Introduction:
It is time to understand the terms conventional and
non-conventional textiles. Before non-conventional textiles are to be
understood, it is better to probe into the term conventional textiles. The
textile items that are commonly used by convention are obviously conventional
textile. If we talk about conventional textile based on basic material one may
easily pronounce cotton, silk, wool or synthetic in India, the last being one
of the latest addition. But they may also be region specific or time specific.
Even a few centuries back Linen was conventional textile used in Europe and Egypt while cotton in India and silk in China. The scenario has been changed often gradually, later
drastically. With scientific development rayon (both acetate and viscose) as
well as synthetics has been added in the list of conventional textile, many
natural fibres used in yesteryears and forgotten, many area specific items were
universalized and finally blending of more than one items brought in new
certain conventional products. In the process however, we ignored many
wonderful natural products that were conventional during those times but became
non-conventional later. These are also products which have potentiality to
become useful textile but were never tried seriously. Considering textile from
natural resources the consumption is increasing in such a galloping rate that
even renewable resources are becoming non- renewable. The method of
manufacturing textile in the modern era causes pollution to considerable extent.
Manufacture of synthetic fibres also causes pollution. For this reason, there
is a need to search for non-conventional renewable resource for textile to give
an effective solution.
Leaf fibres:
The leaves of monocotyledenous plants are held in shape and
strengthened by fibres which run in hawser-like strands through the length of
the leaf. These leaf fibres are of great commercial value, and are used in
large quantities for making ropes and cordage, and for the production of textile fabrics.
Plant fibers have been used for making paper and clothing
for a long time and the need for use of natural fibres has increased greatly.
Among natural fibres, 90 per cent are of vegetable origin and among them 80 per
cent is constituted by cotton and the remaining by other long vegetable fibres
like flax, jute, hemp, sisal, ramie, coir, abaca, banana and pineapple fibres.
They are classified as minor fibres.
Among the minor fibres, leaf fibres (fibres extracted from
leaves) are one of the important unconventional fibres, which could be analysed
and evaluated for their use in textile and paper industries. Their use is based
on the length and width of fibres besides their wall thickness and cell wall
composition.
The inherent drawback of banana fibre is its poor quality
and higher irregularity, owing to the multi-cellular nature of the fibres. The
individual cells are cemented with lignin and hemi-cellulose and thus form a
composite fibre. Banana fibre is classified as medium quality fibre and
performs very well in combination with other fibres for making fine articles like handicrafts, currency, etc.
Banana
The bananas or the plantains are essentially hot climate
plants. Their original home is said to be the tropical forests of Asia. The two terms banana and plantain are used synonymously in this country. Strictly
speaking the former should be used for table varieties and the latter should be
used for cooking varieties. Banana has important place in our mythology. It is
said that Manu or Noah (according to Western mythology) or Hazrat Nuh
(according to Muslims) when starting to implant new life on our planet after
the great flood, sought help from God for a multipurpose plant that will give
us multivitamin fruit, vegetables for cooking, besides meeting most of our other
demands. It is said that God gave him banana tree which meets most of our
wants, since besides fruit and vegetable, flowers and stems are cooked, the
plant gives fibre for manufacturing textiles, its leaves are used as plates to
serve food besides of course many medicinal virtues. The plant grows easily of
its own as it sets young shoots.
Botanically they are known as Musa Paradisiaca, Musa
Sapientum, Musa Cavendishii and Musa Chinensis.
All varieties of banana trees abound in fibres. In fact
almost each and every part of this plant gives fibres of various strength,
colour, beauty and staple length thus, can be used for various purposes. In the
leaf sheaths, coarse and strong fibres are found on the outer ones, fine and
silky in the inner most ones and those of the middling quality in the
intermediate ones. The core, from the roots to the point of its emergence from
the covering of the false stem contains an extremely white fine fibre. The
fruit stems contain fibres of a rough variety, while the midribs of the leaves
yield a fibre of exceptional strength and durability when properly processed.
