doi: 10.1098/rspa.1998.

0182
, 707-723 454 1998 Proc. R. Soc. Lond. A

W. B. Fraser and D. M. Stump

Yarn twist in the ring-spinning balloon

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Yarn twist in the ring-spinning balloon
By W. B. Fraser
1
and D. M. Stump
2
1
School of Mathematics and Statistics, The University of Sydney,
NSW 2006, Australia
2
Department of Mathematics, The University of Queensland,
St. Lucia, QLD 4072, Australia
Received 7 January 1997; accepted 16 June 1997
A dynamical theory of twist insertion in ring-spun yarns that brings together the
previous work of the authors and their colleagues on the stability of the ring-spinning
balloon, and the recent work on yarn twisting dynamics by Miao & Chen (1993), in
a single comprehensive theory is derived.
It is shown that, to rst order in small terms, the equations governing the yarn
path and the equations governing the movement of twist along the yarn path are
independent of each other. The general solution of the time-dependent twist ow
equations is derived. These results are then used to determine formulae for the twist
variation in the ring-spinning balloon and in a false twisting system. Some restrictions
on the applicability of the theory are also noted.
Keywords: yarn twist; yarn balloons; ring spinning; false twisting;
thread-line dynamics; bent twisted rods
1. Introduction
Theories of yarn twisting are of considerable interest to the textile-yarn manufac-
turing industry, and a number of papers on the subject have appeared in the past
20 years (e.g. Brookstein & Backer 1977, 1978; Emmanuel & Plate 1982a,b; Du &
Hearle 1991a,b). The work reported here builds on the recent work on yarn twisting
dynamics by Miao & Chen (1993), which is the out growth of earlier work by Gros-
berg et al. (1987a,b). The papers by Grosberg et al. propose a kinematical theory of
yarn twisting which is up-graded to a fully dynamical theory in the paper by Miao
& Chen (1993). These three papers all report on theories of twist insertion into a
perfectly straight yarn. However, in the ring-spinning process (gure 1), the yarn
follows a curved path through the spinning balloon, which is the imaginary surface
generated by the loop of yarn, between O and T in gure 1, rotating rapidly about
the xed axis of the ring-spinning spindle.
In a recent series of papers, Batra et al. (1989a,b,c), Fraser (1993), Fraser et al.
(1995a,b) and Fraser et al. (1996) have made an extensive investigation of the dynam-
ical theory of the ring-spinning balloon. In these papers, the yarn is assumed to be
inextensible and perfectly exible and twist is ignored. In order to twist a yarn it is
necessary to subject it to an axial torque, and the theory must now take account of
the torsional and bending stiness of the yarn as well as the rotational inertia of the
yarn about its own axis. Thus, the yarn can no longer be assumed perfectly exible.
In this paper, the dynamical twisting theory of Miao & Chen (1993) is extended to
twist insertion in the ring-spinning process. It is shown that the equations governing
Proc. R. Soc. Lond. A (1998) 454, 707723 c 1998 The Royal Society
Printed in Great Britain 707 T
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708 W. B. Fraser and D. M. Stump
Figure 1. General view of the ring-spinning spindle.
the yarn path are independent of the equations governing the twist variation along
the yarn and that the eect of bending and torsional stiness on the yarn path in
the ring-spinning balloon is a second-order eect. However, the twist ow equations
have a weak dependence on the the yarn path.
In the next section, the derivation of the theory is given and the equations are
then recast in dimensionless form. A new derivation of the twist ow equation (2.19)
is given in 2 e. In 3, the yarn path equations through the ring-spinning balloon are
shown to be independent of the twist to rst-order in small terms. In 4, the twist
propagation equations are derived and it is shown that they reduce to the equations
derived by Miao & Chen (1993) when the yarn path is straight.
The general solution of the twist ow equations is derived and this result is used
to examine twist variation in the ring-spinning balloon (gure 1). It is shown that,
although standing waves of twist variation can exist in the yarn in the balloon, the
time averaged twist inserted in the ring-spinning process can be calculated by the
usual formula used in the textile yarn manufacturing industry.
Finally, the general solution is used to examine the twist ow in a false twisting
system such as that used in the false-twist texturing machine (gure 3) (Denton &
Morris 1971).
2. The mathematical formulation
In order to make progress with this problem, it is necessary to make some simpli-
fying assumptions about the elastic constitution of, and the density distribution in,
textile yarn. At rst sight, these assumptions may seem unlikely to lead to a theory
applicable to yarn spinning. A detailed discussion of these assumptions follows.
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Yarn twist in the ring-spinning balloon 709
(a ) The model assumptions
Assumption 1. The yarn is of uniform density and has a uniform circular cross-
section.
This would seem to be a good assumption for some yarns such as those with the
cross-sections illustrated in gure 2.19 on p. 91 of Hearle et al. (1969).
Assumption 2. Under deformation, the axis of the strand is inextensible and the
cross-section remains circular and without change of radius.
In the work on the stability of the ring-spinning balloon cited above, the yarn is
assumed to be uniform, inextensible and perfectly exible (i.e. oering no resistance
to bending or torsion). This leads to a theory that is in good agreement with the
recent experimental work reported by Batra et al. (1995). This assumption means
that the eects of twist contraction, and yarn elasticity are being neglected. This is
discussed further by Miao & Chen (1993, p. 151). The eect of yarn elasticity on the
yarn path and yarn tension in an unwinding balloon is discussed by Fraser (1992),
where it is shown that at typical yarn elasticities the eect is negligible.
When a bundle of bres lying straight and parallel to each other are twisted from
a state of zero twist there is considerable contraction of the bundle length due to
the twist. This matter is treated in detail in Hearle et al. (1969, p. 69). When the
ring-spinning machine is rst set in motion, the twist runs up the yarn from the
traveller (T in gure 1) towards the front roller nip at D, and steady-state spinning
conditions are quickly established. At D, a spinning triangle is formed and the twist
is inserted into the yarn at the vertex of this triangle. The yarn between this point
and the traveller is in a fully twisted state. It is not the purpose of this paper to
discuss the mechanics of the spinning triangle as this has been fully treated in a
series of papers by Plate & Lappage (1982) and Emmanuel & Plate (1982a,b), and
more recently by Miao et al. (1993) and Krause et al. (1991).
The purpose here is to make a theory that can account for variations in twist along
the length of the yarn in the twisting zone caused by the curvature of the yarn path,
or by control surfaces that come into contact with the yarn. These twist variations
are superimposed on the background twist and do not cause signicant additional
variation in the background twist contraction.
Finally, the twist contraction can be introduced into the theory by replacing the
inextensibility condition (2.6) by R

= (1 C)
2
, where C, the negative strain
due to twist contraction, is a function of the twist and the yarn tension. When this
is done it can be shown, at the expense of considerable additional algebra, that the
main results of the inextensible theory given here are unchanged.
Assumption 3. The bending-moment/curvature and torque/torsion constitutive
relations are assumed to be linear (equations (2.13) and (2.15) below).
In accordance with the above assumptions, and the usual assumptions of the engi-
neering theory for the bending and twisting of beams and shafts, the equations for
the bending and torsional stinesses, respectively, of a circular shaft are (Timoshenko
& Young 1962)
K =
1
8
GAd
2
(2.1 a)
and
B =
1
16
EAd
2
, (2.1 b)
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710 W. B. Fraser and D. M. Stump
x
V
T
Q
Q + dQ
M
M+dM
qds
ds
ds
T+dT
V+dV
Fds
y
z
R(s, t)
P
T
L
b
a

(a) (b) (c)
Figure 2. (a) Schematic view of ring-spindle yarn loop showing the coordinate system. (b) Forces
acting on the cylindrical yarn element P. Shear force V perpendicular to yarn tangent vector,
yarn tension T and frictional or air drag force F per unit length. (c) Moment vectors acting on
the cylindrical yarn element P. Axial torque Q, bending moment M and axial torque generated
by surface friction forces q per unit length.
where d is the shaft diameter, E is the Youngs modulus, G is the shear modulus
and A =
1
4
d
2
is the cross-sectional area of the shaft. If is Poissons ratio, then
G = E/[2(1 +)] and with = 0.5 (the incompressible limit), this leads to
K =
2
3
B. (2.2)
The point to be made here is that these stinesses have the same order of magnitude.
These formulae are also used below to estimate this order of magnitude.
The work of Bennett & Postle (1979a,b) shows that the actual twist-torque
behaviour is slightly nonlinear. However, if K is treated as a tangent modulus, simi-
lar to the way in which the tangent modulus is dened in the theory of buckling for
nonlinear-elastic columns (c.f. Timoshenko & Gere 1961), then the theory derived
below should account for modest twist variations relative to the background twist
in the yarn. This is consistent with the previous assumptions. This point is also
discussed by Miao & Chen (1993)
In summary then, the yarn is assumed to have a uniform circular cross-section,
uniform density, an inextensible centre-line and linear bending-moment/curvature
and torque/torsion behaviour.
Consider now the equations of motion for a small cylindrical element P (gure 2a)
of the yarn, of length ds and mass mds, where m is the uniform mass per unit length
of the yarn. Figures 2b and 2c show the forces and moments acting on element P,
which at time t is distance s along the yarn axis from the origin of coordinates at
the guide eye. The coordinate system rotates with the angular speed (radians per
second) of the traveler about the z-axis, which is coincident with the spindle axis and
points towards the traveler ring. In the derivations that follow, the angular speed is
assumed to be constant. However, on commercial ring-spindles, varies slowly with
time as the radius of the wind-on point (L in gure 1) changes with the movement
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Yarn twist in the ring-spinning balloon 711
of this point up and down the conical surface onto which the yarn is being wound.
The timescale of this change is very long compared with the mean rotational period
of the traveller. A detailed account of this can be found in the paper by Fraser et al.
(1995a).
(b ) The linear momentum equation
Newtons law for the motion of the centre of mass of P leads to the equation
m{D
2
R+ 2k DR+
2
k (k R)} = (TR

+V

+F, (2.3)
where ( )

= ( )/s, k is the unit vector in the z direction, R(s, t) is the position

vector of the centre of mass of P and T(s, t) is the tension in the yarn. The shear
force V acts on the cross-section perpendicular to the yarn axis. This force is present
because the bending stiness of the yarn is now taken into consideration. For a exible
yarn, V = 0 everywhere. The operator D is the material derivative, relative to the
rotating coordinate system, following the motion of the yarn element P through the
balloon,
D =

t
+V

s
, (2.4)
and V is the (constant) speed of the yarn through the balloon.
The vector F is the force per unit length on the yarn: due to frictional drag, if
the yarn is moving in contact with a solid surface, as in the case of friction twisting
(Du & Hearle 1991a,b), or due to air drag in the case of a freely ballooning yarn.
The air drag, acting on a freely ballooning yarn, is assumed to act in the opposite
direction to the component v
n
of the yarn velocity normal to the yarn axis, and to
have a magnitude proportional to |v
n
|
2
. The equation for the air drag is
F = D
n
|v
n
|v
n
, (2.5)
where v
n
= v (v R

)R

and v = DR + k R is the yarn velocity relative to

an inertial reference frame. The air drag coecient D
n
is discussed in detail in the
papers by Batra et al. (1989b) and Fraser (1993). The inextensibility condition is
R
s

R
s
= 1. (2.6)
(c ) The angular momentum equation
In addition to the above equation of motion, it is necessary to consider the equation
for the rate of change of the angular momentum of P about its centre of mass due
to the resultant moment acting on P (gure 2c).
The total angular velocity
Y
of P is the sum of three terms: (i) the angular
velocity k about the spindle axis; (ii) the angular velocity
t
R

of P about the
yarn axis.; and (iii) the angular velocity R

DR

of P, about an axis perpendicular

to the yarn path, due to the rotation of the tangent vector R

relative to the rotating

frame. Thus

Y
= k +
t
R

+R

DR

, (2.7)
where ( )

= ( )/s. The angular acceleration of P relative to an inertial (non-

rotating) reference frame is therefore

Y
= D
Y
+k
Y
= (D
t
)R

+
t
DR

+
t
k R

+R

D
2
R

+{(k DR

)R

(k R

)DR

}, (2.8)
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712 W. B. Fraser and D. M. Stump
where the triple vector product expansion has been used to obtain the last term.
The angular momentum of the cylindrical yarn element is most easily calculated
with respect to its principle axes of inertia, the basis vectors of which are just the
unit vectors: R

tangent to the yarn path, n the principal normal to the yarn path
and the binormal b, where
n = R

/|R

| and b = R

n. (2.9)
In these coordinates, the moment of inertia tensor for right cylindrical yarn element
P of length s and diameter d is
I = ms
_
_
_
1
8
d
2
0 0
0
1
16
d
2
0
0 0
1
16
d
2
_
_
_. (2.10)
Finally, the component equations for the rate of change of angular momentum
resolved onto the principal axes of inertia of the element are just Eulers equations
(see, for example, Landau & Lifshitz 1960, p. 115, equation (36.4)), which give the
vector equation
1
8
md
2
{(
Y
R

)R

+
1
2
[
Y
n + (
Y
b)(
Y
R

)]n
+
1
2
[
Y
b (
Y
R

)(
Y
n)]b} = (QR

+M

+R

V +qR

, (2.11)
where QR

is the axial torque vector, M is the bending moment vector and qR

is
the axial moment per unit yarn length due to frictional forces acting on the yarn
surface. For a freely ballooning yarn, q = 0. Note also that
V R

= 0 (2.12 a)
and
M R

= 0. (2.12 b)
If B is the bending stiness (equation (2.1 b)) of the yarn, then the moment-curvature
constitutive relation is
M = B(R

). (2.13)
Note that equation (2.12 b) is satised by this form for M.
(d ) Twist and torsion
Love (1927) showed that the total torsion in an initially straight rod that is
twisted and bent into a curved path is the sum of the following two parts.
(1) The torsion d/ds relative to the principal plane of curvature of the yarn path
(dened by the vectors R

and n), where is the angle between the plane of curvature

and a radial line, perpendicular to the strand axis joined to any straight line parallel
to the axis marked on the surface of the initially straight untwisted strand. d/ds
can also be interpreted as the initial torsion in the straight strand before its axis is
deformed into a curved path.
(2) The torsion due to the rotation of the principal plane of curvature, which
is equal to |b

|. This quantity is called the tortuosity (Love 1927, ch. 18). If the
rotation of the principal plane of curvature is positive with respect to the intrinsic
base vectors R

, n, b, then the positve sign should be chosen.

From the third Frenet formula (cf. ONeil 1991, p. 851), b

= |b

|n, and this

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Yarn twist in the ring-spinning balloon 713
result can be used to dene a total torsion vector for a strand following a curved
path as follows:
R

= (

n)R

. (2.14)
If the relationship between torque and torsion is linear, as assumed in this model,
then
QR

= KR

= K(

n)R

, (2.15)
where K is the torsional stiness dened in (2.1 a).
The relationship between twist and torsion in yarn has been discussed in detail by
Treloar (1956). In the textile yarn context, the yarn twist (turns per unit length) is
dened by
T
W
=
1
2
d
ds
(2.16)
and does not include any contribution due to the path tortuosity. This is because it
is only this twist that aects the textile physics of the yarn.
(e ) The twist ow equation
To complete the formulation of the problem, an equation governing the ow of
twist T
W
must be added to the dynamic equations. The derivation of the equation
for twist ow is as follows.
Let N(s, t) (radians) be the total angular rotation undergone by the yarn cross-
section since it entered the twisted yarn structure at the vertex of the spinning trian-
gle. From this point on the yarn path is referred to the rotating coordinate system.
An equation for this rotation is found by integration of the torsion equation (2.14),
N(s, t) =
_
s
0
(

n) ds,
where the origin in this integral is taken at the vertex of the spinning triangle. It
will be convenient in what follows to assume that this point also coincides with the
guide eye of the ring spindle. This simplication will not aect the general principles
and results established in this paper. A detailed analysis of the twist ow between
the vertex of the spinning triangle and the guide eye will be taken up elsewhere.
Dierentiation of this equation with respect to s gives the following relation between
N and T
W
:
N

n = 2T
W
b

n. (2.17)
Consider now the additional rotation this cross-section undergoes in the time t as
it moves from position R(s, t) to position R(s+Vt, t +t). This additional rotation
is given by
N =
_
N
t
+V
N
s
_
t,
and this is just equal to the rotation of of the yarn about its own axis during this
time increment: (R

Y
)t. Thus
N
t
+V
N
s
= DN = z

+
t
. (2.18)
When this last equation is dierentiated with respect to s, and equation (2.17) is
used to eliminate N

from the result, the twist-ow equation is obtained:

DN

= 2DT
W
D(b

n) = z

t
. (2.19)
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714 W. B. Fraser and D. M. Stump
For a straight yarn path b

n = 0 and z

a constant, this result reduces to the twist

ow equation derived by Grosberg et al. (1978b)
This completes the mathematical formulation of the problem. In order to determine
the relative importance of terms in the above equations it is necessary to recast them
in dimensionless form.
(f ) Dimensionless variables
In this paper, attention is focused on the eect of yarn twist on the shape and
stability of the ring-spinning balloon as derived from the ideal exible string model
in the previous papers cited above. Thus the dimensionless variables dened below
are the same as those used in those papers. In particular, the length scale to be used
is a, the radius of the traveller ring. In a concurrent paper, Fraser & Stump (1998)
have used thin elastic rod theory to investigate the equilibrium of the convergence
point in two-strand yarn plying. In that work, attention is focused on the ply twist
insertion zone between the roller nip D and the guide eye O in gure 1. The length
scale appropriate to that problem is the yarn radius
1
2
d, and the present problem is,
in the context of singular perturbation theory (cf. Nayfeh 1973), the outer solution
for which the plying problem is the boundary layer solution.
The dimensionless (barred) variables are dened as follows:

R =
R
a
=
r
a
e
r
+
z
a
k = re
r
+ zk, s =
s
a
, v
n
=
v
n
a
, v =
v
a
,

t = t,

T =
T
m
2
a
2
,

F =
F
m
2
a
,

B =
B
m
2
a
4
,

K =
K
m
2
a
4
.
_

_
(2.20)
The dimensionless moment and shear force variables are

V =
V
m
2
a
2
,

M =
M
m
2
a
3
,

Q =
Q
m
2
a
3
, q =
q
m
2
a
2
. (2.21)
The scaled angular velocities are
t
=
t
/ and

Y
= k +
t

R

+

R

, (2.22)
where the operator

D is given by

D =
D

t
+

V

s
, where

V =
V
a
. (2.23)
The dimensionless angular acceleration of the yarn element equation (2.8) becomes

Y
= (

D
t
)

+
t

+
t
k

R

+

R

D
2

R

+(k

D

(k

R

. (2.24)
In terms of the above dimensionless variables, the linear- and angular-momentum
equations ((2.3) and (2.11), respectively) become
{

D
2

R+ 2k

D

R+k (k

R)} = (

T

R

+

V

+

F (2.25)
and
1
8
(d/a)
2
{(


Y


R

+
1
2
[


Y
n + (
Y
b)(
Y


R

)]n
+
1
2
[


Y
b (
Y


R

)(
Y
n)]b} = (

Q

+

M

+

R

V + q

, (2.26)
respectively, where ( )

= ( )/ s. Equations (2.6), (2.12 a) and (2.13) become

= 1, (2.27 a)
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Yarn twist in the ring-spinning balloon 715

V

R

= 0, (2.27 b)

M =

B(

), (2.27 c)
respectively.
The twist equations (2.15) and (2.18) become

Q =

KN

=

K(

n) =

K(2

T
W
b

n) (2.28)
and

DN = z

+
t
, (2.29)
where

T
W
= aT
W
.
Equations (2.25), (2.26) (with


Y
dened by equation (2.24)), (2.27), (2.28) and
(2.29) constitute a system of three vector and four scalar equations that determine
the three vector quantities

R,

V ,

M, and the four scalar quantities

Q, N,
t
,

T, as
functions of ( s,

t). Together with appropriate boundary and initial conditions, this is

a well-posed system of equations for yarn twisting.
(g ) The magnitude of the dimensionless parameters
The equations derived above are also applicable to the whirling of thick wire ropes
and other cables of uniform circular cross-section where the bending and torsional
stinesses may play a signicant role in the deformation and motion (see, for example,
Costello 1990). In this paper, the focus is on the development of a theory of twist
variation in textile yarn ring spinning where these stinesses are very small compared
with the extensional stiness of the yarn (assumed innite in this model). It is shown
in the next section that bending moment and torque in the yarn play a negligible
role in the determination of the yarn path.
In order to make further progress it is therefore necessary to consider the relative
orders of magnitude of the yarn constitutive parameters

B and

K, and the yarn
and the spinning machine kinematic parameters d/a and

V = V/(a). These orders
of magnitude play a critical role in the approximations made in the theory given
below, and also motivate the rescaling of the bending and torsional stinesses in
equation (2.20).
The estimates of the parameter values given here are based on the eective yarn
diameter data given in the W.I.R.A. Textile data book (1973), values of K given in
the paper by Miao & Chen (1993) and the range of typical ring-spindle data given
in Batra et al. (1989c). The orders of magnitude of these parameters for a typical
textile yarn ring-spinning frame are

B 10
4
,

K 10
4
, (d/a)
2
10
4
and V 0.5 10
2
1.2 10
2
. (2.30)
Since (d/a)
2
,

B and

K have the same order of magnitude, it is convenient to rescale
the bending and torsional stinesses as follows:

B = (d/a)
2
,

K = (d/a)
2
, (2.31)
so that equations (2.27 c) and (2.28) now become

M = (d/a)
2
(

r) (2.32 a)
and

Q = (d/a)
2
N

. (2.32 b)
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716 W. B. Fraser and D. M. Stump
3. The yarn path equations
It will now be shown that in typical textile yarn ring-spinning balloons the yarn
path is independent of the twist in the yarn to order O(d/a).
First eliminate the shear force V between equations (2.25) and (2.26). To do this,
form the vector product of the yarn path tangent vector R

with equation (2.26) to

obtain
1
16
(d/a)
2
{[
Y
n + (
Y
b)(
Y
R

)]b [
Y
b (
Y
R

)(
Y
n)]n}
= (d/a)
2
[N

(R

) +R

(R

)] V , (3.1)
where the expansion for the triple vector product and the condition (2.27 b) have
been used to simplify the term involving V , and Q and M

have been replaced by

the expressions in equations (2.28) and (2.27 c), respectively, with account taken of
the expressions (2.31) for the stinesses K and B.
From this equation it can be seen that, provided the yarn path curvature or its
rate of change (terms on the right of equation (3.1) inside the square brackets) are
O(1) or less, then |V | O(d
2
/a
2
) (ca. O(10
4
) for typical textile yarn ring-spinning
situations). Thus, over most of the yarn path, V can be neglected and equation (2.25)
becomes
{D
2
R+ 2k D

R+k (k R)} = (TR

+F, (3.2)
where, for a freely ballooning yarn loop, F is given by the dimensionless form of
equation (2.5), which is
F =
1
16
p
0
|v
n
|v
n
,
and p
0
is the dimensionless air drag coecient introduced by Padeld (1958).
If the yarn path curvature or its rate of change are large, where the yarn wraps
around the traveller wire for example, then the existence of bending boundary lay-
ers must be investigated (see Nayfeh 1973). However, such boundary layers only
contribute correction terms of O(d/a) 10
2
to the yarn path determined from
equation (3.2) (which is the outer solution with respect to the boundary layer) and
they will not be considered further in this paper.
Commercial ring spinning takes place under stable steady-state production condi-
tions in which the yarn path is stationary when viewed from the rotating reference
frame. These yarn paths have been called quasi-stationary in the previous papers
cited, and it is the variation of twist in these quasi-stationary yarn paths that is
the subject of remainder of this paper. If the time dependence is dropped from
equation (3.2), so that the operator D = V/s, and if it is further noted, from
equation (2.30), that V O(d/a) O(10
2
), then the tems involving the operator
D in equation (3.2) can also be neglected. Thus the quasi-stationary yarn path in
free balloon textile yarn spinning is determined by the equation
k (k R) = (TR

+
1
16
p
0
|v
n
|v
n
. (3.3)
This equation, together with the inextensibility condition (2.27 a) and appropriate
boundary conditions at the guide eye and traveller as discussed in Fraser (1993), is
sucient to determine the quasi-stationary yarn path independently of the twist
propagation equations derived in the next section.
Unless stated otherwise, in this and the following sections, all variables will be dimensionless and
the over-bar notation will be dropped.
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Yarn twist in the ring-spinning balloon 717
Thus, for the determination of the quasi-stationary yarn path and tensions in the
ring-spinning balloon during the manufacture of textile yarns, the eect of yarn twist
can be neglected and the yarn can be modelled as a perfectly exible string, as was
done in the earlier papers cited.
4. The twist variation equations
In this section, the equations and boundary conditions that govern the twist
dynamics in a quasi-stationary yarn balloon are derived and it is be shown that
these equations are linear and only weakly dependent on the yarn path. In the fol-
lowing section, these equations will be used to determine a general solution for the
twist variation in the yarn in a free ring-spinning balloon.
First, resolve the angular-momentum equation (2.26) in the direction of the yarn
tangent vector, and note that by equation (2.27 c)
M

= B(R

) R

= 0, (4.1)
and make use of the inextensibility condition (2.27 a) and the yarn angular acceler-
ation equation (2.24) to obtain
1
8
(d/a)
2
D(
t
+z

) = Q

+q. (4.2)
If the torque Q is eliminated between this equation and equation (2.28), the
result is
1
8
(d/a)
2
D(
t
+z

) = (d/a)
2
N

r +q. (4.3)
If
t
is eliminated between equations (2.29) and (4.3), an equation for the variation
of the rotation N is obtained,
(d/a)
2
{D
2
N V
2
0
N

r} = 8q, (4.4)
where
V
0
=

8 = V
0
/(a)
and V
2
0
= (8K)/(md
2
) (in dimensional terms) is the twist propagation speed (relative
to the stationary yarn) identied by Miao & Chen (1993). This equation is indepen-
dent of the yarn path so that the rotation of the yarn cross-section is decoupled from
the shape of the yarn path.
Once the yarn path has been determined and equation (4.4), subject to the bound-
ary conditions discussed below, has been solved for N(s, t), the twist can be calculat-
ed from equation (2.17). Note that the twist depends on the yarn path through the
tortuosity term b

n. Although
t
does not enter into the above solution procedure,
it can now be calculated from equation (2.29) which also depends on the yarn path.
(a ) The general solution of equation (4.4)
For a freely ballooning yarn path, q = 0, and the general solution of equation (4.4)
is
N(s, t) = F[s (V
0
+V)t] +G[s + (V
0
V)t] +C
1
s +C
2
, (4.5)
where C
1
and C
2
are arbitrary constants to be determined from the boundary con-
ditions discussed below, and F and G are arbitrary dierentiable functions of their
arguments.
The rst two terms on the right-hand side represent waves of arbitrary shape trav-
elling in opposite directions with speed V
0
relative to the stationary yarn. This is
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718 W. B. Fraser and D. M. Stump
a a
B O A
V

Figure 3. Schematic diagram of a false-twist system. Twist is inserted between the roller nip A
and dthe rotating spindle O, and is removed between the spindle and the exit-roller nip B. The
yarn travels form A to B.
the general solution given by Miao & Chen (1993, equation 5). In a particular appli-
cation, the form of functions F and G is determined by application of appropriate
initial conditions.
(b ) Boundary conditions
First, note that continuity of the yarn dictates that the angular rotation N(s, t)
must be a continuous function of its arguments. Its partial derivative with respect to
time must also be a continuous function of s. The torsion = N

, and the angular

speed
t
, however, need not be continuous functions of s. As already mentioned,

t
is not a further independent variable, but can be calculated from from N by
equation (2.29).
The yarn is assumed to be untwisted as it approaches the roller nip at the entry to
the twisting zone (D in gure 1, and A in gure 3) and so by denition N(0, t) = 0
in the case of the ring-spinning balloon, and N(1, t) = 0 for the false twister.
If the yarn path is quasi-stationary, so that the length of yarn in the balloon is not
changing with time, then the total rotation of a yarn cross-section, as it travels from
the roller nip to the traveller at s = L, can be calculated if it is assumed that there is
no rotational slip between the yarn and the traveller. In this case, the total rotation
of the cross-section is just the angular speed of the traveller multiplied by the time
taken for a material point on of the yarn to move from the nip to the traveller. In
dimensionless terms, this leads to the boundary condition N(L, t) = L/V.
Once N(s, t) is determined, the torque exerted on the yarn by the nip can be
calculated form equation (2.32 b): Q(0, t) = KN

(0, t).
The other boundary conditions for the false twisting device are discussed in 6.
5. Twist variation in the ring-spinning balloon
In this application, the eect of twist variation due to contact between the yarn
and the guide-eye and the control ring will be neglected and the yarn will be assumed
to be freely ballooning between the roller nip (D in gure 1) and the traveller (T).
The spinning triangle, mentioned earlier, will be ignored in as much as the roller nip
will be assumed to be coincident with the vertex of the spinning triangle so that the
boundary condition N(0, t) = 0 will be applied directly at the roller nip where s = 0,
and at the traveller N(L, t) = L/V.
When the boundary condition at the roller nip is applied to the general solu-
tion (4.5), C
2
= 0 and the function G(u) can be expressed in terms of the function F,
G(u) = F(u), (5.1)
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Yarn twist in the ring-spinning balloon 719
where
=
(V
0
+V)
(V
0
V)
. (5.2)
Next, this expression is used to eliminate the function G from equation (4.5) and
when the boundary condition at the traveller is imposed it is found that F is a
periodic function F(u +) = F(u) with period
=
2V
0
L
(V
0
V)
. (5.3)
Thus, nally,
N(s, t) = s/V +F[s (V
0
+V)t] F[s (V
0
+V)t]. (5.4)
This expression for N can now be substituted into equation (2.17) along with the
yarn path to determine the twist T
W
.
T
W
(s, t) =
1
2V
+
1
2
{F

[s (V
0
+V)t] + F

[s (V
0
+V)t]} +
b

n
2
, (5.5)
where F

(u) = dF/du.
The rst, and dominant term, on the right-hand side of this equation is the twist
as calculated by the usual formula used in the textile yarn industry. The next term,
in the braces, represents standing waves of twist vibration, and the last term is due
to the curved yarn path. This last term is unimportant as a source of twist variation
since its eect vanishes when the yarn is straightened out and wound up on the
bobbin. The twist vibration in the balloon could be a source of twist variation in the
nished yarn as this causes variation in twist at s = L which could pass through the
traveller and become locked into the nished yarn,
T
W
(L, t) =
1
2V
+

2L
F

[L (V
0
+V)t]. (5.6)
6. Twist variation in a false-twist system
The special false twist system to be considered here is shown in gure 3. The yarn
travels at constant speed V from the rollers at A towards the rollers at B. Midway
between AB, the yarn passes through the twisting device at O, which is driven at
a constant angular speed about the yarn axis. The yarn between A and O has
right-handed (Z) twist inserted and this twist is removed again between O and B.
In the false-twist-texturing machine, described by Denton & Morris (1971), the yarn
passes over a heating element between A and O which sets the twist in this section
so that when this twist is removed in section OB, and the tension in the yarn is
released after the exit rollers B, a highly bulky textured yarn is produced. In this
analysis the eects of the heating will be ignored.
The length scale in the denition of the dimensionless variables (equation (2.21))
is a, where 2a is the distance AB, and the angular speeds are scaled against the
twisting spindle speed . In dimensionless terms, the boundary conditions on N(s, t)
are
N(1, t) = 0, (6.1 a)
N(0, t) = 1/V, (6.1 b)
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720 W. B. Fraser and D. M. Stump
T
W
(1, t) = N

(1, t)/(2) = 0. (6.1 c)

The eect of the twisting spindle is assumed to be concentrated at the origin (s = 0).
When these boundary conditions are imposed on the general solution (4.5) (with
q = 0), the result is
N(s, t) =
_
(1 +s)/V + [s (V
0
+V)t] [s (V
0
+V)t], 1 s < 0,
1/V + [s (V
0
+V)t] [s (V
0
+V)t], 0 < s 1,
(6.2)
where is an arbitrary periodic function with period
= + 1 = 2V
0
/(V
0
V),
is dened in equation (5.2) above, and the function (u) satises the dierential
dierence equation

(u +) =

(u), (6.3)
where

(u) = d/du. This equation comes from the imposition of the boundary
condition (6.1 c) at s = 1.
The solution of equation (6.3) is
(u) =

n=1,3,...
(C
n
e
nu
+D
n
), (6.4)
where C
n
and D
n
are arbitrary complex constants of integration,

n
= (ln|| + in)/, (6.5)
n is an odd integer and i
2
= 1.
When this solution is substituted into the second equation of (6.2), the result is
N(s, t) =
1
V
+exp
_

ln||

(V
0
+V)t
_

n=1,3,...
C
n
e
in(V0+V)t/
(e
ns
e
ns
), (6.6)
for 0 s 1.
The constants C
n
in the complex Fourier series are determined from the imposition
of an appropriate initial (start up) condition on N(s, t) at t = 0. Provided > 0,
which is the case as long as V
0
> V, this term decays exponentially as t , and
it will not be considered further here where it is the steady-state solution that is of
interest.
Thus, the steady-state twist variation, calculated from equation (2.17), is given by
T
W
(s, t) =
_

_
1/(2V) + 1/(2){

[s (V
0
+V)t]
+

[s (V
0
+V)t]}, 1 s < 0,
0, 0 < s 1.
_

_
(6.7)
where

(u) = d/du. The terms involving the function represent standing waves
of twist variation in the region before the twist spindle at O.
Finally, equation (4.4) can be used to calculate the torque that the twisting spindle
exerts on the yarn, and from this result a formula for the power required to drive
the spindle in steady-state operation can be derived.
First, set q =

Q(s) in equation (4.4), which becomes
(d/a)
2
(D
2
N V
2
0
N

r) = 8

Q(s), (6.8)
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Yarn twist in the ring-spinning balloon 721
where (s) is the Dirac delta function, and

Q is the total torque the spindle exerts on
the yarn. Now observe that N(s, t) and N/t are continuous functions of s, so that
when equation (6.6) is integrated across the origin from s = 0

to 0
+
, the following
expression for the torque is obtained:

Q =
1
8
(d/a)
2
(V
2
0
V
2
)[N

(0
+
) N

(0

)]
=
1
8
(d/a)
2
(V
2
0
V
2
)(1/V +{

[(V
0
+V)t]}). (6.9)
The power required to drive the spindle is the torque times the angular speed. The
periodic term in the above expression for

Q makes zero contribution to the time
averaged power, which in dimensional terms is
Power =
(V
2
0
V
2
)m
2
a
2
8V
(watts), (6.10)
where V
2
0
= (8K/(md
2
) is the speed of torsional waves in the yarn, V is the linear
speed of the yarn through the false twisting system, (radians per second) is the
angular speed of the spindle, m is the mass of the yarn per unit length, d is the
yarn diameter and a is the distnce between the twisting spindle and the roller nips
(gure 3).
Note that this expression for the power has been derived on the basis that the
solution (6.6) for N(s, t) decays to the constant value 1/V for 0 s 1, and this
is only the case if V < V
0
. This would certainly be a reasonable assumption for
linear-elastic yarns of suciently large torsional stiness. The theory given here will
not be applicable to the case of textile yarns that do not satisfy these conditions,
and where it is possible to run the twisting machinery at speeds such that V > V
0
.
7. Concluding remarks
A dynamical theory of yarn twisting based on the assumptions that the yarn is
inextensible, and that the torque/twist and bending-moment/curvature relations are
linear, has been derived. This brings together the work of the present authors and
their colleagues on the stability of the ring-spinning balloon (based on a perfectly
exible inextensible yarn model), and the recent work of Miao & Chen (1993) on the
dynamics of yarn twisting, in a single comprehensive theory of yarn twisting by the
ring-spinning process.
It has been shown that the bending and torsional stiness of the yarn in typical
ring-spinning operations has a negligible eect on the yarn path, so that the yarn
path in the ring-spinning balloon can be determined independently of the twist.
The equation governing the rotation N(s, t) of a material cross-section of the yarn
(equation (4.4)) is independent of the yarn path, but the twist, which is determined
from equation (2.17), is dependent on the tortuosity of the yarn path. It has also
been shown that, although standing waves of twist vibration can exist in the yarn
in the balloon, the time average twist inserted in ring spinning is unaected by this
vibration and can be calculated by the usual formula. In actual spinning of staple
bre yarns such as wool and cotton, such twist vibrations would be unimportant due
to the damping eect of inter-bre friction.
As a nal example of the application of this theory, a false twist system, such
as that used in the false-twist-texturing machine for producing bulky yarn from
bundles of synthetic continuous-laments, has been analysed. An equation for the
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722 W. B. Fraser and D. M. Stump
power required to drive the false-twist spindle has also been derived. However, the
applicability of this theory is restricted to cases where the speed of the yarn through
the twisting zone is less that the propagation speed of torsional waves in the yarn.
The research reported in this paper was supported by a grant from the US National Textile
Center through Clemson University to W.B.F., and by an Australian Research Council Large
Grant to D.M.S. and W.B.F.
W.B.F. thanks Professor W. Oxenham and Dr Menghe Miao for their helpful discussions
during the preparation of this paper.
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