The comfort evaluation of weft knitted plant structured fabrics and garment. I. Objective evaluation of weft knitted plant structured fabrics

Biomimetics of the branching structure in textiles which can improve the water transport was proved by previous research on weft knitted fabrics. The present work focuses on the development of a branching network in light-weight knitted fabrics for polo shirt. Vertical wicking test, water drop test, water vapor permeability as well as air resistance were employed in this study to measure the water transport behavior of fabrics. Besides, Kawabata evaluation system was applied to demonstrate the handle of produced fabric and control. Fabric appearance, skewness change and dimensional change after home laundering were applied to demonstrate the difference between plant structured fabric and control fabric. In conclusion, 100 % cotton and 100 % polyester fabrics developed with such a branching structure exhibited faster water absorption, water transport, improved handle and better normal wearing and washing application property compared with single pique fabric due to wide application for polo shirt.Institute of Textiles and Clothin