Ramie

It's an acient fabric that has recently regained popularity in apparel. It has properties and
appearance similar to linen so it's popular for hot weather fashions. Unfortunately it has the same
draw backs as linen as well (ie. very prone to wrinkle, wears quickly from friction).It is known as
china grass.
Producers:
The ramie plant is grown for fibre mainly in China, Brazil, the Lao PDR and the Philippines.
While it is considered a promising "ecological" fibre for use in textiles, fibre extraction and
cleaning is difficult and labour-intensive.
Cultivation of Ramie
Ramie grows well in areas with good rainfall and a warm climate, but it benefits from relatively
cold winters. It grows best in a fertile loamy or sandy soil.
Ramie is not completely hardy and, although the shoots die back with the first frost, the plant can
survive cold winters providing it is given some protection. Ramie grows well in Washington DC,
so it may be possible to grow it in Europe.
Harvesting Ramie fibre
The stems are ready to harvest when the flowers begin to open; the stems change colour from
green to yellow and the leaves start to drop. They are harvested by machine when most of the
stems are ready. In good soils, ramie can be harvested up to 6 times a year.
Processing Ramie fibre
Ramie is more difficult to process than other bast fibres because the fibres are held together by
gummy resins that do not decompose easily. The usual retting process used for flax and hemp is
not effective with ramie. The processing needs to begin as soon as possible after the stems have
been cut, otherwise the resin hardens and becomes difficult to remove.
The ramie you buy for spinning has been chemically processed. First the stems were stripped by
machines that peel off fibre and bark. Then the resulting strips are scraped to remove the bark.
The third stage involves treating the fibres with chemicals to remove the resins. The result is a
very fine fibre Properties
Advantages of Ramie as a Fabric
* Resistant to bacteria, mildew,
* alkalis, rotting, light, insect attack Extremely
* absorbent and therefore comfortable to wear, especially during warm weather Has natural stain
resisting ability with ease of stain/soil removal similar to that of linen (and this is better than
cotton)
* Not harmed by mild acids
* Dyes fairly easily
* Good wet-fastness in laundering - though dark colors may lose their vibrancy over repeated

launderings
* Increases in strength when wet
* Withstands high water temperatures during laundering
* Smooth lustrous appearance improves with washing
* Keeps its shape and does not shrink
* Can be bleached
Disadvantages of Ramie as a Fabric
* Low in elasticity
* Low abrasion resistance
* Wrinkles easily
* (but application of wrinkle-resistant finishes or blending with synthetic fibers can reduce the
problem in woven fabrics) Stiff and brittle
* The
* fiber is high cost which reduces its competitiveness against other textile fibers - this high cost
is due to high labor requirement for production, harvesting and decortication There is a need to
de-gum the fiber prior to processing' about 12.5 cm long.

Uses of ramie

News Sc
Coarse ramie fibres are suitable for making twine, rope and nets. Wet-spun, it produces a fine
yarn with high lustre (at left), suitable for a wide range of garments, ranging from dresses to
jeans.
Fabrics of 100% ramie are lightweight and silky, similar in appearance to linen. The Korean
traditional costume, the ramie hanbok (at right), is renowned for its fineness.

Global B2B Network

However, since it has low elasticity and resilience, ramie is usually blended with other textile
fibres. It increases the lustre and strength of cotton fabric and reduces shrinkage in wool blends.
It is also blended with silk.

Sisal fibre is derived from the leaves of the plant. Sisal fiber is manufactured from the vascular
tissue from the sisal plant Sisal is an environmentally friendly fibre as it is biodegradable and
almost no pesticides or fertilizers are used in its cultivation. World production is about 300,000
tonnes.
Properties:
Sisal fibre is very long, with an average length of 0.6 to 1.2 m and it is creamy white to
yellowish in colour. It is coarse and strong, durable and has the ability to stretch. It also has good
insulation properties and it is highly resistant to bacterial damage and to deterioration in
saltwater.
Producers:
Sisal is cultivated for fibre in Brazil, China, Cuba, Kenya, Haiti, Madagascar, and Mexico.
Production patterns differ between counties. In Tanzania and Kenya sisal is predominantly a
plantation crop, while production in Brazil is largely small-scale.

Cultivation and Harvest of Sisal

Sisal plants grow fast and all year round. The first harvest can be made when the plants are about
two years old and they remain productive for 10 to 12 years. Each plant produces 180 to 240
leaves in a lifetime yielding 1 to 4 tonnes of fibre per hectare.
Sisal is a labour intensive crop and it offers employment to rural communities in areas which are
often not suitable for other crops. The workers go round the plantation and cut some leaves from
each plant every few weeks. They deposit the heavy leaves at the end of rows from where they
are taken to a central processing unit. Almost no fertilisers are used in sisal production, they are
resilient to disease and most of the weeding is done by hand.
Uses of sisal

Trade India
Sisal is used in twine and ropes, but competition from polypropylene has weakened demand.

Pottery Barn
But other markets are emerging - today, sisal can be found in speciality paper, filters, geotextiles,
mattresses, carpets and wall coverings.

Ranarco BV
It is used as reinforcement in plastic composite materials, particularly in automotive components,
but also in furniture. Another promising use is as a substitute for asbestos in brake pads. (It is
also the best material for making dartboards.)

Pooldawg
By-products from sisal extraction can be used for making bio-gas, pharmaceutical ingredients
and building material.
Hemp fibre
Hemp fiber are long, strong and durable, hemp fibres are about 70% cellulose and contain low
levels of lignin (around 8-10%). The fibre diameter ranges from 16 to 50 microns. Hemp fibre
conducts heat, dyes well, resists mildew, blocks ultraviolet light and has natural anti-bacterial
properties. Shorter, woody core fibres ("tow") contain higher levels of lignin.
Producers:

The world's leading producer of hemp is China (above), with smaller production in Europe,
Chile and the Democratic People's Republic of Korea. In the European Union hemp is grown on
around 15 000 ha of land. Major producers are France, Germany and the UK.
Uses of hemp

Hempworld
Hemp has been used for centuries to make rope, canvas and paper. Long hemp fibres can be
spun and woven to make crisp, linen-like fabric used in clothing, home furnishing textiles and
floor coverings.

Dankforest
In China, hemp is de-gummed for processing on flax or cotton machinery. Blending with cotton,
linen, silk and wool gives hemp a softer feel, while adding resistance and durability to the
product.
In Europe, hemp fibres are used mainly in the special paper industry - thanks to lower lignin
content, it can be pulped using fewer chemicals than wood.

Lotus Engineering

EIHA
Hemp fibres are also used to reinforce moulded thermoplastics in the automobile industry. The
short core fibres go into insulation products, fibreboard and erosion control mats, while the
fibrous core can be blended with lime to make strong, lightweight concrete.