Linear Density
The mass of a fiber bundle measured in kilograms per kilometer of length provides a standardized metric for heavy slivers and rovings. Using the unit kilotex is common in the early stages of flax processing, where the thick fiber bands are too heavy to be measured in traditional tex or denier. This measurement allows the mill to monitor the throughput of the carding and combing machines.
Mill Application
Processing raw flax requires converting the loose fiber sheets into a continuous sliver that has a very high mass per unit length. The mill tracks the kilotex value at the output of the carding engine to ensure that the machine is delivering a consistent volume of fiber to the drawing frames. When the drawing frames draft the sliver, they reduce the linear density from several kilotex down to a few tex for the final spinning yarn.
This systematic reduction is monitored at each drawing stage to prevent drafting errors and uneven yarn thickness.
Quality Control
Maintaining a stable linear density at the carding stage prevents variations in the final yarn count. If the kilotex of the initial sliver fluctuates, the subsequent drafting passes will produce a yarn with high coefficient of variation. This metric represents the first line of defense against fabric defects in the weaving department.
