3

Cloth Materials—Fibre to Fabric

Expected Learning Outcomes

Knowledge to be gained: •Natural and man-made bres •Processes involved in obtaining wool
•Processes involved in obtaining silk •Life cycle of a silk moth •Occupational hazards in wool and
silk industry
Skills to be developed: •Comparing the characteristics of different bres • Selection of fabrics
based on their characteristics
Attitude to be inculcated: •Protecting our natural resources of bre.
Clothing is an important part of our life. It is one u Woollen clothes are worn during winter.
of our basic necessities. We wear clothes to ink and discuss why we need such a variety of
cover and protect ourselves from extreme clothes to keep us warm.
weather conditions and from harmful insects
NATURAL AND MAN-MADE FIBRES
and animals. Clothes are stitched from the
fabrics. ere are a variety of textures in fabrics, Fibres are of different types. ey can be
and each type of fabric is prepared by weaving classi ed into natural bres and man-made
bres, based on their source.
the bres. A bre can be described as a ne
strand of some material. It is the raw material u e natural bres are obtained from
from which fabric or textile for clothes is natural sources. ey can be:
prepared. Different fabrics are made from Fibres of plant origin, like cotton and jute.
different types of bres. We wear different types Fibres of animal origin, like wool and silk.
of clothes in different seasons: u e man–made bres are synthetic bres.
u During summer, cotton clothes keep us ese bres are made from petrochemicals.
comfortable and cool. ey are rayon, nylon, polyester and acrylic.
34 Exploring Science-7
In Class VI, you have learnt about some bres 1. e coarse beard hair (outer hair), and
obtained from plants. In this chapter, we shall 2. e ne so under-hair close to the skin. e
study about the bres obtained from animals. ne hair provides the bre for making wool.
Names of some wool-yielding Indian breeds of
WOOL
sheep are given below.
Wool is obtained from the eece (hair) of
Wool-yielding Indian breeds of sheep
animals which have dense hairy skin, like Name of breed Quality of wool Distribution
sheep or yak. Wool is the most used animal Uttar Pradesh and
Rampur bushair Brown eece
bre. Himachal Pradesh
Rajasthan, Haryana
Nali Carpet wool
Wool and Hair Bearing Animals and Punjab
Rajasthan and
Wool is obtained mainly from sheep. Wool is Lohi Good quality wool Punjab
also obtained from yaks, alpacas, llamas, goats, Bakharwal Woollen shawls Jammu and Kashmir
rabbits, etc. Mohair wool is obtained from Patanwadi Hosiery Gujarat
Angora goats, found in the hills of Jammu and Marwari Coarse wool Gujarat and Rajasthan
Kashmir. Angora wool is obtained from Angora
rabbits. e famous pashmina shawls of Activity-1
Kashmir are made from Kashmiri goat’s wool.
Cashmere goats are very rare, and are found in Collect pictures of animals whose hair is used
the Tibetan region. Merino sheep were found in as wool, and prepare a scrapbook. Try to nd
Spain, but are now bred all over the world. out the type of wool obtained from each of
Merino sheep gives the best quality of wool. them.
Alpaca and Llama are bred in South America.
Wool grows like hair on the body of these Activity-2
animals. Once a year, this wool is sheared from
the animals which are reared for wool Get a political map of India. Mark the states
collection. where each of the different varieties of sheep is
e hairy skin of the sheep has two types of found. Use different colours to represent the
bres that form its eece: location of different wool-yielding animals.

Angora goat Llama Yak

Fig.1 Some wool-yielding animals

Cloth Materials—Fibre to Fabric 35

WOOL PRODUCTION
Rearing and Breeding of Sheep
Rearing of animals means to look aer them
by providing them with food, shelter and
health care.
Sheep are reared in many parts of our country.
You can see shepherds carrying herds of sheep
for grazing in the countryside of Jammu and
Kashmir, Himachal Pradesh, Punjab, Haryana,
Rajasthan, Gujarat, Arunachal Pradesh and
Sikkim. Sheep are fed on grass and leaves, but
are also given a mixture of corn, pulses, jowar
and oil cake. Sheep that are fed on protein-rich
food, develop a good growth of ne curly and
shiny hair. When sheep develop a thick growth
of hair, they are shaved to obtain eece.
Some breeds of sheep possess only ne under-
hair. eir parents are specially chosen to give
birth to sheep having only so under-hair. is
process of selecting parents for obtaining
special characters in their offspring (such as
so under-hair in sheep), is termed as
selective breeding.
Shearing (Step 1)
Once a sheep develops a thick coat of hair, it is
shaved off for getting wool. e process of
removing eece from the body of a sheep is
called shearing (Fig.2).
Fig.2 Shearing of a sheep Fig.3 Scouring of eece
36 Exploring Science-7
Shearing can be done manually with a large
razor or with a shearing machine. Shearing does
not hurt the sheep because the uppermost layer
of the skin of the sheep is ‘dead’. e shearing of
sheep is done in the summer so that sheep can
survive without their protective coat of hair.
Scouring (Step 2)
Aer the sheep are sheared, the sheared hair is
then washed with water by passing into four
water tanks containing soapy water and some
alkali. e process of washing the eece to
remove dust, dirt, dried sweat and grease is
called scouring (Fig.3). Scouring makes the
eece of the sheep clean. It is then passed
through a series of rollers and dryers.
Sorting and Removing Burr (Step 3)
Wool is not uniform in all parts of the eece of a
sheep. Some parts of eece have ne wool bres,
whereas other parts have coarse wool bre.
Some parts of eece have long wool bres,
whereas others have short wool bres. So, the
eece of even the same sheep has wool of
different textures. e process of separating
the eece of a sheep into different sections
according to the quality of woollen bres is
called sorting (Fig.4).
Fig.4 Sorting of eece
Burrs are so uffy bres in the wool (similar
to those that oen appear on the sweaters you
wear). ese are removed manually. Aer
removing the burr, the bres are scoured again
and dried, to make it ready to be drawn into
bres.
Dyeing (Step 4)
e natural hair of sheep is white, brown or
black in colour. It is dyed in different colours.
Combing (Step 5)
Dyed wool is passed through a machine having
metal teeth. ese metal teeth comb and
straighten the wool. Combing is a method to
prepare woollen bres for spinning the yarn.
is is done by using combs of metal teeth.
e process of combing straightens the
entangled woollen bres and also removes the
burrs which may be caught in them.
Spinning (Step 6)
Wool bres are spun to obtain a strand of wool
yarn. e long woollen bres are spun on a
spinning machine to obtain a thick yarn of
wool. e short woollen bres make ne yarns
which are used in making expensive shawls.
Weaving (Step 7)
Aer spinning, the wool yarn is either woven or
knitted. Longer yarns are knitted into wool for
sweaters. e shorter yarns are woven into
woollen clothes.
From the above discussion, we conclude that
the sheep’s hair is sheared off from the body,
scoured, sorted, dyed, combed and spun to
obtain wool and woollen yarn. e quality of the
woollen cloth depends on the breed of sheep
from which the wool is obtained.

1. Shearing 2. Scouring 3. Sorting

Fig.5 Process 4. Dyeing

of obtaining wool

7. Weaving 6. Spinning 5. Combing

Cloth Materials—Fibre to Fabric 37

Occupational Hazard in Wool Industry
People working in the sorting department are at
risk because they may get infected by the
anthrax bacteria. e anthrax disease is a fatal
blood disease and is also called sorter’s disease.
Wool Production in the World
China is at the top in wool production. It
contributes about 20% of the total wool
produced in the world. India ranks tenth in the
world wool production. In India, sheep are
reared in the lower Himalayan region which
Checkpoint-1
Write True or False
1. Clothing is one of our basic needs.
2. Fabrics are stitched from clothes.
3. Cotton clothes are comfortable during summer.
4. Synthetic bres are natural bres.
5. Wool is obtained mainly from sheep.
SILK
Silk is light and so, but a strong bre, having
shimmering appearance. e silk bres are also
animal bres obtained from the cocoons of silk
moths (or silkworms). e rearing of silk
moths for obtaining silk is called sericulture.
Discovery of silk
e story of silk dates back to about 4700 years
ago (around 2680 BC) in China. According to a
Chinese legend, the queen of emperor Huang-ti
was having tea in the garden when a yellow-
coloured cocoon fell into her tea and strands of
thread separated from it. She discovered this
thread to be strong and started weaving it into
fabrics. us started the silk industry of China.
For a very long time, the Chinese kept the silk
38 Exploring Science-7
includes Jammu and Kashmir, Himachal
Pradesh, Uttarakhand, along with Haryana,
Punjab and parts of Rajasthan and Gujarat.
Other major wool-producing countries are
Australia, New Zealand, United Kingdom, Iran,
India, Russia and Argentina.
Knowledge Booster
Woolmark is a symbol of quality to assure that the
woollen cloth is made from pure wool. This logo is
assigned by Interna onal Wool Secretariat (IWS)
established in North Yorkshire, United Kingdom.
______________
______________
______________
______________
______________
production secret and made huge pro ts by
trading it with other civilisations of Asia, the
Middle East and Europe. In fact, the route taken
by the traders for the exchange of goods is still
called e Silk Route. It linked China with
other places like India, Europe and the Middle
East. Eventually, silkworms were smuggled out
from China and silk production began in India,
Europe and the Middle East. Even today, China
remains the largest producer of silk in the world.
Knowledge Booster
Silk is the strongest of all natural fibres. It is even
stronger than steel fibre of the same thickness.
China is the leading silk-producing country in the
world. Other major silk-producing countries are
Japan, India and Italy.
 Types of Silk
u e best quality of silk is obtained from the
cocoons of silk moth, Bombyx Mori. Its
caterpillar feeds on the leaves of mulberry
trees. is variety of silk moth is cultivated
in China and the mountainous regions of
Northern India.
u Wild silk called tassar is obtained from silk
moths that feed on oak leaves. Oak grows
widely in India and China.
u Muga silk is obtained from another wild
var iety of si l k mot hs found in t he
Brahmaputra valley.
Life Cycle of a Silk Moth
e female silk moth lays hundreds of tiny eggs
on the mulberry leaves. e larvae that hatch
out of the eggs are called caterpillars .
Caterpillars feed on mulberry leaves vigorously
and grow in size. When a caterpillar is ready to
enter the pupal stage, it stops feeding and its
salivary glands secrete a bre-like substance.
is bre is made up of a protein, which hardens
Adult
silk moth
Eggs
Young silk moth Egg hatches;
leaves the cocoon Caterpillar comes out
Pupa in cocoon
Fig.6 Life cycle of a silk moth
Cloth Materials—Fibre to Fabric
on exposure to air and forms a cover around the
caterpillar. e caterpillar is now called the
pupa. e pupa, using the secreted bre, rst
weaves a net to hold itself. Aer that, it
continuously swings its head from side to side in
the form of the digit 8. Meanwhile, it continues
secreting the bre from its salivary glands.
e pupa covers itself with enough bre that
eventually hardens with exposure to air. is
cover around the pupa is called the cocoon. e
cocoon is ball-shaped and is formed of silk
bre.
Further development of the silk moth continues
inside the cocoon. At the end of the pupal stage,
the silk moth cuts the silken bre of the cocoon
and the young moth ies out.
Knowledge Booster
• Caterpillar (larva) of silk moth feeds and grows for
about 5-6 weeks.
• Silkworm takes about one week to spin the
cocoon.
• The cocoon is formed of one con nuous thread,
having an approximate length of 1.5 km.
Eggs Larva (Caterpillar) Pupa
(Feeds on mulberry leaves)
(Secretion of protein
bre around pupa)
Adult silkworm
Cocoon
People unwind silk Development of silk- (Cover around
threads from cocoons worm inside cocoon the pupa)
39
 1. A female moth lays 200-300 eggs
6. Weaving
Fig.7 Process of obtaining silk
From Cocoon to Silk (Sericulture)
e breeding and management of silk moths for
the production of silk involve the following
steps:
u A female silk moth lays hundreds of eggs at a
time.
u e eggs of silk moths are stored on strips of
cloth or paper and are sold to silkworm
farmers.
u e eggs are reared in hygienic conditions at
suitable temperature and humidity till the
larvae come out.
u  e s i l k m ot h l a r v a e a re t h e n fe d
on mulberry leaves under controlled
conditions.
u e larvae, called caterpillar or silkworm,
eat the mulberry leaves and increase
enormously in size in 25 to 30 days.
u Aer that, the caterpillars move into the
pupal stage and spin a cocoon around
themselves. Caterpillars are kept on warm
40
2. Hatching of eggs 3. Warming of silkworms on bamboo tray
5. Reeliing 4. Boiling of cocoon
bamboo trays to form cocoons. Cocoon
formation is completed in two to three days.
u Fully grown cocoons are sorted out
according to their colour, size, shape and
texture.
u e sorted cocoons are immersed in boiled
water or exposed to steam. is kills the
pupae inside the cocoons.
u e cocoons are then put through a series of
hot and cold immersions. is process is
called the soening of sericin. Sericin (or
silk gum) is a gummy substance that holds
two strands of broin protein of a silk bre
together.
u e next step is the process of unwinding
silk laments from the cocoon. is is called
reeling the lament. e process of taking
out silk threads from the cocoons to use as
silk is called reeling.
ree to ten laments of the cocoon are usually
reeled together to produce the bres of raw silk
of the desired thickness.
Exploring Science-7
u Silk bres are spun into silk threads (yarns)
which are used by the weavers to weave the
silk cloth.
u e weaving of silk is carried out in looms.
Occupational Hazards in Silk Industry
u Workers can develop infectious skin
diseases due to their dipping of hands in
constant boiling water during the killing of
pupae.
u Severe headache, fever and pain in the neck

u Many workers in the sericulture industry
are affected by respiratory diseases such as
ast hma and bronchitis b ecaus e of
inhalation of vapours arising from cocoons
when being steamed, boiled and reeled.
and lower back, are also observed in the
workers of the silk industry.
u Leg deformity and bow-leggedness are also
found in some workers.

Checkpoint-2
Answer the following questions
1. Which is the strongest of all natural bres?
2. Where was silk rst developed?
3. Where is the best quality silk obtained from?
4. Where is wild silk obtained from?
5. What are the larvae that hatch out of silk moth eggs called?
6. Name a tree on which young newborn silk moths are fed.

Keywords
Rearing : Taking care of cattle in order to obtain useful substances from them.
Fleece : The woolly covering on a sheep or goat.
Breeding : Selecting the parents with special traits to obtain better offsprings.
Shearing : The process of obtaining hair of the sheep and turning it into wool bres.
Scouring : Washing of eece to remove dust and grease.
Sorting : e process of separating the eece into different sections according to the
quality of woollen bres.
Burrs : Small, so uffy bres in the wool.
Cocoon : Covering around the pupa.
Sericulture : Rearing of silk moths.
Reeling : Obtaining silk bres from cocoons.

Cloth Materials—Fibre to Fabric 41

Points to Remember
u Clothing is one of our basic necessities.
u Wool and silk are animal bres.
u Merino sheep gives the best quality of wool.
u e process of removal of hair from the body of a sheep is called shearing.
u e process of washing the eece to remove dirt is called scouring.
u e small uffy bres of wool are called burrs.
u e anthrax disease is a fatal blood disease and is also called sorter’s disease. It is prevalent in
the wool industry.
u China is at the top in wool and silk production in the world.
u e rearing of silk moths for obtaining silk is called sericulture.
u Silk was rst developed in China.
u e life cycle of a silk moth is as follows:
Egg Larva/Caterpillar/Silkworm Pupa Adult silk moth
u e pupa covers itself with a cocoon which contains silk bres.
u Silk bres from cocoons are separated and reeled into silk threads.
u Workers in the silk industry are exposed to respiratory diseases and skin infections.

Exercise
A. Tick (3) the Correct Option
1. Clothes are stitched from the ________________.
(a) owers (b) seeds
(c) fabrics (d) skin
2. Cotton clothes are most comfortable to wear during ________________ season.
(a) summer (b) winter
(c) monsoon (d) spring
3. Which of the following is not a synthetic bre?
(a) Rayon (b) Nylon
(c) Polyester (d) Jute

42 Exploring Science-7
 4. Alpaca and Llama are bred in which region?
(a) South Africa (b) South America
(c) Germany (d) France
5. e process of washing the eece is called ________________.
(a) dyeing (b) spinning
(c) reeling (d) scouring
B. Fill in the Blanks with Suitable Words
1. When sheep develop a thick growth of hair, they are shaved to obtain ________________.
2. e woolly covering on a sheep or goat is called ________________.
3. China contributes about ______________% of the total wool produced in the world.
4. ______________ sheep gives the best quality of wool.
5. Muga silk is obtained from a wild variety of silk moth found in ______________.
C. Very-Short-Answer-Type Questions
1 Name two wool-yielding animals.
2. e beard hair of sheep is used to make wool. True or False?
3. What is the effect of feeding a protein-rich food to sheep?
4. Shearing can only be done manually. True or False?
5. Metal teeth combs are used for combing wool bres. True or False?
6. Which disease are the sorters in the wool industry vulnerable to?
7. Angora wool comes from the Angora goat. True or False?
8. What is sericulture?
D. Short-Answer-Type Questions
1. What are bres? Why do we need different types of bres?
2. What are natural bres? Give two examples.
3. What are man-made bres? Give two examples.
4. Write a brief note on various types of wool that can be obtained from different animals.
5. What is selective breeding? Explain how sheep are selected for selective breeding.
6. What are the various steps involved in processing wool? Name them.
7. De ne:
(a) shearing (b) scouring (c) sorting (d) reeling
8. What is The Silk Route? What is the history behind this route?
Cloth Materials—Fibre to Fabric 43
 9. What are the different types of silk?
10. Mention any two major occupational hazards the workers of the silk industry face.
E. Long-Answer-Type Questions
1. Brie y explain the steps involved in the production of wool.
2. Describe the life cycle of a silk moth.
3. Draw a labelled diagram and explain the steps involved in the production of silk fabric.
4. Describe the occupational hazards of the wool industry and the silk industry.

HOTS
1. Why are sheep given an antiseptic, both before and aer shearing?
2. Why is it necessary to kill the pupae (singular: pupa) by boiling cocoons in water at the
right time?

Activity Zone

Project Work
A. Arti cial silk is not sourced from silk moths. Instead of protein, they are made of cellulose
contained in the wood pulp of some plants. Find out how such arti cial silk is made. Make a
power point presentation on it and share it with your classmates.
B. In groups of four, discuss the types of clothes we should wear in different seasons. Also
discuss, how the types of clothing we wear change with occasion. Prepare a chart on it and
present in front of the class.

Science Excursion

C. Look for eggs of any moth or butter y in your garden or any other place full of plants. ey
look like tiny specks (dots) laid in a cluster on the leaves. Pull out the leaves containing eggs
and place them in a cardboard box. Take some leaves of the same plant, chop them and put
them in the box. Eggs will hatch into caterpillars, which are busy eating day and night. Add
leaves every day for them to feed upon. In some time, you may be able to collect the
caterpillars. But be careful. Use a paper napkin or a piece of paper to hold a caterpillar.
Observe every day and note the following :
1. number of days taken for eggs to hatch,
2. number of days taken to reach the cocoon stage, and
3. number of days to complete life cycle.
Record your observations in your notebook.
44 Exploring Science-7
 Memory Map

Natural Fibres FIBRE Man-Made Fibres

examples

Nylon Rayon Acrylic Polyester

Plant Fibres
examples

Cotton Jute Animal Fibres

examples

Wool Silk
processing processing

Rearing Shearing Scouring Hot immersion Sorting Rearing

Dyeing Removing Sorting Cold immersion Reeling Spinning

Burr

Combing Spinning Weaving into Weaving

(Making yarn) clothes

e-Resources
Please visit the link given below or scan the QR code for more resources on
this chapter:
https://www.megamindpublication.com/s-3-science/b-3-exploring-science-7/c-29/cloth-materials- bre-to-
fabric.html

Cloth Materials—Fibre to Fabric 45