Study on properties of decolorizing yakwool fiber and spun yarn

Purpose As a natural fiber, yakwool has attracted much attention in textile processing due to its excellent properties and wearabilities. However, the main colors of yakwool are black and brown. Therefore, for extending the application scopes of the fiber, the decolorization of the yakwool fiber is usually needed, especially for the black fiber. The paper aims to discuss this issue. Design/methodology/approach In the paper, the properties of the yakwool fiber were tested first, especially the melanin granules in the fiber. Then, the decolorization of the yakwool fiber was studied using the oxidation–reduction decolorization method, and corresponding optimal process of the decolorization was given. Then, the properties of the decolorized yakwool fiber were tested and compared with those of the original fiber. Findings It is shown that, after decolorization, the physical and mechanical properties of the fiber were deteriorated, especially in terms of the strength and elongation. Therefore, the fiber became shorter and thinner, and the scales were damaged. When compared with the yarn spun from the original yakwool fiber, it was observed that the properties of the yarn spun from the decolorized yakwool fiber deteriorated because of the deterioration in the properties of the original fiber. Originality/value In the paper, for extending the application scopes of the yakwool fiber, the decolorization of the yakwool fiber was studied.