Relaxation processes in fabrics knitted from pure and regenerated cellulose

Textiles and clothing often consist of cellulose fibers, either in form of plant fibers, such as cotton or linen, or as regenerated cellulose fibers, such as rayon. In spite of the increasing interest in novel man-made fibers, common cellulose fibers and new regeneration methods (e.g. the Lyocell process) are still of particular interest in the textile and clothing industry. In garment production, cellulose yarns are often processed by weft knitting. Knitted fabrics, however, can suffer from dimensional instabilities. To overcome this problem, different finishing methods are used as well as changes in processing, machine parameters or yarn properties. While the dimensional properties of cotton knitted fabrics during dry, wet, and washing relaxation have been examined by several groups in different scenarios, results from regenerated cellulose fiber fabrics are scarcely reported in the literature. This chapter will give an overview of previous research on relaxation processes in cellulose knitted fabrics and present novel results of dry, wet, and washing relaxation in knitted cellulose fabrics with different structures.