Mechanical behaviour of jute and polypropylene blended needle-punched fabrics

Abstract

Cross-laid needle-punched nonwoven fabrics were prepared from 100% jute and blends of jute and polypropylene having jute as a major constituent. The effects of blend composition, punch density, depth of needle penetration, staple

length of jute fibre, fineness of polypropylene fibre and fibre laying technique on bulk density, tensile properties and bending properties of the fabrics in the machine direction were studied. Blending of polypropylene with jute made the

nonwoven fabrics bulkier, stronger, tougher and more flexible. With the increase in punch density and depth of needle penetration, the mechanical properties improved initially and after attaining the optimum value they deteriorated. Jute fibre cut length of 80 mm showed the optimum mechanical properties of fabric. Fabrics prepared using finer polypropylene fibre and random-laid webs exhibited better tensile and bending properties in the machine direction compared to those made out of coarser fibre and cross-laid webs.