This Article Full Text (PDF) References Alert me when this article is cited Alert me if a correction is posted Services Email this article to a friend Similar articles in this journal Alert me to new issues of the journal Add to Saved Citations Download to citation manager Request Permissions Request Reprints Add to My Marked Citations Citing Articles Citing Articles via Google Scholar Citing Articles via Scopus Google Scholar Articles by Henriksson, G. Articles by Akin, D. E. Search for Related Content Social Bookmarking                         What's this?

Chemical/Physical Retting of Flax Using Detergent and Oxalic Acid at High pH

Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, University of Georgia, Athens, Georgia 30602, U.S.A.

Karl-Erik L. Eriksson

Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, University of Georgia, Athens, Georgia 30602, U.S.A.

Linda Kimmel

USDA, ARS, Southern Regional Research Center, New Orleans, Louisiana 70124, U.S.A.

Danny E. Akin

USDA, ARS, Russell Research Center, Athens, Georgia 30604, U.S.A.

An oxalic acid-based system for chemically retting flax is tested and compared with enzymatic retting. The retting effect is substantially higher at pH 10 and 11 than at lower pH levels, and the optimal oxalic acid concentration is 50 mmol. The presence of the strong detergent sodium dodecyl sulfate (SDS) further enhances retting. The rate of retting with the oxalic acid/SDS mixture at pH 10 is strongly temperature dependent, and at 75°C the process is completed within 2 hours. Tests of fiber properties (e.g., tex, tenacity, and elongation) indicate that the chemical/physical retting method pro duces fibers of textile quality that can be spun into flax-rich blends with cotton.

Textile Research Journal, Vol. 68, No. 12, 942-947 (1998)
DOI: 10.1177/004051759806801210


CiteULike    Complore    Connotea    Del.icio.us    Digg    Reddit    Technorati    Twitter    What's this?