A Study of the Bending Stiffness of Laminates

Abstract

Fabric stiffness is one of the important parameters estimated when evaluating the wear comfort of garments. The present paper investigates the bending stiffness of laminates. Thirteen different materials of woven and knitted base fabrics were investigated. The specimens with different structure, fibre and film type were cut in various directions to the lengthwise. With the purpose of determination the bending stiffness of tested materials, two methods were used: cantilever similar to FAST system and hanging pear loop method. The authors have chosen the first method because it is mostly used for apparel fabrics. As some of the specimens have shown twisting and curling during the test, an additional method, based in folding a strip of fabric into pear-shaped loop was used. Influence of deformation directions to the bending stiffness of laminates was determined. Relationship between results of stiffness received by two methods was evaluated.