Patent GB-550525-A (GB)
Title: Improvements in or relating to woven, knitted or lace fabrics and yarns therefor
IPC: D03D15/00
Filed: 1941-04-11
Abstract: 550,525. Woven, knitted and lace fabrics, yarns treating with liquids. JOHNSON, A., SPEAKMAN, J. B., and CEFOIL, Ltd. April 11, 1941, No. 4876. [Classes 120 (iii) and 142 (iv)] [Also in Groups IV and VIII] A woven, knitted or lace fabric is produced, at least in part, from yarn consisting wholly or partly of alkali-soluble alginic fibres and filaments, the fabric being modified by dissolving or gelatinising some or all of the alginic fibres. Calcium alginate, soluble in soap or soda solutions, is preferably employed for the fibres or filaments. A composite yarn formed by twisting together the alginic fibres or filaments and relatively insoluble textile fibres, or filaments such as cotton, wool, mohair, silk or rayon, can be woven into fabric and the soluble alginic material can be dissolved out of the fabric. The use of the soluble alginic material allows the relatively insoluble fibres or filaments to be untwisted or with less twist than would be necessary to withstand weaving stresses, or the insoluble fibres may be so long or wiry as to produce normally a yarn having fibres projecting from it, in which case the alginic fibres are spun around the insoluble material to bind the porjecting fibres to facilitate knitting or weaving. Alternatively the yarn may be spun so as to have knops, loops, 42, or irregularities in the relatively insoluble material temporarily supported or bound in place by the alginic fibres or filaments 40, 41. The insoluble fibres may be discontinuous, being carried at intervals by two or more threads of the alginic fibres, so as to produce in the finished fabric isolated insertions of the insoluble fibres. By using a composite yarn in which the insoluble fibres are little twisted to form'the centre part of a compound woven fabric, a soft filling may be arranged between two outer layers. Alternatively the composite yarn may be used as wadding threads and woven into the fabric so as to provide a wadded surface on one or both faces. In similar manner, woven fabrics with raised effect patterning may be produced. Woven pile fabrics may be obtained by using extra thick alginic fibres 13 as weft threads to cause the warp threads 11 to stand up as pile loops; after scouring the pile loops 14 are free. Double pile fabrics can be made, using the alginic warps to position the pile loops and to unite temporarily the two layers of fabric. Wefts of alginic fibre may also be employed. A composite yarn to be woven as weft into a fabric with crepe or pile effect comprises a relatively insoluble yarn having sections 52, 53, of which the sections 53 have a length advantage over the sections 52, twisted with an alginic yarn 55 which supports the sections 53 and takes the stresses of weaving. Parts of the alginic yarns may be rendered insoluble by treatment with beryllium salts as described in Specification 545,872, [Group VIII]. The treatment may be effected after weaving over areas of the fabric in accordance with a desired pattern; and fabrics consisting wholly of alginic yarn may be so treated so that after the scouring process an openwork structure is produced. The scouring may comprise treatment of the fabric in a sodium carbonate solution to which sodium hexametaphosphate may be added to prevent precipitation of calcium soaps. Before scouring the fabric may be washed, with or without previous setting in steam, in a sodium bisulphite solution.