The majority of synthetic and regenerated cellulose fibers are crimped after spinning in order to possess natural appearance and texture, warmth and handle. Depending on the circumstances in processing, fibers may experience complex combinations of tensile, compression, flexural and torsional, deformation, abrasion, etc. that may cause a variety of fiber damages. One of the most important applications of microscopy of textile fibers is in the study of damage. In this study optical microscopy and scanning electron microscopy were used to study the surface characteristic of lyocell fibers. More importantly, kink bands with sharp ridges and transverse lines in crimped lyocell fibers were observed. The angles between the kink band and the fiber axis were measured. Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy was applied, in combination with measurements of strength, fluidity and moisture regain to detect microstructural changes in lyocell fibers produced during crimping processing.

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