AbstractsChemistry

Seed-hairs are fibers located on the seeds of various plants, designed by nature to make it possible for the seeds to spread by the wind. One of these seed fibers, cotton, is exceptional in its high content of cellulose and has attained an importance far exceeding that of any other material of its kind. Other sources include kapok, tree cotton, cat-tail floss, milkweed floss and cotton grass. Kapok is a seed fiber, cultivated in the East Indies and is commonly used for upholstery and lifebelts. None of the others have shown much commercial importance.