Ultron.com - Ultron Dataspec - Construction

Performance Advantages
Led by type 6,6, nylon accounts for 70% of all fiber used in contract carpeting in the U.S. today. There are many reasons why nylon dominates. Along with its pleasing aesthetics and broad styling flexibility, nylon 6,6 fiber offers the top performance that commercial environments demand:

It's stronger than any natural fiber, yet it is very light in weight.

It's versatile in that it can be manufactured in a range of tenacities or strengths, depending on its end use. Nylon can also be engineered to accept different types of dye and various levels of color.

It has a low moisture regain (3.8% to 4.5%) when compared with natural fibers. This means that nylon 6,6 fiber will absorb less moisture, even under high humidity conditions.

It's also very elastic and resilient, so it recovers well from crushing and stretching.

It will soften at temperatures above 350° F, but its actual melting point is about 480° F. This higher melting point offers more flexibility to manufacturers in both yarn processing and carpet manufacturing.

It's relatively resistant to harmful alkalis and organic solvents. For example, most stain removal and dry cleaning chemicals, detergents and soaps, bacteria, mildew and household insects will not significantly damage nylon 6,6 fibers. (Nylon 6,6 is susceptible to damage, however, from certain very strong disinfectants and mineral acids such as sulfuric, nitric, and hydrochloric acid.)

It's exceptionally long wearing and stays newer looking longer than other fibers.

Latest Improvements Solutia is the company that improved nylon 6,6 and our recent developments have advanced the characteristics of the original nylon 6,6 fiber even more.
	Today's nylon 6,6 has better cross-sections. It is available in triangular, hollow, trilobal and multilobal cross-sections. Ultron nylon features a mix of deniers (fiber weight/thickness) and delta and trilobal cross-sections. This cross-section provides many advantages including improved soil resistance, increased bulk and cover, a smoother "hand", reduced pilling and less cut-to-side contrast in cut and loop carpet.
	Research shows that carpet protected by the latest topical treatments stays newer looking two to three times longer than unprotected carpet. Ultron nylon with 3M Commercial Carpet Protector, for example, offers powerful protection against dry soil, as well as water-and oil-based soils - a combination many other ordinary topical applications don't offer. Liquids tend to bead up and dirt doesn't cling to the fiber surface, making routine maintenance simple.
	Early nylon 6,6 generated annoying electric shocks. Solutia developed a proprietary static control system that is permanently built into the fiber. This is accomplished by adding a special filament that contains a racing stripe of carbon down the outside length of the fiber to dissipate the static charge from the carpet surface down through the backing - much like a lightning rod. This method lasts the life of the carpet, unlike topical static control finishes, which can wash off during repeated carpet cleaning.
	Luster is another very important consideration in contract carpeting. Since generic nylon 6,6 is typically bright in appearance, delusterants such as titanium dioxide are added to the polymer before extrusion to control its luster. Depending on the amount of titanium dioxide used, the luster of nylon 6,6 fiber may range from dull to very bright. Ultron nylon features "Classic Luster" - the wool-like appearance of expensive natural fiber that is the most desired in commercial environments today.
	Another advance is the modification of nylon 6,6 to promote easier dyeing. This is accomplished by incorporating certain chemicals into the molten nylon before extrusion. Today, Solutia offers Ultron nylon with five different dye levels. These fibers will accept acid dyes in deep, regular, and light depths, and cationic dyes in regular and light depths - offering a much wider selection of distinctive color patterns.