ARS | Publication request: IDENTIFICATION OF TRASH

Submitted to: Fiber Selection Conference Proceedings
Publication Type: Proceedings
Publication Acceptance Date: August 4, 2003
Publication Date: March 12, 2004
Citation: Foulk, J.A., McAlister III, D.D., Himmelsbach, D.S., Hughs, S.E.Identification of trash. Cotton Incorporated 16th Annual Fiber Selection (EFS) Conference Proceedings. 2004. Available from: www.cottoninc.com/efsnew/Proceedings03/FoulkJ%20EFSCONF03.PDF

Interpretive Summary: Cotton and its seed are mechanically collected with harvested techniques introducing trash into the fiber prior to ginning. Ginning separates the seed and cotton fibers while removing significant amounts of trash. Cotton is a natural fiber and difficult to control all contamination from production, harvest, or ginning. Testing of cotton fibers with the HVI has led to a broad understanding of cotton fiber properties. Cotton fiber analysis improvements are required because of increased processing speeds. This research assesses the effectiveness of new HVI Trashmeter software and the use of mid-infrared spectroscopy to identify problematic trash types. Numerous events impact cotton fibers, so results from these experiments may improve textile processing.

Technical Abstract: The mitigation of trash, removal of certain trash types, and trash sizes has often been a means to improve textile mill productivity. The goal is to determine the total degree of fiber contamination and understand how each fraction impacts processing. This research will determine if new Trashmeter software developed for the HVI can evaluate cotton trash and its distribution. Coupled with this trash identification software is the use of mid-infrared spectroscopy that compares trash particles or dust to a spectral database of authentic samples to better establish problematic trash types.