Absorbent cotton is a cotton material that is free of grease and other impurities. It is easily wetted by water and is able to absorb it easily.
Wadding is intended for production and is used in medicine. The latter must be made in accordance with special requirements and standards.
Medical hygroscopic cotton wool (GOST 5556-81) is actively used in surgery.
Production
Absorbent cotton is made from cotton. It is cleaned from the existing husk, dust and sand with the help of special machines. Oil and fats are then removed from the fibers. This is done by boiling in lye for 12 hours. When boiling under a pressure of 3 atmospheres, only two hours are enough. After such degreasing, cotton wool becomes brown.
After this, whitening is required. First, cotton wool is rinsed with water, passed through a centrifuge and left for several days. Then it is immersed in bleach for 6 hours. Then the cotton wool is transferred to sulfuric acid and left for 60 minutes. With incompletebleaching procedure is repeated. Be sure to use bleach, from which the solution is prepared.
The processed and bleached cotton wool is washed with water and centrifuged again. In order to remove chlorine and eliminate intermittent colorless compounds, you need to dip the cotton wool in soapy water. It is required to process the material with water with the addition of sulfuric acid. After that, the acid is averaged, and the cotton wool is again washed with water.
Then the material is dried and then combed well.
Soap decomposes under the influence of sulfuric acid and washing with water. There is a precipitation in the fibers of stearic acid in a crushed form. It is possible to get a beautiful white cotton wool. In the process of squeezing, it emits a pleasant crunch. After degreasing, it is re-impregnated with fatty acid. That is why only cotton wool is suitable for medicine, which at the last stage of production was not saponified and not treated with sulfuric acid. There should be no microorganisms in the cotton, so only boiled water is used in the processing of the material.
Linen cotton wool
Also known is the method of producing cotton wool from flax fiber. Initially, disintegration is performed. Then a chemical treatment is carried out: it includes bleaching and making the fibers hydrophilic. Washing with water, cold and hot, is mandatory. The final defibration includes wet loosening, drying and combing. The latter is performed on a special machine. At the same time, cotton wool with a certain capillarity and level of whiteness becomes flax fiber. This method is verysimple. The number of technological operations is less, and the resulting product fully complies with modern standards.
The second way to produce cotton wool from linen
The method of production of flax wadding is also known by mechanical defibration, cooking, acidification, bleaching, washing, pressing, loosening, drying and combing. In this case, cooking is carried out in the presence of a reducing agent. As the latter, sulfur-containing, nitrogen-containing, anthrachin substances are used. After cooking, the fiber sours. Bleaching is done in alkali with hydrogen peroxide. Loosening is carried out on a wet fiber ripper.
The disadvantage of this method is that only flax fiber is used as a raw material.
Chemical and mechanical processing of cotton wool
A popular method for producing cotton wool, which includes chemical and mechanical processing of cellulose fibers. This forms a mixture of fibers. A tattered blended fiber is made. A cotton canvas is produced from it. This is done on special equipment. At the same time, bast crops become cellulose fibers: hemp and flax. In the process of forming the mixture, flax fiber is mixed in a certain ratio with hemp. The technological possibilities of the method are incredibly wide. The quality of cotton wool improves significantly when the rate of settling of fibers in water increases.
The disadvantage of the method is that the composition of cotton wool is limited to hemp and flax fibers.
There is also a way to make cotton wool,including the processing of linen and cotton fibers by mechanical means. After that, they are processed chemically into alkali. In this case, hypochlorite is necessarily present. Next is washing, obligatory bleaching. The next step is acidification. Next comes the flush. At the end, disintegration is done. This method is simple and economical. It is possible to get medical cotton wool of excellent quality.
For this method, peeled fibers of bast and cotton crops become raw materials.
Profitability of cotton wool production
In the textile industry, especially in the production of cotton wool, there is an acute shortage of raw materials. The thing is that natural and synthetic fibers are absent or too expensive. Some cotton wool components are not produced in Russia. Cotton wool from imported raw materials is not entirely profitable. Even the use of artificial refined fibers in the production of cotton wool does not make production profitable.
It is very important to constantly expand the arsenal of materials for the production of absorbent cotton. At the same time, it will be possible to increase the wetting rate, the ability of cotton wool to absorb moisture and its capillarity. In combination with fibers of natural origin, which have sufficient maturity, low content of fatty, pectin and waxy substances, it is possible to improve the quality of the produced cotton wool. It is possible to eliminate dependence on the shortage of one type of raw material that is required for production.
Enriched cotton wool
Produced enriched medical absorbent cotton. The mixture includescotton or bast fibres. This version of the material is more affordable. In the manufacture of absorbent cotton wool, not only bast and cotton fibers are used, but also the remains of textile production. These are thread scraps, cuttings of fabrics, low-grade and substandard fiber. The disintegration of rags and waste is carried out on a special machine. This is done in stages. Initially, there is a rough, and then a more subtle pinching. Those wastes that do not undergo defibration are returned for reprocessing.
In order to improve the quality of cotton wool and give it certain properties, textile fibers, flax, jute or kenaf tows are added during combing. At the same time, they undergo preliminary bleaching, acidification, washing, wringing, loosening, drying and combing. The made wadded canvas is pressed into bales. Then it is packaged in accordance with the requirements for medical cotton wool.
There is medical hygroscopic non-sterile and sterile cotton wool. The difference is that the last cotton wool is subjected to a special treatment in an oven, where all bacteria are 100% destroyed. This keeps the cotton wool safe when in contact with open wounds. Absorbent non-sterile cotton wool is not used in surgery.
There may be various fibers in the composition of textile waste rags. In order to adjust the properties of cotton wool, natural or artificial materials are added. For example, in order to get cotton wool with certain antiseptic properties, textile linen waste or linen rags are taken.
Rag in cotton wool
The use of rags and textile waste in the production of absorbent cotton solves several problems:
- Firstly, it is possible to significantly expand the range of fibers and their composition. The area of materials that has not been applied before is covered.
- Secondly, it turns out to eliminate dependence on the shortage of certain raw materials. Provides continuous loading of equipment.
- Thirdly, a variety of textile waste and rags are recycled. The output is guaranteed to create a high-quality product.
- Fourthly, specialized fiber raw materials are saved. It can be used to make knitwear or textiles.
Quick cotton issue
Initially, only pharmacists produced cotton wool. But now this product is produced by factories and special bleaching workshops. In the manufacture of cotton wool, high-quality varieties of cotton are taken as raw materials. In the process of mechanical cleaning with the help of strong air jets, all hairs of small length are removed. Excellent quality medical absorbent surgical cotton should be free of dust and short fibers.
After processing on special cardan machines, the strips of cotton wool are rolled up and pressed. Also check that the material is easily wetted with water.
Medical cotton wool, depending on the purpose, is divided into 3 types:
- Absorbent eye cotton.
- Safety cotton.
- Surgical cotton wool.
Featuresabsorbent cotton
Cleaned cotton under the microscope looks identical to unpeeled. It consists of flat, tubular, unicellular hairs. They are all coiled. Inside each is a flat channel that is filled with air. The width of the fibers ranges from 0.015 to 0.028 mm. Cotton wool cleaned has a white color. She doesn't smell. It contains fat. If you squeeze it between your fingers and throw it into the water, it will sink very slowly. It can be easily wetted with water and other solutions based on it. Ordinary cotton wool does not have such properties.
After burning the material, 0.3% of ash remains from the initial weight. Water extract at the rate of 10 g of cotton wool per 20 g of water should not form a precipitate. Cotton wool in a purified form and tissues from it are widely used in surgery. They are especially in demand in the treatment of ulcers, wounds, burns, fractures. They are also used for various skin lesions and rheumatism. The following are produced from purified cotton wool: sherting, cambric, lint, muslin and fat-free threads. Cotton wool and fabrics from it are used in their pure form. They are also often impregnated with medicinal substances. Collodion or colloxylin is obtained from purified cotton wool.
