Analysis of twist level and take-up speed impact on the tensile properties of PVA/PA6 hybrid nanofiber yarns

Abstract

In this work, polyvinyl alcohol/nylon6 hybrid nanofiber yarns were produced to achieve good properties of each component. The influence of the twist level in the range of 3000-14,666 tpm and take-up speed in the range of 2.5-8.5 cm/min of yarns on the tensile properties was investigated. The highest strength and elongation at break of yarns were achieved in twist level and take-up speed of about 11,000 tpm (8.13±0.72 cN/tex and 72.44±7.64%) and 6.5 cm/min (6.20±0.57 cN/tex and 70.23±7.95%), respectively. Excessive values over these amounts caused a drastic decrement in tensile properties. This could be due to the loss nanofiber arrangement in the yarn structure that was confirmed by the study of orientation of the nanofibers in the yarns by the SEM images. These yarns have the potential to be used in medical applications such as a non-absorbable suture due to the drug loading ability and bio-compatibility properties of PVA nanofibers.