The objective of this work was to develop a pre-treatment (cleaning) procedure for a wide range of apparel fabrics and to determine whether differences observed in the properties of fabrics which had and had not been pre-treated were significant. Properties relevant to the manufacture and/or performance of apparel included mass per unit area, thickness, bending length, flex-ural rigidity, drape coefficient, air permeability, water vapor permeability, liquid absorptive capacity, drying time, ‘dry’ thermal resistance, ultra-violet transmission. Results for the same property on the same fabric measured when the fabrics had and had not been pre-treated generally differed significantly, confirming the importance of pre-treatment prior to measuring these properties, particularly when claiming in-use attributes of fabrics. A procedure for pre-treatment is recommended: six consecutive cleaning cycles following procedure 8A of British Standard EN ISO 6330: 2001 (i.e. not dried between cycles), and dried flat following procedure C of this standard.

The objective of this work was to determine the drying time of a range of apparel fabrics simulating both during and after wear and in doing so, develop: (1) a laboratory method for wetting specimens in a reproducible manner, applicable to a wide variety of apparel fabrics and a large number of specimen; and (2) a method for determining drying time, including a practical laboratory definition for the end-point `dry'. The methods were applied to seventeen fabrics varying in fiber content and in fabric structure. Fabric specimens can be wetted by machine, can be line dried, and can be dried using a simulated on-skin method. A workable laboratory definition of `dry' is provided.

The objective was to adapt Standard test methods for determining properties of apparel fabrics so these properties are a better reflection of fabrics when used in end-products, while retaining a controlled environment and thus allowing fabric comparisons2. Test methods in which properties are compared when fabrics are dry and damp, and/ or in which they are in multiple-layered assemblies have been developed and applied to a range of fabrics.

Samples of opossum fibers are examined using scanning electron microscopy to describe their appearance, including any visible damage that may have resulted from early processing. Variations in the surface morphology among individual fibers and along the length of a single fiber are observed. Even tile-like, rounded tile-like, wave-like, and cornet-like scales are present, most with smooth surfaces and smooth scale margins. The mean fiber length and diameter are 29 mm and 19.89 μm, respectively, and neither fiber length nor diameter seems related to scale type. Breaks accompanied by transverse and longitudinal cracking, fibrillar failure, buckling, and peeling back of scales are evident in fibers extracted by machine. No damage is visible on bleached fibers. Opossum (Trichosurus vulpecula) fibers created great interest from the mid 1990s in the New Zealand textile industry. For example, the fibers were incorporated as fill in duvets, and as a blend with merino wool and small proportions of a synthetic fiber in knitted garments. Apart from very basic morphological descriptions and some dimensional information from the 1980s [3], little appears to have been published on the fibers and their uses. Processes for using the fibers are being refined, but many questions remain about how best to extract them, what constitutes a suitable basis for fiber sorting and grading, which fiber variables are most important at each stage of processing to a finished product, and whether properties of the final product are in any way unique.Differences among animal fibers attributable to the age, species, and nutrition of the animal, the climate and season in which the animal is living, and the fiber growth rate are well recognized [3,7], as are differences in properties of fibers from different body sites of one animal. Fur (under fur-intermediate, true fur) and guard hair (top hair-directive hairs, true hairs) may both be present [7], as may &dquo;feeler hairs&dquo; (touch sensitive) on some animals [7]. The general structure of fur and guard hair is well documented (an exterior cuticle, a cortex, and (usually) a medulla [7]). A typical medulla consists of a loosely segmented framework supporting thin shells of material surrounding air spaces, and can be continuous or broken along the fiber length [3]. When the medulla is claimed as hollow, some fiber processing properties are reportedly affected (e.g., fiber and yarn strength, resilience, handle, abrasion resistance, swelling in water 15. 10, 11]). A cuticle layer consisting of flat overlapping scales 114] is present on all animal fibers. and the size and shape of these scales characterize fibers from particular animal types and form the basis of fiber identification [4,12].Early processing of opossum fibers involves their removal from the animal skin (by hand, by machine using one of several machine types, or by chemical treatment), and because the fibers are typically dark in color, bleaching if destined for a pale-colored product. Little is known about the effect of these earl...