Learning outcomes of this week

The students will be able to:

➢ Describe the objectives of combing Process

➢ Understand the degrees of Combing

➢ Describe the objectives of lap preparation

➢ Explain the methods of lap preparation
 WHAT IS COMBING?

COMBER IS A PROCESS BY WHICH QUANTITY OF SHORT

FIBERS FRAGMENTS OF IMPURITIES PRESENT IN A
CARDED OR DRAWN SLIVER ARE MINIMIZED TO GIVE A
CLEAN SLIVER.
HAVING MORE OF A RECTANGULAR STAPLE DIAGRAM,
WITH THE VAST MAJORITY OF THE CONSTITUENT FIBERS
IN A STRAIGHTENED AND PARALLEL STATE.
 COMBING EFFECT
YARN,STRENGTH,EVENESS AND
IMPERFACTION :

• COMBING IMPROVES THE YARN STRENGTH, EVENNESS AND DECREASES THE

IMPERFECTIONS DUE TO REMOVAL OF SHORT FIBRES AND MAKING THE
FIBRES MORE PARALLEL.
• THE PERCENTAGE IMPROVEMENT IN THESE PROPERTIES DEPEND UPON THE
AMOUNT OF NOIL EXTRACTED.
• THE PERCENTAGE IMPROVEMENT IS GREATER WITH REMOVAL OF HIGHER
AMOUNT OF NOIL.
Objectives of Combing

❖ To remove neps present in the carded sliver.

❖ To remove the fiber shorter than a predetermined length.
❖ To remove remaining impurities in the comber lap.
❖ To make the fiber more parallel and straight.
❖ To produce a uniform sliver of required weight per unit length.
Degrees of Combing
Combers Noil
The wastage which is removed by the comber m/c during
processing is known as comber’s Noil. It is expressed as
percentage. It is mainly of short fibers and neps. In some cases
combing is classified as per the amount of Noil removed. These
classes are as under:

• Semi combing if Noil %age is up to 10.

• Regular combing if Noil %age is between 10 and 20
• Double combing if Noil %age is between 20 and 30
Objectives of Lap preparation

❖ To arrange the slivers in a lap form with the greatest possible

degree of evenness in cross section.
❖ To draw the slivers in order to straighten the fibers slightly.
❖ To present the fibers with leading hooks so that long fibers
may not be extracted at comber
Preparation of combing
 The combers are fed with a small lap produced by
combining several slivers. It is extremely
important that these laps are prepared properly,
as the raw material delivered by the card is
unsuitable for combing as regards both form and
fiber arrangement.

 If card slivers were just combined and fed to the

comber, true nipping by the nipper plates would
occur only on the high points, with the risk that the
nippers could not retain the less firmly
compressed edge zones of the slivers (Fig. 1).
This is because the slivers are not flattened.
Fig. 1– Clamped slivers between the nipper plates

The fibres could then be pulled out as clumps by the

circular combs during combing operation. A sheet with the
greatest possible degree of evenness in cross section, with
uniform thickness is therefore required as in-feed to the
comber.
Fibers projecting from the nippers
 Good parallel disposition of the fibers within the
sheet, along the length of the lap sheet is a further
prerequisite. If the fibers lie across the strand,
even long fibers shown as “b” (Fig. 2) are
presented to the circular combs as if they were
short fibers and get eliminated as noil. A short
fibre is shown as “a”. Even though the fibre “b” is
longer than “a”, its extent along the material
passage is same as that of “a”. Hence, it also treat
like the fibre “a”. This means a long fibre is
unnecessary lost as noil. Appropriate preparatory
machines are needed to prepare the material so
that it meets requirements.
The fiber arrangement must also be taken into
account, i.e. in this case the disposition of the
hooks. If the comber is to straighten hooks, as it is
intended to, then the fibers must be presented to it
with leading hooks. The carded slivers have trailing
hooks as the majority hooks (more than 50%) as the
sliver emerges out of the calendar rollers in the
carding machine. Each time the sliver is packed in a
can and taken out, the majority hooks change. For
example, as the sliver is withdrawn from the card
can, the original trailing hooks (as the sliver went
into the can) are now counted as the leading hooks as
can be seen in Fig. 3. Hence, at this stage
majority hooks are the leading hooks.
 Trailing and leading hooks in the drafting arrangement

Leading hooks in the comber

Sliver passage from carding to comber
Reversal of the dispositions of hooks between card and comber
Fig. Hooked fiber

Fig. Hook Formation

Fig.Hook removal
Composition of hook in card sliver

• More than 50% have trailing hooks;

• About 15% have leading hooks;
• About 15% have doubled hooks,
• And less than 20% have no hooks.
Even number of processes in between card
and the comber will ensure that the majority
hooks as they are presented to combing
are leading
hooks.
 In earlier days sliver lap and ribbon lap
machines were used. During the nineteen-
nineties the sliver lap machine / ribbon lap
machine process was replaced by the draw
frame / sliver doubling machine process over
all staple ranges.
The two preparation methods: conventional method (Batt doubling) and
modern method (Sliver doubling)
Preparation methods: conventional method (a, batt doubling) and new method (b, sliver doubling)
 Different types of passages used for combing preparatory
• the earlier web or lap doubling process (conventional method)
employing a sliver lap machine followed by a ribbon lap machine; and
today mostly.
• the sliver doubling process, in which a normal draw frame (without
leveling) provides the first passage and a sliver doubling machine
follows as the second passage.

Fig. – Overview of
the two lap forming
processes in use
 Web doubling and sliver doubling processes
These are the methods of comber lap preparation
Commercially two systems of preparing the comber lap are used:
(1) Lap/web Doubling System
(2) Sliver Doubling System

(1) Lap Doubling System

In the lap doubling comber preparation system the carded sliver is
passed through a sliver lap machine followed by a ribbon lap machine.
Lap doubling method became more apparent for longer-staple material
(i.e.. For higher waste elimination rates).
(2) Sliver Doubling System
In the sliver doubling process the carded sliver is given first passage
through a normal draw frame and then series of drawn slivers are given
second passage through a sliver doubling machine.
It was considered that the sliver doubling method tended, to be
advantageous for processing shorter staple material (i.e.. with, low-
to-medium generation of noil).

Now a days, with modern preparation machines it is difficult to detect

any difference between the two techniques, so that a trend toward sliver
doubling is become established.
Overview of the two laps forming processes in use
Rieter E 4/1 ribbon lap machine
Rieter E 2/4A sliver lap machine
PREPARATION OF THE STOCK FOR COMBING

 Outline
 In general, two systems are still in use
 Conventional web doubling process employs a sliver lap
machine followed by a ribbon lap machine but today
modern machine has mostly two passages
 sliver doubling process, in which a normal draw frame
(without leveling) provides the first passage and a sliver doubling
machine follows as the second passage
 Conventional System

 In this process the sliver lap machine is the first step machine
in which. 24 slivers from the card are usually fed together and
side by side over a table into a drafting
arrangement.
 By this process a loose form of web is created with a small draft
of around 1.5. After pressing and smoothing, this web is rolled
up to a lap by calendar rollers.
Working of classical lap preparation system

Six such laps are simultaneously forwarded to the ribbon lap machine. These webs pass
individually through separate drafting systems arranged side by side. The six webs are
thus formed run over 6 deflecting plates and then over a collecting table in to a pair of
calendar rollers. The 6 webs, now overlapping, are pressed together to form a compact
web and rolled up to a lap on the subsequent lap rollers. An inherent feature of this
classical system is very low productivity which make it unsuitable for modern
combing preparation. Draft at this machine is in the range of 4-6.
Modern Lap Preparation System (sliver doubling system)

Rieter Unilap Former

 Working of Unilap Former
On the Unilap machine, the material flow starts with the creel, consisting of two feed
rails. In normal operation 12 cans are laid out under each roller-assisted feeding
creel. Altogether, this gives a total of 24 doublings. The pre-draw frame slivers run
over several guide rollers to the drafting system.

The web created by the draft of 1.3 to 2.5 passes over two deflecting plates onto the
web table on which the webs are superimposed. Calendar rollers draw these
superimposed webs from the table to the lap winding assembly. The strong
compression created between the calendar rollers forms a new web, which is rolled
into a lap in the lap forming assembly.

Empty tubes are automatically exchanged for full laps. Transport of the laps to the
combing machine is semi-automatic or fully automatic.
Main Parts of Unilap Former

• Creel for drawing sliver cans

• Assisting and guide rollers
• Drafting systems
• Table for webs
• Calendar rollers
• Lap forming unit
• Automatic lap changing system
How does the material preparation affect combing?

 The degree of parallelization has a very great influence on

the result of the combing operation, both from the viewpoint
of both economics and quality. Very high level of parallelization
also has adverse effect on combing as that of poor
parallelization. It is important to find the optimum level of
parallelization. Lack of parallelization and longitudinal
orientation, leads to elimination of longer fibers together
with the noil, as already explained. Loss of good fibers
due to fiber disorder is reinforced to the extent that the circular
combs are overloaded during passage through a disordered
batt. Due to this, they pluck and tear at the stock, thereby
carrying away bunches of fibers.
Parallelization of the Fibers in the batt
 Similar phenomenon happens with an excessively thick batt. With same machine
settings, the amount of noil decreases proportionately with increased
parallelization of the fibers and with a decrease in batt thickness (below the
optimum). It therefore does not always mean that more noil is
automatically associated with better yarn quality. The correct goal is always a
predetermined waste elimination level.

 On the other hand, an understanding of the disadvantages of excessive

longitudinal fiber orientation needs a better understanding of the combing
process and in particular what is happening at the detaching stage. While
detaching, between one fifth and one sixth of the fibers presented to the detaching
rollers are drawn out of the batt. This means only few fibers are drawn out of a
thick layer of feedstock.
Parallelization of the Fibers in the batt
 During this stage, impurities, neps, foreign matter and so on are held back in
the sheet because of the retaining power of the thick layer. This retaining
power, and hence the so-called self-cleaning effect of the batt, will be all the
greater the higher the disorder of the fibers within the sheet.
 If the fibers have an excessively high degree of parallelization, the retaining
power of the batt can be so severely reduced that it is no longer able to hold
back the neps as it usually does. Some of these neps also pass through the
top comb. Neppiness of the product is increased.
 A second disadvantage is that if the fibers are too highly ordered, the single
layers of the lap do not hold together well (it lacks cohesive strength of the
layers compared with that of the fiber-to-fiber adhesion at the surface of the
lap layers) and mutual separation layer from layer is disturbed.
 A high degree of parallelization always leads to considerable hairiness of the
lap. Furthermore, the lap weight must be kept low. The degree of
parallelization depends on the total draft between the card and the comber.
 Batt Thickness (weight)
 The self-cleaning effect of the batt exerts a considerable influence on the combing operation.
This effect arises from the retaining power of the fibers relative to impurities, which depends
not only on the disorder of the fibers but also on their quantity. A thick batt always exerts greater
retaining power than a thin one. At least up to a certain level, the clamping effect of the
nippers is also better with a higher batt volume.

 Adversely, a thick batt always exerts a heavy load on the comb and this can lead to uncontrolled
combing. In this case, the fiber farthest from the circular combs (upper side of the nipped
web) may escape the combing operation, since the combs are no longer able to pass through
the whole of the layer.

 The unfavorable effect of overloading the comb is greater than the favorable effect of the
retaining power of the sheet. A compromise must therefore be struck between quality and
productivity. Depending on staple length (and Micronaire value), the ideal batt weight lies
between 72 and 80 ktex for short and medium staple cotton, and between 64 and 74 ktex for
long staple cotton, for fibre length longer than 1 ¼ inches.
 Evenness of the Batt Sheet
 The more even the batt sheet (web) is across its width, the better the clamping effect at
the nipper clamping line. Evening-out of the web is therefore of considerable
significance. It is very important that the slivers are arranged neatly relative to one
another and evenly over the entire working width at the lap machine.

 The most effective method of obtaining a high degree of evenness of the sheet is high
doubling in sheet form, as in the classical system, a combination of sliver lap machine
and ribbon lap machine (Fig. 4).

 In this respect, the operation of the ribbon lap machine was always ideal in the past.
Nowadays, however, the disadvantages far exceed the advantages, e.g. the very high
fiber parallelization. Caused by the high drafts in two stages, resulting in insufficient
cohesion of the sheet. It does not permit high speeds and therefore high
productivity compared with the sliver lap system. The self-cleaning effect also suffers
from this high degree of parallelization.
 The Disposition of the Hooks

 Fibers must be presented to the comber so that leading hooks predominate in the
feedstock. This influences not only the opening out of the hooks themselves, but also the
cleanliness of the web. If the batt is fed in the wrong direction, the number of neps rises
markedly. It also increases the soiling and loading of top combs and circular combs, and finally
the neppiness.

 Both quantity and form of fiber hooks depend mainly upon the stiffness of the fibers; the
latter rises to the second or third power with increasing coarseness of the fibers (Micronaire
value). The hooks also display different forms; fine, long fibers will always exhibit more
and longer hooks (horseshoe shape) than short, coarse fibers (hockey-stick shape).

 The role of fiber hooks in the spinning process therefore becomes more significant as fibers
become finer. When short fibers are being spun, fiber hooks are of secondary importance.
 Main Parts of Sliver lap Machine and Ribbon Lap Machine

• Creel for card sliver cans • Creel for unwinding of laps

• Assisting rollers • Drafting system
• Table for sliver side by side arrangement • Deflecting plates
• Drafting system • Table for web overlapping
• Calendar rollers • Calendar rollers
• Lap forming unit • Lap forming unit
• Automatic lap changing system • Automatic lap changing system
Technical data of Sliver lap Machine and Ribbon Lap Machine

• Range of doubling = 18-32 • Range of doubling = 06

• Range of lap weight = 50-75 g/m • Range of lap weight = 50-75 g/m
• Delivery speed = 50-150 m/min • Delivery speed = 50-65 m/min
• Draft = Up to 2 • Draft = Up to 6
• Lap width = 250 mm • Lap width = 300 mm
• Max. diameter of Lap = 450 mm • Max. diameter of Lap = 450 mm
• Drafting system = 4/6 • Drafting system = 3/4
• Break draft range = 1.05-1.30 • Break draft range = 1.05-1.34
• Total draft range = 1.5-2.0 • Total draft range = 4.0-6.0
• Lap weight = 20 lbs. • Lap weight = 20 lbs.
Technical data of Unilap Former
Raw material cotton up to 1 5/8˝ staple
Batt weight up to 80 k Tex
Feedstock up to 70 k Tex per drafting arrangement
Doublings up to 28
Draft of the drafting arrangement 1.36 - 2.2 with 3/3 roller arrangement
Lap width 300 mm
Lap weight, net up to 25 kg
Delivery speed 70 to 200 m/min