The composition of some vegetable fibres with particular reference to jute

THE vegetable fibres commonly met with find very diverse uses according to their physical characteristics and chemical composition.Very few comparable analyses are, however, to be found in the literature, and the wide differences which exist in composition are not generally known.Cross and Bevan [1895] originally devised methods for the study of many fibres and carried out much experimental work on jute.Jute they considered to be a typical example of the "lignocellulose " group of " compound celluloses " and a very convenient material for the investigation of the cellulose-lignin relationship in the cell wall and the chemistry of lignin itself.In some respects their views are not acceptable today, and particularly is this the case with the concept of "compound celluloses".Analytical methods too, have been improved or their shortcomings recognised.Methods which have recently been devised for whole plant materials are applicable directly to a study of isolated fibres.