Location: Cotton Ginning Research
Title: Contamination sources, prevention, and researchAuthor
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Submitted to: International Cotton Advisory Committee Recorder
Publication Type: Abstract Only Publication Acceptance Date: 10/26/2017 Publication Date: 11/19/2017 Citation: Whitelock, D.P. 2017. Contamination sources, prevention, and research. International Cotton Advisory Committee Recorder. Presentation only. https://www.icac.org/getattachment/mtgs/Plenary/76th/Agenda-(Reports-Minutes)/1_OS8_Whitelock.pdf. Interpretive Summary: Technical Abstract: Contamination is defined as anything other than cotton in cotton lint. Worldwide, contamination is on the rise and plastic contamination has increased at a faster rate than contamination overall. In the U.S., there are many sources of plastic contaminants, such as plastic trash that collects in cotton fields, black plastic film used as mulch in fields, plastic twine typically used for hay baling, and yellow plastic film used for round module wrap. This presentation at the International Cotton Advisory Committee in Tashkent, Uzbekistan reviews the typical sources of plastic contamination in the U.S. Also, the major collaborative research efforts to prevent, detect, and extract plastics from cotton at the USDA ginning laboratories in Lubbock, Mesilla Park, and Stoneville, the USDA cotton quality lab in New Orleans, Texas A&M, Oklahoma State University, and the University of North Texas are summarized. The efforts target different points in the cotton production scheme from the field through the gin and focus on detection using imaging/optical techniques and separation using physical/electrostatic characteristics. The presentation concludes with a call for the ICAC delegates to encourage cotton producing countries worldwide to come together to address contamination issues and improve cotton’s market share against manmade fibers. |
