Kapok fiber

Kapok (Bombax malabaricum, Ceiba pentandra). This name is applied to a number of tropical trees of the bombax family. The oil is a byproduct of kapok fiber production. Its major component acids are palmitic (22%), oleic (21%), and linoleic... 

Fibers collected from seeds or seed cases, e.g. cotton and kapok Fibers collected from leaves, e.g. fique, sisal, banana and agave Fibers are collected from the skin or bast surrounding the stem of their respective plant. These fibers have higher tensile strength than other fibers. Therefore, these fibers are used for durable yam, fabric, packaging, and paper. Some examples are flax, jute, kenaf, industrial hemp, ramie, rattan, and vine fibers. 

Kapok (Ceiba pentandra)/ghss fiber composites were manufactured using untreated and alkali treated kapok fibers [88]. The glass and kapok fibers were used as fabrics and the relative kapok fiber fraction was varied within 0-100%. The tensile strength and modulus of the composites increased with the glass fiber content as usual, and the hybrids showed greater properties compared to the pure matrix, even when only 25% of kapok fibers were used. The chemical treatment of the fibers did not produce... 

Wang, J., Zheng, Y, Wang, A. (2012). Effect of Kapok Fiber Treated with Various Solvents on Oil Absorbency. Industrial Crops and Products, 40, 178-184. 

Mwaikambo, L. Y. and Ansell, M. P. (2002). Chemical modification of hemp, sisal, jute, and kapok fibers by alkalization. Journal of Applied Polymer Science 84,22222234. 

Seeds fiber cotton, kapok fiber Bast fiber flax, ramie, hemp, jute, apocynum, pineapple leaf fiber, coconut fiber, banana fiber, bamboo fiber, lotus fiber... 

Figure 2.8 Cross section (a) and longitudinal section (b) of kapok fiber. Courtesy of Chunming LI, South China University of Technology.

Wang J, Zheng Y, Wang A. Superhydrophobic kapok fiber oil-absorbent preparation and high oil absorbency. Chetn Eng J 2012 213 1-7. 

Another major difference among different natural cellulose fibers is their morphology. Kapok fibers are obtained from the seed pods of the tropical kapok tree. Like cotton, kapok fibers are unicellular fibers. However, kapok fibers do not collapse and twist after dried (Figure 5.6). Dried kapok fibers have circitlar, hollow (lumen) cross-sectional stmcture with total wall thicknesses of aroimd 2 /rm and fiber diameters ranging from 15 to 35 //m. As a result, kapok fibers have lower densities (0.31-0.38 g/cm ) than most other natural cellulose fibers. 

Figure 5.6. SEM image of a kapok fiber. (AbduUah, M.A., et. al.. Journal of Hazardous Materials, 177,683-691,2010.)...

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