Cotton

• Cotton is a single celled elogated fibre made out of natural cellulouse (protein)
• Main property is absorbency
• Can absorb 20% of water vapour withought feeling wet
• Can hold 65% of it's weight withought dripping
• Absorbencyis possible due to its hollow cavity which is where mosture is stored
• Due to it's absorbency it conducts heat awy from the body
• Non static (meaning it contains moisture)
• Comftable due to it's soft feel
• It's a strong fibre due to it's twisted fibre
• It's non-elastic menaing it creases badly
• it's Biodegradable
• Damge can happen from sunlight, mildew and insects
• It's highly flammable
• If it blends with Poyester/polyomide it gives cotton a higher strength and a lustre (glow)
• If cotton mixes with modal or wool it has a proban finsh (flame retardant)
• If cotton mixes with viscose/elastane it produces a teflon coting which makes it stain resistant
• You can test cotton by burnin-which will happen quickly and bright with an after glow
• Burning cotton will smell like burnt paper
• Burning cotton will have a pale grey residue
• Very little elasticity meaning it creases badly
• Cotton is a poor insulator
• Cotton is grown in a boll around the seeds of cotton plant
• Harvesting cotton is done by hand or a using a picking machine
• Ginning is the term used for separting fibres from their seeds
• Machanical purefctaion is used to remove foregin matter
• The fibres are scoured to remove natural wax coting the surface of the fibre
• Processed cotton fibres are spun into staple fibres