solution dyed carpet

Solution Dyed Carpet

Solution dyeing is a yarn coloration process in which pigment is added to the polymer melt before the fiber is extruded into yarn. The color, therefore, is an inherent part of the yarn itself.

Although solution dyeing does not offer as wide a color selection as other dye methods, its colors are the most permanent. Solution dyed yarn is highly resistant to color loss through fading from sunlight, ozone, or harsh cleaning agents and bleach. The solution dyeing process is, in addition, environmentally friendly and efficient, using little water or energy.

There are two basic extrusion processes: 1) a one-step/ continuous operation process that creates heathered solution dyed yarns; and 2) a two-step process batch operation creating solution dyed singles that may be air entangled, twisted, or twisted and heatset. In a one-step operation, resin polymer and color chips are poured into a hopper that feeds into the extruder. A typical formula for Type 6 nylon is 94% nylon 6 polymer and 6% color concentrate. The extruder is a long narrow cylinder with heat bands along its exterior. These heat bands melt the polymer while a turning auger or screw blends the resin and color concentrate. The auger is specific to the type of fiber being extruded polypropylene, nylon 6, or nylon 6,6. The molten polymer is forced through small openings of a spinnerette. The speed of the pump forcing the yarn through the spinnerette determines the denier of the yarn by controlling the number of grams of the resin and color concentrate combination fed through at a specified rate. The shape of the spinnerette openings determines the final fiber shape, such as delta, tri-lobal, or hollow filament. As the liquid exits the spinnerette, it is solidified, using cool air in a quenching process. Lubricants and antimicrobial agents are then added. A drawing process stretches the yarn aligning its molecules. A texturizer joins and crimps the filaments using high air pressure and temperature. The yarn then moves into a tack jet that knots the bundle at short intervals using a process similar to air entangling. The finished yarn is wound onto cones and is ready for use in carpet production.

In a two-step process, the yarn goes through extrusion, quenching, and the process of adding the lubricants and antimicrobial in a continuous operation. The singles are then moved to another area for the draw texturing process that yields a bulk continuous filament. The yarn is then wound onto cones and is ready for air entangling, twisting, or twisting and heatsetting before use in actual carpet production.

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