Home / News / First All Black Twaron Fiber Produced

First All Black Twaron Fiber Produced

27 Sep '11

3 min read

Teijin Aramid started the production of the first all black aramid fiber, Twaron Black, in Emmen. Twaron, normally golden yellow in color due to the chemical process, now is completely black for the first time. With its three production sites in the Netherlands, Teijin Aramid is responsible for more than half of the world's production of aramid.

Aramid is difficult to dye by nature, but it is now possible to produce black threads of the same quality. Twaron is five times stronger than steel at the same weight and is often used in bullet-proof vests, ropes and cables, sails and fire fighter suits.

At the request of customers in the sailing and sports industries, Teijin Aramid started to investigate other colors for Twaron. Twaron Black will soon be seen for the first time in the sails of the world's largest ocean sailing race, the Volvo Ocean Race.

For the threads to become completely black, they are not dyed afterwards, like cotton fibers. The production process has been adjusted to inject the fiber with the black dye during the process. This makes it the first black aramid fiber with characteristics that are equivalent to the standard golden yellow fiber. Gert Frederiks, CEO of Teijin Aramid, explains: “With Twaron Black, it is possible to combine the special characteristics of the aramid fiber with a beautiful look. Black aramid fibers have already been produced in the world, but they do not have the same characteristics (modulus) as the standard Twaron aramid fiber.”

Aramid fibers are frequently used in water sports and sportswear, but combined with carbon. “For example, you often see the golden yellow of aramid in sails on a professional yacht or the underside of a canoe. With Twaron Black, it becomes part of the whole and maintains the same characteristics.”

About Teijin Aramid

Teijin Aramid is a subsidiary of the Teijin Group and world leader in aramids. Its products Twaron®, Sulfron®, Teijinconex® and Technora® are renowned for their strength, sustainability, safety, heat resistance and low weight and is used in different applications and markets including automotive, ballistic protection, marine, civil engineering, protective clothing, fiber optic cables and oil & gas. The four high performance fibers are produced in the Netherlands and Japan.

Teijin Limited, the holding company for the Teijin Group, is listed on the Tokyo and Osaka stock exchanges. The group had a consolidated turnover of USD 9.8 billion (JPY 815.7 billion) and USD 9.2 billion (JPY 761.5 billion) in assets in the fiscal year that ended on 31 March 2011. The Teijin Group has 17,542 employees, distributed over 150 different companies worldwide.

Teijin Aramid