Introduction to Cotton Fiber:
Cotton is the king and Silk is the queen of the textile world. Both are dominating the clothing area of the human essentials though man-made technology developed to the extent of fulfilling the need of clothing. Cotton maintained its value in history and continued to gain importance in the present and future. History says, cotton was known by the people who lived 5000 years back. People 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 and its surrounding countries, Egypt, Australia and the American continent. Among these India was the main country producing cotton fiber. Cotton is one of the prime crops of Indian agriculture.
Cotton belongs to the biological genus gossypium of the 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. Nowadays even cotton plants are cultivating in lands of less rainfall but with getting land irrigated. The plants usually grow to a height of 1 to 2 meters depending on area and environment. It has 3 to 7 lobes with large size leaves giving pods or boll containing seeds. These cotton seeds are surrounded by fibers grown from the surface of the seed. The boll of cotton seeds is supported by flowers, makes the plant look 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 pick and separate the pods without damaging the plants. But in some developing countries still the cropping is done by farmers' hands. Harvesting takes place only after the flower has dried and the pods open itself to sun shines. For cropping, the pods are in a state of complete driedness and fibers are free to be exposed to light. The picked pods are taken for the ginning process. Cotton covers 25 % of the world's cultivated land.
Ginning and Packing of Cotton Fibers:
Ginning is the mechanical process of separating the fibers from the skin of the seed. This process requires the fibers attached to the seed must be free from moisture. The machines are developed for greater efficiency and productivity and have the mechanism of feeding cotton seeds passing through cylinders mounted with sharp saws and pinned belts. The machines separate the seed and fibers as well as throughout the trash including dust particles,husk, leaves,etc, whatever comes from the farm along with cotton pods.
The fibers coming out from the gin machine are packed in a compact form called “ Bale " with specific weight to send it to spinning mills for yarn manufacturing.
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