Needle Material and Surface Treatment
topic
Knitting needles are manufactured from spring steel strip through precision stamping, with surface treatments including chrome plating, titanium nitride coating, and DLC diamond-like carbon coating applied to reduce friction, increase corrosion resistance, and extend wear life against the abrasive contact between needle surfaces and yarn during the millions of knitting cycles per needle in service life.
Role
Determines needle service life and the friction characteristics that govern yarn tension during loop formation, with low-friction surface coatings reducing the yarn tension peaks from needle surface friction that cause yarn breakage at high machine speeds and extending needle service life in corrosive humid knitting environments where uncoated steel needles would corrode rapidly and require frequent replacement.