The Pulp-Textiles

Let's start off with the basic information:

Textile refers to any material made of interlacing fibres. Textiles can be made from many materials. These materials come from four main sources: animal (wool, silk), plant (cotton, flax, jute), mineral (asbestos, glass fiber), and synthetic (nylon, polyester, acrylic). Textiles are sometimes finished by chemical processes to change their characteristics. Textiles that are finished by chemical processes are often used in commercial applications such as: healthcare and education.

Synthetic Textiles

Nylon fibres are used in many applications, including fabrics, bridal veils, carpets, musical strings, and rope. This man-made fiber is the second most used fiber in the United States. Nylon was intended to be a synthetic replacement for silk and substituted for it in many different products after silk became scarce during World War II. It replaced silk in military applications such as parachutes and flak vests, and was used in many types of vehicle tires. Nylon is highly resilient, has excellent abrasion resistance and high elongation.

Polyester fabrics woven from polyester thread or yarn are used extensively in apparel and home furnishings, from shirts and pants to jackets and hats, bed linens, blankets and upholstered furniture. Industrial polyester fibers, yarns and ropes are used in tyre reinforcements, fabrics for conveyor belts, safety belts, coated fabrics and plastic reinforcements with high-energy absorption. Polyester fiber is used as cushioning and insulating material in pillows, and upholstery padding. While synthetic clothing in general is perceived by many as having a comforters less-natural feel compared to fabrics woven from natural fibres (such as cotton and wool), polyester fabrics can provide specific advantages over natural fabrics, such as improved wrinkle resistance, durability and high color retention.

Acrylic is lightweight, soft, and warm, with a wool-like feel. Acrylic is colored before it is turned into a fiber as it does not dye very well but has excellent colorfastness. Its fibers are not very resilient, and wrinkle easily, but most acrylic fabrics have good wrinkle resistance. Acrylic has recently been used in clothing as a less expensive alternative to cashmere, due to the similar feeling of the materials. The disadvantages of acrylic are that it tends to fuzz or pill easily and that it does not insulate the wearer as well as wool or cashmere.

Natural Textiles

Wool is the textile fiber obtained from sheep and certain other animals, including cashmere from goats, and mohair from goats. The quality of wool is determined by the following factors, fiber diameter, crimp, yield, color, and staple strength. Fiber diameter is the single most important wool characteristic determining quality and price.In addition clothing, wool has been used for blankets, horse rugs, saddle cloths, carpeting, felt, wool insulation and upholstery.

Cotton is used to make a number of textile products. These include terrycloth for highly absorbent bath towels and robes; denim for blue jeans chambray, popularly used in the manufacture of blue work shirts (from which we get the term "blue-collar"); and corduroy, seersucker, and cotton twill. Socks, underwear, and most T-shirts are made from cotton. Bed sheets often are made from cotton. Cotton also is used to make yarn used in crochet and knitting. Fabric also can be made from recycled or recovered cotton that otherwise would be thrown away during the spinning, weaving, or cutting process. While many fabrics are made completely of cotton, some materials blend cotton with other fibers, including rayon and synthetic fiber as polyester. It can either be used in knitted or woven fabrics, as it can be blended with elastine to make a stretchier thread for knitted fabrics.

Silk is a natural protein fiber, some forms of which can be woven into textiles. Silk has a smooth, soft texture that is not slippery, unlike many synthetic fibres. Silk is one of the strongest natural fibres but loses up to 20% of its strength when wet. Silk's attractive luster and drape makes it suitable for many furnishing applications. It is used for upholstery, wall coverings, window treatments (if blended with another fiber), rugs, bedding and wall hangings.

Jute is a long, soft, shiny vegetable fibre that can be spun into coarse, strong threads. Jute is one of the most affordable natural fibre and is second only to cotton in amount produced and variety of uses of vegetable fibers. The fibres are also woven into curtains, chair coverings, carpets, area rugs, and backing for linoleum.

References:

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Textile Finishes for (typically) Commercial use

Crypton can be applied to fabric to repel spills. It also resists odors, mold, and mildew and prohibits bacteria and mold from spreading. Crypton can be applied to seating, drapery, wallcovering, car covers, and mattresses. http://www.cryptonfabric.com/commercial/why-crypton

Check out http://www.cryptonfabric.com/petbed/pet-beds.html for really cute pet beds.

GORE Seating Protection prevents stains and other substances from penetrating upholstery fabrics; can be used on virtually any textile.

Teflon is a soil and stain repellent treatment applied to the fabric face to repel water and oil-based stains. Teflon can be used on upholstery, bedding, commercial, technical fabrics, and apparel.

Nano-Tex technology builds breakthrough spill resistance right into the fibers of the fabric; becomes part of the fabric. Can be used for seating, drapery, wallcovering, etc. If you can cover it, you can protect it.

Vinyl

One advantage of vinyl over polyurethane is its ability to accept finishes. These finishes play a vital role in healthcare settings by protecting furnishings and people from harmful microbes and bacteria. Vinyl is extremely durable, resists moisture, and is easy to keep clean.

Vinyl Finishes

MorCare has stain resistance can be added for supreme performance vinyl upholstery, MorCare is antimicrobial and antibacterial resistance is ideal for environments where infection control is important.

Nanocide is extremely effective, environmentally friendly and non-toxic antimicrobial. The nanotechnology and process we developed permanently places or embeds the nanoparticles into the surface area of the product.

Permablok3 is a vinyl coating that is engineered to create a tough, effective barrier against the three biggest problems encountered in healthcare and hospitality environments: germs, abrasion, and stains.

PreFixx offers protection against microbes and bacteria. This anti-stain finish is easily cleaned, is urine stain resistant , and mildew resistant on the backing and face.

Resilience SR is stain resistance, and has antimicrobial and antibacterial protection.

New Products

Silica

Momentum Textiles’ journey began with an ambitious goal – creating an environmental alternative to vinyl and polyurethane. Developed over the course of two years, our goal was accomplished by creating a new coated fabric made from 51% silicone and 49% PLA; zero PVC and zero solvents. As the development of Silica progressed, unique performance characteristics continued to unfold. It is ink-erasable with water!

Silica is a Best of NeoCon award winner and the industry’s first and only environmental alternative to vinyl and polyurethane.

View this cleaning demonstration: https://www.themomgroup.com/silica_prod_cleaning_frameset.html

~ Miranda