Acrylic fiber is a synthetic fiber made from polyacrylonitrile that was first developed by Dupont in the 1940s and trademarked under the name Orlon. Acrylic fiber is lightweight, durable, and can be extruded in both staple and filament form through wet and dry spinning process. Acrylic fiber staples can be used to modify cotton or wool. Solution dyed acrylic is often used in outdoor upholstery due to the high lightfastness property. Acrylic is also used as a fabric backing to stabilize and reinforce the upholstery and drapery fabric.
