Vertical and Horizontal Wicking of Water in Fabrics

摘要

This paper attempts to clarify the term 'wicking' which is the movement of waterin the capillaries of a fabric. It differentiates between 'regain', the amount of water vapour a fabric absorbs from the air and the amount of liquid water a fabric holds. The hydrophilic or water-loving and the hydrophobic, or water-hating properties of fibres are discussed in relation to their regain. Finally, the drying times of a wide range of fabrics are discussed in terms of the initial amount of water in the fabric, the regain and fibre type.