2. Absorbency
• Absorbency is the ability of the textile
material to absorb and retain liquids within
itself
• Absorbency is the capturing and holding
liquids
• Good absorbency requires a rapid capture and
holding capacity
• Water passes through the fabric by wetting
followed by capillary action and the
combination of these two
3. Methods for Assessment of
Absorbency
• There are three methods for assessing
absorbency of a textile material
• 1.Immersion/Sinking Test
• 2.a Drop Test and b. Spot Test
• 3. Wicking/Column Test
• 4. Spray Test
4. 1.Immersion/Sinking Test
• Sample of size 1cmx1cm is cut and is left on
the surface of the liquid
• Time is noted with the help of stop watch and
the time taken for complete immersion is
observed and recorded
• Five samples are tested, the average is taken
and the result is expressed in seconds
5. 2.a Drop Test
• The standard method used is AATCC Test
Method 79
• The fabric is mounted on an embroidery
hoop without wrinkles
• Water is dropped on the surface of the
fabric using burette which dispenses a drop
of water at a distance of 9.5mm from the
surface of the fabric
• the stop watch is started
• Time taken for the drop to completely
penetrate into the fabric is observed
• This gives the absorbency rate of the fabric
• The result is recorded in seconds
6. 2b. Spot Test
• Water coloured with a dye
is dropped on the surface of
the fabric using pippette at
different places of the
fabric
• The shape and area of
absorbency is observed
• The result is recorded as
shown in the figure and is
suitable mostly for woven
fabrics to analyse the
scouring effect on the fabric
7. 3. Wicking/Column Test
• The sample is cut of dimension 18cmx5cm
• A beaker is taken and filled to about 50ml with
water coloured with dye
• Then the fabric sample is marked 1 cm from the
bottom with an incredible ink
• Then the fabric is hung using a glass rod into the
beaker such that the 1cm level of the fabric is
immersed into the dye solution
• The stop watch is on and the time is kept as
constant say 5 minutes
• Then the level of raise of dye solution in the
fabric is observed and the height is noted above
the 1cm marking
8. • The stop watch is on and the
time is kept as constant say 5
minutes
• Then the level of raise of dye
solution in the fabric is observed
and the height is noted above
the 1cm marking
• This is found in both warp and
weft directions
• About 5 samples are tested and
recorded
3. Wicking/Column Test Cont…
9. 4. Spray Test
• The sample fabric is mounted on the embroidery
hoop and fixed on the instrument at 45o
• Now the beaker is filled with 250 cc water and poured
on the funnel
• The water is showered through spray nozzle on the
fabric
• After spraying has finished the sample holder is
removed and the surplus water removed by tapping
the frame 6 times against a solid object, with the face
of the sample facing the solid object.
• The water repellency is assessed from the spray rating
chart
• 5 tests should be made and the nearest rating
assigned to each, since no interpolation is allowed, i.e.
a rating for a specimen cannot be 75
• The mean of the 5 ratings is taken as the result
Spray Tester
11. Ratings
• 100 - No sticking or
wetting of the upper
surface.
• 90 - Slight random sticking
or wetting of the upper
surface.
• 80 - Wetting of upper
surface at spray points.
• 70 - Partial wetting of
whole of upper surface.
• 50 - Complete wetting of
whole of upper surface.
• 0 - Complete wetting of
whole of upper and lower
surfaces.