This publication is a review of the work directed or inspired by the late Professor Andrzej Wlochowicz in comparison to the current state of knowledge, and developed by his colleagues as an expression of memory and recognition of the contribution that he made to research on the strength of linear textile products. The article describes issues related to the fatigue strength of yarns. An analysis of literature related to the development of research on fatigue strength was carried out, and quantities describing load cycles and selected cases of periodically variable states of loads are presented. The article attempts to systematise certain problems related to the fatigue of textile materials. The body of the article presents the state of knowledge as well as the manner and the methods of assessment of the fatigue strength of textile materials.

This paper is a continuation and generalisation of an earlier study of cotton maturity degree determination in the earlier paper. Up till now the maturity degree of cotton has been determined by the analysis of longitudinal outside views of cotton fibres. Early, we proposed a method of cotton maturity determination based on SEM images of cotton fractures. Fuzzy set conception was adopted to analyse each image, considering the fracture category. In this paper have emphasized the fuzzy aspects of cotton maturity determination by analysing the longitudinal outside views of cotton in accordance with the "Russian-standard", and by using a new method for determination, which is based on analysing SEM images of cotton fractures proposed by as.

The results of examinations of the strength and geometric dimensions of pneumatically spliced cotton combed ring spun yarns are presented. Unknotted spliced joints were linked using a Joint air 4941 splicing device produced by Mesdan installed on an automatic wind made by the company Savio. The investigations were performed during the winding of the cotton combed yarns (linear density: 16 tex and 36 tex, i.e. fine and relatively coarse yarns, respectively) most often manufactured in the textile industry. For the multi-criterion estimation of pneumatically spliced joints, the Integral Index of Quality - Q(z) was introduced, hosed on the considerations of Zylinski, which is connected with the General Index of Quality. The total plan of the experiment was carried out, comprising the simultaneous influence of two settings of the splicing device: t(E) - time of preparing the yarn ends and t(A) - time of splicing the yarn ends. In the examinations, the most beneficial settings of the splicing, device were established subsequently for the particular features tested. Therefore, sets of recommended settings for the splicing device were obtained. Only one of the useful sets of settings in the technology permits the creation of unknotted pneumatically spliced yarn joints with features fulfilling many criteria.

The influence of two organic pigments and two flame retardants on the structure of polypropylene fibres was investigated. It was found that by spinning at low velocities in the presence of pigments a highly crystalline structure is formed. In fibres coloured with quinacridone the rarerly encountered β form of polypropylene was observed. Utilising low take-up velocities, the addition of flame retardants leads to an increase in fibre crystallinity. In the case of fibres formed at higher velocities the influence of additives on fibres structure was less visible. For all fibres, independent of additives, a similar structure containing the α form of polypropylene was obtained.

Damage to the surface layer of cotton fibers was observed. Cotton fibers were transformed to yarns in the classical and open-end spinning systems. Damage was observed using a scanning electron microscope JSM-5500LV f-my Jeol. The samples were chosen from the initial and final stages of the technological process. Seven types of damage to the surface layer of cotton were observed.

There is not any elaborated methodology for making diagrams of fatigue strength curves for yarns presented in world wide literature. Thus, we proposed our own methodology for measuring the properties of fatigue strength, using worsted wool yarns as an example. The object of the research presented was worsted wool single yarn with linear density of 16 tex and 25 tex produced with the use of a FIOMAX 2000 ring spinning machine from MESDAN. In order to prepare a graphical presentation of fatigue strength we carried out tests on seven groups measuring series, which corresponded with the specific amplitude of load through a given cycle. We increased the number of series with respect to the stochastic character of the yarn strength properties. As a result of this we obtained a very good fitting of Wohler characteristics with experimental observations.

Dibutyrylchitin (DBCH) was obtained from native krill chitin by its esterification with butyric anhydride. In this study, DBCH was the initial material for the fibre formation. DBCH fibres were manufactured from a polymer solution in ethyl alcohol by extrusion. Because a dry-wet formation method was applied, the fibres obtained had a porous core. The microporous DBCH fibres were then treated with aqueous KOH solutions. By applying various parameters of the alkaline treatment, DBCH fibres can be transformed into fibres from the regenerated chitin or even into chitosan fibres. The use of a potassium hydroxide solution as an alkaline medium enables a total reconstruction of the original supermolecular structure of chitin. When transforming DBCH fibres into the regenerated chitin fibres, diluted KOH solutions were applied, whereas treatment at an elevated temperature with saturated KOH solutions obtained chitosan fibres with various values of deacetylation degree. At every stage of the treatment, the structural changes in the fibres were examined using IR spectroscopy (FTIR), wide-angle X-ray diffraction and scanning electron microscopy (SEM).

The degree of cotton maturity is a significant parameter characterising the properties of a fibre. Many textile properties depends on the degree of cotton maturity. A frequently applied method for determining this is based on the so-called 'Russian standards' which have been long applied in Poland. This paper proposes another method for determining the degree of cotton maturity, based on a cotton fracture image from a scanning electron microscope. For this analysis of the cotton image, the elements of fuzzy set theory are applied. Since categories of images of cotton fracture do not have clearly defined boundaries, the application of fuzzy set theory for determining the degree of maturity seems justified.

The LA-ICP-TOF-MS method (Laser Ablation Inductively Coupled Plasma Time of Flight Mass Spectrometry) is an analytical technique for determining trace elements and their isotopes in solid samples. The action of a high-energy laser beam on a solid results in the evaporation and removal of material in the form of neutral atoms and molecules, as well as, positive and negative ions from the solid surface exposed to this radiation. In chemical analysis, the pulse laser based on a solid such as neodym (Nd:YAG) has proved to be very useful as it makes it possible to incorporate solid samples directly into plasma. It has been utilised as a source of very high energy with specific properties, and can be used to analyse various solids (conductive and non-conductive) with various sizes and shapes, where the laser beam can be focused on a very small surface with exceptionally precise location, while the evaporated material can be immediately analysed This technique has been successfully used to analyse the elemental composition of the Wawel Castle's arras pieces, where the maximum amount of information was obtained with negligible damage to the samples. The following elements have been discovered: Ag and Au (derived from strip) and Li, Al, Cr Cu, Zn, Rb, Sr Sn, Ba, Ce, Hg, Ph, Bi, U (mainly in fabrics). The LA-ICP-MS-TOF method is finding growing application in the analysis of geological, environmental and forensic samples. An attempt was made to apply this technique for testing textiles, especially historical ones.

The influence of two brominated flame retardants on the structure of laboratory-spun polypropylene fibres was investigated. The structure of fibres containing retardants was compared with the structure of fibres extruded from neat polypropylene. The investigations were carried out by the wide-angle X-ray scattering (WAXS) method. On the basis of the diffraction patterns, the crystallinity index and the mesophase content were calculated. It was stated that for fibres taken at the lowest velocity, the structure containing the highest amount of the mesophase is formed. For neat polypropylene fibres andfibres containing a small amount of retardants taken at higher velocity, a high mesophase content is observed. For higher concentrations of the retardants, the content of the mesophase decreases, while the content of the crystalline phase increases considerably. At the highest velocities, the greater the increment of the crystalline phase content is observed. The changes observed in the phase composition were explained by the change of the melt viscosity.

A method of measuring fibre humidity, which allows for investigation of very small masses of samples (in the milligram range) using typical FTIR spectrophotometers has been developed. The method is based on measuring, the proportion of bands coming from water in a liquid state and those from the fibre substance with near-infra-red spectra. The quantitative proportionality of the peak area in relation to the water content permits to find a simple relationship which describes the humidity of the samples to be established.

The aim of the research presented is to find the mutual relations between specified structural-parameters and selected mechanical properties of iPP/coPES/EVA fibers. The influence of the crystallinity index and lamellar thickness on the mechanical properties of two kinds of modifications of polypropylene fibres (W) was studied [1]. The first modification consisted in physical blending of iPP with a specialty copolyester (coPES) in the melt, whereas the second one consisted in adding to the melt a small amount (2% weight) of the ethylene-vinylacetate copolymer (EVA) to improve compatibilisation. The crystallinity index (x), the long period of lamellar structure (L) and the lamellar thickness (L) were determined by wide-angle X-ray diffraction (WAXS) and small-angle X-ray scattering (SAXS) measurements. The WAXS investigations were carried out with a URD-65 Seifert diffractometer The degree of crystallinity was calculated as the ratio of the total area under the resolved crystalline peaks to the total area under the unresolved X-ray scattering curve [2]. The SAXS investigations were performed by means of an MBraun camera, which utilises a conventional Kratky collimation system. An Instron 5544 tensile tester equipped with a Test Profiler-Interface was used to measure the mechanical properties of the investigated fibres. The tests were carried out at two specimen gauge lengths: of 10 mm between the clamps and at a minimum length near to 0 mm, in order to eliminate the influence of longitudinal dimension. Uniaxial tension tests were performed to obtain the characteristic deformation behaviour such as modulus of elasticity, proof stress, breaking force and force at rupture. The determination of all the parameters of the modified iPP fibres in relation to the coPES quantity (5, 20% weight) and the technological operations of drawing (R-c=2.6, 4.8) were performed. The modulus of elasticity and breaking tenacity were found to e proportional to the crystallinity index and lamellar thickness for samples of iPP(100%) and samples with a small content of additional coPES particularly. It was also found that the addition of EVA does not improve the correlation coefficient between the mechanical properties and the crystalline structure parameters.

The main goal of the investigations presented in this paper was to determine the influence of the coagulation bath content caused by the different levels of substitution ions Na+ with Ca++ in alginate chains on the parameters of the supermolecular structure of the obtained fibres. The high mannuronic sodium alginate Protanal LF-10/60 LS produced by FMC biopolymers was used. Our research involved preparing spinning solutions from alginates of various fractions of derivatives of guluronic and mannuronic acids, and forming multifilaments to the coagulation bath, which was made of a water solution of calcium chloride, sodium chloride and/or hydrochloric acid in different concentrations respectively. The structure of fibres on their supermolecular level was evaluated by the WAXS and SAXS diffraction methods.

Dibutyrylchitin (DBCH) fibres were formed from the solution of the polymer in and anhydrous ethyl alcohol. The fibres obtained were then treated with a 5% aq. potassium hydroxide solution at temperatures ranging from 20 degrees C to 90 degrees C. The process of chitin regeneration was carried out gradually and its rate depended on the temperature. High temperature alkaline treatment causes that the transformation of DBCH fibres into fibres of regenerated chitin becomes more effective. Molecular and supermolecular structural changes of fibres were examined by wide angle X-ray diffraction (WAXS), FT-IR spectroscopy and Raman spectroscopy. The obtained diffractograms were analyzed using Hindeleh and Johnson method and the computer programme "Optifit" in which Rosenbrock method was applied. The analysis of WAXS diffraction patterns showed that the curve obtained for regenerated chitin is similar to the curve obtained for the native krill chitin. The analysis of FT-IR spectra proved that as a result of hydrolysis of DBCH fibres the transformation of DBCH into chitin took place and chemical structure of the obtained chitin was almost the same as the structure of the initial native chitin.

FTR spectroscopie was employed to describe the functional groups responsible for binding with cotton cellulose. In addition to finding direct dye–cellulose interactions involving hydroxyl groups in the host fiber, it is postulated that intermolecular interactions exist between dye molecules and glycosidic groups. At present, an analytical chemist who wants to make an exhaustive description of compounds, mixtures, polymers or biological samples under examination needs high-tech instrumentation and the latest methods of data processing and visualization. One of the most dynamically developing methods of data interpretation is 2D spectroscopy. This method is used for analyzing IR, NIR, Raman, UV–Vis and fluorescent spectra, as well as in X-ray scattering and mass spectroscopy techniques. This paper attempts to provide a general answer to the question of how model direct dyes interact with cellulose structure. For assessing the interactions between model direct dyes and cotton cellulose, the 1D FTR and 2D FTR were chosen. To this end, synchronic and asynchronic 2D maps for FTR spectra were constructed. In a synchronic map, bands with 1100 cm −1 and 1125 cm −1 wavenumbers are responsible for the interaction of model dyes with COC groups or CC rings (at 1125 cm −1 ) in cotton. Information obtained through analyzing synchronic maps is confirmed by the analysis of bands generated in asynchronic maps.

The unusual, hut well-documented history of the unique tapestry collection of the 'Arrases of Wawel', the Polish kings' castle in Krakow, is briefly presented and its cultural importance emphasised The problems of maintaining, preserving and restoring historical textile fabrics are mentioned, and the questions of biodeterioration, molecular and submolecular structure changes, de-colouration, and the appearance of stains are stressed A further article, which will discuss these problems in detail, will be published in a subsequent issue of Fibres & Textiles in Eastern Europe.

Keratin of wool fibres obtained from Polish Merino Sheep was treated with proteolytic enzyme in buffered conditions. The zoll of orthosilicic acid was applied as a pretreatment, before enzymatic attack. It has been shown that buffer environment has significant influence on the changes in the structure of wool fibre keratin. Depending of the type of buffer utilised, different conformational changes are observed. Ammonia and tetraborate buffers were used (within pH=8.2). Each of the used buffers had a different influence on the changes in the structure of wool fibre keratin. Ammonia buffer caused bigger conformational changes in the region of disulphide bonds while tetraborate buffer disrupted the stability of amide components. To evaluate the changes of wool keratin structure infrared spectroscopy and Raman spectroscopy were applied.

Low-temperature plasma treatment is one of the methods for physically modifying the functional and aesthetic properties of textiles. Selected properties of wool textiles are changed by the influence of low-temperature plasma on the fibre surface layers, acting only on a very small thickness. The level of changes is limited by parameters of the low-temperature plasma. Lowering of the dyeing temperature and of water absorption was achieved.