I ran into a sheet that either had weird content or a huge thread count years ago. I'd bought it to do some curtains as it was the right color. Didn't matter what needle I put in the machine, they all popped and spit like I was sewing through steel wool. Take the sheet out, sew some regular garment fabric and no noise, no difficulty with the same needles. I think I bought it at a clearance outlet somewhere, so no telling where it was from originally. The packaging was intact, but didn't list any particulars like thread count or fabric composition. In retrospect, I'm wondering if it didn't have an early effort at fire retarding.
I've used sheets since and never have run across another one like that!