Capillary rise kinetics on woven fabrics – Experimental and theoretical studies

Abstract

Kinetics study of vertical water capillary rise on woven fabrics has been studied. Experiments are performed at 20±2°C and 65±2% RH by using a CCD camera and an electronic microbalance. A mathematical model is developed in order to interpret the experimental data in terms of diffusion parameters of water molecules on the porous materials and the height attained at equilibrium. The results show that the theoretical predictions are in reasonable agreement with experimental data with higher correlation coefficients. It is also found that kinetic parameters and the height of water attained at equilibrium are influenced by the composition (type of fibre) and the structure of the woven fabrics. It is concluded that the wicking ability is strongly enhanced with the decrease of the weft count (yarns/cm) and in the presence of higher float length of the weft yarns in the woven structure as in the case of satin 8/5. The sorption ability of the cotton fabrics has also been studied by using measurements of the mass of water absorbed by the textile. The results indicate that the satin structure, which is the less tightened one, has the best sorption ability.