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Agro Textiles-A Review

By: Dr.Ruma Chakrabarti, K.Gowri & R.Senthil Kumar

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Agro Textiles - A Review

By: Dr.Ruma Chakrabarti, K.Gowri & R.Senthil Kumar
Department of Textile Technology, Kumaraguru College of Technology, Coimbatore
Introduction: Agriculture is the largest industry in the world. Today, agriculture, horticulture area has realized the need of tomorrow and opting for various technologies to get higher overall yield, quality and tasty agro products. Adopting the hi-tech farming technique, where textile structures are used, could enhance quality and overall yield of agro-products. Textile structures in various forms are used in shade house/ poly house, green house and also in open fields to control environmental factors like, temperature, water and humidity. It also avoids agro products damage from wind, rain and birds. Agro textiles like sunscreen, bird net windshield, mulch mat, hail protection net, harvesting net, etc can be used for achieving the above goal. Crop protection and weed control are the major challenges faced by the farmers in the agriculture industry. Textile industry is the second largest industry next to agriculture. Agro textiles contribute 8% share in the technical textiles break up. The usage of agro textiles will be benefited in terms of products with enhanced quality, higher yields fewer damages and bearable losses. This paper emphasizes the application of agro textiles in various areas of agriculture and horticulture.

Agro Textiles: The word Agro textiles now is used to classify the woven, nonwoven and knitted fabrics applied for agricultural and horticultural uses covering livestock protection, shading, weed and insect control, and extension of the growing season. The essential properties required are Strength, elongation, stiffness, porosity, bio-degradation, resistance to sunlight and resistance to toxic environment.

www.fibre2fashion.com Agro Textiles Worldwide Consumption:

Agrotextiles - Worldwide Consumption

2,500 (000 tonnes) 2,000 1,500 1,000 500 0 1995 2000 Year 2005 2010

Chart 1 Agro textiles-Worldwide Consumption

Need for Agro Textiles: They prevent the soil from drying out and increases crop yield. They improve product quality. Agro textiles protects farmer from harmful pesticides. The best-known products are shade netting and thermal screens, the use of which can save up to 40% on energy in heating greenhouses. Their use improves the quality of fruit, prevents staining and improves uniformity of color.

Different Fabric Forms used in Agro Textiles: The different fabric forms used in agro textiles are Nets, Sheets, Woven, Nonwovens, Knitted, Novel and Coated fabrics. Various Fibres Used in Agro textiles: The various fibers used in agro textiles are Nylon, Polyester, Polyethylene, Polyolefin, Jute and Wool. Among all these fibers the Polyolefin is extensively used where as among natural

www.fibre2fashion.com jute and wool is used it not only serve the purpose but also after some year it degrades and act as the natural fertilizer. Areas of Application:

1. Hail Protection:

Fig.1 Hail protection Fabric Hail protection fabrics helps shield vines from the fruit damage and defoliation associated with hail yet still lets through plenty of sunlight. The lightweight netting is tough, rip resistant, and highly UV stabilized and has the additional benefit of protecting vines from wind and birds. These fabrics are also used to protect fruit, herb and vegetable crops which are to be healthier and give higher yields when protected from the ravages of hail. The fabric offers light shading as well as protection from wind and birds. These fabrics are made up of UV stabilized polyethylene monofilaments both woven and knitted form.

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2. Wind Control Fabrics:

Fig.2 Wind Control Fabrics Wind control fabrics can improve fruit quality by minimizing bruising, shoot tip scorching. Trees that are protected from wind are generally healthier, reach full growth more rapidly, and have higher yield. Wind Break Fabrics protect crops from wind and, in some cases, orchard temperatures can be increased by reducing wind speed. Windbreak fabrics start blocking wind immediately, dont harbor insects, require little maintenance, and will not compete with crops for water and nutrients. UV stabilized fabrics provide years of wind protection for crops. These fabrics are also made up of UV stabilized polyethylene mono filaments both woven and knitted form. 3. Landscape Covers for Weed Protection:

Fig.3 Landscape Covers

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Suppression or elimination of weed growth is a major component of all landscape maintenance programs. Weeds are undesirable due to aesthetic detraction; competition for light, water, nutrients and space; provision of insect and disease habitats; and possible allelopathic growth suppression. Most landscape maintenance programs rely on hand weeding, herbicides, and mulches (alone or in combination) to suppress and control weeds. Within the past few years, a new group of synthetic materials has been introduced for use with mulches for landscape weed control. These geotextiles (also called landscape fabrics or weed barriers) have one major advantage over plastics -- they permit the exchange of water and air between the soil and the atmosphere.

Black plastic (solid polyethylene) provides excellent control of annual weeds and suppresses perennial weeds, but restricts air and water movement. Thermally spun bonded fabrics are much more effective than woven or needle punched geotextiles in preventing fine roots and rhizomes from penetrating the fabric. DuPont Plantex is a weed control fabric made up of polypropylene which is thermally bonded by heat and pressure form a strong material that is impenetrable to most weeds and grasses.

4. Sunshade Fabrics:

Fig.4 Sunshade Fabrics Shade fabric is absorbing 90% of sunlight. The fabrics made up of polypropylene monofilament strands in both woven and knitted form are used to serve as sunshade fabrics to develop a microclimate for plantation of flowers, ornamental plants and fruits. Woven

www.fibre2fashion.com sunshade fabric is made from 100% polypropylene monofilament strands. Woven sunshade fabric is UV stabilized to hold up under the most extreme solar conditions. Woven sunshade fabric can be used for a variety of applications such as wind and privacy screen, shading for sports and recreation, livestock, patio, dog kennels and solar protection for plants. Knitted Sunshade cloth is made from 100% UV stabilized polyethylene. Its unique lock stitch construction allows customers the ability to cut the fabric with scissors without further unraveling. Knitted shade fabric is available in a variety of colors and stripes. Its lightweight and durability make it a superior choice for all types of shade applications.

5. Protection Against Insects-Insect Proof Fabrics:

Various pests like Whitefly, scale insects attack some ornamental plants and vegetables frequently. The affected leaves of the plants give rises to the formation of black fungus because of the honeydew on the leaves left by the viruses.

Fig.5 Insect proof Fabric

The invention of insect repellent fabrics has given a way to safeguard the plants and vegetables. The fabrics of such kind are stretched across the open-air plantations so that the pests can no longer get to the plants and also the climate will not be disturbed in any way.

www.fibre2fashion.com 6. Temperature Controlled Fabrics:

Fig.6 Cold and Frost Control Fabrics Temperature Control fabric is a nonwoven, spun bonded polyester fabric designed to protect crops from cold, frost, insects and a variety of adverse environmental factors. Temperature Control fabric helps captures heat on sunny days and retains heat radiating from the ground at night. This aids in protecting sensitive ornamentals, nursery stock and foliage 24 hours a day. Frost and Cold Protection fabric protects plants from frost kill during unexpected late cold snaps and unseasonably early ones.

Frost and Cold Protection fabric can be laid right on the plants, unlike plastic covers that can attract frost and burn any leaves that touch them.Cold protection tough fabric row covers are perfect for protecting low growing, high value field crops from frosts, wind, cold, and birds. The woven, semi-clear fabric allows sunlight, air, and water through to the plants. The fabric can be used alone or over wire hoops. The covers are strong, durable, and can last for many growing seasons.

7. Rain Protection Fabrics: Rain protection fabrics protect the flowers and berries from damage on rainfall. The fabrics may have grid structure to serve the purpose of saving from rain.

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8. Harvesting Aids:

Fig.7 Harvesting Aids

Harvesting nets are used to collect the fruits falling from a tree. This helps to keep the cost of cultivation low by eliminating additional labor associated with harvesting. Harvesting nets are predominantly grip structures which can be developed using warp knitting technology.

www.fibre2fashion.com 9. Biobarriers:

Fig.8 Biobarriers Root control fabrics

Biobarrier Root Control installations effectively divert lateral root growth. They are used to prevent hardscape damage by root encroachment and to separate root systems for nutrient allocation or to isolate diseased root systems.

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10. Root Pruning Fabric:

Fig.9 Root Pruning Fabric Root pruning fabric is used for nursery propagation. It can be used in sand beds and under trays or containers. It forces the plant to develop its vital root system within the growing device. Prevents root damage during plant removal. It is having the following advantages: Limits damage to the plant. Reduces labor costs and Increases production quality.

Properties required for Agro textiles products:

Man made fibers are preferred for agricultural products than the natural fibers mainly due to their favorable price performance ratio, ease of transport, space saving storage and long service life, Weather resistance ,resistance to micro-organisms.

www.fibre2fashion.com Withstand solar radiation: Agro textiles are laid over the cultivated areas immediately after sowing or planting. For such application Agro textiles has to withstand solar radiation with varying surrounding temperature.

Withstands ultraviolet Radiations:

Polyethylene is resistant to radiation in the visible range. But UV radiation leads to degradation of molecular chains. Hence when used as an outdoor material polyethylene is treated with the appropriate UV stabilizers. These are special types of carbon black which convert the UV radiation into thermal radiation. Good potential to reduce the impact of UV radiation on plants by light-absorbing or light-reflecting non wovens (light permeability: 80 to 90% to allow photo synthesis to take place).

Bio degradability

Natural fibers like wool, jute, cotton are also used where the bio-degradability of product is essential. Natural polymer gives the advantage of bio-degradation but has low service life when compared to the synthetics.

High potential to retain water

This is achieved by means of fiber materials which allow taking in much water and by filling in super-absorbers. While nonwovens meant for the covering of plants show a mass per unit area of 15 to 60 gm/m2, values between 100 and 500 g/m2 are reached with materials for use on embankments and slopes.

Protection property

Protection from wind and the creation of a micro-climate between the ground and the nonwovens, which results in temperature and humidity being balanced out. At the same time,

www.fibre2fashion.com temperature in the root area rise. This is what causes earlier harvests. Sufficient stiffness, flexibility, evenness, elasticity, bio-degradability, dimensional stability and resistance to wetness. Fungicidal finish (up to 2% of the total mass), which avoids soil contamination.

Techniques of producing agro textile products Several techniques of fabric production can be used to produce Agro textiles; each method offers specific advantages for particular product. The techniques are, Woven Knitting Non woven Woven

Woven products are produced by using weaving machines especially Sulzer projectile weaving machines. The range of light to heavy and wide width fabric production is possible with Sulzer projectile weaving machine. The machines with weaving width of 540cm to 846cm are available for the production of agro textiles. The nets with a mesh width of 1.8mm to 40mm can be produced. Other systems of woven fabric production such as air jet and rapier weaving machines are not preferred for the manufacture of such fabrics, as they do not have required weaving width.

Knitting Warp knitting technique is most widely used compare than the weft knitting. Warp knitted protective nets are used in different sectors, which are produced on raschel machines. Agro nets are produced in various constructions or lapping. Here, the construction or lapping is a way in which individual yarn systems are converted into fabrics. Nonwovens There are many techniques to produce Non woven fabrics. Spun bonding and needle punch techniques are mainly used for the production of non woven Agro textiles. The spun bonded fabric has high and constant tensile strength in all directions. It has also good tearing strength. Needle punched fabric plant bags provide advantages over conventional fired clay pots.

www.fibre2fashion.com All natural fibers offer an added advantage of that the container decomposes after being planted in the ground. Even with man made fibers the roots find their way through the fabric.

Conclusion: Agrotextile improves plant growth and crops in the orchards. Used mainly in planted areas, provides weed suppression and ground moisture conservation, whilst allowing roots to breathe and water, air and nutrients to permeate through. This reduces upkeep, maintains higher soil temperatures and promotes more rapid and even plant growth. The usage of textiles is also now extended to protect the agro products like plants, vegetables and fruits from weather, weed and birds, etc, by means of agro textiles, which has given a new dimension to technical textiles.

REFERENCES: 1. Adanur.S. Hand Book Of Industrial Textiles Technomic publishing co., Inc 1995 2. Sabit Adanur., Hand Book Of Weaving Technomic publishing co., Inc 2001 3. Koerner.R., Designing With Geo Synthetics Prentice Hall 1994