Different Types of Yarn Spinning System

Yarn Spinning:
The present participle of the verb ‘to spin’ used verbally, adjectivally, or as a noun, meaning process or the processes used in the production of yarns or filaments. The term ‘spinning’ may be defined as the process or processes used-

a) To produce either fibers or filaments from natural or synthetic polymers,

OR

b) To convert natural or man made fibers (mmf) and filaments into yarns by twisting or other means of binding together the fibers or filaments. This provides a relatively fine continuous length of thread that has properties suitable for conversion into a fabric form or for use directly for sewing or rope making.

The term may also apply to:

1. The drafting and, where appropriate, the insertion of twist in natural or staple man-made fibers to form a yarn;
2. The extrusion of filaments by spiders or silkworms; or
3. The production of filaments from glass, metals, fiber-forming polymers or ceramics.

In the spinning of man-made filaments, fiber-forming substances in the plastic or molten state, or in solution, are forced through the holes of a spinneret or die at a controlled rate. There are five general methods of spinning man-made filaments i.e. dispersion spinning, dry spinning, melt spinning, reaction spinning, and wet spinning, but combinations of these methods may be used.

In the bast and leaf-fiber industries, the terms ‘wet spinning’ and ‘dry spinning’ refer to the spinning of fibers into yarns in the wet state and in the dry state respectively.

Different Types of Yarn Spinning Techniques:
Various types of yarn spinning system are point out below.

1. Open-end Rotor Spinning
2. Break Spinning
3. Friction Spinning
4. Air-jet Spinning
5. Vortex Spinning
6. Centrifugal Spinning
7. Dispersion Spinning
8. Draw-Spinning
9. Flash Spinning
10. Flyer Spinning
11. Solo Spinning
12. Compact Spinning
13. Siro Spinning
14. Air False-Twist Wrap-Spinning
15. Ring Spinning
16. Reaction Spinning
17. Melt Spinning
18. Wet Spinning
19. Dry Spinning
20. Carded Woolen Spinning
21. Worsted Spinning
22. Gel Spinning

Above types of yarn spinning techniques are described below.

Open-end Rotor Spinning:
A method of open-end spinning which uses a rotor (a high-speed centrifuge) to collect individual fibers into a yarn is known as Rotor spinning. The fibers on entering a rapidly rotating rotor are distributed around its circumference and temporarily held there by centrifugal force. The yarn is withdrawn from the rotor wall and, because of the rotation, twist is generated. With this types of yarn spinning heavy yarns are produced like denim yarn.

With open-end rotor spinning, multiple different raw materials can be processed (cotton, wool under special conditions, flax as additive, chemical fibers, for example, viscose, polyacrylonitrile, polyester), and very different yarns can be produced.

Break Spinning:
A spinning system in which sliver feed stock is highly drafted, ideally to individual fiber state, and thus creates an open end or break in the fiber flow. The fibers are subsequently assembled on the end of a rotating yarn and twisted in. Various techniques are available for collecting and twisting the fibers into a yarn, the most noteworthy being rotor spinning and friction spinning.

Friction Spinning:
A method of open-end spinning which uses the external surface of two rotating rollers to collect and twist individual fibers into a yarn is known as Friction spinning. At least one of the rollers is perforated so that air can be drawn through its surface to facilitate fiber collection. The twisting occurs near the nip of the rollers and, because of the relatively large difference between the yam and roller diameters, high yarn rotational speeds are achieved by the friction between the roller surface and the yarns.

Air-jet Spinning:
A system of staple-fiber spinning which utilizes air to apply the twisting couple to the yarn during its formation is known as Air jet spinning. The air is blown through small holes arranged tangentially to the yarn surface and this causes the yarn to rotate. The majority of systems using this technique produce fasciated yarns, but by using two air jets operating in opposing twist directions it is possible to produce yarns with more controlled properties but of more complex structure.

Vortex Spinning:
Murata Machinery has developed a new spinning process called ‘Murata Vortex Spinning’, which is different from air-jet (false twist) spinning.

Vortex spinning takes drawn cotton sliver and drafts it to the desired yarn count (fineness) via a four-roller apron drafting system. The drafted fibres are then sucked into a nozzle where a high-speed ‘air vortex’ swirls the fibres around the outside of a hollow stationary spindle (Figure 2). A rotating air vortex twists the free fiber ends around the bridge fibers with true twist, producing a ring yarn type of structure.

Centrifugal Spinning:
A method of man-made fiber production in which the molten or dissolved polymer is thrown centrifugally in fiber form from the edge of a surface rotating at high speed. The term is also used to describe a method of yarn formation involving a rotating cylindrical container, in which, the yarn passes down a central guide tube and is then carried by centrifugal force to the inside of a rotating cylindrical container.

Dispersion Spinning:
A process in which the polymers that tend to an infusible, insoluble, and generally intractable character (e.g., polytetrafluoroethylene) are dispersed as fine particles in a carrier such as sodium alginate or sodium xanthate solutions is known as Dispersion spinning. These permit extrusion into fibers, after which the dispersed polymer is caused to coalesce by a heating process, the carrier being removed either by heating or by a dissolving process.

Draw-Spinning:
A process for spinning partially or highly oriented filaments in which the orientation is introduced prior to the first forwarding or collecting device.

Flash Spinning:
A modification of the accepted dry-spinning method in which a solution of a polymer is extruded at a temperature well above the boiling point of the solvent such that on emerging from the spinneret evaporation occurs so rapidly that the individual filaments are disrupted into a highly fibrillar form.

Flyer Spinning:
A spinning system in which yarn passes through a revolving flyer leg guide on to the package is known as Flyer spinning. The yarn is wound-on by making the flyer and spinning package rotate at slightly different speeds.

Solo Spinning:
Solo spinning is the modifications to the conventional ring spinning process with the aim of altering the geometry of the spinning triangle (Figure 3) so as to improve the structure of the ring-spun yarn by more effective binding of surface fibers into the body of the yarn. This reduces yarn hairiness, and in the case of Solo spinning, makes single worsted/semi-worsted yarns suitable for use as warps in weaving and therefore dispensing with ply twisting.

Compact Spinning:
Compact spinning is also the modifications to the conventional ring spinning process. As the name implies, with compact spinning (also called condensed spinning), the fibers leaving the front drafting roller nip are tightly compacted, making any sign of a spinning triangle at the twist insertion point virtually imperceptible.

This relatively new development reduces the size of the spinning triangle to a minimum. This is achieved through a condensing of the fibers after the main draft by using a perforated roller in combination with a suction unit. The hairiness of the yarn is thus reduced, and the tenacity is higher when compared to ring-spun yarns. The yarn evenness is also improved.

Siro Spinning:
This was developed in the 1970s and was aimed at Worsted spinning of wool. The idea was that, rather than spinning two single yarns and plying them into a two-fold yarn, two rovings could be fed side-by-side into the drafting zone of a worsted ring frame. The fiber strands are kept separated until they emerge from the nip of the front rollers and the strands are twisted together. If the resultant yarn is untwisted, the two strands will be easily observed and therefore identification of this type of yarn is quite simple. The advantage of Siro-spinning is that hairiness is reduced, as the surface fibers are better trapped in the yarn structure and a process stage (twisting/plying) is removed. Disadvantages are that the yarn is not as well balanced, which may show in the fabric, and the load/elongation values are not as good as conventional plied yarns.

Air False-Twist Wrap-Spinning:
In recent years, air false-twist wrap-spinning has gained more and more importance. The feed sliver is first drawn to the final yarn titer via a drafting unit (Figure 4).

In the air-friction spinning method, very fine yarn titers can be spun (up to 10 tex) at good uniformity. Favorable yarn properties can be achieved with fine, strong, and uniform fiber raw material. Therefore, this method is especially suited for chemical fibers or mixtures (cotton percentage lower than 50%). The processing of 100% cotton fibers has recently become possible. The future will show if staple fiber yarns of 100% cotton will be economical for industrial production.

Ring Spinning:
It is one of the most widely used types of yarn spinning system. A spinning system in which twist is inserted in a yarn by using a revolving traveller is known as Ring spinning. The yarn is wound on since the rotational speed of the package is greater than that of the traveller.

Reaction Spinning (man-made-fiber production):
A process in which polymerization is achieved during the extrusion of reactants through a spinneret system.

Melt Spinning (man-made fiber production):
The spinning process involving conversion of a molten polymer into filaments by extrusion and subsequent cooling of the extrude is known as Melt spinning.

Wet Spinning (man-made-fiber production):
The spinning process involving conversion of a dissolved polymer into filaments by extrusion into a coagulating liquid is known as Wet spinning. The extrusion may be directly into the coagulating liquid or through a small air-gap. In the latter case it may be known as dry-jet wet spinning or air-gap wet spinning.

Not all polymers can be melt-spun, as some will thermally degrade rather than melt. In these cases, the polymer may be dissolved into a solution of sufficient viscosity to permit extrusion through a spinneret. The viscous solution (termed the dope) is extruded into a bath containing a second solution (called the spin bath or coagulation bath), which precipitates the polymer by diffusion and coagulates the polymer chains into continuous solid filaments.

The dope is usually prepared by dissolving and stirring the polymer in a heated solvent. The amount of polymer addition should be sufficient to give the dope adequate viscosity for the continuous extrusion of liquid filaments. The dope is de-aired, removing air bubbles that may occur during the mixing stage, and filtered to remove any impurities or partially dissolved polymer. The wet-spinning process is illustrated in Figure 5.

Dry Spinning (man-made fiber production):
The spinning process involving conversion of a dissolved polymer into filaments by extrusion and evaporation of the solvent from the extrudate is known as Dry spinning.

Carded Woolen Spinning:
Carded woolen spinning is a very flexible spinning method, with which several very different fiber types can be processed. Wool and fine animal hair as well as pure or blended synthetic fibers can be spun. Furthermore, waste from other spinning processes as well as regenerated wool from textile waste can be used.

Worsted Spinning:
In worsted yarn spinning, virgin wool and long-staple synthetic fibers, especially polyester and polyacrylonitrile, are processed. Worsted yarns are very uniform, have high tenacity and elongation, and have a low degree of hairiness. Typical products from worsted yarns are high-quality woven fabrics for men’s and women’s outerwear (for example, drapery, suit fabrics).

References:

1. Advances in Yarn Spinning Technology Edited by C. A. Lawrence
2. Textile Technology: An Introduction, Second Edition by Thomas Gries, Dieter Veit, and Burkhard Wulfhorst
3. Fundamentals of Spun Yarn Technology by Carl A. Lawrence
4. Textile and Clothing Design Technology Edited by Tom Cassidy and Parikshit Goswami
5. Technical Textile Yarns: Industrial and Medical Applications Edited by R. Alagirusamy and A. Das

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2. What is Wet Spinning | Principle and Uses of Wet Spinning Method
3. Melt Spinning Process: Manufacturing, Advantages and Disadvantages
4. Bicomponent Fiber Spinning: Factors, Principles and Technologies
5. New Spinning System and Technologies
6. Ring Spinning Machine: Drafting System, Different Parts and Functions
7. Cotton Yarn Spinning Process Step by Step
8. Friction (DREF) Spinning Process: Types, Advantages and Applications

Mazharul Islam Kiron

Founder & Editor of Textile Learner. He is a Textile Consultant, Blogger & Entrepreneur. He is working as a textile consultant in several local and international companies. He is also a contributor of Wikipedia.

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