What is nylon:
history of successes and progress
The world, as we know, is composed of spirit and matter . The spirit moves the senses, matter takes possession of them. This is, perhaps, the most current definition we can give to the concept of existence. From the moment the first particle of matter entered the known universe, what was only potential became reality and life began. And with it an infinite transformation that led that first particle to evolve into what we represent as human beings today. A metamorphosis that continues today and not only concerns our bodies but also everything around us. In this sense, once again, the world of clothing is the one that has undergone this transformation the most. We have gone from wearing covering leaves to animal skins, in order to protect and shelter ourselves. Therefore, by accumulating experience and skill, we have managed to develop ever new fabrics obtained from fibers of animal and vegetable origin such as wool, linen, cotton, silk, hemp and ramie. But it is with the art of alchemy, here understood as chemical manipulation, that man takes full possession of the world around him, through the scientific analysis of matter and its transformations. And this is a fundamental step in the world of fashion, as it leads to the birth of plastic materials and nylons in particular, today used above all as a textile fibre, but also in the production of numerous products.
But what is nylon? Unfortunately, in recent times this material, and plastics more generally, have been surrounded by a negative aura due to the environmental problems linked to the creation and disposal process. However, if wood is the most versatile natural material in the world, nylon has over time become the most useful synthetic material. Equipped with many properties, nylon is a polymer, that is, a substance composed of many molecules, all the same, which are continuously repeated. Unlike traditional materials such as wood, iron, wool and cotton, nylon does not exist in nature but must be created through chemical processes that act on organic substances (carbon-based) found in natural materials such as coal or oil. In a first phase, the polymer is generated, a crystallized substance which is heated and therefore made more fluid before being extruded through a die. At this point the nylon hardens and the resulting fibers are ready to be loaded onto spools to increase strength and elasticity. The last step is therefore to spin the fibers to obtain the desired fabric, useful for the production of clothing or other items. A fabric that in many cases is developed in combination with other materials to make it more suitable for the specific application area. This procedure makes nylon a synthetic fabric, which differs from natural fabrics in that it does not come from plant or animal resources, usually spun without the use of complex chemical processes.
But if many of us are familiar with nylon, not everyone knows the name of Wallace Carothers, the brilliant and enigmatic inventor of this material who, unfortunately, afflicted by alcoholism and depression, found life unbearable and committed suicide in a hotel in Philadelphia in 1937. he year after his death, DuPont registered the patent and launched nylon globally, originally marketed as an alternative to silk stockings. A 1940 slogan defined nylon as a fiber "as strong as steel, as thin as a spider's web, yet more elastic than all common natural fibers." It was also for this reason that during the Second World War it took the place of hemp in the production of parachutes and at the end of the conflict, due to the shortage of traditional materials such as cotton and silk, it became one of the most used fabrics, first in the production of clothing and later for industrial and scientific purposes.
An urban legend, which would testify to the high American competitive spirit , has it that nylon is nothing other than the acronym for Now You Lose Old Nippon . This is because following the events of the Second World War, Japan prevented the import of silk from China which was used by the United States to weave soldiers' parachutes. Consequently, the United States got smart and created this new replacement material, giving it this acronym.
Nylon has several advantages, including wear and tensile strength, lightweight, and chemical resistance . It is crease-proof and non-deformable, elastic and easy to maintain. It is no coincidence that nowadays it is widely used, even together with elastane, in the production of technical clothing. Furthermore, although in recent years, as already mentioned, its use has been seen as harmful to the environment, there are many projects that have allowed a revisitation of this fabric. ECONYL ®, for example, is a type of nylon regenerated in a completely ecological way, recovering fishing nets abandoned in the seas around the world and textile production waste. The fabric derived from this fiber allows us at CasaGIN to create a vast range of eco-sustainable swimsuits and sportswear, characterized by perfect fit and breathability, soft and elastic; and also Oeko-Tex standard 100 certified, a certification that attests to the absence of substances that are harmful or harmful to health. But not only that: in 2015 scientific research led to the birth of a new fabric called Amni Soul Eco: it is the first polyamide yarn (i.e. a particular type of nylon) completely biodegradable in just 3 years and also Oeko-Tex certified . A notable step forward in environmental protection and also a response to the needs of increasingly attentive consumers. But above all, a novelty that will soon become part of the CasaGIN offer through high-performance sportswear. Stay tuned…
Discover our ECONYL® products:
Follow us on our journey towards a more sustainable and conscious lifestyle
HI! We are CASA GiN , a team from Padua that wants to demonstrate that every small decision can make a difference and a real change and that everything is possible if it is done with awareness and love.
Who we are
