Arenga fibers
Arenga fibers (also Gemuti ) are among the commercially traded fibers or fibrous materials. They are mainly obtained from the leaf sheaths of the sugar palm ( Arenga pinnata ).
description
Arenga fibers are leaf fibers. They belong to the group of hard fibers that (in contrast to staple fibers) cannot be spun, but only serve as a substitute for bristles or horsehair . Yarns or fabrics are not made from Arenga fibers because they are too thick and too stiff.
The sugar palm can be found from India to Malaysia to the Philippines between sea level and heights of 1,400 meters. According to older sources, this type of palm was widely cultivated on Réunion in the early 20th century and is common in the Sunda Islands .
The fibers come mainly from the leaf sheaths of the leaves, which sit on the trunk and form part of the trunk of the palm in a dense layering. Fibers are also extracted from the roots and trunk.
properties
The Arenga fiber is dark gray to blue black in color. The resilient fibers of different strengths have a Mohs hardness of 2-3, the fiber lengths can reach up to 1.20 meters. The fiber is resistant to moisture and water, also to seawater and oil, and withstands the heat of embers for a short time.
Compared to other plant-based hard fibers, Arenga fiber is relatively soft, fine, but tough and elastic.
Arenga fiber is similar in appearance to the horse's tail hair. Hence the earlier name vegetable horse hair . In contrast to horsehair, there is no electrostatic charging of the fibers, which is why Arenga fibers are less suitable for living room brooms. Arenga fibers have the property of self-erecting, which is why brooms can be worn down to the end.
The physical properties of Arenga fibers are similar to those of Piassava fibers. The color of the arenga fibers is a little darker than piassava.
Usage
Because of their moisture resistance, the fibers are used as bristles in brushes or brooms for harsh environments.
Industrial, court and hall brooms and pipe cleaning brushes are made from the fibers, they are used for roofing and for fishing nets , hats as well as for reinforcement and rigging .
Manufacturing
After the leaf sheaths have been cut from the tree, the Arenga fibers are cleaned, combed and shipped in bales.
Designations
The Arenga fiber is also called Gemuti or Gumati fiber (Gomuta fiber, Gomuti obre). Historical sources also speak of the Arenga fiber
- Eju (Ejoo)
- Vegetable horse or horsehair (Crin végétale). This name was also used for other plant fibers, for example for fibers from Tillandsia usneoides , Chamaerops humilis and Rhapidophyllum hystrix (Syn .: Chamaerops hystrix ), Phoenix reclinata , Caryota urens and Caryota mitis .
qualities
Arenga fibers are offered in different qualities.
| quality | designation | length |
|---|---|---|
| B. | very soft | <25 cm |
| C. | medium strength | 25 - 50 cm |
| D. | 75 - 90 cm | |
| E. | strong | 90-120 cm |
Quality C is usually used for brooms.
literature
- Meyer's Large Conversation Lexicon. Volume 1, Leipzig 1905, p. 736 .: Arenga at Zeno.org .
- Julius, Ritter von Wiesner : The raw materials of the vegetable kingdom: attempt of a technical raw material theory of the vegetable kingdom. Third volume, third edition, Engelmann, 1921, online (PDF; 73.5 MB).
- Author collective, Leitg. G. Natho: Raw material plants of the earth. Urania-Verlag, Leipzig / Jena / Berlin, 1976.
Web links
- Arenga on materialarchiv.ch, accessed on May 14, 2018.
- Piassava, Arenga at Transport Information Service.