Effect of cyclic stress on the transverse wicking behaviour of cotton/lycra knitted fabrics

It is extremely important to evaluate transverse wicking behaviour of elastic knitted fabric while the fabric simulated in different body motions. In this paper, the effects of short interval dynamic extension and recovery on fabric transverse wicking behaviour were evaluated as the samples were subjected to different rate of extension (speed), different percentage of cyclic extension and different liquid flow rate. For this application, a new cyclic stress instrument was designed and developed to apply repeated dynamic extension and recovery on the fabric. The developed instrument is operated through embedded micro controller programme. The effect of speed, percentage of cyclic extension and flow rate with respect to the dynamic transverse wicking behaviour of elastic knitted fabric has been studied using Box-Behnken experiment model. The experiment model identifies the principal experimental variables such as flow rate, percentage of cyclic extension which has the greatest effect on the transverse wicking behaviour of elastic knitted fabric.