The chemical
composition of cotton fiber consists of ninety-five percent cellulose, one
point three percent protein, one point two percent ash, point six percent wax,
point three percent sugar, and 0.8
percent organic acids, and other chemical compounds that make up three point
one percent. The non-cellulose chemicals of cotton are usually located in the
cuticle of the fiber.
Ø The non-cellulose chemicals of cotton consist of protein,
ash, wax, sugar and organic acids. Cotton wax is found on the outer surface of
the fiber. The more wax found on cotton the greater the surface area of cotton
there is; finer cotton generally has more cotton wax . Cotton wax is primarily
long chains of fatty acids and alcohols. The cotton wax serves as a protective barrier for the cotton fiber. Sugar makes up point three percent of
the cotton fiber, the sugar comes from two sources plant sugar and sugar from
insects. The plant sugars occur from the growth process of the cotton plant. The plant sugars consist
of monosaccharide, glucose and fructose. The insect sugars are mainly
for whiteflies, the insect sugars can cause stickiness, which can lead to problems in
the textile mills. Organic acids are
found in the cotton fiber as metabolic residues. They are made up of malic acid and
citric acid.
Ø The non-cellulose chemicals of cotton are removed by using
selective solvents. Some of these solvents include: hexane, chloroform, sodium hydroxide
solutions, non-polar solvents, hot ethanol, and plain water.
Ø After removing all the non
cellulose chemicals,
the cotton fiber is approximately ninety-nine percent cellulose.
Cellulose
|
95%
|
Protein
|
1.3%
|
Ash
|
1.2%
|
Wax
|
0.6%
|
Sugar
|
0.3%
|
Organic acid
|
0.8%
|
Other chemical
compound
|
3.1%
|