Fashion Applications for Polyester Fiber, （时尚申请聚酯纤维,）.pdfVIP

Fashion Applications for Polyester Fiber, Particularly Hydrophilic Polyester By Florence Smith, TSD Europe, and Dr W.P. Mei, Associate TSD Specialist Dow Corning Corporation Overview Despite the fact that polyester fiber is extremely hydrophobic, it has a bright future, particularly in the fashion industry, as consumers increasingly are attracted by its easy- care properties. While research continues to develop an ideal hydrophilic polyester solution, this article examines ways to increase the hydrophilicity of polyester via processing routes (such as denier reduction and microfibers) and chemical routes (topical finishes). Introduction Polyester is a manufactured fiber in which the fiber-forming substance is any long-chain, synthetic polymer composed of at least 85% of an ester of a substituted aromatic carboxylic acid. This can include, but is not restricted to, substituted terephtalic units, p(- R-O-CO-C H CO-O-) and parasubstituted hydroxy-benzoate units, (-R-O-CO-C H -O- 6 4 x p 6 4 )x. 12 Polyester is manufactured by reacting ethylene glycol with either terephtalic acid or its methyl ester in the presence of an antimony catalyst. The reaction is carried out in an autoclave at high temperature (ca 300ºC) for five to eight hours. Then, it placed under a hard vacuum to achieve the high molecular weights required to form useful fibers. Following that, polyester is melt-spun, which involves melting the polymer chips for extrusion through the spinneret and then directly solidifying them by cooling. The filaments are drawn and stretched by about 400% in order to achieve the required characteristics. 12, 13 History of polyester The work of Wallace Carothers in the late 1920s laid the foundation for all proces