Abstract
Several commercial nonwoven fabrics have been stretched to varying extents, allowed to relax, and selected physical properties determined. In all cases, stretching beyond a threshold value of apprpximately 3 percent caused a decrease in initial modulus, shear modulus, bending length, and drape coefficient. The rupture stress showed a slight tendency to decrease,, while the breaking strain and the elastic recovery were sensibly unaffected. The relative change in initial modulus was found to be determined only by the amount of stretch applied, irrespective of the fabric construction. Shear modulus was approximately proportional to the initial modulus obtained from the stress-strain curve, which accords with the law of elastic distortion, although the derived value of Poisson's ratio was much higher than the measured value. It appears that bending length is the important factor in determining drape coefficient, since a unique relationship exists between these two parameters but not between shear modulus and drape coefficient. The improvement in drape obtained with the more extensible fabrics is significant but, for the majority of textile purposes, probably insufficient.
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