Regenerated fiber is a kind of fiber with better performance obtained from natural cellulose (cotton, hemp, bamboo, tree, shrub, etc.) by changing its physical structure without changing its chemical structure. Alfa Chemistry offers a wide variety of regenerated fiber products for you to choose from.
Classification
Regenerated cellulose fiber, also known as regenerated cellulose fiber, can be roughly classified into the following four types according to their production methods.
- Viscose Rayon Fiber
Viscose is the most important regenerated cellulose fiber in terms of production volume which is prepared by treatment of cellulose with sodium hydroxide and carbon disulfide. Generally, there are three types of rayon: regular rayon, high wet modulus rayon and high tenacity rayon. It has good properties such as silk-like aesthetic, varied color hues, and easy drape.
Chemistry of viscose formation [1]
- Lyocell Rayon Fiber
Lyocell rayon fibers are made by dissolving cellulose directly in the solvent N-methylmorpholine-N-oxide (NMMO). Lyocell rayon is a new generation of regenerated cellulose fibers with environmentally friendly processing and improved fiber properties. Lyocell exhibits some unique characteristics such as softness, absorption, wrinkle resistance, strong when dry or wet, and easy maintenence. - Cupro Rayon Fiber
Cupro rayon fibers are produced by dissolving cellulose in a cuproammonium solution and then regenerating the cellulose by wet spinning. However, cupro rayon is not competitive in the fiber market due to its high production cost. - Acetate Fiber
Acetate is a cellulose-derived fiber, not a regenerated cellulose fiber. It is produced by acetylating cellulose using acetic anhydride liquid and a sulfuric acid catalyst. The resulting cellulose acetate was dissolved in acetone and spun into fibers by a dry spinning process.
Mechanical Properties
Tensile strength and elongation at break are the two most important mechanical properties of fiber materials. The table below lists the mechanical properties of several regenerated cellulose fibers. Viscose rayon fibers have fairly high elongations, up to 25% (dry) and 30% (wet). Therefore, viscose rayon or rayon blend fabrics tend to have good stretchability. In contrast, HWM viscose fibers exhibited higher tensile strength in both wet and dry conditions, but lower elongation at break.
| Fiber | Tenacity (g/denier) | Elongation (%) |
|---|
| Dry | Wet | Dry | Wet |
|---|
| Viscose | 2.6-3.1 | 1.2-1.8 | 20-25 | 25-30 |
| HWM | 4.1-4.3 | 2.3-2.5 | 13-15 | 13-15 |
| Tencel | 4.8-5.0 | 4.2-4.6 | 14-16 | 16-18 |
| Cotton | 2.4-2.9 | 3.1-3.6 | 7-9 | 12-14 |
| Polyester | 4.8-6.0 | 4.8-6.0 | 44-45 | 44-45 |
Note: HWM refers to high wet modulus viscose; Tencel is a kind of lyocell rayon fiber.
Applications
- Textile Industry
Viscose rayon fibers are used in a wide range of apparel applications, bringing unique drape, softness and hygroscopicity to formal and casual apparel products. - Biocomposite
The advancement in biotechnology led to the production of regenerated silk fibers. The wood based regenerated fibers have been used to produce fiber reinforced composites while regenerated silk fibers were used for biomedical applications such as scaffolds. - Water Sensor
H. Orelma et al. used regenerated cellulose and cellulose acetate to prepare optical cellulose fibers for water sensor applications. The prepared optical fibers guide light in the range of 500-1400 nm. The decay constant of cellulose fibers was observed to be 6.3 dB/cm at 1300 nm. [2]
References
- J.Chen. Textiles and Fashion Materials, Design and Technology Woodhead Publishing Series in Textiles 2015, 79-95.
- H. Orelma, et al. Cellulose, 2020, 27, 1543–1553.
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