Saw and Roller Ginning Naturally Colored Cotton
Naturally colored cottons do not require dyeing, potentially reducing processing costand environmental impact. Naturally colored cottons must be ginned separately to protect
white varieties from contamination. Since naturally colored cottons have different fiber
properties than typical white cottons, this research was necessary to address the question,
"What type of gin plant should be built to produce the most valuable naturally colored fiber?"
This experiment used two naturally colored cottons from two sources.
Here the raw seedcotton is being weighed out into small lots for replication.
Naturally colored cottons have gained length and strength in recent years, and can be machine
processed into yarns. Here two colors are being saw ginned by the USDA Agricultural Research Service.
Roller ginning took a bit longer but fiber length was one
staple greater and there were fewer neps with roller ginning.
Samples for HVI classing (AMS-Visalia) and Advanced Fiber Information System (ARS-Clemson).
The last bale was an intriguing combination of two colors.