STUDY OF BAST FIBER

(JUTE) 3RD PART

MOHAMMAD RAZA MIAH(PH.D.)
DOCTOR OF ENGINEERING IN MATERIALS PHYSICS AND CHEMISTRY
UNIVERSITY OF CHINESE ACADEMY OF SCIENCES (UCAS)
 UP-GRADATION PROCESS OF JUTE

• Up-gradation of jute fiber in different stages of preparation of the commercial raw material has been continuously
attempted through chemi-mechanical, chemical, and biological means by various workers and is still in the process
of modifications, refinements, and making jute reinforced composite, etc.
• Most of the earlier attempts proved futile, either because of high process costs or extensive labor involvement.
• Some of the processes of proven ability to improve fiber quality are rather of academic interest.
• Others, involving manipulations at the pre-retting stage, have been experimented with in large-scale field trials.
• Considering the multifaceted limitations, it was considered worthwhile to develop a simple process that could
upgrade the quality of fiber.
• The basic proportion was to identify the combination of chemicals which would significantly contribute to the
quality.
 UP-GRADATION PROCESS OF JUTE…

• Up-gradation process of machines, workers, and productions:

• Up-gradation process of machines:
• Technology used in the jute manufacturing sector did not change much-
• Most of the machines in jute mills are old and have passed the usual functional period.
• By proper maintenance and replacement of parts, these machines can perform as close to a new one.
• Low level of capacity utilization is a challenge-
• Particularly in the weaving section of composite mills.
• Responsible for low capacity utilization at backward and forward parts of the production chain.
 UP-GRADATION PROCESS OF JUTE…

• Up-gradation process of workers:

• There is no standard practice for the use of workers in different sections of jute mills-
• Standard deviation in the use of workers is estimated to be 22.6 in calendaring sections to as high as 376.3 in
weaving sections.
• Man‐machine ratio is not homogenous in all sections-
• Widely varies in softening, winding and calendaring sections.
• Manufacturing of jute goods is mostly skill‐oriented job-
• There is a scarcity of skilled workers
• Female workers in skill‐oriented and laborious activities is not rare-
• Manufacturers should target appointing more female workers in all sections.
 UP-GRADATION PROCESS OF JUTE…

• Up-gradation process of productions:

• Production environment in jute mills is found to be in diverse states-
• Lack of proper maintenance of temperature, humidity and widespread dust available in the factory premise.
• 50% of sample factories maintain humidity level lower than as it is required.
• Particularly in the amount of time required, amount of output transferred and the distance passed for
transferring outputs.
• Differences in ergonomic structure is appeared to be a major factor.
• Diverse state also found in maintaining required space, machines and workers at backward and forward
linkage activities.
 UP-GRADATION PROCESS OF JUTE…

• Lack of standardized use of machines and workers in different sections among jute mills is
another reason for variation in the level of production-
• Proper utilization of low-grade jute and cuttings would reduce the costs of production
appreciably-
• By using an enzymatic method of softening and cleaning low-grade jute and cuttings developed at the
Bangladesh Jute Research Institute, it is now possible to utilize these fibers in higher-quality batches without
impairing production efficiency.
 UP-GRADATION PROCESS OF JUTE…
• Jute reinforced composite:
• Jute is an attractive natural fiber for use as reinforcement in composite because of its low cost, renewable nature and much lower
energy requirement for processing. The scope for using jute fibers in place of the traditional glass fibers in different forms partly or
fully as reinforcing agents in composites stems from the higher specific modulus and lower specific gravity of jute (~ 40 Pa and
1.29 respectively) compared with those of glass(~ 30 GPa and 2.5 respectively).
• The major drawback of natural fiber-reinforced composites is their affinity for moisture. Many experimental studies have shown
that compatible coupling agents are capable of either slowing down or preventing the de-bonding process and hence moisture
absorption even under severe environmental conditions, such as exposure to boiling water. Jute fibers/fabrics can be modified
chemically through graft co-polymerization and through the incorporation of different resin systems by different approaches.
• Natural fiber composites enjoy excellent potential as wood substitutes in the building industry in view of their
low cost, easy availability, saving in energy, and pollution-free production. In order to improve upon the
laboratory-industry linkages towards application development & commercialization, the advanced composites
mission launched projects on jute composites such as 'Jute-Coir composites boards, 'Jute-glass composite
components for railway coaches, ' Thermoplastic composites based synthetic wood and others.