Liquid Wetting, Transport, and Retention Properties of Fibrous Assemblies: Part I: Water Wetting Properties of Woven Fabrics and Their Constituent Single Fibers

An experimental protocol is described for simultaneous measurements of liquid wetting and retention characteristics in woven fabrics. Dynamic measurements of the liquid-fabric interaction between the lower edge of a vertically hung fabric and a liquid are done with an electronic microbalance. A decoupling method is proposed and tested for separating the liquid wetting and retention components of the measurements. The wetting characteristics of cotton fabrics are not affected by fabric configurations, including length, fabric-water interface depth, and direction. The cosine contact angles obtained on the woven cotton fabrics are identical to those measured on the constituent single cotton fibers. Similar wetting properties between fabrics and their constituent single fibers are also verified on other 100% woven fabrics containing polyester, Nomex, acetate, or rayon fibers. This study demonstrates that the wettability of any fabric containing a single fiber type is the same as its constituent single fibers. The experimental protocol and decoupling approach permit convenient measurement of the intrinsic wetting property of any fiber in its woven form.