Impact of Repeated Home Laundering on the Cyclic Deformation Performance of Elastane Knitted Sportswear Fabrics

Abstract

After washing cycles, textiles having minimum deformation, maximum dimensional stability and the same performance of an unused product are major expectations of customers. This study examined the effects of washing cycles on the cyclic deformation of elastane knitted fabrics in detail. 12 knitted fabrics with two different linear densities of viscose yarn and three different polyamide/elastane gimped yarn of two different tightness levels (normal and tight) were used in the experiments. M&S P15A test method were used to evaluate the cyclic deformation of unwashed and washed fabrics (0, 5, 15 and 25 cycles) for four different recovery time periods (0 min, 2 min, 30 min and 24 h). Dimensional change, tightness factor and mass per unit area values were also examined in order to investigate the residual deformation of the fabrics after each washing stages. Consequently, it is determined that the fabrics having 21 tex viscose ground yarn and 78dtex20f elastane gimped yarn with higher setting show less residual extension (%). 5 and 15 washing cycles and a 30 min. recovery time are found significant for all repeated washings.