Abstract
Linseed flax is a multipurpose crop. It is cultivated for its seeds and particularly for its oil. The main contributors for this crop are Canada, France and Belgium. In general, straws of linseed flax are buried in the fields or burnt. However, these solutions are not good practices for the environment and from an economical point of view. In this study, straws of linseed flax (six batches in total) with different dew retting durations and harvesting techniques were studied to possibly use them for producing innovative geotextiles. Two different fibre extraction processes were investigated. A first process (A) involved horizontal breaker rollers and then a breaking card. A second one (B) consisted in using vertical breaker rollers, and an “all fibre” extraction device (fibre opener) followed by sieving. The chemical composition of fibres in parietal constituents appeared to be globally equivalent to the one of textile flax with a pectic content decreasing as a function of the dew retting duration. This contributed to an increase in the cellulose content. The fibre content was situated in a range from 29% to 33%, which corresponds to a good yield for linseed flax fibre. The level of purity can reach values of up to 90% for method A (without extra-sieving) and 96% for method B (with extra-sieving), and the length of the fibres (larger for method A than for method B) and their tensile properties make them suitable for structural geotextile yarn manufacturing.
Highlights
Between 2016 and 2018, an average of 97,700 ha/year of textile flax was cultivated in France with an average straw yield of 6 t/ha [1]
For batches number 1 to 5, the content of fibres inside straw varied from 29% to 33%, and these results were in perfect accordance with those of a previous study where the fibre content inside linseed flax straw was found to be around 30% as well [21]
Using oleaginous flax straw for its richness in bast fibres was quite possible, the straw possibly becoming in that way a supplementary added-value product of the linseed flax cultivation in addition to the seeds
Summary
Between 2016 and 2018, an average of 97,700 ha/year of textile flax was cultivated in France with an average straw yield of 6 t/ha [1]. About 600 ktons of straw are globally available on this market. This economic activity represents about 12,000 direct jobs in in the growing and scutching sectors [2]. The long line fibres (about 25% of the straw mass) are used for fine and delicate textiles and structural composite materials, which are in high demand. Even if the long textile flax are produced in Belgium and the Netherlands, the demand is continuously increasing from China and Europe, but the land available for the production of textile flax cannot globally be extended in a great extent. The demand for tow fibres (scutching and hackling tows) is very high for the manufacturing of coarser yarns for home textiles or technical applications such as in the composite industry for medium load bearing applications or for injected parts [4]
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