What Is Polyester Fabric?
Polyester is a synthetic fabric that’s usually derived from petroleum. This fabric is one of the world’s most popular textiles, and it is used in thousands of different consumer and industrial applications.
Chemically, polyester is a polymer primarily composed of compounds within the ester functional group. Most synthetic and some plant-based polyester fibers are made from ethylene, which is a constituent of petroleum that can also be derived from other sources. While some forms of polyester are biodegradable, most of them are not, and polyester production and use contribute to pollution around the world.
In some applications, polyester may be the sole constituent of apparel products, but it’s more common for polyester to be blended with cotton or another natural fiber. Use of polyester in apparel reduces production costs, but it also decreases the comfortability of apparel.
When blended with cotton, polyester improves the shrinkage, durability, and wrinkling profile of this widely-produced natural fiber. Polyester fabric is highly resistant to environmental conditions, which makes it ideal for long-term use in outdoor applications.
The fabric we now know as polyester began its climb toward its current critical role in the contemporary economy in 1926 as Terylene, which was first synthesized by W.H. Carothers in the UK. Throughout the 1930s and 1940s, British scientists continued to develop better forms of ethylene fabric, and these efforts eventually garnered the interest of American investors and innovators.
Chiffon fabric
Chiffon fabric was first made in France, but the production of this substance expanded worldwide as the Industrial Age picked up steam. By the first few decades of the 1900s, silk chiffon was in relatively wide production in the United States, and producers of this fabric in America were starting to show interest in replacing silk with another material for chiffon production.
Crepe fabric
Crepe fabric has no clear origin point in the history of human civilization. Since the concept behind crepe is so simple, many cultures have adopted forms of this fabric at one stage of development or another. For instance, Crepe is still used by Orthodox Greek women for mourning, and various cultures of the Indian subcontinent incorporate crepe into their traditional garments.
Satin Fabric
Satin Fabric refers to the weave of the fabric rather than the material. Satin is one of the three major textile weaves, along with plain weave and twill. The satin weave creates a fabric that is shiny, soft, and elastic with a beautiful drape. Satin fabric is characterized by a soft, lustrous surface on one side, with a duller surface on the other side. This is a result of the satin weaving technique, and there are many variations on what defines a satin weave.
Polyester manufacturing is water-thirsty
Acetate imitation fabric is created through an energy-intensive heating process and requires large quantities of water for cooling. If not managed properly, this can result in groundwater levels dropping and reduced access to clean drinking water, particularly in vulnerable communities where polyester is often manufactured.
More on those microfibres
Multiple studies have shown that synthetic fibres make up a good share of microplastics found in waters and are widely implicated as the source of pollution. It’s been suggested that more than 4,500 fibres can be released per gram of clothing per wash, according to the Plastic Soup Foundation.
Microfibres are so tiny they can easily move through sewage treatment plants. They do not biodegrade and bind with molecules from harmful chemicals found in wastewater. They are then eaten by small fishes and plankton, concentrating toxins and going up the food chain until they reach us. The consequences of microfibres on the human body have yet to be researched and revealed. Until then, here are our top tips on dealing with microfibres in clothing.
What Is Polyester Used For
Georgette printed fabric, as we all know, is often used for clothing, nowadays its more common to find blended cotton and polyester than full polyester. The main reason for this is the lack of breathability in pure polyester, and frankly few people like the look now. Blended fabrics also retain many of the benefits of polyester; being more resistant to wrinkling, having more stretch, and sometimes more resistant to wear.
Polyester is a synthetic fabric that’s usually derived from petroleum. This fabric is one of the world’s most popular textiles, and it is used in thousands of different consumer and industrial applications.
Chemically, polyester is a polymer primarily composed of compounds within the ester functional group. Most synthetic and some plant-based polyester fibers are made from ethylene, which is a constituent of petroleum that can also be derived from other sources. While some forms of polyester are biodegradable, most of them are not, and polyester production and use contribute to pollution around the world.
In some applications, polyester may be the sole constituent of apparel products, but it’s more common for polyester to be blended with cotton or another natural fiber. Use of polyester in apparel reduces production costs, but it also decreases the comfortability of apparel.
When blended with cotton, polyester improves the shrinkage, durability, and wrinkling profile of this widely-produced natural fiber. Polyester fabric is highly resistant to environmental conditions, which makes it ideal for long-term use in outdoor applications.
The fabric we now know as polyester began its climb toward its current critical role in the contemporary economy in 1926 as Terylene, which was first synthesized by W.H. Carothers in the UK. Throughout the 1930s and 1940s, British scientists continued to develop better forms of ethylene fabric, and these efforts eventually garnered the interest of American investors and innovators.
Chiffon fabric
Chiffon fabric was first made in France, but the production of this substance expanded worldwide as the Industrial Age picked up steam. By the first few decades of the 1900s, silk chiffon was in relatively wide production in the United States, and producers of this fabric in America were starting to show interest in replacing silk with another material for chiffon production.
Crepe fabric
Crepe fabric has no clear origin point in the history of human civilization. Since the concept behind crepe is so simple, many cultures have adopted forms of this fabric at one stage of development or another. For instance, Crepe is still used by Orthodox Greek women for mourning, and various cultures of the Indian subcontinent incorporate crepe into their traditional garments.
Satin Fabric
Satin Fabric refers to the weave of the fabric rather than the material. Satin is one of the three major textile weaves, along with plain weave and twill. The satin weave creates a fabric that is shiny, soft, and elastic with a beautiful drape. Satin fabric is characterized by a soft, lustrous surface on one side, with a duller surface on the other side. This is a result of the satin weaving technique, and there are many variations on what defines a satin weave.
Polyester manufacturing is water-thirsty
Acetate imitation fabric is created through an energy-intensive heating process and requires large quantities of water for cooling. If not managed properly, this can result in groundwater levels dropping and reduced access to clean drinking water, particularly in vulnerable communities where polyester is often manufactured.
More on those microfibres
Multiple studies have shown that synthetic fibres make up a good share of microplastics found in waters and are widely implicated as the source of pollution. It’s been suggested that more than 4,500 fibres can be released per gram of clothing per wash, according to the Plastic Soup Foundation.
Microfibres are so tiny they can easily move through sewage treatment plants. They do not biodegrade and bind with molecules from harmful chemicals found in wastewater. They are then eaten by small fishes and plankton, concentrating toxins and going up the food chain until they reach us. The consequences of microfibres on the human body have yet to be researched and revealed. Until then, here are our top tips on dealing with microfibres in clothing.
What Is Polyester Used For
Georgette printed fabric, as we all know, is often used for clothing, nowadays its more common to find blended cotton and polyester than full polyester. The main reason for this is the lack of breathability in pure polyester, and frankly few people like the look now. Blended fabrics also retain many of the benefits of polyester; being more resistant to wrinkling, having more stretch, and sometimes more resistant to wear.