MATERIAL SCIENCES

Assignment 2 Buttons

Samapriya Banerjee M/BFT/11/20 FPTech

HISTORY
The earliest buttons date to prehistoric times and in spite of millennia of change in fashion and manufacturing techniques, the button has endured as the most common fabric fastener. Though buttons were used for thousands of years, the buttonhole was not invented until sometime in the 13th century. Buttons became a staple of men's fashion in the Renaissance, when jackets often featured rows of buttons from chin to waist, sleeves were tightly buttoned from elbow to wrist, and trousers too sported buttons at the waist, knee, or thigh. Guilds of button makers were in existence in Paris in the 13th century, where buttons were made out of a variety of materials including wood, bone, brass, pewter, gold, and silver. By the 18th century, the button industry flourished all across Europe, and artisans developed many different techniques for making them. Many artists famous in other trades also lent their skills to the button industry.

17th century Spanish metal button

By the late 18th century, buttons began to be made in factories. Metal buttons were punched out by dies, and die-makers were prohibited from emigrating from England, so that they would not take their trade secrets abroad. Nevertheless, the technology spread, and buttons began to be mass-produced in metal, glass, and other materials. Extravagant buttons were still popular elements of 19th-century fashion. By the early 20th century, the prevailing style was much simpler, reflecting the more sedate look of the growing white-collar class. Inexpensive matched shirt buttons for men and women were available in five-and-dime stores around 1910. Plastic buttons became widely available in the 1930s, though most typical shirt buttons were still made of sea shells or other natural materials. World War II brought many advances in plastic technology. Acrylic buttons were actually made from material left over from the manufacture of bomber gun turrets. The button industry converted almost entirely to plastic after the war. Plastic buttons could be made by a variety of methods, and were cheap and tough.

Wedgwood button with Boulton cut steels

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MATERIALS USED
The common material for buttons is polyester, which is a special kind of plastic with properties that make it suitable for buttons. A variety of chemical dyes are added to the polyester to make different colors. Buttons are also made out of wood and metals, but we shall only discuss plastic buttons in this case. To make buttons with the pearlescent sheen of shell buttons, red carbonate is added to the polyester. Black buttons are made with the addition of carbon black, and white buttons are made with titanium. The button making process also requires a chemical catalyst that hardens the polyester, and wax. Other materials used in button making are:

Animal-derived:
bone horn horsehair leather pearl

Seashells:
abalone conch cowry helmut mother of pearl mussels nautilus operculum oysterpearl oyster pinna trochus Ivory Buttons

turbo snail emerald green snail shell

Plant-derived:
coconut shell bamboo gourd gutta percha horn ivory natural, woven fabrics and/or textiles linoleum paper (e.g. papier mache) rubber vegetable ivory wood

Hand Painted button

Mineral-derived substances:
bauxite catlinite cinnabar coal enamel glass gypsum (a.k.a. plaster of Paris) marcasiteearthenware china
Hand-painted & glazed ceramic button

metals:
aluminium brass pot metal sterling silver steel Three plastic sew-through buttons

Plastics:
acrylic resin bakelite catalin (NBS name: phenolic or bakelite type) celluloid galalith, a.k.a. casein[26] (NBS name: casein) lucite melamine formaldehyde (NBS name: amino resin) phenolic resin (NBS name: phenolic or bakelite type) urea-formaldehyde (NBS name: amino resin) ____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

MANUFACTUR ING
Mixing the polyester
1 Polyester arrives at a button factory in liquid form. At the start of the manufacturing process, polyester is drained from its storage tank and measured into a stainless steel kettle. Then dye is added, if the buttons are to be any color other than the natural translucence of the polyester. After the dye is mixed in, the liquid polyester is poured into a 3gallon (11 l) metal beaker. The catalyst and liquid wax are added.

Pouring into the cylinder

2 The mixture of polyester, catalyst, and wax is then poured into a large rotating metal cylinder. The cylinders are made of steel and lined with chrome, and are typically 2 feet (61 cm) long and 4 feet (122 cm) in diameter. The cylinders lie on their sides on rollers which rotate the drums at 250 rpm. The polyester solution is slowly poured into the rotating interior of the cylinder, and the centrifugal force of the rotation causes the solution to spread, lining the drum with an even sheet. A greater amount of polyester is used for thicker buttons, and less for thinner ones. A 2-inch (5 cm) lip around the ends of the cylinder prevents the polyester from leaking out.

Hardening the sheet

3 As the polyester rotates in the cylinder, it begins to interact with the chemical catalyst and harden. The wax rises to the top of the sheet, and also sinks to the bottom, so that the hardening polyester is eventually held between two layers of wax. This process is completed after 20 minutes of rotation. The resulting polyester sheet has changed from its liquid state to a crumbly solid likened to the consistency of stale cheese.

Cutting the sheet

4 When the sheet has reached the proper hardness, the drum is stopped and the sheet is cut. Then it is rolled out of the cylinder onto a wooden tube. The wax makes it easy to remove from the drum,

but the material is still very delicate. The top layer of wax is then peeled off, and the sheet is transferred to a blanking machine.

Cutting the blanks

5 The blanking machine moves the polyester sheet along on a conveyor belt. As the sheet passes along the belt, circular steel cutting dies descend and punch out button-sized circles, called blanks. Buttons come in standard sizes, and different diameter dies can be loaded into the blanking machine, depending on the size needed. After the blanks are cut, they fall into a chute, and the punched out sheet of polyester rolls beneath the chute. Cutting the blanks from the sheet takes from two to four minutes, depending on the size of the buttons being made.

Cooling the blanks

6 The blanks at this stage are hot, because the polyester is still reacting with the catalyst, releasing heat. So at this point the blanks are removed from the chute and poured into a nylon bag. The bag is then lowered into a tank of salt water, which is heated to 230F (110C). The blanks float in the salt water for 15 minutes. The water slowly cools, and the polyester blanks harden. Next, the nylon bag is transferred to a cold water tank, and the blanks reach their final state of hardness. After the hot and cold baths, the blanks are dried in a centrifugal drying machine, which spins them in a wire mesh basket.

Styling the blanks

7 The blanks are now ready to be cut into their finished button shape. The exact design of the button can be specified by a clothing manufacturer, and the button maker must make a steel cutting tool according to the design he is given. A different cutting tool is needed, for example, to make a beveled edge or a flat one, or to make a slightly concave button. When the appropriate cutting tool is in place, the buttons are poured into a hopper at the top of the cutting machine. The blanks fall into a holder where they are clamped tightly and moved toward the cutting tool. The spinning blade advances and cuts the button, then retracts. Next, the button moves beneath a set of drills, which create the holes. Like the cutting tool, the drills must be designed to conform to the clothing manufacturer's specifications. The design specifies not only two holes or four holes, but the diameter of the holes and the distance between them as well. After the buttons pass beneath the drill, they are sucked by vacuum out of the holder and into a box beneath the machine. Hundreds of buttons a minute can be made this way, though the number varies according to the size of the button and the complexity of the design.

Finishing the buttons

8 After the buttons are cut and drilled, they have rough or sharp edges, scratches, and tool marks. They are placed into hexagonal tumbling drums, which contain water, an abrasive material, and a foaming agent. The drums spin for up to 24 hours. The buttons bounce around in the drum until they are smooth and shiny. After tumbling, the buttons are washed and dried.

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What Next?
The 20th century has seen entirely new clothing fasteners such as the zipper and velcro, and we can now manufacture stretchy fabrics that require no fasteners at all. Nevertheless, the button does not seem in danger of fading away. It is both utilitarian and fashionable, and will likely long be with us. However, button technology is not entirely staid. One recent development is a button of superior strength, a ceramic button

made of zirconium oxide. Beer magnate Joseph Coors Jr. decided in 1989 that there was a need for an indestructible button, and he used a ceramics research unit at the Adolph Coors Company to develop this new product. The resulting Diamond Z button debuted in 1993. It is said to be harder than steel, with 2.5 times steel's flexing strength. These men's shirt buttons are fired at 3200F (1760C), then polished and coated with an ivory-like finish. The proof of the Diamond Z's indestructibility is a "drop test" where a heavy pointed rod falls down a long tube onto the button. The button can withstand this rigorous ordeal as well as the everyday wear and tear of repeated washing and ironing. The Diamond Z button is, however, quite expensive to make compared to the ordinary polyester button, and for that reason it is not likely to displace the existing technology. ________________________________________________________________________________________________________