Presented by

T. Srivani,
Asst. Prof., FP

YARN
DEFINITION:
The word yarn or thread is used in common parlance to cover all
the linear textile structures. Yarns can be either single or
folded.
A yarn is an assemblage of fibres or filaments having a
substantial length and relatively small cross section, with or
without twist, being the end product of a spinning and
winding process
Assemblies of fibres or filaments which are intermediate products
in a spinning process are given special names such as
Sliver, roving, bave, top or tow, depending upon the process
and the particular intermediate stage.

CLASSIFICATION OF YARNS
YARNS
SINGLE YARNS

ASSEMBLED YARNS

FANCY YARNS

SPUN YARNS

FOLDED YARNS

FANCY YARNS

FILAMENT YARNS

ROTOR YARNS

FLAT FILAMENT YARNS

RING YARNS

TEXTURED FILAMENT YARNS

WORSTED YARNS

SEMI-WORSTED YARNS

WOOLLEN YARNS

BICOMPONENT

TAPE OR SPLIT FILM YARNS

Yarn may be any of the following

Number of fibers twisted together
Number of filaments without twist
Number of filaments twisted with more/less twist
Single filament
One or more strips cut by length of a sheet of material of
natural/ synthetic or any polymer

TERMS
SPUN YARNS are made by mechanical assembly and twisting together
(spinning) of Staple fibres such as cotton, flax,
wool,
spun and noil silk, broken or cut man-made fibres
FILAMENT YARNS are made by the assembly of continuous filaments,
made from silk or man-made fibres
A MULTI FILAMENT YARN is a filament yarn made from multiple
filaments, assembled with or without twist.
A MONO FILAMENT YARN consists of only a single continuous filament
from man-made source.

Two or more yarns which are wound side by side on to same package,
but without twisting around each other, are called ASSEMBLED
YARNS.
FOLDED OR PLIED YARNS are yarns made by twisting together
Two or more single (and/or folded) yarns of the same or different types.
Ex: 2 Ply (two singles)
CORDS OR CABLED YARNS are yarns made by twisting together
Two or more ply or folded yarns of the same or different types.
Ex: 2,3 Ply Cord

Twist Direction
Twists or turns per inch
Twist Factor (K)

Spun & Filament yarns

Properties of Spun, Filament and Combination Yarns:

100%Spun Yarns: Warmth, Softness, Light Weight
Ideal for T-Shirts, Sweaters and
Blankets
100%Filament Yarns: Smoother, Finer and Lustrous
Ideal for linings
Combination of spun and filament Yarns: Durable,
Easy care, Comfortable
Suitable for more applications

Twist
The purpose of twist is to hold the staple
fibers together
The twist could be used in different ways to
embed different qualities to the yarn
A yarn that is twist balanced will not tend to
curl
The direction of twist is also important for
further designing as this can be used well by
designers

Yarn twist parameters:

Amount of twist is designated as TPI turns per inch, which
Affects appearance and durability of the yarns.

Spun yarn:

Low twist
(2 to 12 tpi)

Soft twist yarns

ex: Knitting

flexible
fluffier
soft

High Twist
(20 to 30 tpi)

Hard twist yarns

ex: weaving

smooth
firm
stronger

Filament yarns: Usually low twist

(1/2 to 1 tpi)

Pebbly and harsh surface

Crepe fil. with crepe twist

Twist Direction
Twist can be inserted in either
of two directions.
S-Twist: Spirals run upward
to the left (clock wise)
Z-Twist: Spirals run upward
to the right (anti clock wise)
Combination of S and Z twist:
to produce crepe fabrics

The majority of the single yarns are twisted in Z direction

S-twist is considered as a reverse twist by the spinner
Direction of twist has no effect on single yarns
Normally the folding twist is in the opposite direction
to that of the single yarns.
Balanced twist is when the folding twist is approximately
equal and opposite to the singles

Twist factor
The angle of twist is the factor
that determines how
the yarn will behave.
Yarns with a low twist level have a lower angle of
twist, and will be relatively soft, bulky yarns
Yarns with higher twist angles will be strong, lean
and hard yarns
Over twisted yarns will have very high twist angles;
They will be very hard, weaker and snarl easily

Typical twist factors:

Short staple end use

Tex twist factor

Doubling weft
Ring weft
Ring warp
Voile
Crepe
Rotor

2900-3200
3200-3500
3800-4300
4900-5300
5700-7700
3700-4700

Twist factor
Tan = d
l
l= 1 /turns per unit length
d= /yarn tex
Therefore, tan = turns per unit length X /yarn tex
Turns per unit length = K/ /tex
Twist factor = turns per inch / /cotton count

Twist and Handle

A soft twisted yarn will give a
fuzzy texture.
A high twisted yarn will
increase the surface roughness
and increase the grainy
texture according to the
bulkiness.
The direction of twist and
when they are combined may
give interesting effects.

Twist and Bulkiness

The bulkier the yarn, lesser the twist.
Finer the yarn higher the twist.
Bulkier yarn needs lesser twist and so it has
lesser strength.
Finer yarn has more twists and strong.
But when the twist is increased after
particular point the strength is reduced due
to the breakage of the fibers.

Blends / Mixtures
A blend is a combination of two materials at
fiber stage.
A mix is two materials put together at a
later stage as strands.
The texture we get is different from each of
them.
The design value of these are high.

Need
The need for blends or mixes are.

Cost.
Different quality that each fiber offers.
More effective usage of the materials.
The necessity of different and in between
qualities and both the qualities.

Design Values
The design values of such blended and
mixed yarn can be explored to give an
innovative look to the textile
More innovative processes can be explored
The design can happen from yarn stage.

Fancy Yarns
Fancy yarns are explorations of the prior
said attributes such as
Twist
Bulkiness
Color
Material
Blends and Mixes
Material(conventional/non-conventional)

Varieties

Boucle
Loop
Gimp
Nep
Chenille
Corkscrew
Core spun
Metallic

Physical properties and performance characteristics

of different yarn types:
Yarn type

General yarn properties

Staple yarns

Excellent Handle
Good covering power
Good comfort rating
Reasonable strength
Reasonable uniformity

Carded cotton
Combed cotton
Woollen
Worsted
Linen

Yarn type

General yarn properties

Continuous filament yarns

Excellent uniformity
Excellent strength
Can be very fine
Fair handle
Poor covering power

Natural
Non-synthetic
Synthetic

High bulk yarns

Staple
Continulous filament

Light weight
Good covering power
Good loftiness and fullness

Stretch yarns
Continuous filament

High stetchability
Good handle
Covering power

Special end use:

Tyre cord
Rubber
Core yarn
Cabled
Split film yarn

Purely functional
Designed to satisfy a specificset of conditions

Novelty yarns:
Excellent decorative features
Fancy yarns
Metallic

Variables in yarn production

Type of fibre or filament
Dimensional and physical characteristics of the fibre/filament
Mechanical properties of the fibre / filament
General properties
Yarn production systems
Components of the yarn and percentages
Linear density and level of twist
Yarn construction
Texturisation and method of texturisation