TANGLING WITH WOOL WOOLLEN OR WORSTED?

Source: WRONZ Developments 2000

Many people think that all yarns made of wool are woollen yarns, but this is not the
case. Three alternative systems are used for processing wool into yarn: the
woollen, semi-worsted and worsted systems. Each route is distinctly different, in
terms of the machinery used, the types of wools that can be economically
processed, and they produce yarns that are quite different in their properties.

Irrespective of the processing route chosen, there are some features common to all
three routes (see the flow diagram). The basic requirement of yarn manufacture is
to take wool in the scoured form (where the fibres tend to be clumped together),
separate out the individual fibres, and reassemble them into a twisted arrangement
called a yarn. The steps by which the formation of the yarn is achieved differ
somewhat between the three routes.

Worsted Processing
The worsted system has the most steps in its processing sequence, and better
quality, long, sound wools are generally required. Fine and medium wools are
favoured for fine yarns. The wool is first passed through a carding step, in which a
series of rotating, toothed rollers open the tufts of wool, separate the fibres and mix
them thoroughly. Inevitably some fibres break in carding, which is the most severe
textile process. However, fibre breakage is minimised by spraying the wool with a
lubricating mixture of water and oil prior to carding. The carded wool is removed for
the next stage as a thick ribbon of fibre, called a sliver.

The sliver is next passed through a gilling step, where a series of pins is drawn
through the sliver to straighten and align the fibres into a parallel arrangement. The
gilled sliver is then combed to remove short fibres, neps (or little balls of fibre) and
vegetable matter. The sliver is gilled again to restore the parallel alignment to form
a top. The top is drafted (or drawn out) to form a thin ribbon, or roving, before
being twisted and further drafted in spinning to form a worsted yarn.

As a result of (1) the removal of short fibres (2) the parallel arrangement of the
fibres presented for spinning and (3) the high degree of twist inserted, a worsted
yarn is sufficiently strong to require a minimum of 40 fibres in the cross-section.
Hence, fine, even, firm yarns with satisfactory strength can be spun.

In the main, worsted-spun yarns are used in high-quality woven suiting fabrics, and
hand and machine knitting yarns. In these products it is important that the yarn be
free from faults such as neps, slubs (clumps), vegetable matter and protruding
fibres. Short fibres may cause prickliness, while long protruding fibres have a
tendency to form pills.
Woollen Processing
The woollen system is the least complex route, and it tends to be used to process
blends of wools which vary in length and fibre diameter. The system is capable of
handling the poorer types of wools, especially those that are short and tender (i.e.
have low strength).

In the woollen system the wool passes through a two-stage carding machine to
ensure a thorough opening of the tufts and mixing of fibres, and the removal of
contaminants. At the end of the card, the thin, carded web of fibres is separated
into narrow strips, which are condensed by rubbing into a thin ribbon called a
slubbing. The slubbing is then spun into yarn by applying twist in a ring-spinning
frame.

A woollen-spun yarn is characterised by a high proportion of short fibres, which are
distributed very much at random throughout the yarn. Longer fibres often undergo
reversals in direction and may protrude from the yarn, to contribute to a hairy
appearance.

The protruding loops and ends of fibres have an important influence on the tactile
and visual properties of a woollen-spun yarn. A fibre with reversals contributes less
to the strength of a yarn than if it was fully extended without reversals, as tends to
be the case in a worsted yarn. Therefore, a woollen yarn tends to have less
strength than a worsted yarn of similar thickness. To obtain sufficient strength a
minimum of about 200 fibres in the cross-section is required. Woollen-spun yarns
tend to be of coarse count (i.e. thicker), spun to a low twist. Hence they are bulky,
soft handling, relatively hairy, and less even than worsted yarns. The reversals and
other irregularities in the path of fibres within the yarn create air spaces within the
yarn and these also contribute to their soft, bulky handle.

In the main, woollen spun yarns are used in woven, knitted and tufted products
such as carpets, blankets, tweeds and heavier woven and knitted apparel. Most of
the large spinning plants in New Zealand produce woollen spun carpet yarns.

Semi-worsted Processing
The semi-worsted system was developed to produce a yarn with greater strength
than in the woollen system, but without the significant expense of having to remove
short fibres in a combing step. Wool is passed through a carding machine, gilled
three times to straighten the fibres, and then spun directly from a thin gilled sliver.

The semi-worsted system is best suited to sound wools of 100-120mm staple length
(with a minimum length of at least 70mm). Because there is less opportunity for the
removal of contaminants, the wools used must be virtually free of vegetable matter.

Semi-worsted yarns are intermediate in properties between those produced on the
worsted and woollen systems. They are used mainly for manufacturing carpets and
knitwear. Because of the greater fibre length and the degree of straightening
produced by the gilling step, semi-worsted yarns tend to be less bulky than woollen
yarns. Hence bulkier wools are sought for semi-worsted blends if a good fabric
cover or a softer handle is required in products.

In all three systems it is usual to twist singles yarns from the spinning step into
multiple plies, or folded yarns. Plying two or more singles yarns together in this way
improves both the evenness and strength of the final yarn.

The three processing routes for wool are shown in the following flow diagram.