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Make Silk
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How is silk made, how to make silk, Silk, made silk, make
silk, making silk, Silk has set
the standard in luxury
fabrics for several millennia, Chinese silk, making silk,
silk
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-Silk has set the standard in luxury fabrics for
several millennia. The origins of silk date back to Ancient China.
Legend
has it that a Chinese princess was sipping tea in her garden when a cocoon
fell into her cup, and the hot tea loosened the long strand of silk. Ancient
literature, however, attributes the popularization of silk to the Chinese
Empress Si-Ling, to around 2600 B.C. Called the Goddess of the Silkworm, Si-Ling
apparently raised silkworms and designed a loom for making silk fabrics.
The Chinese used silk fabrics for arts and decorations as well as for
clothing and special beautiful silk dresses. Silk became an integral part of the Chinese economy and an
important means of exchange for trading with neighboring countries. Caravans
traded the prized silk fabrics and other natural silk items along the famed Silk Road into the Near East.
By the fourth century B.C. , Alexander the Great is said to have introduced
silk to Europe. The popularity of silk was influenced by Christian prelates
who donned the rich fabrics and adorned their altars with them. Gradually
the nobility began to have their own clothing fashioned from silk fabrics as
well.
Initially, the Chinese were highly protective of
their secret to making silk. Indeed, the reigning powers decreed death
by torture to anyone who divulged the secret of the silk-worm. Eventually,
the mystery of the silk production process was smuggled into neighboring regions,
reaching Japan about A.D. 300 and India around A.D. 400.
By the eighth
century, Spain began producing silk, and 400 years later Italy became
quite successful at
making silk, with
several towns giving
their names to
particular types of
silk. |
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The first country to
apply scientific
techniques to
raising silkworms
was Japan, which
produces some of the
world's
finest silk fabrics.
Other countries that
also produce quality
silks are China,
Italy, India, Spain,
and France. China
was the largest
exporter of raw silk
in the early 1990s,
accounting for about
85% of the
worlds raw
silk, worth about
$800 million.
Exports of
Chinas
finished silk
products were about
half of the
worlds total
at about $3 billion.
Silk is highly
valued because it
possesses many
excellent
properties. Not only
does it look
lustrous and feel
luxurious, but it is
also lightweight,
resilient, and
extremely
strong—one
filament of silk is
stronger then a
comparable filament
of steel! Although
fabric manufacturers
have created less
costly alternatives
to silk, such as
nylon and polyester,
silk is still in a
class by itself.
-Silk
Raw Materials
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How to
make silk ?
The secret to
make silk
is the
tiny creature known
as the silkworm,
which is the
caterpillar of the
silk moth Bombyx
mori. It feeds
solely on the leaves
of mulberry trees.
Only one other
species of moth, the
Antheraea mylitta,
also produces silk
fiber. This is a
wild creature, and
its silk filament is
about three times
heavier than that of
the cultivated
silkworm. Its
coarser fiber is
called tussah.
The life cycle to
make silk of
the Bombyx mori
begins with eggs
laid by the adult
moth. The larvae
emerge from the eggs
and feed on mulberry
leaves. In the
larval stage, the Bombyx
is the
caterpillar
known as the
silkworm.
The silkworm
spins a
protective
cocoon
around
itself so it
can safely
transform
into a The
secret to
silk
production
is the tiny
creature
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How to make
silk |
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known as the
silk-worm,
which is
the caterpillar of
the silk moth Bombyx
mori. chrysalis. In
nature, the
chrysalis breaks
through the cocoon
and emerges as a
moth. The moths mate
and the female lays
300 to 400 eggs. A
few days after
emerging from the
cocoon, the moths
die and the life
cycle continues.
The cultivation
to make silk of
silkworms for the
purpose of producing
silk is called
sericulture. Over
the centuries,
sericulture has been
developed and
refined to a precise
science. Sericulture
involves raising
healthy eggs through
the chrysalis stage
when the worm is
encased in its silky
cocoon. The
chrysalis inside is
destroyed before it
can break out of the
cocoon so that the
precious silk
filament |
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remains
intact. The
healthiest
moths are
selected for
breeding,
and they are
allowed to
reach
maturity,
mate, and
produce more
eggs
Generally, one
cocoon make silk between 1,000 and
2,000 feet of silk
filament, made
essentially of two
elements. The fiber,
called fibroin,
makes up between 75
and 90%, and sericin,
the gum secreted by
the caterpillar to
glue the fiber into
a cocoon, comprises
about 10-25% of
silk. Other elements
include fats, salts,
and wax. To make one
yard of silk
material, about
3,000 cocoons are
used. |
-Make Silk -
Sericulture
Breeding silkworms
1 Only the
healthiest moths are
used for breeding to
make silk.
Their eggs are
categorized, graded,
and meticulously
tested for
infection. Unhealthy
eggs are burned. The
healthiest eggs may
be placed in cold
storage until they
are ready to be
hatched. Once the
eggs are incubated,
they usually hatch
within seven days.
They emerge at a
mere one-eighth of
an inch (3.2 mm)
long and must be
maintained in a
carefully controlled
environment. Under
normal conditions,
the eggs would hatch
once a year in the
spring when mulberry
trees begin to leaf.
But with the
intervention of Seri
culturists,
breeding can occur
as many as three
times per year.
2 The silkworms
to make silk feed
only on the leaves
of the mulberry
tree. The mulberry
leaves are finely
chopped and fed to
the voracious
silkworms every few
hours for 20 to 35
days. During this
period the wormns
increase in size to
about 3.5 inches
(8.9 cm). They also
shed their skin, or
molt, four times and
change color from
gray to a
translucent pinkish
color.
Spinning the cocoon
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When the silkworm
starts to fidget and
toss its head back
and forth, it is
preparing to spin
its cocoon to making
silk. The
caterpillar attaches
itself to either a
twig or rack for
support. As the worm
twists its head, it
spins a double
strand of fiber in a
figure-eight pattern
and constructs a
symmetrical wall
around itself. The
filament is secreted
from each of two
glands called the
spinneret located
under the jaws of
the silkworm. The
insoluble
protein-like fiber
is called fibroin. 4
The fibroin is held
together by sericin,
a soluble gum
secreted by the
worm, which hardens
as soon as it is
exposed to air. The
result is the raw
silk fiber, called
the bave. The
caterpillar spins a
cocoon encasing
itself completely.
It can then safely
transform into the
chrysalis, which is
the pupa stage. |
Making Silk |
Stoving the
chrysalis
5 The natural course
would be for the
chrysalis to break
through the
protective cocoon
and emerge as a
moth. However,
sericulturists must
destroy the
chrysalis so that it
does not break the
silk filament. This
is done by stoving,
or stifling, the
chrysalis with heat.
The Filature
Sorting and
softening the
cocoons to make
silk.
6 The filature is
the factory in which
the cocoons are
make into silk
thread. In the
filature the cocoons
are sorted by
various
characteristics,
including color and
size, so that the
finished product can
be of uniform
quality. The cocoons
must then be soaked
in hot water to
loosen the sericin.
Although the silk is
about 20% sericin,
only 1% is removed
at this stage. This
way the gum
facilitates the
following stage in
which the filaments
are combined to form
silk thread, or
yarn.
Reeling the filament
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7 Reeling to make
silk may be
achieved manually or
automatically. The
cocoon is brushed to
locate the end of
the fiber to make
silk. It is
threaded through a
porcelain eyelet,
and the fiber is
reeled onto a wheel.
Meanwhile, diligent
operators check for
flaws in the
filaments as they
are being reeled. 8
As each filament is
nearly finished
being reeled, a new
fiber is twisted
onto it, thereby
forming one long,
continuous thread. Sericin contributes
to the adhesion of
the fibers to each
other.
Packaging the skeins
9 The end product of
making silk,
the raw silk
filaments, are
reeled into skeins.
These
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Make Silk |
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skeins are
packaged
into bundles
weighing
5-10 pounds
(2-4 kg),
called
books. The
books are
further
packaged
into bales
of 133
pounds (60
kg) and
transported
to
manufacturing
centers. |
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Forming silk yarn
After making silk,
10 Silk thread, also
called yarn, is
formed by throwing,
or twisting, the
reeled silk. First
the skeins of raw
silk are categorized
by color, size, and
quantity. Next they
are soaked in warm
water mixed with oil
or soap to soften
the sericin. The
silk is then dried.
11 As the silk
filaments are reeled
onto bobbins, they
are twisted in a
particular manner to
achieve a certain
texture of yarn. For
instance,
it consist
of several
filaments
which are
twisted
together in
one
direction.
They are
turned
tightly for
sheer
fabrics and
loosely for
thicker
fabrics.
Combinations
of singles
and
untwisted
fibers may
be twisted
together in
certain
patterns to
achieve
desired |
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textures of fabrics
such as crepe de
chine, voile, or
tram. Fibers may
also be manufactured
in different
patterns for use in
the nap of fabrics,
for the outside, or
for the inside of
the fabric. 12 The
silk yarn is put
through rollers to
make the width more
uniform. The yarn is
inspected, weighed,
and packaged.
Finally, the yarn is
shipped to fabric
manufacturers. |
Degumming thrown
yarn
13 After make silk
and to achieve the
distinctive softness
and shine of silk,
the remaining sericin must be
removed from the
yarn by soaking it
in warm soapy water.
Degumming decreases
the weight of the
yarn by as much as
25%.
-Finishing silk
fabrics with great
silk designs.
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After make silk
and degumming,
the silk yarn is a
creamy white color.
It may next be dyed
as yarn, or after
the yarn has been
woven into fabric.
The silk industry
makes a distinction
between pure-dye
silk and what is
called weighted
silk. In the
pure-dye process,
the silk is colored
with dye, and may be
finished with
water-soluble
substances such as
starch, glue, sugar,
or gelatin. To
produce weighted
silk, metallic
substances are added
to the fabric during
the dying process.
This is done to
increase the weight
lost during
degumming and to add
body to the fabric.
If weighting is not
executed properly,
it can decrease the
longevity of the
fabric, so pure-dye
silk is considered
the superior
product. After
dyeing, silk fabric
may be finished by
additional
processes, such as
bleaching,
embossing, steaming,
or
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Silk Designs |
-Spun Silk
Not all of the silk
filament is usable
for reeled make silk. The
leftover silk may
include the brushed
ends or broken
cocoons. This
shorter staple silk
may be used for
spinning silk in a
manner of fabrics
like cotton and
linen. The quality
of spun silk is
slightly inferior to
reeled silk in that
it is a bit weaker
and it tends to
become fuzzy. The
waste material from
the spun silk can
also be used for
making "waste
silk" or
"silk noil."
This coarse material
is commonly used for
draperies and
upholstery.
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-The Future
Sericulture is an
ancient science to
make silk, and
the modern age has
not brought great
changes to silk
manufacture. Rather,
man-made fibers such
as polyester, nylon,
and acetate have
replaced silk in
many instances. But
many of the
qualities of silk
cannot be
reproduced. For
example, silk is
stronger than an
equivalent strand of
steel. Some recent
research has focused
on the molecular
structure of silk as
it emerges from the
silkworm, in order
to better understand
how new, stronger
artificial fibers
might be
constructed. Silk
spun by the silkworm
starts out as a
liquid secretion.
The liquid passes
through a brief
interim state with a
semi-ordered
molecular structure
known as nematic
liquid crystal,
before it solidifies
into a fiber.
Materials scientists
have been able to
manufacture durable
fibers using liquid
crystal source
material, but only
at high temperatures
or under extreme
pressure. Researcher
are continuing to
study the silkworm
to determine how
liquid crystal is
transformed into
fiber at ordinary
temperatures and
pressures. |
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Make Silk |
Silk,
How is silk made, how to make silk, Silk, made silk, make
silk, making silk, Silk has set the standard in luxury
fabrics for several millennia, Chinese silk, making silk,
silk |
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