A Study of the Mechanical Properties of Woven Silk Fabrics. Part I: Fabric Mechanical Properties and Handle Characterizing Woven Silk Fabrics

Abstract

In order to investigate the soft handle of woven silk fabrics, their basic tensile, bending, shearing, compressional, and surface properties were measured on the KESF system. Fabric shear, compressional, and tensile properties distinguish continuous-filament silk fabrics from fabrics of other fibres. Shear stiffness and hysteresis in shear force are very small, and these fabrics are very deformable in their compressional and tensile properties at small strain levels. High values of FUKURAMI are a characteristic of continuous-filament woven silk fabrics.