Fibres are classified into two main classes. Namely;
- The natural fibres; which are gotten from either plant e.g cotton and linen; or from animals e.g wool and silk.
- The man-made fibres; which are gotten from cellulose based fibres e.g viscose rayon and acetate or from non-cellulose based e.g nylon, polyester and acrylics.
PROPERTIES OF FIBRES
- COTTON: Cotton is a vegetable fibre. It is made from cotton balls of the cotton plant. The cotton fibres surround the seeds of the cotton plant.
PROPERTIES OF COTTON
- It absorbs moisture quickly
- It is reasonably strong and durable
- It washes well
- It can be dyed easily
- It is cool and comfortable to wear.
LINEN
This Is a vegetable fibre. It is gotten from the stem of flax plant. The flax plant grows in countries such as France, Russia, it is not produced in Nigeria.
PROPERTIES
- It is stronger than cotton
- It is absorbent and cool to wear
- It dries slowly
- It washes well
- It is a good conductor of heat.
WOOL
This is an animal fibre. It is gotten from the hair of fleece f sheep. The hair of camel, Angora, rabbit or angora goat can also be used. It is commonly produced in Britain, Australia e.t.c.
PROPERTIES
- A wool fibre has a scaly appearance
- It is stronger when dry than when wet.
- It gives the smell of burning feather when burnt.
- It makes a very absorbent fabrics
- It is readily affected by bleach
SILK
This is an animal fibre. It is produced by silk worm. Silk is produced chiefly in France, Italy, China and Japan.
PROPERTIES
- It is a very strong fibre
- It is smooth and fine
- It is warm to touch
- It absorbs moisture easily
- It is an expensive fibre
VISCOSE RAYON
This is made by treating wood pulp or cotton linters with certain chemicals
PROPERTIES
- It is not very strong especially when wet
- 2. it has smooth surface
- 3. resemble sink in appearance only
ACETATE
It is made from wood pulp or cotton linters treated with acetic and acid acetic anhydride
PROPERTIES
- it dries quickly
- it looses strength when wet
NYLON
This is the family name for all synthetic polyamides
PROPERTIES
1.It is very strong
- It is light in weight
- It requires no ironing
- It is durable.
MANUFACTURING PROCESS OF FIBRES
A COTTON; are processed from bolls by the following steps;
- Ginning
- Baling
- Clearing
- Carding
- Combing
- Drawing
- Spinning
- Dyeing
- Weaving
LINEN: Is produced from the stem of flax plant by the following steps
- Retting
- Breaking and scotching
- Combing
- Spinning
WOOL: wool fibres are produced into two forms
- Worsted yarn; this is made from long fibres
- Woollen yarn; this is made from short fibres
The major steps for the manufacturing of both forms are;
- Clipping
- Sorting
- Scouring
- Carbonizing
- Carding
- Spinning
- Weaving
RAYON
- The cellulose (wood pulp or cotton linters) is first purified
- The cellulose is then treated with the right chemicals. It is then changed into a thin liquid.
- The liquid is then forced through a nozzle containing many fine holes called a spinneret. The rayon filaments or fibres are produced
- The filaments are spun into yarns. The yarns are woven into fabric
See also
Assignment
Outline the manufacturing process of the following
- Silk
- Nylon
- Acetate.
EXPERIMENT AND TEST ON DIFFERENT FIBRES
| FIBRES | APPEARANCE TEST | MICROSCOPIC TEST | BURNING TEST |
| COTTON | It is cool to feel and fairly firm
It has a dull appearance |
Fibre is flat
Has a twist characteristics Resembles a twisted ribbon |
Burns in and out of flame
Smells like burning paper Leaves very little grey or white powdery ash |
| LINEN | It has a cool crisp handle
Dull appearance |
fibre is round and smooth with swellings or nodes at interval | Similar to cotton |
| WOOL | Has a projecting fibre
Rough and dull appearance Warm to handle |
Wool fibre is covered with scales that overlap and point towards the top of the fibre | Does not burn but smoulders(i.e it burns slowly
producing smoke but not flames Gives smell of burning hair or feathers |
| SILK | Has a smooth and rich lustrous appearance
Soft, smooth and resilient to harm |
De-gummed fibre is very fine and has a smooth surface
Raw silk fibres are seen as double filamentss |
Similar to wool |
| VISCOSE RAYON | has a smooth fairly soft handle
A smooth lustrous appearance It may resemble silk |
Fibre is rounded with groves running length-wise
It looks like transparent rods streaked with wavy line |
Similar to cotton |
| ACETATE | Is silk-like and it drapes well
Has smooth and soft handle Maybe dull or lustrous |
Fibre is rounded with one or more surface ridges which look like thickened lines | Burns like cotton and gives a smell of
acetic acid or vinegar Smell like boiling celery |
| NYLON | Fabric is very smooth and slippery | Filament looks like a smooth glass rod | Shrinks like flame and melts into hard white or
grey or bead.
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