Introduction to wool

Introduction

Clothing is always a needy thing for humans. Animal skin was used by ancient people for the making of clothes. Progress made by humans leads to the development of a variety of fabrics to make clothes. Discoveries made by humans lead to the development of synthetic fibres that we use currently. Wool is also a currently available fibre and also it is the material used in ancient times itself. About 10,000 BCE itself the use of wool for making clothes has been prevalent. The main source of wool is the sheep. There are wide varieties of sheep, and they are all hairy animals. A large number of wool fibres are obtained from sheep.

What do you mean by Wool?

Wool is a material naturally developed that is present in the skin of animals and is used for the production of clothes. They have naturally obtained fibres from animal skin. The major source of sheep. Sheep are very hairy animals that contain a bulk amount of woollen fibres. The proper processing of this material obtained from animals can be used for the production of various useful things. Wools are generally proteins that consist of a small number of lipids. The protein is keratin. The chemical structure of ola is very complex and no synthetic fibres can match with characteristics, structure, and properties. The cellular structure and proper arrangement of elements made it unique from other fibres. The follicles present in the skin of animals produce this hairy fibre. Follicles are present in the upper skin layer of animals. There are normally three types of follicles they are primary, secondary, and tertiary.

Wool

What is Fleece?

Fleece is a synthetic fibre produced by the polymerization of ethylene terephthalate commonly called PET. They resemble wool in some characteristics but are not good as wool. They are inexpensive and many cloth materials are made with the help of this fabric. The quality of them doesn't match with the natural fibre, wool.

Properties of Wool

Wool has a characteristic property compared to other fibres. And is the reason behind its value. Some of the properties are pointed out below.

• Wool fibres are durable.

• They are fire resistant.

• Overlapping cuticles are present on the surface of woollen fabric and make it free from dirt and impurities.

• They are insulating and odour resistant.

• Woollen fibres keep warm.

• Resistance towards shrinkage is very high.

• The strength of the fibres is very high because of their complex structure.

Characteristics of Wool

Wool is a natural fibre, and it is different from other fibres because of its characteristic properties. Some of its characteristics are pointed out below.

• They are hypoallergenic, which means that they cannot accept dust mites because of their warmness. It Is very useful for asthma and allergic people.

• Wools are very much water repellent and so it is useful for fishermen since they repel moisture.

• There is a waxy coating on the surface of the wool, so it makes it more useful to be stain resistant.

• About 20,000 times breaking is possible for wool before it breaks, so it will make it long-lasting.

• Wools are very soft.

• Wools are elastic.

Types of Wool Fabric

The type of fabric made of wool depends on the fibre from which it has been taken. Some of the types of fibres are discussed below.

• Angora wool − The fibre is obtained from the fur of the Angora rabbit. This is often combined with other fibres to make clothes.

• Lambswool − The fibre is obtained by shearing a young sheep. They are also called virgin wool and are very soft and smooth fibre.

• Merino wool − Merino is a variety of sheep and the wool obtained from them is Merino wool. Fine fibres are present in this type.

• Mohair − It is obtained from Angora goats. The fibres are smooth and longer.

Processing Fibres into Wool

There are 6 steps in the processing of a fibre obtained from a sheep into the woollen fabric. They are,

• Shearing − This process involves the removal of fleece from an animal. Tools such as scissors are used during this process.

• Scouring − This process involves the removal of dirt and impurities from the fibres.

• Sorting and Grading − Sorting is done for the removal of a defective fibre and grading is a process done to collect woollen material based on its weight, colour, etc.

• Carding − The proper washing and detangling are done during the process to make it useful.

• Spinning − Woollen fibres are spun to produce yarn.

• Knitting − The yarn obtained is knitted to produce fabrics and which further leads to the production of clothes.

Conclusion

Wool is a natural material or fibre obtained from the hair of some animals. The major source of this fibre is sheep. Sheep produce a bulk amount of hair on their skin because of their biological properties. The fibres of Wool are very soft, smooth, dirt resistant, heat resistant, water resistant, and fluffy making it useful for the production of different varieties of clothing materials. They are very expensive because of their characteristic properties. Humans discovered a synthetic fibre, fleece that has some similar properties to Wool. But it cannot have qualities similar to Wool. There are many types of Wool, and the processing is almost the same.

FAQs

1. What is wool crimp?

wool crimp is the strong natural wave present in wool fibre. The presence of wool crimp is responsible for the spinning of woollen fibres to a greater extent. The bulkiness and proper aeration of woollen fabric are because of this thing.

2. What is the relationship between wool and eco-friendliness?

wool is a naturally originated fibre, so it gives no environmental problems. They are easily recyclable materials and are biodegradable. The animal or the sheep are also not harmed during the process of wool collection and is because sheep naturally shed wool present on them in warmer climates. And it regrows immediately after a few months. The cloven hooves present wool also helps in the growth of plants when they are released into the soil.

3. What are the uses of wool?

The main use of wool is to make clothes to protect us from colder climates. But it has several other uses too. They are it is used in making firefighters' coats because of their fire-resistant nature, for making carpets, used as a fertilizer, used as an insulator, etc

4. What type of wool is warmest?

Angora wool is the warmest among all the other woollen fibres of sheep. They are also natural fibres with a high heat-resistant character.

5. Is wool weak when wet?

When wool is wet after drying wool comes back to its shape and properties. It has high resiliency and strength compared to other fabrics.