Fiber and carpet terms

Resiliency—the ability of a fiber to return to its original shape after being forced into another shape for a period of time.  This is an especially important quality for carpet fiber to possess, as people move furniture occasionally.  If the fiber has poor resiliency, the indentations from the furniture’s weight will remain in the carpet for a long period of time.

Spinning—the process of making yarn or thread.  The process varies depending on the specific fiber being used to create the yarn, but the basic steps are to

· combine several fibers together

· align the fibers

· twist or entangle the fibers so they stay together

· wind the resultant thread or yarn onto a spool, tube, or bobbin so it can be used in subsequent processes

Staple—the collection of short-length fibers (cotton, wool, etc.) that serve as the feedstock for spinning yarn or thread.  Staple is generally collected and shipped in bales (e.g., cotton bales).  The spinning site uses specialized equipment to align the individual fibers before spinning them into yarn or thread.  Generally, staple refers to natural fibers.  However, synthetic fibers are also produced as staple so they can be used in existing spinning equipment and blended with other fibers (e.g., a cotton-polyester blend for apparel).

Synthetic Fibers—one of two basic classes of man-made fibers.  See: “Man-made fibers”.

Tensile strength—a measure of the force needed to stretch a fiber to its breaking point.  Many natural and synthetic fibers have a high tensile strength after they are “drawn” (see “Drawing”). Cellulosic fibers can be thought of a “pre-drawn.”  You can experience the high tensile strength of a synthetic fiber if you try to stretch a piece of dental floss, which has already been drawn.  The dental floss will cut through your flesh before it will break.  From a practical standpoint, fabrics made with a low tensile strength yarn will tear easily.

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                 704-821-1233

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E-mail:  CustomerService@ricinc.net

    Cellulose — Filament            Hand — Producer Dyed           Resiliency—Tensile Strength

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Residential & Industrial Cleaning Co.

Carpet Cleaning Specialists Since 1988