Plant Taxonomy
Bast fibre plants of the Urticaceae family supply strong vegetative phloem fibres harvested for textile yarn production. Raw stocks derived from boehmeria nivea, commonly designated as ramie, feature high crystalline cellulose content that gives the extracted fibre high tensile strength and low elasticity. Chinese degumming facilities process harvested stems through alkaline boiling to remove pectins before carding.
Inspection sheets record fibre yield and length distributions prior to wet spinning operations.
Processing Pathway
Degumming procedures reduce the residual gum content of harvested stems to prepare the bast bundles for mechanical carding and drafting. Chemical extraction of boehmeria nivea requires boiling raw ribbon in sodium hydroxide solutions at controlled temperatures to dissolve hemicellulose matrices. Subsequent washing and neutralising baths clear residual alkali before optical evaluation.
Mechanical softening rollers then break remaining stiff bundles into spinnable staple lengths. Slubbing frames draft the cleaned fibres into slivers intended for pure or blended yarn spinning. Mills track chemical consumption and liquor ratios on batch routing sheets during each degumming run.
Laboratory technicians measure residual gum percentages on dried samples to verify processing efficiency.
Fibre Qualification
Commercial classification relies on chemical purity and staple uniformity to distinguish ramie from flax or hemp raw stocks. Standardised laboratory tests for boehmeria nivea measure tensile strength and residual pectin levels. Buyer contracts specify maximum permissible gum content and minimum fibre length for high-count yarn production.
Raw fibre certificates state species identity and chemical treatment parameters to support customs classification and export clearance documentation.
