Nondestructive testing of fiber content dependency with cotton-bicomponent fiber materials

This study aims to evaluate the effectiveness of attenuated total reflection infrared (ATR-IR) measurements for fiber content of cotton-bicomponent materials in both direct and reagent-free modes. The characteristic peak areas of cotton, polyester, polyacrylonitrile, chinlon, and spandex are represented by A1060, A730, A2250, A1720, and A890, respectively. At middle-infrared wavenumbers, linear relationships between the fiber content and peak area eigenvalues was observed, confirming the feasibility of quantitative correction models for content testing. Comparison between the fiber content measurements of actual samples using the ATR-IR and chemical dissolution methods revealed a difference of ≤ 7.7%, with spandex/cotton exhibiting a higher discrepancy than other bi-component fibers. The optimized IR technique is expected to offer better universality in modern textile testing due to its nondestructive nature and time-saving benefits.