Chemistry of Textiles part 1

To clothe 100 million people with just one outfit a piece for one year requires 200 million square yards of fabric.

Cellulose fibers-come from fibrous wood parts of the cotton and flax plants which include cotton and linen

-cellulose is a carbohydrate and is formed from hydrogen, carbon, and oxygenProcess of growing cellulose-energy from the sun is trapped in carbohydrate molecules during photosynthesis which produces sugars such as glucose-glucose can’t be stored in plants because it is soluble in saps (what does soluble mean?)Polymerization-hundreds of glucose molecules are linked into molecular chains called polysaccharides that is not soluble in sap-cellulose is a polysaccharide-cotton remains one of the world’s major textile fibers as it is a high quality fiber due

to its fiber length, fineness, whiteness, and lusterLinen-comes from the stem of the flax plant-the stem fibers tend to cling together giving linen its high quality-linen is cool due to its high absorbency, crispness, and durability

animal kingdom-silk and wool come from animal fibers

-they contain carbon, hydrogen, oxygen, nitrogen, and sulfurWool fibers-come from the fleece of a sheep or lamb, or form the hair of the Angora or Cashmere goat, camel, alpaca, or llama-virgin wool is woven from fibers that have never been reclaimed from such things as unused wool products-wool is known for its absorbency, dye ability, warmth, wrinkle resistance, and other likeable properties

Silk

-only natural continuous fiber from unraveling the cocoon of the silkworm-glands of the silkworm secrete the protein fibroin which is forced through small openings in the larva’s head-this liquid protein solidifies when it hits the air and becomes the silk fibers that form the larva’s protective cocoon in the pupa stage of development

Mineral world

-metallic threads are covered with plastic, and thin metal foils are bonded between plastic film-lustrous metallic yarns are used in wearing apparel, home furnishing, braids, and other decorative materials-glass is a mineral fiber that will melt when heated and pulled into threads to form glass wool which is an insulation material

-fiberglass is a glass cloth blended with plastic and is used for boats, pipes, and furniture