Cotton…a versatile fibre.

I was doing some research to write this blog when I came across a fact that cotton is used in x-rays!!! I had never imagined that cotton could be used in any other way than clothes. So this fact inspired me to write about some unusual and less known uses of cotton.

Though according to Wikipedia, the presence of cotton in human civilization dates back to 6000 B.C.E, it was first cultivated as fabric only in 3000 B.C.E in the Indus River Valley which is now Pakistan. Since then this cotton fabric has travelled through many civilizations and reached the modern textile industry. Now it is the father of many luxurious fabrics that we know today- velvet, corduroy, chambray, velour, jersey and flannel.

But apart from spinning it into soft fabric, there are many other uses of cotton fibre that are less known. Let’s explore them one by one.

  • X-Ray detectable strung cotton balls: It is common to use tufts of cotton to place at the surgical site. But removing these cotton balls post-procedure can be difficult as they are not x-ray detectable after insertion and also generate loose fibre. These conditions may lead to the risk of gossypiboma and longer operating times. Hence doctors and surgeons are provided with ready-made x-ray detectable cotton balls.
  • Cottonseed Oil: It is said that no part of the cotton plant is wasted. All are used in one way or the other. One such part is the seeds of the cotton plant. Out of many products that are produced from cottonseed, cottonseed oil is majorly produced and has a wide variety of commercial usage in many industries. Cottonseed oil is commonly used as cooking oil in America for making potato chips, cereals, bread and snack food. It is high in polyunsaturated fats and vitamin E making it a healthy choice. It is also used in the production of soaps, cosmetics and pharmaceuticals industries. Also, it used by farmers and cultivators to control pest infestation as it is considered toxic for animals. Apart from that, its husk is used to feed livestock.
  • Paper Money: Did you know that paper could be made of cotton fibre too apart from wood pulp? The quality of cotton fibre is determined by its length. Long length fibre is used for spinning threads for cotton fabrics and the shorter length is used for other purposes. They are used for manufacturing paper, 75% of which is used in making paper money. The cotton fibre used for making paper money is collected as waste in the cotton gin process because it is less than 3mm in length.

Conclusion

The advent of science and technology has made it possible to transform the fruit of this beautiful and fragile-looking cotton plant into a wonderful and magic fabric and other wide variety of products. Be its texture, strength and softness or its ability to mix with other natural fibres like wool-cashmere or synthetic fibres like polyesters, this gift of nature to humankind is incomparable.

 

Resource URL: https://wiredgeneral.wordpress.com/2021/07/19/cotton-fibre-not-just-clothes-but-a-lot-more/