AATCC TM 186 Weather Resistance: Exposure to UV Light and Moisture

In the AATCC TM 186 standard published by the American Association of Textile Chemists and Colorists (AATCC), all textile materials, including coated fabrics and products made from them, are a laboratory that uses fluorescent UV lamps as a light source and uses condensing moisture or water spray to wet it. Describes a test method for artificial weathering.

During this test, samples are exposed to a fluorescent UV light source and periodic wetting under controlled conditions. When resistance to degradation is evaluated under standard textile conditions, a comparison standard and exposure criteria are graded in terms of percent loss in strength or percent residual strength or color change of the material.

For the purposes of this standard,

• Burst strength refers to the force or pressure required to inflate and tear a textile with a force applied at right angles to the plane of the fabric under specified conditions.
• A fluorescent UV lamp refers to the radiation at 254 nm from a low pressure mercury arc converted into longer wavelength UV light by a phosphor.
• Irradiance refers to the radiant power per unit area as a function of wavelength expressed in watts per square metre.
• Radiant energy refers to energy emitted in space in the form of photons or electromagnetic waves of various lengths.
• Spectral energy distribution refers to the change in energy due to the source across the wavelength range of the emitted radiation.
• The standard atmosphere for testing (textiles) refers to air held at 21 plus/minus 1 degree and 65 plus/minus 2 relative humidity.
• Ultraviolet radiation refers to radiant energy in which the wavelengths of monochromatic components are smaller than those for visible radiation and more than about 100 nm.
• Weatherability refers to the ability of a material to resist degradation of its properties when exposed to climatic conditions.

Within the scope of the AATCC TM 186 standard, our organization, with its trained and expert staff and advanced technological equipment, among the numerous test, measurement, analysis and evaluation studies it has given for businesses in various sectors, It also provides weather resistance, UV light and moisture exposure testing services.