New Synthetic Fibers Come from Natural Sources by Maria C
%" m •*^.. ? •^^:; m^ "•~.y.-, .-,. Id X LCI New Synthetic Fibers Come from Natural Sources By Maria C. Thiry, Features Editor n the beginning, textile fibers of applications for synthetic fibers able properties, such abrasion resis- came from the natural world: and their increasing popularity. Cot- tance, stain repellency, and wrinkle animal skins, hair, and wool; silk ton producers decided to fight back. resistance. In addition, according to from silkworms; and plants like Cotton Incorporated's famous market- Wallace, genetic research has gone into a flax, cotton, and hemp. For ing campaign is credited for bringing improving the quality of the fiber it- Icenturies, all textiles came from fibers the public's attention and loyalty self—qualities such as increased that were harvested fron:i a plant, ani- "back to nature." length, and improved strength of the mal, or insect. Then, at the beginning "Cotton is the original high-tech fiber over the last 30 years. "In the of the 20th century, people discovered fiber," says the company's Michelle marketplace, it is important to have a that they could create textile fibers of Wallace. The fiber's material proper- differentiated product," notes Cotton their own. Those early synthetic fibers ties, such as moisture management, Incorporated's Ira Livingston. "We are still originated in a natural source— comfortable hand, and wet tensile continually looking for ways to intro- cellulose from wood pulp—but soon strength contribute to its appeal. The duce cotton that surprises the con- enough in the 1930s, 40s, and 50s, a development of various finishes has sumer. One of those ways is our re- stream of synthetic fibers came on the given cotton fabrics additional favor- search into biogenetics, to enhance scene that owed their origins to chemical plants instead of plants Cotton's Share of Market that could be grown in a field.
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