Studies of the Surface Geometry of Fibers

Abstract

An electromagnetic transducer, for scanning the surfaces of textile fibers and the associated electronic circuitry for measuring and recording geometric features of the surfaces are described. The steps taken to isolate the highly sensitive system from noise and other extraneous influences are briefly outlined. By means of a counter and an integrating circuit, two parameters characterizing the surface of a given length of fiber can be obtained: the number of asperities and the total height of the asperities in the selected length of fiber. Observations made on a sample of camel hair show, in terms of asperity count and total height, that the fiber surface has a quite uniform scale structure and a marked differential directional character. Two samples of Dacron,3 one contaming 2.0% and the other a negligible 0.1% TiO2 delusterant, were also examined. The former sample was found to have, on the average, from 3 to 7 times as many asperities on the fiber surface as the other had. The average asperity heights appeared to be less severly affected by the differences in the amounts of incorporated TiO2. The reproducibility of this method, as disclosed by the results on these two samples, is discussed.