Chapter 27 – An Illustrative Example of End Use Properties: Article Properties of Textile Products

Publisher Summary Textile articles are more or less unique by the wide and varied range of product properties which prove to be important. This chapter describes the properties of textile articles. It begins with a description of aesthetic properties of articles, which includes properties that determine the reactions (perceptions) of the senses: the eye (color, luster, covering power, appearance), and the tactile sense, viz. the tactile corpuscles of the skin (handle). While the aesthetic properties are influenced by the intrinsic properties, they depend much more on the added properties, i.e., on those obtained during processing. The correlation of the aesthetic properties with the intrinsic and added properties is very complex and only partly understood. The main aesthetic properties include color and whiteness, luster and gloss, covering power, and handle and drape. Following this, the chapter describes use or performance properties, which include thermal comfort, mechanical comfort, shape retention, retention of surface appearance, color fastness, resistance to soiling, resistance to static charging, and resistance to fatigue. This category of properties is much more dependent on added properties than on the intrinsic ones and the correlations are of a complex nature and are qualitative rather than quantitative. Finally, the chapter discusses the maintenance or care properties, which include washability, dryability, pressability, and suitability for dry cleaning.