BANGLADESH UNIVERSITY OF TEXTILES

COMPARATIVE STUDY ON RING & ROTOR YARN PROPERTIES

ACKNOWLEDGEMENT
All praise is to Allah, Lord of the Worlds, the Beneficent, the Merciful and every grace of Allah is
on His Prophet Muhammad (P.B.U.H), who is always a source of knowledge and guidance for
humanity as a whole
.

INDEX
CHAPTER

CONTENTS

01

Introduction

02

Literature Review

03

Operation Principle

3.1 Process Flow Chart

3.2 Basic Principle of Ring Spinning
3.3 Basic Principle of Rotor Spinning

04

Discussion on Yarn
Properties to Be
Compared

4.1 Yarn Evenness

3.1.1 Irregularity (U%, CV, Index etc)
3.1.2 Imperfection(Thick, thin places,
neps)
4.2 Hairiness
4.3 CSP

05

Experimental Details

5.1 Process Parameters

5.2 Machines Description

06

Result and Discussion

07

Conclusion

08

References

PAGE
NO.

CHAPTER ONE

INTRODUCTION

Textile education is based on Industrial ground. The project work is an important subject matter
of Textile Technology. Here one has to change or create a new idea or to modify an old thing or
conception. So for successful completion of our four years graduate degree in textile
engineering we should give special emphasis on this topic.
The title of our project is Comparative study on ring & rotor yarn properties. It is a special
type of project work as it is an observing and analytical project work. It is very much important
in this time because although ring spinning machine produces best quality yarn but some
limitations specially limited productivity bounds the spinners to choose alternative spinning
system. From the multitude of spinning processes developed in recent decades, e.g. Bobtex,
Repco, Twilo, friction, air-jet and wrap spinning, only rotor spinning and with reservations airjet spinning have established themselves successfully on the market.
In our project work we observed the various yarn properties like U%., CV%, index, thin/km,
thick/km, neps/km, hairiness and strength (CSP).
Aim of the project
The main object of the project is to study the yarn properties (Um%, CVm%, Imperfection,
Hairiness etc) of Ring & Rotor spun yarn and compare between them.
To observed how yarn properties are change with the change of process.
To analyze the various yarn properties by the graphical representation.
To learn how to do a project work and report.

CHAPTER TWO

LITERATURE REVIEW

2.1

Development of Spinning

Seven thousand years ago spinning was already well established as a domestic craft. At that
time and until the early Middle Ages spinning was an incredibly slow and tedious task.
Throughout this period the spinning of one pound of cotton into a yarn suitable for the weaving
of what we would now regard as a fairly heavy apparel fabric would keep as spinner busy for
several weeks.
A revolutionary change had come in spinning when ring spinning machine was invented by an
American named Thorp in 1828, and Jenk another American added the traveler rotating
around the ring in 18301. In the intervening period of more than 170 years the ring spinning
machine has undergone considerable modification in detail, but the basic concept has
remained the same. For many years any noteworthy further development hardly seemed
possible, yet a significant process of evolution took place during this time. The productivity of
the ring spinning machine has increased by 40% since the late nineteen-seventies. This has
been achieved by using smaller ring and cop formats introducing piecing in the winding
department substantial improvements in rings and travelers.
Commercial rotor spinning began in 1967 in Czechoslovakia1. Rotor spinning has been
characterized from the outset by incomparably higher production potential than ring spinning
This potential has been steadily increased by the continuous rise in rotor and winding speeds.
Rotor-spun yarns have therefore always been successful where they could be manufactured
more cheaply than ring-spun yarns and proved suitable for the range of application in question.

2.2

Raw Materials & Their Properties

For ring spinning most important fiber property is staple length. It can be assumed that fibers
of under 4-5 mm will be lost in processing (as waste and fly), fibers up to about 12-15 mm do
not contribute much to strength but only to fullness of the yarn, and only those fibers above
these lengths produce the other positive characteristics in the yarn.
Second important property is fiber fineness. The fineness determines how many fibers are
present in the cross-section of a yarn of given thickness. Additional fibers in the cross-section
provide not only additional strength but also better evenness in the yarn.
Strength is very often the predominant characteristic. This can be seen from the fact that
nature produces countless types of fibers, most of which are not usable for textiles because of
inadequate strength. The minimum strength for a textile fiber is approximately 6 cN/tex (about
6 km breaking length). Since binding of the fibers into the yarn is achieved mainly by twisting,

and thus can exploit only 30 - 70% of the strength of the material, a lower borderline of about 3
cN/tex is finally obtained for the yarn strength, the minimum strength of a yarn.

The open-end rotor-spinning system is especially suitable for short-staple fibers (1 inch).
Because staple length is limited by rotor diameter & smaller dia of rotor is required for higher
rotational speed2.
= .

However the most important fiber properties for rotor spun yarn is fiber fineness. Because for
core twist structure fiber strength is less exploited in rotor spun yarn than in ring spun yarn
(about 20-40% less)2. So more fiber is required in yarn cross section. Usually fibers of 2.8-4.5
Mic are used.

2.3

Spinning Limit & Yarn Count Range

Spinning limit is determined by minimum number of fiber in yarn cross section required to
produce yarn. Spinning limit for various processes3:
Ring-spun yarn: carded
Ring-spun yarn: combed
Open-end rotor

75
33
90

Ring spinning is suitable for finer count yarn whereas Rotor spinning is suitable for coarser
count yarn production.

Fig 01: Count ranges for various spinning system1

2.4

Yarn Twist

Ring spun yarn contains envelope twist(twisting in the fibers from outside to inwards), whereas
rotor spun yarn has core twist(twisting in the fibers from inwards to outside). The fibers in the
envelop layer in the rotor spun yarn can partly escape twisting action during spinning and
therefore take up fewer turns of twist. So rotor spun yarn generally needs more turns of twist
than ring spun yarn2.

2.5

Yarn Properties

An experiment was done by Lnenschloss and Hummel4 on ring & rotor spun yarn. Their
conclusions were based on comparative trials in which American cotton was spun by both ring
and rotor (BD 200) systems. They showed that, despite the need for higher twist, the rotor yarn
was better in most respects, such as evenness, abrasion resistance, extensibility and reduced
hairiness, but the ring-spun yarn was stronger.

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Another comparison of Ne 20, 100% cotton yarns, produced by 2 different spinning systems is
found in an Application Report5 of Uster Tester 5 (Fig.02).

* For OE- Rotor yarn neps +280%

Fig.02: Comparative yarn properties found in Application Report2 of Uster Tester 5

The above test report (Fig. o4) demonstrates the following:
Mass variation (CVm) is higher in carded ring-spun yarn than OE rotor (carded).
Imperfection Index (Thin places+ Thick places+ Neps) for various types of yarn:
Yarn type
IPI
Carded ring-spun 352
OE rotor (carded) 158
It is clear in the above report that carded ring-spun yarn has higher thick places and neps
whereas OE rotor yarn has more thin places.
Higher hairiness of carded ring-spun OE rotor yarn.
Now our experimental work will help us to verify the previous results and then we will be able
to take decision about comparative yarn properties of various processes.

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CHAPTER THREE

OPERATION PRINCIPLE

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3.1 Process Flowchart:

Process Flow chart of Ring Spinning (Carded Yarn):

Blow room

Carding m/c

Breaker Draw Frame

Finisher Draw Frame

Simplex

Ring Frame

Auto-coner

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Process Flow chart of Ring Spinning (Combed Yarn):

Blow room

Carding m/c

Breaker draw frame

Lap former

Comber

Finisher draw frame

Simplex

Ring Frame

Auto-coner

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Process Flow chart of Rotor Spinning:

Blow room
Carding m/c
Draw Frame
Rotor Spinning m/c

3.2 Basic Principle of Ring Spinning1

The roving bobbins (1) are inserted in holders (3) on the creel (Fig. 01). Guide bars (4) guide the
rovings (2) into the drafting system (5), where they are drawn to their final count. The drafting
system is at an angle of 45-60 and is one of the most important units on the machine, since it
exerts a very considerable influence on the uniformity of the yarn in particular.
After the resulting thin ribbon of fibers (6) leaves the delivery roller, the twist necessary for
imparting strength is provided by spindle (8) rotating at high speed. In the process each
rotation of the traveler on the spinning ring (10) produces a twist in the yarn. Ring traveler (9)
is also necessary for taking up this yarn onto a tube mounted on the spindle. This traveler - a
remnant of the flyer on the roving frame - moves on a guide rail around the spindle, the socalled ring (10). The ring traveler has no drive of its own; it is dragged with spindle (8) via the
yarn attached to it. The rotation of the ring traveler lags somewhat behind that of the spindle
due to the relatively high friction of the ring traveler on the ring and the atmospheric resistance
of the traveler and the thread balloon between yarn guide eyelet (7) and traveler (9).
This difference in speed between the spindle and the traveler results in the thread being wound
onto the tube. In contrast to the roving frame, the ring spinning machine spindle operates with
at higher speed than the traveler (9). The yarn is wound up into a cylindrical cop form by rising
and lowering of the rings, which are mounted on a continuous ring rail.

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Fig. 03: Principle of ring spinning

The layer traverse of the ring rail is also less than the full winding height of the tube. The ring
rail therefore has to be raised slightly (shift traverse) after each layer has been wound. For a
time, machines were also built featuring shift traverse produced by lowering the spindle
bearing plate rather than raising the ring rail. These machines are no longer available today.

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3.3 Basic Principle of Rotor Spinning1

The rotor spinning machine is unlike any other machine in the short staple spinning mill in the
range of tasks it has to perform, namely all the basic operations (Fig. 02):

Sliver feed: A card or draw frame sliver is fed through a sliver guide via a feed roller and
feed table to a rapidly rotating opening roller.
Sliver opening: The rotating teeth of the opening roller comb out the individual fibers
from the sliver clamped between feed table and feed roller. After leaving the rotating
opening roller, the fibers are fed to the fiber channel.

Fig. 04: Principle of Rotor spinning

Fiber transport to the rotor: Centrifugal forces and a vacuum in the rotor housing
causes the fibers to disengage at a certain point from the opening roller and to move via
the fiber channel to the inside wall of the rotor.
Fiber collection in the rotor groove: The centrifugal forces in the rapidly rotating rotor
cause the fibers to move from the conical rotor wall toward the rotor groove and be
collected there to form a fiber ring.
Yarn formation: When a spun yarn end emerges from the draw-off nozzle into the rotor
groove, it receives twist from the rotation of the rotor outside the nozzle, which then
continues in the yarn into the interior of the rotor. The yarn end rotates around its axis
and continuously twists-in the fibers deposited in the rotor groove, assisted by the
nozzle, which acts as a twist retaining element.

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Yarn take-off, winding: The yarn formed in the rotor is continuously taken off by the
delivery shaft and the pressure roller through the nozzle and the draw-off tube and
wound onto a cross-wound package. Between takeoff and package, several sensors
control yarn movement as well as the quality of the yarn and initiate yarn clearing if any
pre-selected values are exceeded.

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CHAPTER FOUR

DISCUSSION ON YARN
PROPERTIES TO BE COMPARED

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3.1 Yarn Evenness:

Yarn evenness deals with the variation in yarn fineness. This is the property, commonly
measured as the variation in mass per unit length along the yarn, is a basic and important
one, since it can influence so many other properties of the yarn and of fabric made from it.
Such variations are inevitable, because they arise from the fundamental nature of textile
fibers and from their resulting arrangement.
IMPORTANCE OF YARN EVENNESS:
Irregularity can adversely affect many of the properties of textile materials. The most
obvious consequence of yarn evenness is the variation of strength along the yarn. If the
average mass per unit length of two yarns is equal, but one yarn is less regular than the
other, it is clear that the more even yarn will be the stronger of the two. The uneven
one should have more thin regions than the even one as a result of irregularity, since
the average linear density is the same. Thus, an irregular yarn will tend to break more
easily during spinning, winding, weaving, knitting, or any other process where stress is
applied.
A second quality-related effect of uneven yarn is the presence of visible faults on the
surface of fabrics. If a large amount of irregularity is present in the yarn, the variation in
fineness can easily be detected in the finished cloth. The problem is particularly serious
when a fault (i.e. a thick or thin place) appears at precisely regular intervals along the
length of the yarn. In such cases, fabric construction geometry ensures that the faults
will be located in a pattern that is very clearly apparent to the eye, and defects such as
streaks, stripes, or other visual groupings develop in the cloth. Such defects are usually
compounded when the fabric is dyed or finished, as a result of the twist variation
accompanying them. Twist tends to be higher at thin places in a yarn. Thus, at such
locations, the penetration of a dye or finish is likely to be lower than at the thick regions
of lower twist. In consequence, the thicker yarn region will tend to be deeper in shade
than the thinner ones and, if a visual fault appears in a pattern on the fabric, the pattern
will tend to be emphasized by the presence of color or by some variation in a visible
property, such as crease-resistance controlled by a finish.
Other fabric properties, such as abrasion or pill-resistance, soil retention, drape,
absorbency, reflectance, or luster, may also be directly influenced by yarn evenness.
Thus, the effects of irregularity are widespread throughout all areas of the production
and use of textiles, and the topic is an important one in any areas of the industry.

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Characteristics
3.1.1. "UNEVENNESS" OR "IRREGULARITY":
The mass per unit length variation due to variation in fiber assembly is generally known as
"IRREGULARITY" or "UNEVENNESS". It is true that the diagram can represent a true reflection of
the mass or weight per unit length variation in a fiber assembly. For a complete analysis of the
quality, however, the diagram alone is not enough. It is also necessary to have a numerical
value which represents the mass variation. The mathematical statistics offer 2 methods:
a) Irregularity U%: It is the percentage mass deviation of unit length of material and is caused
by uneven fiber distribution along the length of the strand.

Fig05: Mass variations (U)

=

a = shaded area
= mean value
Xi = mass value at a given point in time
L = test length

b) Coefficient of variation C.V. %: In handling large quantities of data statistically, the

coefficient of variation (C.V. %) is commonly used to define variability and is thus wellsuited to the problem of expressing yarn evenness. It is currently probably the most widely
accepted way of quantifying irregularity.

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Fig 06: Mass variation (CV)

s = standard deviation
= mean value
L = test length
Relation between CV & U:

=
= 1.25
:

= 1.25

c) Index of Irregularity: Index of irregularity expresses the ratio between the measured
irregularity and the so-called limiting irregularity of an ideal yarn.
Let, CVlim = the calculated limit irregularity
CV= the actual irregularity

Then, Index of Irregularity, =

By calculating the limit irregularity and then measuring the actual irregularity, we can judge the
spinning performance.
d) Relative count: Count Deviation relating to the length of yarn tested, the mean
corresponds to 100%

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3.1.2. Imperfections:
Yarns spun from staple fibers contain "IMPERFECTIONS". They are also referred to as
frequently occurring yarn faults. They can be subdivided into three groups
a) Thick places: Thick places lie in the range of +50% with respect to the mean value of
yarn cross-sectional size and their length ranges from 4-25mm.
b) Thin places: Thin places lie in the range of -50% with respect to the mean value of
yarn cross-sectional size and their length ranges from 4-25mm.
c) Neps: Neps lie in the range of +200% (+280% for OE rotor yarn) with respect to the
mean value of yarn cross-sectional size and their length is about 1mm.
The reasons for these different types of faults are due to raw material or improper preparation
process.
Imperfection Index= Thick (+50%)/km + Thin (-50%)/km + Neps (ring +200% & rotor +280)/km

Fig 07: Thick, Thin & Neps

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3.2 Hairiness:
The hairiness H corresponds to the total length of protruding fibers divided by the length of the
sensor of 1 cm. The hairiness is, therefore, a figure without a unit.

Fig 08: Yarn Hairiness Measurement

Impact of Hairiness on textile fabrics6:
Deteriorate physical appearance
Harsh feeling.
Stripe formation due to different hairiness value: As protruding fiber also absorbs dyes so
area of higher hairiness becomes darker.
Higher hairiness causes higher pilling tendency.
Characteristics
Sh = Standard deviation of hairiness
Sh (L) = Standard deviation of hairiness at cut lengths of 1, 3, 10, 50, 100 m

3.3 CSP (Count Strength Product):

C.S.P is the product of English count and strength of yarn in pound.
i.e. C.S.P = Strength of yarn in pound x Count in English system
Again, English count is the no. of hanks in 840 yards length per 1 pound weight of yarn.

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CHAPTER FIVE

EXPERIMENTAL DETAILS

25

5.1 Process Parameters

Parameters
Fiber type
Staple length
Fiber fineness
Drawn Sliver Hank
Roving Hank
T.M.
Yarn Count

Ring spinning
100% cotton (CIS Uzbekistan)
28 mm
4.1 Mic
70 grain/yard
0.78 Ne
4.3
20 Ne

Rotor spinning
100% cotton (CIS Uzbekistan)
21mm
4.3 Mic
70 grain/yard
4.7
20 Ne

5.2 Machines Description

The test results presented in this report were obtained with the use of the machines operating
in Square Textile Mills Ltd.

a) Machineries for yarn production:

I.

Ring Spinning Machine

Manufacturer: Zhangjiagang Jinqiao Light Machinery Co. Ltd
Model: FA507
Origin: China
Number of Spindle: 1008
Spindle speed: 14,500

II.

Rotor Spinning Machine

Manufacturer: Schlafhorst
Model: SE12
Origin: Germany
Number of Head: 312
Rotor R.P.M.: 1, 25,000

b) Machineries for yarn testing:

Uster Tester 5
Wrap reel
Wrap block
Lea strength tester
Electrical balance

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CHAPTER SIX

RESULTS AND DISCUSSIONS

27

6.1 Test Result

Properties

Ring spun
yarn(Carded)

Rotor spun
yarn

Mass
variation

U%

11.03

10.17

CVm%

13.81

12.68

Imperfection

Thin(-50%)/km

3.0

6.3

Thick(+50%)/km

98.0

32.8

Neps(+200%)/km(Ring);
(+280%)/km(Ring)

135.2

24.7

IPI

236.2

63.8

5.37

4.75

Sh

1.15

1.19

2300

1750

Hairiness
Strength (CSP)

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6.2 Discussion
5.2.1 Comparison of mass variation:
Evenness of Rotor spun yarn is higher than ring spun yarn. Both U% and CVm% is higher in ring
spun yarn.

Mass variation
16
14
12
10
8

Ring
Rotor

6
4
2
0
U%

CVm

Fig 09: Comparison of mass variation between ring of rotor spun yarn

Roller drafting system is liable to produce more uneven yarn in ring spinning
and less irregularity in rotor spun yarn is the result of positive influence of
back doubling.

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5.2.2 Comparison of imperfection:

Imperfection of rotor spun yarn is very much lower than ring spun yarn but rotor spun yarn
contains more thin places.

250

200

135.2
150

100

98

50

24.7
3

32.8
6.3

Ring
Rotor

Thin/km (-50%)

Thick/km (-50%)

Neps/km (Ring+200% & Rotor+280%)

Fig 10: Comparison of IPI between ring of rotor spun yarn

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5.2.3 Comparison of hairiness:

Hairiness of rotor spun yarn is lower than ring spun yarn.
5.5
5.4
5.3
5.2
5.1
5
Hairiness

4.9
4.8
4.7
4.6
4.5
4.4
Ring

Rotor

Fig 11: Comparison of Hairiness between ring of rotor spun yarn

The higher hairiness of ring-spun yarns is caused by the uncontrolled passage

of edge fibers in roller drafting and friction occurred in balloon control ring.
In rotor spinning the wrapper fibers wound crosswise around the yarn help to
bind-in loose fiber ends.

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5.2.4 Comparison of strength (CSP):

Strength of ring spun yarn higher than rotor spun yarn.
2500

2000

1500

CSP
1000

500

0
Ring

Rotor

Fig 12: Comparison of CSP between ring of rotor spun yarn

Strength of rotor spun yarn is lower due to its core twist structure.

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5.2.5 Summary of the experiment:

Mass variation of Rotor spun yarn is about 8% less than Ring spun yarn.
IPI of Rotor spun yarn is about 73% less than Ring spun yarn.
Hairiness of Rotor spun yarn is 12% less than Ring spun yarn.
Strength of Rotor spun yarn is 24% less than Ring spun yarn.

120
100

80
60
Ring
Rotor

40
20
0
Mass variation

Imperfection

Hairiness

Strength

Yarn Properties

Fig 13: Comparison of all yarn properties of rotor spun yarn with ring yarn

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CHAPTER SEVEN

CONCLUSION

Except strength all the properties of rotor spun yarn is better than ring spun yarn. However,
though rotor spinning is more economic than ring spinning but still now it does not become an
alternative of ring spinning except its vast application in short staple(1 inch) spinning.

34

CHAPTER EIGHT

REFERENCES
1.
2.
3.
4.

www.rieter.com
W. Klein; Manual of Textile Technology; Vol.5; New Spinning System
W. Klein; Manual of Textile Technology; Vol.1; Short Staple Spinning
Lnenschloss, J., and Hummel, E.; 1968. Comparative studies on open-end and ring-spun
yarns.

5. U_T5_S800_The_measurement_of__the_yarn_diameter.pdf
6. Application Handbook of UT5