Functional synthetic fiber materials

The Ministry of Science and Higher Education of the Russian Federation 
Kazan National Research Technological University 
Y. Timoshina, A. Teptina
FUNCTIONAL SYNTHETIC FIBER
MATERIALS 
Monograph 
Kazan 
KNRTU Press 
2023 

UDC 677.494 
Published by the decision of the Editorial Review Board  
of the Kazan National Research Technological University 
Reviewers: 
Ph.D. in Engineering M. Salyakhova 
CEO, Ferry Watt LLC Y. Zhelonkin 
Timoshina Y. 
Functional synthetic fiber materials : monograph / Y. Timoshina, A. Teptina; 
The Ministry of Education and Science of the Russian Federation, Kazan National Research Technological University. – Kazan : KNRTU Press, 2023. – 
120 p. 
ISBN 978-5-7882-3400-7 
Market tendencies and prospects of application of functional synthetic fiber materials are considered. Fiber-forming polymers and functional fillers used for making 
modern fibrous materials are described. There has been a review of methods of chemical, physical, electrophysical, electrochemical and plasma modification of synthetic fibrous materials. 
It is intended for bachelors and masters, studying in the direction of "Material science and technology of materials". 
Prepared at the department of Plasma Technology and Nanotechnology of High 
Molecular Weight Materials. 
UDC 677.494 
ISBN 978-5-7882-3400-7 
© Y. Timoshina, A. Teptina, 2023 
© Kazan National Research Technological 
University, 2023 
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C O N T E N T
Introduction 
..................................................................................................................... 4 
1. Market trends and prospects for the application of synthetic fiber materials .......... 6 
2. Promising functional synthetic fiber materials 
........................................................ 11 
3. Synthetic fiber-forming polymers for functional materials .................................... 15 
4. Functional fillers for synthetic fiber materials ........................................................ 19 
5. Modern methods of forming fibers and fabrics for functional materials ............... 25 
6. Methods of chemical modification of the surface of synthetic fiber materials 
...... 33 
7. Methods of physical, electrophysical and electrochemical modification
of synthetic fiber materials surface .......................................................................... 40 
8. Plasma methods for surface modification of synthetic fiber materials .................. 48 
9. Equipment for plasma modification and metallization of synthetic materials 
....... 59 
Conclusion .................................................................................................................... 78 
References 
..................................................................................................................... 79 
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I N T R O D U C T I O N
Synthetic fibers and textile materials based on them are one of the 
main types of textile industry products and determine the basis of national 
economies of developed countries. Dynamic development of production of 
synthetic fibers is determined by the need for large output volumes and 
a wide assortment, low material and energy consumption of technological 
processes, ecological compatibility and possibility of recycling of used 
chemical substances, along with achievement of limiting volumes in production of natural fibers. These productions have a wide raw material base, at 
the same time ensuring the production of textile products of various assortment and quality. Among the multi-tonnage types of synthetic fiber materials, polyester, polyolefin and polyamide fibers lead in the world production 
volume. 
Along with the growth of production and consumption of traditional 
synthetic fibers, there is a steady growth of industry interest in functional 
synthetic textile materials. Various types of functional textile materials for 
special purpose items, household items, clothing and footwear are considered 
to be promising areas of the textile and light industry. Textile materials with 
special functional properties meet the trend of textile production development of the early XXI century to create "smart textiles", textile materials with 
feedback effects on environmental factors. 
Among textile materials with special functional properties, materials 
with protective properties against factors of biological, chemical and anthropogenic hazards are of particular interest. Developing functional textile materials based on synthetic fibers can be carried out both by direct functionalization of fibers and threads by methods of chemical modification, application, exposure to a variety of radiation, fields, media, and a combination of 
these methods, and by introducing functional components and fillers into the 
material structure by deposition, sputtering, incorporation, fixation by polymeric binders, etc. 
Despite the advantages of currently existing physical, electrophysical 
and electrochemical methods, they are of limited application for modification 
of synthetic textile materials. Electrophysical methods are characterized by 
sufficiently high process temperatures, which can cause destruction of the fiber-forming polymer, difficulties in processing materials of considerable 
length, at the same time, electrochemical methods in most cases, due to the 
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use of large amounts of reagents, are not resource-efficient and environmentally friendly. 
The methods based on plasma gas discharges, which exclude the use of 
toxic liquid reagents, are an alternative to the above methods of modification 
of synthetic fibrous materials and are characterized by the sparing temperature 
and energy parameters of exposure, allowing to change the surface and physical and mechanical properties of materials while maintaining the complex of 
main operational characteristics. 
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.  M A R K E T  T R E N D S  A N D  P R O S P E C T S  F O R
T H E  A P P L I C A T I O N  O F  S Y N T H E T I C  F I B E R  
M A T E R I A L S  
Textile production is a key component of the industrial culture of developed countries, and synthetic fibers are one of the most important products of the chemical industry, largely determining the basis of national economies [1–3]. The level of development of the textile industry determines the 
solution of socio-economic problems, such as the provision of the population 
with clothing, household goods and textile materials, including technical purposes. 
Global production volumes of natural fiber materials are gradually approaching their agro-industrial limit, which is estimated at 30–35 million tons 
per year [4]. Production of all types of natural fibers requires agricultural 
land, special climatic and agro-technical conditions; depends on the yield and 
is seasonal, requires significant labor costs [5]. Currently, the textile market 
of natural fibers is dominated by cotton, the global output of which is 
22.8 million tons, showing an increase of 5–8 % per year. World production 
of wool shows a steady annual decline in volume and amounts to 1.1 million 
tons per year [6]. Bast fibers in South Asia, India, and Bangladesh show 
a certain positive trend in production volumes [7]. 
Due to constantly growing demand and limitations of natural fibers 
output, development of textile industry will be carried out at the expense of 
increase in production of chemical and, first of all, synthetic fibers. Global 
consumption of all kinds of fibers is more than 90 million tons, and about 
70 % of the world textile market is occupied by chemical fibers, of which 
64 % are synthetic. The market leaders are China and the USA, while Taiwan, Vietnam, South Korea, India and Myanmar are showing an increase in 
production volumes [8]. At the same time, developed countries increase and 
control capacity in knowledge-intensive industries, while developing countries increase capacity in less technological segments of the industry. 
The dynamic development of production of synthetic fibers is determined by the need for large output and a wide range of products, characterized by the available raw material base, high profitability of production, allows you to increase the output of textile products, while reducing the specific consumption of raw materials [9]. The world multi-tonnage production 
of synthetic textile materials is diverse in its assortment and quality of 
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products. Using modern polymer synthesis technologies and methods of material modification, textile products of various purposes with a wide range of 
properties are produced [10]. Among synthetic fibers, polyester fibers are in 
the lead with over 30 % of total synthetic fiber market output, followed by 
polypropylene (19 %), polyamide (13 %) and polyacrylonitrile (9 %) fibers 
by production volume [6]. 
The main type of products based on synthetic fibers is complex yarns, 
the output of which increases annually by 4–5 % and amounts to more than 
23 million tons. The predominant part of complex yarns (about 79 %) is used 
in the textile industry for fabrics, knitted materials and carpets. Polyester 
(PES) with a share of 86 %, polyamide (PA) and polypropylene (PP) yarns 
prevail in the textile complex yarn segment [11]. 
In the world production of woven and knitted materials in 2010–2020, 
the segment of Asian countries, mainly due to China, increased from 73.4 % 
to 80 %, and the absolute consumption of raw materials for the production of 
textiles grew by 22.7 %. The global market for the consumption of woven 
and knitted materials for household purposes has shown a growth of 17.6 % 
over the last decade [12]. The leading countries are China, India, Vietnam, 
South Korea and Bangladesh. The range of textile materials produced mainly 
consists of PES fabrics and knitted fabrics for clothing, furniture upholstery 
and household products. Since 2010, the carpet yarn market has seen  
a 2–4 % annual drop in the consumption of PP and PA yarns, while the demand for PES carpet yarn has been increasing [13]. 
The market of nonwovens is actively developing, where the leader is 
also China with the production of about 1.4 million tons per year. Production 
of spunbond and spunlace nonwovens is growing at a faster rate, with output 
growth of 20 and 15 % per year, respectively. Nonwovens are produced 
mainly from PP fibers, which account for 80 % of the total production in this 
segment [14]. 
The global production volume of high-strength technical textiles 
mainly consists of PES, PA, PP and polyethylene (PE) yarns. The main consumer of these materials is the automotive industry, with consumption growing by 4 % per year. About 85 % of the complex yarns used in this industry 
are PA and PES, which are used in the production of textile tire cords for 
reinforcement of automobile tires [15]. Currently, the share of South Asian 
countries in the market of technical yarns is 60 % for PA and 55 % for PES. 
This market segment is characterized by the expansion of sales of technical 
yarns to countries that do not have their own production, but have a developed network of processing plants [9]. 
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The largest producers of PES fibers and yarns are international companies Sabanci Group and Sakosa (Turkey), Koch Industries, Inc., Honeywel, DuPont INVISTA (USA), Diolen Industrial Fibers (Netherlands), Slovensky Hodvab (Slovakia), Toray and Toyobo (Japan), KuagTextil GmbH 
(Germany), Elana S.A. (Poland), whose business includes the production of 
petrochemical products as raw materials for textile industries, as well as fibers, complex yarns and textile materials used mainly in the production of 
tire cord, carpeting and sporting goods [16]. The largest production facilities 
are located in the United States, Europe, and joint ventures in China and 
South Korea. 
The main producers of PA fiber materials are Arkema (France), BASF 
(Germany), Aquafil Technopolymers (Italy), Yuyao City Yihong Plastication 
Co. Ltd. (China), FCFC (China), Lanxess (Germany), DSM (Netherlands), 
Mobi Ltd. [17]. PA manufacturers produce a wide range of polyamide pellets, 
fiber materials, technical textiles and their modifications [18]. 
Such global companies as Astona GmbH (Germany), DSM (Holland), 
Astrofil (Austria), Fiber Visions (USA), ISD and Shandeng High Perfomance Fibers Co. Ltd. (China). Extensive raw material base and high profitability of production of PP and PE fiber materials allows these producers to 
produce a wide range of products, including high-strength fibers, nonwovens 
and upholstery materials, technical textiles, fiber materials for reinforcement 
of composites [7]. 
In Russia the major producers of synthetic fibers and yarns are JSC 
"Kamenskvolokno" (Rostov region), JSC "Komitex" (Komi Republic), JSC 
"RB Group" (Vladimir region), LLC "Argon" (Saratov region), LLC "Composite fiber" (Saratov region), JSC "Gazprom Khimvolokno" (Volgograd region), LLC "Kurskkhimvolokno" (Kursk region). The highest production 
volume among all federal districts is in the Central Federal District – 44.5 % 
of the total volume, the second place with a share of 20.1 % is occupied by 
the Southern Federal District, the third place is occupied by the Northwestern 
Federal District with a share of 16.6 % [19]. 
The production of PP technical yarns in Russia is small – about 
1.5 thousand tons per year, their output is mainly concentrated at the enterprises LLC SPPN (Ivanovo region), JSC Setka (Nizhny Novgorod region), 
LLC AS-Press and LLC Stropa-Yug (Krasnodar region), producing multifilament yarns, various types of textile tapes, filter materials and sports knitwear. JSC Komitex provides 60 % of the all-Russian output of PP and PE 
nonwovens [20]. The Russian leaders in production of PA monofibers and 
complex 
yarns 
are 
PAO 
KuibyshevAzot 
(Tolyatti), 
LLC 
Anid 
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(Yekaterinburg), OJSC Khimvolokno (Shchekino), OJSC Klinvolokno 
(Klin). The enterprises Kurskkhimvolokno LLC (Kursk) and Sibur-Volzhsky 
OJSC (Volzhsky) produce not only fibers, but also cord fabrics on their basis, 
and about 70 % of PA textile products they produce are exported [17]. Russian production of PES materials is represented by the enterprises of JSC RB 
Group Vladimir Polyether (Vladimir), LLC Selena Khimvolokno (Karachaevo-Cherkessia Republic) and OJSC Komitex (Syktyvkar), engaged in 
processing of waste polyethylene terephthalate (PET) into staple fiber [21]. 
The share of synthetic fibers in the total value of products of the Russian chemical industry is about 4 %, while the volume of imports is 60 %. 
Consumer demand for synthetic fibers in Russia exceeded their availability 
on the market by 6 %, which is 67 % higher than the volume of own production [22]. Synthetic textile fibers and materials based on them produced in 
Russia correspond to foreign analogues by the level of basic physico-chemical and physical-mechanical parameters, but they are inferior to them by defectiveness, uniformity and stability of indicators [23]. Thus, today Russian 
textile production is dependent on imports of synthetic fibers, the share of 
which is gradually decreasing [24]. 
The draft strategy of light industry development in the Russian Federation for the period till 2025 notes that the share of synthetic fibers consumption will increase from 45 to 65–70 %. [25]. At the same time, the range of 
synthetic fibers used and produced on an industrial scale is not wide enough. 
The main volume of global production of PES fibers is directed to the production of textured polyester yarns for fabrics and knitwear for household 
purposes, as well as fabrics for interior decoration and car interiors. PES 
yarns based on tetramethylene terephthalate have a high elasticity and are 
used in the production of hosiery. PES technical textile is used in production 
of tire cords, rubber products (RP), filtering and electrical insulating materials [26, 27]. Due to low hygroscopic properties, materials based on PP fibers 
are widely used in the production of disposable nonwovens for medical purposes. PP nonwovens produced by direct aerodynamic molding methods and 
used as filtering, geotextile and covering materials for agricultural purposes 
[28, 29]. PE yarns and fibers are used for reinforcement of composite materials, in the production of harnesses and textile tapes with increased strength 
[30, 31]. PA fibers are mainly used in the production of hosiery, special textiles, technical yarns, cord fabrics, high-strength ribbons, ropes, textured carpet harnesses [32]. 
The mentioned fibers and yarns of general purpose, high-strength 
yarns, as well as nonwovens and knitted materials are among the most 
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common types of products. Among the multi-tonnage types of synthetic fiber 
materials, the leading ones in the world production volume are PES, PP and 
PA fibers. Production of elastomeric fibers, heavy-duty high-modulus yarns, 
heat-resistant and fire-resistant fiber materials, as well as functional textile 
materials with specific physical, physical-chemical and chemical properties 
can be referred to medium- and low-tonnage ones [33]. 
Thus, textile materials made of synthetic fibers currently constitute the 
bulk of textile goods and will retain the leading position in the coming decades because of the availability of raw materials and low production costs. 
Traditional textiles made of synthetic fibers are steadily in demand by the industry, but generally do not contain the potential for a dramatic increase in 
consumer and performance properties. Against this background, there is 
a trend for functional and multifunctional textile materials. The most interesting solutions from an economic point of view are textile-based solutions 
made of synthetic fibers. 
Technologies of functional materials manufacturing are based on 
modification and functionalization of textile materials of known structure 
and properties, starting from regulation of physical and chemical surface 
properties, chemical structure of fiber-forming polymer, degree of crystallinity, up to development of principally new materials with controlled microtopography of fibers and fabrics, application of functional coatings, obtaining 
multilayer systems containing functional fillers [34–43]. 
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