Sea-island cotton is native to South America, Central America and the Caribbean. It was once widely distributed on the southeastern coast of the United States and its nearby islands, so it is called sea-island cotton.
Later, it gradually spread to surrounding areas and was introduced to Asia, Africa and other regions. Currently, the more famous island cotton mainly comes from Egypt, so it is also called “Egyptian cotton” “.
Sea-island cotton has been selected and domesticated in Egypt for a long time. It has excellent quality, high yield, and the largest planting area.
In modern times, there are many varieties of island cotton cultivated in various countries around the world, including Egypt’s “Giza 45” and “Giza 70”; Sudan’s “Vais” ” and “Barakat”; the Soviet Union’s “6465 Ev” and “9647 Yi”.
There are also varieties such as “Pima” from the United States, Peru and Morocco.
As early as the 1950s, my country’s life insurance company successfully introduced Soviet annual sea island cotton in Xinjiang. Later, after many cotton seed changes, Xinjiang now has Varieties such as “New Sponge” and “Junhai No. 1” have been promoted on a large scale, and the fiber quality has met the requirements of the textile industry.
Sea-island cotton has a texture and luster similar to velvet. In China, sea-island cotton is also called long-staple cotton. Some people even say that sea-island cotton is the best cotton in the world. , why do you say this?
First of all, it is a plant fiber with a high oil content. The volume of the fiber increases at high temperatures and can be tightened at low temperatures. Therefore, it is decided to Sea-island cotton with this characteristic has a velvet-like thermal insulation effect.
Secondly, the fiber length of sea-island cotton is very long, generally 33~39 mm, and the longest can be 64 mm. It can be said that it is almost impossible to find the second fiber length. The length of the two fibers is longer than that of the other.
In textile production, it can be divided into two types according to its different length and economic value: extra long staple cotton with a fiber length of more than 35 mm and fiber length In 33-35mm medium long staple cotton.
Higher grade extra-long staple cotton was originally the main raw material for spinning large tire cords, but has been gradually replaced by chemical fibers. Now it is the raw material for spinning No. 7.5~4 (80~120 English count) combed yarn, combed pagoda yarn and other high-end yarns.
Higher grade medium-long staple cotton can be used to spin medium-sized tire cord, No. 10~7.5 (60~80 English count) combed yarn, fine Comb sewing thread and other yarns.
Currently, domestic sea-island cotton is mainly produced in Xinjiang, and its quality and output rank among the top 10 in the world. Many businesses use sea-island cotton to produce high-priced high-end clothing.
Not only that, the sea-island cotton fiber is not only long but also very thin, with a fineness of 7000 to 8500 meters and a width of 15-16 microns.
But don’t look at it. Although the fiber of Sea Island cotton is thin, its strength is really high, with the strength of each fiber being 5 grams.
Moreover, its wear resistance to wrinkles far exceeds that of other cotton fabrics. The fiber structure also determines the fabric’s ease of washing and difficulty in shrinkage. feature.
Because of the above advantages, many friends who have used it are very fond of it, so there is such a saying in the textile industry: “The world’s most Good cotton is “sea island cotton”, do you understand now?