|
General
-
Silk is a natural protein fiber, some forms
of which can be woven into textiles. The
best-known type of silk is obtained from cocoons
made by the larvae of the silkworm Bombyx
mori reared in captivity (sericulture). The
shimmering appearance for which silk is prized
comes from the fibers' triangular prism-like
structure which allows silk cloth to refract
incoming light at different angles.
-
There are five major types of silk of commercial
importance, obtained from different species of
silkworms which in turn feed on a number of food
plants. These are: Mulberry, Tasar, Muga, Eri
Process
- Silks are
produced by several other insects, but only the silk of moth
caterpillars has been used for textile manufacture. There has
been some research into other silks, which have differences at
the molecular level. Silks are mainly produced by the larvae of
insects with complete metamorphosis, but also by some adult
insects such as webspinners. Silk production is especially
common in the Hymenoptera (bees, wasps, and ants), and is
sometimes used in nest construction. Other types of arthropod
produce silk, most notably various arachnids such as spiders.
- The
process of drawing silk fibre from the cocoon is called
‘reeling’. The cocoons are cooked in hot water and the silk
fibre is unwound from the cocoons. The silk consists of two
proteins, the inner core of fibroin and an outer cover of gum
sericin. During reeling, the cocoons are processed in hot water
at 95-970C for 10-15 minutes. This process is called
cooking. This cooking will enable the sericin portion to get
softened and make unwinding easy without breaks. The cocoons
after cooking are reeled in hot water in different types of
machines.
Technology
- Silk
Reeling is simply the unwinding of filaments from a group of
cocoons in hot water bath on to a reel. There are two methods of
reeling a) Direct Reeling method on standard reels and b)
Indirect method which includes preliminary reeling on small
sized reels and transferring the reeled silk directly from the
reels to standard sized reels on re-reeling machines.
Market
- The annual
production of silk in the world is estimated at 45,000 tonnes of
which Japan and China contribute 18,936 and 13,200 tonnes
respectively. South Korea, USSR and India are the other leading
sericultural countries in the world. The industry has survived
the stiff competition with the man-made fibres and it is now
estimated by the Food and Agriculture Organisation of the United
Nations that the total requirement of silk by 1980 would be of
the order of 80,000 tonnes, leaving a demand of 35,000 tonnes.
- China
leads the world with silk production of 102560 MT or 81.7% of
the produce. India ranks second in respect of world raw silk
production. It is this position, as one of only two major silk
producers in the world, and from its employment potential, that
sericulture and silk derive their importance in the Indian
textile map.
Entrepreneur who want
the information on " Technology, Types, Market, Production,
Processing, Projects, Machinery, Company Profiles " can Email
us to
informer@eth.net
, primaryinfo@gmail.com
|
Technology, Types, Market, Production,
Processing, Projects, Machinery, Company Profiles
