| Name of Fiber |
| Flax fiber |
| Eastiblished Date |
| 5000+;BC |
| Historical Bacground |
• Generally considered to be the oldest natural textile fiber.
• Fine linen was used as burial shrouds for the Egyptian pharaohs
• Largest producer Soviet States; other large producers include Poland,
Germany, Belgium and France. Largest exporters are Northern Ireland and Belgium.
| Name of Fiber |
| Cotton fiber |
| Eastiblished Date |
| 3000+;BC |
| Historical Bacground |
• Earliest use estimated between 3,000 BC to 5,000 BC.
• Worn by Egyptians earlier than 2,500 BC.
• Eli Whitney's invention of the cotton gin in 1793 revolutionized the processing of cotton.
• The development of the power loom in 1884 brought significant improvements and variations to cotton fabrics.
• Major producers United States, Soviet States, China and India. Lessor producers include Pakistan, Brazil, Turkey, Egypt, Mexico,Iran and Sudan.
| Name of Fiber |
| Wool fiber |
| Eastiblished Date |
| 3000+;BC |
| Historical Bacground |
• Used by people of the Late Stone Age,
• There are 40 different breeds of sheep, which produce approximately 200 types of wool of varying grades.
• Major producers include Australia, New Zealand, Soviet States, China, South Africa, and Argentina.
| Name of Fiber |
| Silk fiber |
| Eastiblished Date |
| 2600+;BC |
| Historical Bacground |
• Believed discovered by a Chinese princess.
• Silk is made from two continuous filaments cemented together and used to form the cocoon of the silkworm.
• Silk culture began about 1725 BC, sponsored by the wife of China's emperor.
• Secrets of cultivation and fabric manufacturing were closely guarded by the Chinese for about 3,000 years.
• There is a story that two monks smuggled seeds of the mulberry tree and silkworm eggs out of China by hiding them in their walking sticks.
• India learned of silk culture when a Chinese princess married an Indian prince.
• The major producer and exporter of silk is Japan.
| Name of Fiber |
| Rayon fiber |
| Eastiblished Date |
| 1910 |
| Historical Bacground |
• The first man-made fiber.
• The first commercial production of rayon fiber in the United States was in 1910 by the American Viscose Company.
• By using two different chemicals and manufacturing techniques, two basic types of rayon were developed. They were viscose rayon and cuprammonium rayon.
• Today, there are no producers of rayon in the U.S.
• In 1884, Count Hilaire de Chardonnet made the first man made fibers from nitrocellulose. He came to be known as the 'father of rayon'.
| Name of Fiber |
| Acetate |
| Eastiblished Date |
| 1924 |
| Historical Bacground |
• The first commercial production of acetate fiber in the United States was in 1924 by the Celanese Corporation.
| Name of Fiber |
| Nylon |
| Eastiblished Date |
| 1939 |
| Historical Bacground |
• The first commercial production of nylon in the United States was in 1939 by the E. I. du Pont de Nemours & Company, Inc. It is the second most used man-made fiber in this country, behind polyester.
| Name of Fiber |
| Acrylic |
| Eastiblished Date |
| 1950 |
| Historical Bacground |
• The first commercial production of acrylic fiber in the United States was in 1950 by E. I. du Pont de Nemours & Company, Inc.
| Name of Fiber |
| Polyester |
| Eastiblished Date |
| 1953 |
| Historical Bacground |
• The first commercial production of polyester fiber in the United States was in 1953 by E. I. du Pont de Nemours & Company, Inc.
• Polyester is the most used man-made fiber in the U.S.
| Name of Fiber |
| Triacetate |
| Eastiblished Date |
| 1954 |
| Historical Bacground |
• The first commercial production of triacetate fiber in the United States was in 1954 by the Celanese Corporation.
• Domestic Triacetate production was discontinued in 1985.
| Name of Fiber |
| Spandex |
| Eastiblished Date |
| 1959 |
| Historical Bacground |
• The first commercial production of spandex fiber in the United States was in 1959 by E. I. du Pont de Nemours & Company, Inc.
• It is an elastomeric man-made fiber (able to stretch at least 100% and snap back like natural rubber).
• Spandex is used in filament form.
| Name of Fiber |
Polyolefin/
Polypropylene
|
| Eastiblished Date |
| 1961 |
| Historical Bacground |
• The first commercial production of an olefin fiber manufactured in the U.S. was by Hercules Incorporated.
• In 1966, polyolefin was the world's first and only Nobel-Prize winning fiber.
| Name of Fiber |
| Micro-fiber |
| Eastiblished Date |
| 1989 |
| Historical Bacground |
• The first commercial production of micro fiber in the U.S. was in 1989 by E. I. du Pont de Nemours & Company, Inc. Today micro fibers are produced in a variety of synthetic fibers (i.e. polyester, nylon, acrylic, etc.)
• The true definition of a micro fiber is a fiber that has less than one denier per filament. Micro Fiber is the thinnest, finest of all man-made fibers. It is finer than the most delicate silk.
• To relate it to something more familiar--A human hair is more than 100 times the size of some micro fibers.
| Name of Fiber |
| Lyocell |
| Eastiblished Date |
| 1993 |
| Historical Bacground |
• The first commercial production of lyocell in the U.S. was in 1993 by Courtaulds Fibers, under the Tencel¬ trade name.
• Environmentally friendly, lyocell is produced from the wood pulp of trees grown specifically for this purpose. It is specially processed, using a solvent spinning technique in which the dissolving agent is recycled, reducing environmental effluents.
