Example of spandex

Spandex or elastane is a synthetic fiber known for its exceptional elasticity. It is stronger and more durable than rubber, its major non-synthetic competitor. It was invented in 1959 by DuPont chemist Joseph Shivers. When first introduced it revolutionized many areas of the clothing industry. It is one of the most used and best materials in lingerie. Image File history File linksMetadata Bluelycra. ... Image File history File linksMetadata Bluelycra. ... Synthetic fibres are the result of extensive research by scientists to increase and improve upon the supply of naturally occurring animal and plant fibres that have been used in making cloth and rope. ... Elasticity is a branch of physics which studies the properties of elastic materials. ... This does not cite any references or sources. ... For the musical form, see Invention (music). ... Year 1959 (MCMLIX) was a common year starting on Thursday (link will display full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ... Dupont, DuPont, Du Pont, or du Pont may refer to: // E.I. du Pont de Nemours and Company, the worlds third largest chemical company Du Pont Motors Gilbert Dupont, a French stock brokerage part of retail banking network Crédit du Nord ST Dupont, a French manufacturer of fine... Joseph C. Shivers, in 1959, while working for DuPont, developed Spandex which was released under the brand name LYCRA(R). ... Clothing protects the vulnerable nude human body from the extremes of weather, other features of our environment, and for safety reasons. ... Assorted lingerie styles. ...

"Spandex" is a generic name and not derived from the chemical name of the fiber, which most manufactured fibers are, but derived by shifting around the syllables in the word expands.^[1] "Spandex" is the preferred name in North America; elsewhere it is referred to as "elastane". North America North America is a continent [1] in the Earths northern hemisphere and (chiefly) western hemisphere. ...

The most famous brand name associated with spandex is Lycra, a trademark of Invista (formerly part of DuPont). Such is Lycra's prominence it has become a genericised trademark in many parts of the world, used to describe any kind of spandex. Invista discourages such use, protecting its trademark vigorously. INVISTAâ„¢ is the worlds largest integrated fiber, resin and intermediates company. ... A genericized trademark (Commonwealth English genericised trade mark), sometimes known as a generic trade mark, generic descriptor or proprietary eponym, is a trademark or brand name which is often used as the colloquial description for a particular type of product or service as a result of widespread popular or cultural...

Other spandex trademarks include Elaspan (also Invista's), Dorlastan (Asahi Kasei) and Linel (Fillattice). Asahi Kasei Corporation is a Japanese company. ...

Physical structure of fiber

Spandex is produced as monofilament or fused multifilament yarns in a variety of deniers.^[1] Monofilaments are round in cross section. Multifilaments are partly fused together at intervals and are found in fibers with deniers of 40 and above. ^[1] The deniers of a spandex fiber range from 20 to 4300 and are determined by what the product use will be. 20 denier spandex, for example, is used in ligthweight support hoisery, in which a large amount of stretch is necessary for the products use and durability. Coarser yarns, with a denier of 1500 to 2240 denier, have less stretch capacity and can be used for support hosiery tops, swimwear, and foundation garments.^[1]

Chemical composition and molecular arrangement

Spandex consists of rigid and flexible segments in the polymer chain. The flexible segments give the fiber the stretch and the rigid segments hold the chain together.^[1] When force is applied, the folded flexible segments straighten out and then return to their original position when the force is removed. The proportions of flexible and rigid segments in the polymer chain determines the amount of stretch.

Spandex fiber production

According to David Palame, spandex fibers are produced in four different ways including melt extrusion, reaction spinning, solution dry spinning, and solution wet spinning. All of these methods include the initial step of reacting monomers to produce a prepolymer. Once the prepolymer is formed it is reacted further in various ways and drawn out to produce a long fiber. The solution dry spinning method is used to produce over 90% of the world's spandex fibers.^[2]

Solution dry spinning

Step 1: The first step is to produce the prepolymer. This is done by mixing a macroglycol with a diisocyanate monomer. The two compounds are mixed together in a reaction vessel to produce a prepolymer. A typical ratio of glycol to diisocyanate is 1:2. ^[2]

Step 2: The prepolymer is further reacted with an equal amount of diamine. This reaction is know as chain extension reaction. The resulting solution is diluted with a solvent to produce the spinning solution. The solvent helps make the solution thinner and more easily handled and then can be pumped into the fiber production cell.

Step 3: The spinning solution is pumped into a cylindrical spinning cell where it is cured and converted into fibers. In this cell, the polymer solution is forced through a metal plate, called a spinneret. This causes the solution to be aligned in strands of liquid polymer. As the strands pass through the cell, they are heated in the presence of a nitrogen and solvent gas. This process causes the liquid polymer to chemically react and form solid strands. ^[2]

Step 4: As the fibers exit the cell, an amount of solid strands are bundled together to produce the desired thickness. Each fiber of spandex is made up of many smaller individual fibers that adhere to one another due to the natural stickiness of their surface. ^[2]

Step 5: The resulting fibers are than treated with a finishing agent. This can be magnesium stearate or another polymer. This process prevents the fibers sticking together and aid in textile manufacture. The fibers are then transferred through a series of rollers onto a spool.

Step 6: When the spools are filled with fiber, they are put into final packaging and shipped to textile manufacturers.

Spandex fiber characteristics

Spandex is classified as an elastomeric fiber. An elastomer is a natural or synthetic polymer that, at room temperature, can be stretched and expanded to twice its original length. After removal of the tensile load it will immediately return to its original length.^[1] Along with spandex, rubber and anidex (no longer produced in the United States) are considered elastomeric fibers. Spun from a block copolymer, these fibers exploit the high crystallinity and hardness of polyurethane segments, yet remain "rubbery" due to alternating segments of polyethylene glycol. A heteropolymer, also called a copolymer, is a polymer formed when two different types of monomer are linked in the same polymer chain. ... For other uses, see Crystal (disambiguation). ... A polyurethane is any polymer consisting of a chain of organic units joined by urethane links. ... Polyethylene glycol (PEG) and polyethylene oxide (PEO) are polymers composed of repeating subunits of identical structure, called monomers, and are the most commercially important polyethers. ...

This yields the following combination of materials properties:

• can be stretched over 500% without breaking
• able to be stretched repetitively and still recover original length
• lightweight
• abrasion resistant
• poor strength, but stronger and more durable than rubber
• soft, smooth, and supple
• resistant to body oils, perspiration, lotions, and detergents
• no static or pilling problem
• very comfortable
• easily dyed

Look up Pill in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ...

Major spandex fiber uses

• Apparel and clothing articles where stretch is desired, generally for comfort and fit, such as:
  • athletic, aerobic, and exercise apparel
  • wetsuits
  • swimsuits/bathing suits
  • competitive swimwear
  • netball bodysuits
  • brassiere straps and bra side panels
  • ski pants
  • slacks
  • hosiery
  • leggings
  • socks
  • Skinny jeans
  • belts
  • underwear
• Compression garments such as:
  • surgical hose
  • support hose
  • cycling shorts
  • wrestling singlet
  • One piece rowing suits
  • foundation garments
  • motion capture suits
• Shaped garments such as bra cups
• Home furnishings, such as microbead pillows

In clothing it usually appears as a small percentage of total material. In North America it is rare in men's cheaper clothing, but prevalent in women's. It is used more often in women's as their clothes are usually more form-fitting. It is usually mixed with a greater percentage of one other textile such as cotton, polyester, or others. This keeps the reflection of light reduced to being hardly noticeable. Girls wearing formal attire for dancing, an example of one of the many modern forms of clothing. ... A surfer in a wetsuit. ... A swimsuit, bathing suit or swimming costume is an item of clothing designed to be worn for swimming. ... Image:Speedo. ... A netball game in Australia Netball is a non contact sport similar to, and derived from, basketball. ... Bra - front Bra - back A brassiere ( ; , commonly referred to as a bra, ) is an article of clothing that covers, supports, and elevates the breasts. ... A shaped, twin-tip alpine ski. ... Trousers are now acceptable clothing for men or women. ... Hosiery describes undergarments worn directly on the feet and legs. ... Girl wearing modern leggings Leggings are any of several sorts of fitted clothing to cover the legs. ... For other uses, see Sock (disambiguation). ... Skinny jeans are a style of jeans that have a snug fit all the way through the legs and end in a small leg opening. ... Bold textA belt is a flexible band, typically made of leather or heavy cloth, and worn around the waist. ... A pair of mens briefs Undergarments, also called underwear or sometimes intimate clothing, are clothes worn next to the skin, usually under other clothes. ... Physical compression is the result of the subjection of a material to compressive stress, resulting in reduction of volume. ... Daniel Czajkowski wearing cycling shorts Cycling shorts (also known as bike shorts or bicycling shorts) are short, skin-tight legwear designed to improve comfort and efficiency while cycling. ... A wrestling singlet (or simply singlet) is clothing commonly used in amateur wrestling. ... There are very few or no other articles that link to this one. ...

Fiction

In comic books, superheroes and superheroines commonly wear costumes thought to be made of spandex. However, early superhero comics predate the invention of spandex (Superman-1938, Batman-1939, Captain America-1941). Printing processes for early comics only rendered images with distinctly separate solid blocks of color well. Overprinting and color mixing yielded inconsistent results and bad looking muddy colors. A comic book is a magazine or book containing the art form of comics. ... For other uses, see Superhero (disambiguation). ... A superhero is a fictional character who is noted for feats of courage and nobility and who usually has a colorful name and costume and abilities beyond those of normal human beings. ... Superman is a fictional character and comic book superhero , originally created by American writer Jerry Siegel and Canadian artist Joe Shuster and published by DC Comics. ... Batman (originally referred to as the Bat-Man and still referred to at times as the Batman) is a DC Comics fictional superhero who first appeared in Detective Comics #27 in May 1939. ... This article is about the superhero. ...

Because spandex is skintight, as many superhero costumes appear to be drawn, and because spandex is almost exclusively made in the same bright solid colors as the early Golden Age comics, the after-the-fact assumption of spandex composition was made. The same assumption of costume composition is also made for latex / rubber garments, which are also solid in color and skin-tight.

'70s/'80s rock/metal

During the 1970s and 1980s, spandex leggings rose in popularity amongst many rock and heavy metal bands, particularly British NWOBHM and American glam metal bands. The main reasons for this massive, almost universal, embracement of spandex amongst rock/metal bands was due to the fact that spandex retained its stretchy, tight fitting quality, even after extended wear. Denim jeans and leather strides tended to sag and wear, while spandex did not. Also, the stretchiness of the material did not constrict musicians movement onstage, allowing them to perform high kicks, or to rest their feet on monitors. Some of the rock/metal bands who used spandex leggings included Queen, Ratt, Mötley Crüe, Judas Priest, Scorpions, Iron Maiden, Saxon, Whitesnake, Bon Jovi and Twisted Sister, as well as many other bands. By the end of the 1980s and the decline of glam metal, and metal in general, with the advent of grunge, spandex fell out of fashion and many older glam bands found themselves being referred to as 'Spandex Jockeys'. The New Wave of British Heavy Metal (NWOBHM) emerged in the late 70s, in part a reaction to the contemporary decline of traditional heavy metal bands such as Led Zeppelin, Deep Purple and Black Sabbath, all three of which had been submerged by a mixture of personal problems, tiredness and... Glam metal is a sub-genre of heavy metal music that arose in the late 1970s - early 1980s in the United States. ... This article is about the material denim. ... For people named Leather, see Leather (surname). ... Queen are an English rock band formed in 1970 in London by guitarist Brian May, singer Freddie Mercury and drummer Roger Taylor, with bassist John Deacon joining the following year. ... Ratt is an American sleaze metal and semi glam metal band that formed in San Diego and enjoyed significant commercial success during the 1980s. ... Mötley Crüe (pronounced Motley Croo) is an American heavy metal band from Los Angeles, California in 1980. ... For other uses, see Judas priest (curse). ... For other bands named The Scorpions or other meanings of scorpion, see scorpion. ... Iron Maiden are a British heavy metal band from east London. ... Look up Saxon in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ... Whitesnake is an English hard rock band, founded in 1977 by David Coverdale (formerly of Deep Purple). ... Bon Jovi is a hard rock band originating from Sayreville, New Jersey. ... Twisted Sister is an American hard rock band from New York City. ... Grunge music (sometimes also referred to as the Seattle Sound) is an independent-rooted music genre that became a commercially successful offshoot of hardcore punk, thrash metal, and alternative rock in the late 1980s and early 1990s. ...

70s/80s country

While glam metal bands were getting into the spandex craze, so were many glam-oriented Country stars, especially women like Dolly Parton, Margo Smith, and Dottie West. Dottie West is probably the best-known out of any Country singer for wearing spandex outfits on stage. Glam metal is a sub-genre of heavy metal music that arose in the late 1970s - early 1980s in the United States. ... Dolly Rebecca Parton (born January 19, 1946) is an American, Grammy Award-winning country music singer/songwriter, composer, author, actress, and philanthropist. ... Margo Smith (Born April 9, 1942, Dayton, Ohio) is a country music singer. ... Dottie West (born Dorothy Marie Marsh October 11, 1932 – September 4, 1991) was an American country music singer. ...

See also

• Textile
• Spandex fetishism
• Darlex
• Zentai
• Glam Metal

For other uses, see Textile (disambiguation). ... Contortionist performing, Sept. ... Darlex, spelled Darlexx commercially, is a material similar to Spandex, but woven to be much thicker and hence more constricting and more opaque. ... A zentai suit. ... Glam metal is a sub-genre of heavy metal music that arose in the late 1970s - early 1980s in the United States. ...

References

External links

• Elaspan spandex – company website
• Lycra spandex – company website