the mean length in 1/32 in. units. This is
the mean height of the curve and is obtained by dividing the total area
under the curve by the base length.

• Maximum Length This is read directly from the diagram.

• Modal Length The mode of a frequency distribution is the class value of the
class with the highest frequency; in other words, the most ‘fashionable’
value. Since distances along the base line are assumed to be proportional to
frequency, the modal length will be given by the class which has the
greatest base length.

• Effective Length This value has been defined as the length of the main bulk
of the longer fibres. It is obtained by a geometrical construction on the
sorter diagram, a construction which also produces several other useful
quantities. Figure illustrates this operation.
• Percentage Short Fibre This is the percentage of fibres less than half the
effective length. In figure the percentage short fibre is therefore given by
(RB x100/OB) %

• Dispersion The uniformity, or perhaps more aptly the variability of the

cotton, can be expressed as the ‘inter-quartile range’.

• In Figure L’L is the upper quartile and M’M is the lower quartile, the inter-
quartile range.

• This measure of the dispersion may now be expressed as a range. This

measure of the dispersion may now be expressed as a percentage of the
effective length: NL’ Dispersion = ------ x 100 %LL

Fiber fineness-Methods of measuring fineness-Airflow method by

Micronaire

Fibre fineness is another very important parameter which plays significant

role in yarn spinning. Fibre fineness denotes the size of cross section of the
fibre or in other terms it can be expressed as linear density of the fibres in
micrograms per inch (10-6 g/inch). The fineness is also expressed in millitex
which is weight in milligrams of one kilometre length of fibre. This is
identical to the unit of 10-6 gm/cm.

• If the fibres are fine, the number of fibres in crosssection is more and
irregularity is less. The finer the fibre the greater the totalsurface area
available in inter-fibre contact and less twist is needed to provide necessary
cohesion. The resistance of fibre to twisting and bending are also affected
by the fineness.

Significance

• To spin finer yarn we require finer fibres as certain minimum number of

fibres is must to spin in yarn (70-80).
 • From finer fibres, apart from better spinnability, better evenness can also
be achieved for the same count.

• Yarn strength is also affected by fibre fineness to some extent.

• A finer fibre can be spun to finer counts than a coarse fibre.

MEASUREMENT OF FIBRE FINENESS

• Fineness can be measured by measuring fibre cross section but as cross

sectionof fibres are not regular, direct determination of area is not possible.

• Some dimensional features i.e. swollen hair diameter, ribbon width etc.,
can be used to specify fibre fineness to some extent.

• The fineness of cotton fibres can be determined by either direct method

such as gravimetric dimensional measurement or by indirect method i.e. Air
flow method.

DIRECT METHOD

Gravimetric Method:

In this method two types of practices are prevalent:

• (a) In ASTM procedure about 100 fibres are taken from each comb sorter
groups and weighted, from which weight per unit length is calculated.

• In this case mean length is used to calculate the weight per unit length.

• In another method known number of fibres are first cut into in 1cm length
and then they are weighed on a torsion balance or quartz micro-balance.

• There are two objections in this method.

(i) Fibre of different length grade may have different fineness value.

(ii) In a single fibre, fineness may vary over the whole length.
INDIRECT METHOD

• The direct methods are generally tedious and more time consuming
therefore indirect method of the measurement of fineness are more
popular. These aremainly based on measurement of resistance to the flow
of air by fibre plugs, or on the principle of vibrating strings in the case of
single fibres

Airflow method

In this method a fibre of constant weight are filled-in a fixed area and air is
allowed to pass through. The flow of air is affected by the surface area of the
fibres The variation in air-flow is directly translated into the values of
lineardensity

Two cylinder - a and b Filled with cylinder rods

a Cylinder filled large diameter

b cylinder filled with small diameter

Total cross sections area is equal in both cases.

Air blown through the cylinder at same pressure

Air flow through b would be less than a

B has more rod surface to flow

 • Difference in rate of airflow –measure of the difference in surface area of
large and small diameter rods.

• Specific Surface =surface area /volume

Specific Surface Sα 1/d

Specific surface is inversely propotional to fiber diameter.

Rate of airflow will be less for fine fibers and more for coarse fibers

MICRONAIRE

The Sheffield Micronaire is an Instrument based on Airflow Priniple .It Estimates

the fiber fineness in mg/inch. The Values determined becomes Micronaire values.
the Micronaire values are integrated values of fineness and maturity

principle

The Rate of airflow is inversely propotional to surface area of fibers. The Rate of
airflow through porous plug of fibers related to fineness of cotton fibers
 • Foot Pedal – Control the air Pressure • Float –moves up and down according to the type of fiber
• Air filter - filter the air from dust particles • Fine fiber –float less
• Pressure guage – note the air pressure • Coarse fiber – Float more
• Air Regulator - inlet air flow altered • Scale –Measure the Micronaire values
• Air flow divided into two streams X and Y • Calibration screw –Calibrate the instrument
• X- flow –flow meter to the atmosphere • Plug of cotton- Sample
• Y flow – Perforations of the fibers • Compression Chamber- Compress the sample
fiber fine – air will pass through y Compression Plunger-To hold the compression

Initial setup
• Air is supplied to the instument -1.75kg/sq.cm 25PSI. The pressure of air fed
to the fibers is adjusted to 0.42kg/Sq cm. A compression plug is pushed to
the fiber compression chamber.The instrument is adjusted float in the flow
meter rises to an upper limit 6.2 for cotton and lower limit 2.8 for cotton .
The adjustment in airflowis done by placing a thumb on the tube , float
positioning knob and calibration screw

Testing Procedure
• 50 grains (3.24 gms ) of samples are taken. The Sample is opened well
into a fluff. Knots and stringy sections are removed, Fibers are separated
and the Samples are introduced to the compression Chamber.Fiber
compression plunger is inserted and locked in its place by twisting.This
compresses sample to 1” diameter and 1”length. Foot pedal is pressed to
allow the air inside and the readings in the float is taken with the top level
of the float .Fiber samples removed and the precedure is repeated.
Minimum 2 samples should be tested from a lot and the avg value is
calculated to the nearest 0.1 micronaire unit

FIBER FINENESS RATING

Mg/inch Rating
(micronaire)

below 3 very fine

3 - 3.9 fine
4- 4.9 Average fine
5 – 5.9 Coarse
6 and above very Coarse
FIBER MATURITY
• Fibre maturity is another important characteristic of cotton and is an index
of the extent of development of the fibres. The maturity of cotton fibre
varies not onlybetween fibers of different samples but also between fibres
on the same seed. Thus a ripened, full mature cotton boll contains fibers
both mature and immature.A cotton fibre consists of a cuticle, a primary
layer and secondary layers of cellulose surrounding the lumen or central
canal. In the case of mature fibres, the secondary wall thickening is very
high and in some cases, the lumen is not visible
Importance of Maturity:
• The maturity of the fibre is concerned with development of the cell wall.
The cell wall thickening is highly sensitive to growing conditions. Adverse
weather, poor soil, plant diseases and pests etc., will increase the
proportion of immature fibre and lead to trouble in processing. Maturity
affects the quality of the yarn and also the processing. The effects of
immature fibres are seen especially in the spinning process.

• The large number of ends down in a ring frame is due to the immature
fibres. The loss in yarn strength, the dyeing troubles are all due to the
presence of immature fibres. Maturity affects the quality of the yarn and
also the processing. The effects of immature fibres are seen especially in
the spinning process. The large number of ends down in a ring frame is due
to the immature fibres.The loss in yarn strength, the dyeing troubles are all
due to the presence of immature fibres
 MEASUREMENT OF MATURITY
• 1. DIRECT METHOD

In these methods, the fibres after being swollen with 18 percent caustic
soda are examined under the microscope with suitable magnification. The
fibres are classified into different maturity groups depending upon the
relative dimensions of the cell wall and the lumen. However, the
procedures followed in different countries for sampling and classification
differ in certain respects.

• A thin tuft of fibres in drawn by means of tweezers from a sliver held in a

comb sorter. Its thickness is so regulated that about 100 fibres are spread in
a parallel array over a width of an inch in order to facilitate the examination
of each fibre separately under the microscope. The tweezer end of the tuft
is clamped first on the narrower strip of the fibre mounting device called
the ‘Maturity slide’. The fibres are spread across the glass slide and the
overlapping fibres are again separated with the help of teasing needle. The
free ends of the fibres are then held in the clamp on the second strip of the
maturity slide, which is adjustable to keep the fibres stretched to the
desired extent.

• The fibres are then irrigated with 18 percent caustic soda solution and
covered with a suitable cover slip. The slide is then placed on the
 mechanical stage of a microscope and examined. Beginning at one edge of
the tuft, all fibres are classed into three categories namely mature, half-
mature and immature, based on the ratio of lumen width (L) to wall
thickness (W).

About four to eight slides are prepared from each sample and examined. The
results are presented as percentages of mature, half-mature and immature
fibres in a sample. The results are alsoexpressed in terms of ‘maturity
coefficient’ which is a unitary expression signifying the multiple character of
fibre maturity usually represented by the percentage of mature, half-mature
and immature fibres, calculated from the formula:

Mc =(M + 0.6H + 0.4I)/ 100

where Mc is the maturity coefficient, and M, H and I are the percentage of

mature, half-mature and immature fibres, respectively, in the sample. Based
on the maturity coefficient the cottons are classed into different groups as
shown in Table below.

Classification of Cottons on the basis of Maturity Coefficient

Category Range of maturity coefficient

• Very immature Below 0.60

• Immature 0.60 to 0.70

• Average maturity 0.71 to 0.80

• Good maturity 0.81 to 0.90

• Very high maturity Above 0.90

Percentage of Mature Fibres:

• This is the US Standard (ASTM) method, in which the percentage of mature

fibres, Pm alone is determined.

• From each length group, a bundle of about 100 fibres is taken and spread
uniformly on microscope slides. The series of slides constitutes a test
sample. A second set of slides is prepared by another operator using fibres
drawn from a different array.

Laboratory Blended Sample:

Three slides of about 200 fibres each are prepared by each of the two
operators from a laboratory blended sliver of 50mm length.

Fibrograph Beard:

• Beards from two combs are removed and each one is divided into two
halves forming four sub-samples. From these subsamples, test specimens
are prepared by the same procedure as the one described in the case of the
laboratory blended sample.

• The fibres laid parallel on the microscope slide are irrigated with 18%
caustic soda and are examined through a microscope at 400 x
magnification. They are classified into two categories,mature and immature
as shown below:
TRASH-SHIRLEY TRASH ANALYZER
• Trash cannot be termed as fibre property but it has its own importance as
the amount of trash present in cotton directly affects the cost of cleaned
cotton. Even if we keep commercial aspect aside trash affects the yarn
quality considerably. Even after removing the trash in Blowroom and Cards
small amount of trash remains in the sliver. Infact removal of trash in
Blowroom and Cards depends upon nature of trash. Seed coats amongst all
impurities are most difficult to remove. Recent studies have confirmed
tha6 remnant trash in sliver mostly consists of seed coats and it is directly
related with the uster neps and classimate faults.

MEASUREMENT OF TRASH

• 100g. of cotton sample ‘S’ to be analysed is weighed accurately and is

passed through the Trash Analyser giving L1g. of lint and T1g. of trash. The
trash T1 is collected and again processed giving L2g. of lint and T2g. of
trash. The lint portions L1 and L2 are weighed together and give the total
lint content in the sample.

• If the Trash T2 is still found to contain a sizable amount of lint, it is

passed once again through the Analyser giving L3g. of lint and T3g. of trash.

• Then lint content L= L1 + L2 + L3 and Trash T = T3.

 • In general, two such 100 g. samples are analysed and the average
calculated. It is essential that the sample processed must be fairly
representative of the bulk sample.

(1) While feeding the cotton, it is necessary to open it by hand and fed it
uniformly in a fairly thin fleece. For example, when feeding 100g of sample, half
of it should be spread evenly on the feed table and as the test proceeds the
remaining sample should be added gradually.

(2) Hard lumps of trash or full seeds in the test sample must be collected by hand
and weighed along with the trash. If allowed to pass along with the cotton, these
are likely to damage the feed plate and licker-in wire points.

(3) A lever is provided for opening and closing the valve controlling the air flow
from the cage into the filter. This valve should be opened at the beginning of a
test. At the end of each test, the valve is closed so that all the lint falls down into
the lint box.

The Cleaning Efficiency of a Machine:

• The cleaning efficiency helps to evaluate the performance of a machine. If it

falls below a certain level the machine needs to be checked.

• The removal of trash particles such as seed & leaf particles, stalks, sand and
dust from cotton is quantitatively expressed as cleaning efficiency which
can be estimated as follow:
 • About 200gm of sample is taken from the feed & delivery of a machine like
Blow room, Card or Beaters. These samples are analysed for trash content.

• This is done by processing a 100gm of sample through a Trash Analyser and

collecting the trash obtained & weighing it accurately. Two samples must
be analysed andaverage trash content is calculated.

Moisture content-Shirley Moisture tester

Moisture Content

• The physical properties of fibres can be affected by their moisture content.

In general the fibres that absorb the greatest amount of moisture are the
ones whose properties change the most are Dimensional, Mechanical and
Electrical

• The amount of moisture in a fiber sample can be expressed as either regain

or moisture content. Regain is the weight of water in a material expressed
as a percentage of the oven dry weight.
• Method of measuring regain

Principle

• To measure the regain of a sample of textile material it is necessary to

weigh the material, dry it and then weigh it again. The difference between
the masses is then the mass of water in the sample. Regain is based on the
oven dry mass, which for most fibers is the constant mass obtained by
drying at a temperature of 105 + 2oC. Constant mass is achieved by drying
and weighing repeatedly until successive weighing differ by less than
0.5%.This is also called oven dry weight.

Shirley Moisture tester

Principle

• Electrical resistance of different textile materials varies considerably at

different regains. When the sample is dry the resistance for the flow of
current will be maximum and when wet the resistance will be minimum

• Initially instrument was designed to measure moisture of Raw cotton &

yarn however later its use was extended to other textile materials & tables
were prepared to give corrected values.

• The electrode consist of a insulating material (ebonite) inbetween the

central conductor and outer circular sheath. When pressed into the cotton
the fiber bridges between the conductors and the current will pass through
the fibers . The resistance to the flow of current through the fibers is
measured

• The indicating unit of the instruments translates the resistance values into
the regain valueand it will be indicated in one of the two dials

• One dial covers normal range from 7-11 percent & other For Damp 9-15 &
Dry from 5-9 percent range
• The difference being that for yarns spacing between conducting element is
increased. This counteracts the increased conductivity of yarns due to more
or less parallel arrangement of the fibers compared with random
arrangement of the fibers in loose cotton. The indicating unit translates the
resistance value into regain values on one of two dials...
 • Moisture Regain

It is defined as the weight of water in a

material expressed as a percentage of the oven dry weight of the material

Weight of water

Moisture Regain =_____________________________

Oven Dry weight of the material

Regain is the weight of moisture in a material expressed as a percentage of the

oven dry weight. Therefore the basic method of measuring regain must be to the
weight of sample in its original Condition, to dry it under standard conditioned
temperature of 105 +_ 30 C and then to weigh it again . The weighings are made
accurately without disturbing the sample

Relative Humidity

• Relative humidity is the ratio of actual vapour pressure to the saturated

vapour pressure of the same temperature. Expressed as percentage.

• Relative humidity = actual vapourpressure/standard vapour pressure.

• An alternative definition for relative humidity is the ratio of the absolute

humidity of the air to that of air saturated with water vapour at the same
temperature and pressure. This ratio is also expressed as a percentage

Wet and Dry Hygrometer

Working principle: If the bulb of thermometer is surrounded by a film of water

and the air around it is not saturated, water evaporates from the bulb into the air
at a rate which is proportional to the difference between the actual humidity and
100% humidity .since the evaporation is accompanied by cooling the temperature
indicated by the thermometer will be less than room temperature.

Machine Description: The wet and dry bulb hygrometer consists of a frame on
which two identical thermometers are mounted . The one of them is covered by a
muslin sleeve which is dipped into a reservoir of distilled water .This is known wet
bulb thermometer . The bulb of another thermometer is uncovered and from that
thermometer,Room temperature or dry bulb temperature can be noted. The wet
bulb thermometer shows the temperature less than the dry bulb Temperature
and is known as wet bulb temperature . The difference between these two
temperatures is noted and the humidity table is referred for the dry bulb
temperature in one column and the corresponding difference of the wet bulb
indicates the percentage relative humidity

dry bulb temperture - 87 o F

Wet bulb temperture - 72 0 F

Difference - 15 0 F

RH % from table - 43