Transfer and Friction Characteristics of Sports Socks Fabrics Made of Synthetic Fibres in Different Structures

Sports socks fabrics produced from polyester, polypropylene, their modified forms Thermocool®, Polycolon®, in three different structures (single jersey, piquet, terry) were investigated for their skin-fabric friction, permeability (air and water vapour), liquid absorption and transfer (absorbency, immersion, absorption capacity, wetback and drying) properties. According to the results, the effect of structure is dominant for frictional characteristics but focusing on the material, polypropylene created a bulkier and lighter structure with lower friction coeffi­cients, an advantage for sports socks. The effect of structure is greater than the material also for some thermal comfort parameters, e.g. air permeability and absorbency. Focusing on materials, besides their better liquid transfer characteristics, modified forms of both fibres had worse performances for air permeability and absor­bency compared to their standard forms. Absorption capacity, wetback and drying performances were related to fabric density besides the polyester’s higher regain capacity. While Polycolon® had superiority for wetback performance against standard polypropylene, this was not the case for Thermocool®; however, both modified materials showed apparent superiority for drying periods. Piquet structures were advantageous for absorption capacity and wetback performances for polypropylene. For sports socks parts, specific needs can be met by changing the fabric structure. Considering the materials, polypropylene and Polycolon® can be recommended for both thermal and tactile aspects.