Wrinkling mechanism of woven cotton fabrics during domestic tumble drying

Cotton wrinkling after home laundry has become an unfavorable phenomenon for consumers for a long time. Research has indicated that the wrinkles during tumble drying result from complicated changes of fabric physical properties as well as drying parameters such as temperature of drying air and drying duration. However, most of the research that has been done in this field has showed certain limitations, such as not simulating the real drying process or not understanding the cotton wrinkling mechanism accurately. This research, through an experimental design of 21 cotton fabrics in tumble drying, has explained the wrinkling behavior of woven cotton fabric in different drying stages and has investigated the wrinkling forming stage during tumble drying. Results showed that fabric characterization (such as thickness, density, and weight) does not significantly influence the smoothness appearance of the cotton fabrics in the tumble dryer. Moreover, heater power in the falling-rate period (heater power 2) and relative humidity dividing point between falling-rate period and unheated air blowing stage (air RH dividing point 2) were the most important factors that influenced the smoothness appearance of cotton fabrics. Therefore, it is indicated that wrinkles are formed in the latter part of the drying cycle. The results can provide a reference for dryer design and drying performance optimization.