Cotton Fibers-Growth Production

       Cotton Fibers-Growth  Production

          Cotton is the king and Silk is the queen of textile world .Both are dominating the clothing area of the human essentials though the man-made technology developed to the extent of fulfilling the need of clothing. Cotton maintained its value in the history and continued to gain importance in present and future. History says, cotton was known by the people who lived 5000 years back. People were knew the technology of growing the cotton plant, spinning the yarn and get it woven. As we came to know, cotton dominating countries were India & surrounding countries, Egypt, Australia and American continent. Among these India was the main country producing cotton fiber. Cotton is one of the prime farming of Indian agriculture.

Cotton belongs to biological genus gossypium of Malvaceae family. The fiber is completely composed of cellulose.

Production of Cotton Fiber:

Cotton is cultivated in the Soil which is heavy and in an environment of frost free period and in moderate rain fall. Now a days even cotton plants are cultivating in lands of less rain fall but with getting land irrigated. The plants usually grow to to height of 1 to 2 meters depends on area and environment. It has 3 to 7 lobes with large size leaves give pods or boll containing seeds. These cotton seeds are surrounded by fibers grown from the surface of the seed. The boll of cotton seed is supported by flower makes plant & farm looks very beautiful and indicates the farmer to initiate harvesting.

Harvesting is done both mechanically as well as by hand. Boll picking machines and stripers are used in many developed countries. These machines will picks and separate the pods without damaging the plants .But in some developing countries still the cropping is done by farmer hand. Harvesting taken place only after the flower dried & pods gets open itself to sun shine. For cropping, the pods are in a state of complete dried & fibers gets free to exposed sunlight. The picked pods are taken for ginning process. Cotton covers 2.5 % of the worlds cultivated land.

Ginning & Packing of Cotton Fibers:

Ginning is the mechanical process of separating the fibers from the skin of the seeds. This process requires the fibers on attached to the seed must be free from moist. The machines are developed for greater efficiency and productivity have the mechanism of feeding cotton seeds passing though cylinders mounted with sharp saw and pinned belts. The machines separate the seed and fibers as well as through out the trash include dust particles, husk, leaves etc, whatever comes from the farm along with cotton pods.

                The fibers comes out from the gin machine are packed in compact form called ‘’Bale’’ with specific weight to send it to spinning mills for yarn manufacturing.

Organic Cotton Fibers:

                Organic cotton fibers are not differ from regular cotton fibers. Cotton plants are grown naturally without the use of synthetic fertilizers or pesticides. From sewn of seeds to harvesting of cotton pods involved use of biological cycles only.

Agricultural chemicals used for better yield with better quality. The intention behind to avoid use of fertilizers or any kind of chemicals in cotton cultivation is to protect the environment and soil. To have organic cotton and avoid use of pesticides, system had been developed in global level that regulate and control the process of cotton farming, which will include giving approval and supporting to the farmers to grow organic cotton. Each and every stage the process is monitored and certified by the governing body of organic cotton.

                Sustainable cotton project of the global leaders is helping formers to change their production of conventional cotton to organic cotton by avoiding chemicals and support biological growth. Organic cotton growth found successful in many countries like Turley, India, China, Pakistan, Brazil,  Australia , US and African Countries  mainly Egypt. And global apparel brands like Nike, Wallmart,C&A,H&M,etc have switched to organic cotton.

GOTS is the certificating body of global organic cotton and below is their vision and mission for textile industry.

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[The Global Organic Textile Standard (GOTS) was developed through collaboration by leading standard setters with the aim of defining requirements that are recognised world-wide and that ensure the organic status of textiles from harvesting of the raw materials through environmentally and socially responsible manufacturing all the way to labelling in order to provide credible assurance to the consumer.

Since its introduction in 2006 the Global Organic Textile Standard has already demonstrated its practical feasibility. Supported by the growth in consumption of organic fibres and by the remarkable demand for unified processing criteria from the industry and retail sector, it has gained universal recognition, enabling processors and manufacturers to supply their organic textiles with one certification accepted in all major markets. With the introduction of the logo and labelling system the GOTS is already visible not only on the shelves of natural textile shops but large-scale retailers and brand dealers as well. This is a milestone in consumer recognition and a strong acknowledgement of our reliable quality assurance concept.(Courtesy : GOTS)]

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Extra Long Staple (ELS)Cottons:

Fiber staple length has been classified into three groups.

1.       Short Staple-Up to 1,1/8inch long

2.       Long Staple-Between 1,1/8 inch to 1,1/4 inch long

3.       Extra Long Staple-Between 1,3/8inch and 2 inch long

Extra-long staple cotton fibers are belongs to biological specie Gossypium barbadense and staple length of 1,3/8 inch to 2 inches even to 2.5 inches .American pima cotton and Egyptian giza are the main Extra-long staple fibers we find easily in mills use. But other Extra-long fibers also developed in many other countries, but the output per hectare is less than pima and Giza. The countries which are successfully producing extra-long fibers are America, Egypt, Australia, Peru,Israil, Central Asian republics of Tadzhikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan ,China, West Indies and India.

These Extra Long Staple fibers are of very much demand in the production of fine quality fabrics with better hand feel, soft and strength. The application of these long fibers are of importance in meeting new fashion trends ,fittings as well as comfortness when used with other fiber combination.

The Extra Long Staple fibers cultivated in India are SUVIN in parts of Tamilanadu. And Hybrid DCH32 & Hybrid TCHB 213 are among the  10 commercially cultivated fibers finding in Karnataka, Tamilanadu and Madhya Pradesh. SUVIN is the only fiber belongs to the species Gossypium barbadense.

 

Pima Cotton: Pima cotton staple length are better than other fibers grown in US , Australia, Egypt and in other few countries. Originally this ELS fibre grew by Indianpima in south eastern US. Later it grows in other countires.

Giza: Giza Cottons are the long staple fine micro used for super fine light weight fabrics especially top weights. This variety is grown in Egypt closer to Nile river. The climatic condition of this land has good soil, good humidity and average temperature required for continuous growth of lengthy staple fiber.

Source:Based on qualification and knowledge of the blogger.

Cotton fiber | Cellulosic fiber | Vegetable fiber | plant fiber | natural fiber

 Cotton fiber | Cellulosic fiber | Vegetable fiber | plant fiber | natural fiber

Biological spiecies: Cotton fiber. This is the natural fiber extracted from cotton plant belongs to the biological family Gossipium under the category Mallow. 

Cotton growing countries : The cotton is grown in the tropical and sub-tropical of the globe and continents America, Africa, India, Australia. These are the major continents, major area of the globe, contributing to the growth of the cotton. American cotton,that is Pima cotton. African cotton, that is from country Egypt, Egyptian cotton. Indian cotton and Australian cotton. Even these are the major countries or continents growing cotton, but countries that is middle east countries, Europe countries, Pakistan, Bangladesh,even China, are all  growing cotton. But totally compared to globe, India is the major country contributing cotton production.

Chemistry of cotton fiber : The major content of cotton substance contained in the cotton fiber is cellulose, is the natural chemical element found in cotton fiber contributing about 90 to 92 % of its content in the cotton fiber. But this cellulose not only found in cotton plant, cellulose is also available in forest trees and other plants in woods. But in other wood and forest trees, the cellulose available is only 40 to 45%.But in case of cotton fibers, it is more than 90%.Because of this substance cellulose, the cotton is having demand. It gives the quality; it gives comfortness and other required properties of the clothing. The natural God gifted fiber cotton plant.

Cotton cultivation environment : The environment required to grow the cotton plant are, its required plenty of sunshine and moderate rain  fall of  about 60 to 120 cms. And soil need to be very heavy. And the cotton plant grows in frost free period.

Cotton plant : The cotton plant is having number of flowers. Each flower is producing a pod. The petals of the flower are covering this pod. When flower gets dried, the ball of the cotton fibers, that is compact form of the cotton fiber, that is wet conditioned fibers are packed together in the of the ball. The ball is called as pod. And in this pod, the number of fibers produced in the origin, that is the origin of the fibers are the seeds. The Seeds are covered with the fibers. The pod containing both seeds and the fibers. Both are attached together. Seed producing the fibers.

Cotton pod contain fibers with seeds

          When harvesting time comes, these all pods, that is when these pods almost all in their dried form (90% of the pods are dried), the harvest taking place in the sunshine period. These pods are plucked by the farmers. And collected and kept for drying. Plucked cotton fibers along with seeds are called the raw fibers or raw cotton. This raw cotton fibers are not only a mixture of seed and fiber but also containing the foreign impurities like husk, dried leaves, dust & dirt and other unwanted natural stains, etc,.

Cotton ginning : The raw cotton taken to the Ginning process. Here we have not written that process.In this Ginning process, the raw cotton fibers are separated from the seeds. That is the process of separating fibers from the seed and cleaning it or free from the dust & dirt and foreign impurities. And make the fiber pure one is called the Ginning process. This Ginning process is processed in the roller Gins. In olden days, it was done by hand rolled gin. Slowly the technology has been updated and improved. Nowadays automated ginning machines are used. The efficiency of the Ginning machines per day or per hour are improved a lot as technology has been improved.

Cotton bales

Cotton bale : When the Ginning process is completed, the outcome of the ginned fiber is having the pure cotton is packed and sold in the bale form. The bale is an international package form for the cotton. And this bale is measuring approximately about 1.400 x 0.53 x 0.69 m.And weight is around average 480 to 496 pounds in British system or 218 to 225 Kgs in MKS system. 

          Thus, in Ginning mill the raw cotton is purified into white cotton, not pure white cotton, but its free from other un wanted materials / impurities. And these bales are send to or sold to the spinning mills to process further  into the yarn, that is fibers are spun into yarn and then yarns are woven into fabrics.

Global cotton production: Now the total world production including all countries, all continent, all areas approximately about 25 million tons of cotton produced annually. But now a day, because of the variation in the climatic conditions, variations in the environmental requirements, that is required for the growth of the cotton plant, that is varying. Even the scarcity of water, limitations to irrigation or agricultural problems, natural calamities and one or the other reasons, now a day’s compared to olden days the cotton cultivation has gone down. The production of the cotton that is efficiency of the cotton grown worldwide has decreased. But the cotton has not lost its demand. This is the king of the cotton textile industry.            

Note: This note will be updated as and when required.                

Source: Based on the qualification and knowledge of the blogger had post graduation in Master of Technology in Textile Technology.