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Fibres, filaments and yarns

Smartfiber with zinc has odour reducing and skin-care effects

1 February 2010
Smartfiber has launched Smartcel Sensitive, claimed to be the first antibacterial fibre that incorporates the essential trace element zinc.
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Electrospinning of melts

1 February 2010
An international group of inventors has devised a way to make sub-micron fibres using an electrospinning process applied to a melt, not a solution.
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Breakthrough in industrial-scale processing of carbon nanotubes

1 January 2010
Scientists at Rice University and their partners claim to have discovered a method for the industrial-scale processing of pure carbon nanotube fibres that they believe could lead to revolutionary adva
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Fine extrusion of cellulose

1 January 2010
A group of inventors based in the USA say they have developed an apparatus capable of economically extruding cellulose fibres with small diameters.
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Laser method creates long boron nitride nanotubes

1 January 2010
A laser-based method for creating long boron nitride nanotubes (BNNTs) has been developed by researchers in the USA.
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Advanced wound care potential

1 December 2009
The value of the global wound care market was estimated at US$10 billion in 2007, according to Steve Law of Speciality Fibres & Materials (SFM), Coventry.
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Aramid yarns get higher tenacities

1 December 2009
A two-stage heating process can produce aramid yarns with higher tenacities, according to International Patent Publication WO2008/061668.
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Medical applications of Tencel

1 October 2009
In the medical sector, Tencel is currently being used for wipes, gauze equivalents, incontinence products and drapes.
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Electrospinning can eliminate toxins and mimic natural tissues

1 October 2009
US researchers at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) are exploring new ways to create, enhance and employ electrospun fibres for medical device applications.
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Antistatic, fine, core-sheath polyester

1 October 2009
Researchers in Japan claim to have developed a polyester-based fibre that is antistatic but can still be produced as a fine, false-twisted yarn with all the desirable textile properties of such an ite
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Simple, efficient, cheap route to ultra high molecular weight polyethylene

1 October 2009
Solving existing technical problems with the production of ultra-high molecular weight polyethylene (UHMWPE) fibres is the goal of three Chinese inventors.
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Luxilon awarded Techtextil Innovation Prize for new materials

1 September 2009
A new thermo-formable yarn that has potential application in the medical sector, such as orthopaedic bandages, received the 2009 Techtextil Innovation Prize for new materials.
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Smartcel Hygienic incorporates antibacterial copper ions

1 August 2009
At the recent Techtextil trade fair held in Frankfurt am Main, Germany, Smartfiber launched Smartcel Hygienic, a functional lyocell fibre that incorporates copper to counteract pathogens, such as bact
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Sun protection for sportswear

1 August 2009
Lenzing has developed a fibre that offers the wearer protection from solar radiation.
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Unitika to expand production of heat-retaining polyester

1 August 2009
Unitika Fibers of Japan is to expand production of its Thermotron fibre, targeting the 2010/11 Autumn and Winter sports clothing market.
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Teijin strives to improve the recovery of sulphuric acid during spinning and washing of aramid

1 July 2009
Teijin Aramid of Arnhem, The Netherlands, has proposed a method for spinning and washing aramid fibre that allows for the effective recovery and re-use of sulphuric acid and water, uses low amounts of
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Biocatalyst treatment improves hydrophilicity of polyolefins

1 July 2009
Treating the surface of a polyolefin or polyolefin copolymer fibre or fabric with oxidoreductase enzymes increases the hydrophilicity, according to the speciality chemicals company Ciba.
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Recycled polyester is inherently flame retardant

1 June 2009
Momentum Textiles - a supplier of contract textiles based in Irvine, California, USA - has chosen a recycled flame retardant (FR) polyester fibre, Repreve(r) FR, for a range of privacy curtains that i
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Conductive bicomponent for antistatic clothing

1 June 2009
A conductive bicomponent fibre that is suitable for practical use in antistatic clothing has been developed in Japan by Kuraray Co Ltd.
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Mixed polymer superabsorbents

1 April 2009
By combining biodegradable, renewable materials that are cheap with superabsorbents, researchers at Weyerhaeuser Co in the USA aim to improve the design and function of absorbent articles.
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Improved stretch-breaking

1 April 2009
An improved method for stretch-breaking fibres to produce staple yarn is the subject of US Patent 7 454 816.
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Improving aramid fibres for processing and use at high temperatures

1 February 2009
Researchers in Japan have found a way to make metaaramid (m-aramid) fibres that have better processing and use characteristics, particularly at high temperatures.
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Refined thermally bonding fibre for carded webs

1 February 2009
A thermally bondable conjugate fibre specifically engineered for use in the formation of carded webs is the result of work at Japan's Teijin Fibres Ltd.
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Nanofibre-reinforced polymers

1 January 2009
Spun nanofibres and nanofibre-reinforced polymers for use in medical devices are disclosed in an international patent, WO 2007/117296, by Boston Scientific SciMed.
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Permanent antimicrobial protection

1 January 2009
NanoHorizons, a provider of nano-scale antimicrobial performance additives, and commission speciality dyehouse, G J Littlewood & Son, have developed a process to integrate NanoHorizons' SmartSilve
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Antimicrobial hollow-core fibres

1 January 2009
Hollow-core fibres that exhibit an antimicrobial effect have been developed by Eastman Chemical.
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Water-dispersible and multi component fibres made from sulphopolyesters

1 December 2008
Workers at Eastman Chemical Co have developed multicomponent fibres derived from a blend of a sulphopolyester with a water non-dispersible polymer.
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Commercial launch of polyester nanofibre by Teijin Fibers

1 October 2008
Teijin Fibers is to begin the commercial production of a high-strength polyester nanofibre called Nanofront at its Matsuyama plant in Japan.
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Island-in-the-sea route used to make sub-micron fibres

1 September 2008
Teijin Fibers Ltd of Osaka, Japan, has patented a method of producing an islands-in-sea type composite spun fibre,which has island components each with a maximum diameter of 1 m.
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Controlled surface porosity

1 September 2008
A US inventor has patented a way of making carbon fibres with surface porosities that are easily optimized to suit a variety of applications.
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Indo Poly to make SmartSilver yarns

1 August 2008
NanoHorizons and Indopoly (Thailand) Ltd, a part of the Indorama Group, have entered into a partnership to produce polyester yarns with permanent antimicrobial properties.
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Dispersion technology developed for activated carbon

1 August 2008
Americhem Inc, a global supplier of custom colour and additive solutions for synthetic fibres and polymers, has teamed up with Cocona Inc to create a unique masterbatch of activated carbon.
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High-quality fibres from wheat proteins

1 July 2008
Researchers at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln in the USA have developed a method for making fibres from wheat proteins.
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FiberVisions offers new opportunities for carded thermal-bond nonwovens

1 June 2008
A new polypropylene fibre from FiberVisions is claimed to be creating unique opportunities for nonwovens producers to enter the bulky nonwovens market, and meet increasing demand for fabrics with impr
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Polyethylene to rival para-aramid

1 June 2008
A strong,melt-spinning polyethylene fibre with superior lightness and cut resistance has been developed by Japan's Toyobo.
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Diolen Industrial Fibers reveals how to make filament yarns of polyphenylene sulphide

1 April 2008
Diolen Industrial Fibers has revealed further details about how it makes filament yarns from polyphenylene sulphide (PPS) in International Patent Application WO 2006/097281.
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Controlling the deposition of electrospun fibres

1 April 2008
Scientists from theTechnical University of Eindhoven, The Netherlands, have found a way to control the direction and deposition of fibres formed by an electrospinning method.
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Fibres that retain their superabsorbent properties under pressure

1 March 2008
Addressing the need for fibres that retain their superabsorbent properties under pressure, researchers in the USA working for Stockhausen say they have devised a method for making such items.
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Superhydrophobic fibres

1 March 2008
Researchers in the USA have been electrospinning block copolymers to create fibres with superhydrophobic properties.
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Metal-plated carbon from Electro Fiber Technologies

1 February 2008
Electro Fiber Technologies (EFT) LLC has commercialized its patented, metal-plated carbon fibre products intended for use in aerospace, defence, automotive, construction, medical and electronics appli
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Moisture-absorbing cellulose-based material

1 January 2008
A cellulose-based moisture-absorbing material has been developed by the US Department of the Navy.
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Refined method for cellulose extrusion

1 January 2008
Korea's Hyosung Corp has patented a method for extruding cellulose fibre (International Patent WO 2006/071101).
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Flame-retardant agent for polyester

1 December 2007
Korea's Hyosung Corp has patented two polyester fibres that contain a phosphorus-based flameretardant agent.
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Polysaccharide fibres with antimicrobial properties

1 November 2007
Polysaccharide fibres having water absorption and antimicrobial properties are disclosed in US Patent 7 229 689 by SSL International.Wound dressings can be made from such fibres, says the company base
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Diolen offers first high-tenacity multifilament yarn made with Fortron(r) polyphenylene sulphide

1 October 2007
Diolen Industrial Fibers has introduced a high-tenacity multifilament made with Fortron(r), a polyphenylene sulphide (PPS) made by Fortron Industries LLC.
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So range of speciality textiles

1 October 2007
Waxman Speciality Products, a newly formed division of the UK-based Waxman Group, has launched the So range of fibre-based products aimed at the speciality textiles market--including functional, cosme
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Melt spun fibres containing phase-change materials

1 October 2007
A multi-component fibre containing a temperature regulating constituent, in the form of a phase-change material (PCM) has been developed in the USA by Outlast Technologies.
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Teijin Twaron opens jet-spinning plant in Arnhem, The Netherlands

1 August 2007
With the opening of its pilot production plant for jetspinning in Arnhem, The Netherlands, Teijin Twaron says it can now manufacture aramid pulp in a completely different way.
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Stronger stretch-broken yarns

1 July 2007
A stretch-breaking process for continuously making strong spun yarns is the subject of International Patent WO 2006/020404.
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Polysulphonamide fibre introduced

1 June 2007
China's Shanghai Tanlon Fiber Co Ltd will introduce a new fibre based on polysulphonamide (PSA) at Techtextil/ Avantex 2007 (12-14 June 2007, Frankfurt, Germany).
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