3—the Treatment of Wool in Liquid Ammonia

The general effects of liquid ammonia on different wool qualities are described, and it is demonstrated that fine fibres are more affected by the reagent than coarse fibres. Differential contraction of the cortical components in the fibre as it supercontracts results in an increased crimp frequency, and this in turn is responsible for large increases in the observed bulk compressibility of the fibre assembly. Stress-strain data for untreated and ammonia-treated fibres are presented, and differences are explained in terms of morphological structure.