Superba - Technology - Heat setting

Continuous heat-setting process is carried out in saturated steam environment.

For processing carpet yarns, SUPERBA uses a patented heat-setting tunnel for setting the yarn twist and frieze in a continuous process, without tension, at high temperature and in saturated steam environment. The temperature ranges, combined with the saturated steam environment furthermore allow a perfectly gentle treatment of the yarns and prevent from any possible oxidation. SUPERBA have installed more than 1,200 lines world-wide, type TVP/2S, running with this principle.

Advantages of the process

Heat-setting in saturated steam affords numerous advantages :

Improvement of the synthetic yarn dyeing affinity by modification of the yarn molecular structure
Releasing tension in the yarn twist levels
Unrestrained development yarn bulk in order to obtain a better covering rate in the carpet

Running principle

The heat-setting tunnel patented by SUPERBA comprises 3 main parts :

a central area, whose length is between 9 to 18 metres in accordance with the materials being processed by the user

two tightening heads placed at each extremity of the central area.

They serve as locks, since the material can enter and exit without allowing steam to escape from the tunnel. The steam pressure which can reach 5 bars i.e. approx. 150°C. The saturated steam pressure is computer controlled and is in relation to the setting temperature, with a precision of +/- 0,5°C.

In the tunnel, the yarns are processed at different temperatures according to their composition :

140 to 145°C for polyester yarns
125 to 128 °C for polypropylene
125 to 135° C for polyamide yarns
110 tot 120°C for 100% wool and wool blends

The yarns can remain in the tunnel for between 45 seconds, in the case of propylene yarn and 2 minutes in the case of wool. In the latter case the 18-metre tunnel is the more appropriate option.

Over view :
Improvement of the dyeing affinity : comparative samples of carpets achieved with untreated yarn and a yarn heat-set in saturated steam in a SUPERBA tunnel on TVP/2S line,

Side view :
Yarn bulk development and increase of the yarn clearness and covering rate : untreated yarn and a yarn heat-set in saturated steam in a SUPERBA tunnel on TVP/2S line