Water-Jet Weaving of Glass and Technical Fibres
topic
Water-jet weaving of glass fibre and ceramic fibre technical fabrics uses the water medium's lubrication and cooling properties to reduce the inter-filament abrasion and heat generation that causes brittle inorganic fibre fracture at high-speed insertion, with water acting as both the insertion medium and as a lubricant that reduces filament-to-filament friction during the rapid bending and realignment of fibre bundles during shed traversal, making water-jet preferable to air-jet for some glass and ceramic fibre fabric constructions.
Role
Identifies the specific technical fibre application where water-jet's insertion medium provides functional advantages over air-jet from the lubrication and cooling effects that reduce the fragile inorganic fibre damage, with water-jet weaving of fibre glass fabrics for composites and printed circuit board substrates being a commercially significant application that exploits the water medium's protective properties for brittle technical yarns.