CHEMISTRY

PROJECT
“EFFECT
OF ACID
AND BASE ON THE TENSILE
STRENGHT OF FIBRES”

SUBMITTED BY- NIRUPAM GUPTA

CLASS – XII
ROLL NO. –

SUBMITTED TO- MRS. AFREEN QURESHI

(HOD CHEMISTRY)
 13

CERTIFICATE
This is to certificate that original and genuine experimental
work has been carried out to investigate about the subject –
matter and the related data collection has been completed
sincerely regarding the project titled “STUDY THE EFFECT
OF ACIDS AND BASES ON THE TENSILE STRENGTH
OF FIBRES” during ACADEMIC YEAR ’2019-20’ in partial
fulfillment of physics practical evaluation for ALL INDIA
SENIOR SECONDARY SCHOOL CERTIFICATE
EXAMINATION 2020 has submitted satisfactory project
report as compiled in the following pages.

SIGNATURE SIGNATURE
TEACHER IN-CHARGE EXTERNALEXAMINER
 ACKNOWLEDGEMENT
I would like to express my special thanks of gratitude to our
principal Dr. P.K Pathak sir who gave me this golden
opportunity to do this wonderful project on the topic “STUDY
THE EFFECT OF ACIDS AND BASES ON THE TENSILE
STRENGTH OF FIBRES” which also helps me in doing a lot
of Research and I came to know about so many new things.

I am thankful to my chemistry teacher, Mrs. Afreen Qureshi

ma’am who always gave me valuable guidance, support and
Information when needed.

Finally I would also like to thank my parents and friends who

helped me a lot in finishing this project within the limited
time.

Nirupam Gupta
XII A
 INDEX

S. No. Topic

1. INTRODUCTION
2. OBJECTIVE
3. SCOPE & LIMITATION
4. PRINCIPLE/THEORY
5. EXPERIMENT NO.1
 AIM
 REQUIREMENT
 PROCEDURE
 OBSERVATION
EXPERIMENT NO.2
6.
 AIM
 REQUIREMENT
 PROCEDURE
 OBSERVATION
RESULT AND CONCLUSION
7. BIBLIOGRAPHY
8.
Abbreviations:-

 :-0.1 Molarity
 g :-Gram
 NaOH:-Sodium hydroxide
 HCl:-Hydrochloric acid
 N:-Newton

INTRODUCTION
Fibre is a class of materials that are continuous filaments or are in
discrete elongated pieces, similar to lengths of thread. A fiber is an
elongated tapering thick-walled plant cell that imparts elasticity,
flexibility, and tensile strength. Tensile strength of fibres can be
determined by hanging weights tied to it and comparing the weight a
string can hold. Traditionally, natural fibers have been used in all
cultures for making utilitarian products. Different parts of the plant
are used. Fibers can be extracted from the bark (banana, jute, hemp,
and ramie), stem (banana, palm, and bamboo), leaf (palm, screw pine,
sisal, agave), husk (coir), seeds (cotton), and grass (sikki, madhurkati,
benakati, munj). Animal fibers are obtained from a variety of animal
coats, and insect fibers from cocoons.

Even before the arrival of man-made fibers, manufacturers could

create hundreds of different kinds of fabrics, differing mainly by fiber
content, weight, style of weave, or sheen. Here are just a few of these
historic fabrics, along with the natural fiber from which they were
originally made (nearly all can be made now with other fibers, either
natural or synthetic).They are very important in the biology of
both plants and animals, for holding tissues together.

Human uses for fibers are diverse. They can be spun

into filaments, string, or rope, used as a component of composite
materials, or matted into sheets to make products such as paper or felt.
Fibers are often used in the manufacture of other materials. The
strongest engineering materials are generally made as fibers, for
example carbon fiber and Ultra-high-molecular-weight polyethylene.
The history of man-made fibers is less than a century old; until 1910,
there were no synthetic or chemical fibers. Today, by mixing different
components, manufacturers can take the basic fibers listed below and
make them more waterproof or more absorbent, warmer or cooler,
thicker or thinner, stiffer or more supple. Some, like polyester etc.

Types of fibre

1. Natural fibres
 Natural fibres come from plants, animals and minerals. They usually
have short fibres, called staple fibres. The exception to this rule is
silk, a natural fibre whose continuous filaments are up to one
kilometre in length.

Sources of natural fibres:

 Cotton from the cotton plant.

 Linen from the flax plant.
 Wool from sheep.
 Silk from silkworms.

2. Man-made fibers
Man-made or chemical fibers are fibers whose chemical composition,
structure, and properties are significantly modified during the
manufacturing process.[4] Man-made fibers consist of regenerated
fibers and synthetic fibers.

Examples:
 rayon
 bamboo fiber
 Lyocell, a brand of rayon
 Modal
 diacetate fiber
 triacetate fiber.

3. Synthetic fibres

Synthetic fibres are man-made, usually from chemical sources. They

are continuous filament fibres, which means the fibres are long and do
not always have to be spun into yarn.
 Sources of synthetic fibres

 Viscose comes from pine trees or petrochemicals.

 Acrylic, nylon and polyester come from oil and coal.

Types of synthetic fibres

Metallic fibers
Metallic fibers can be drawn from ductile metals such as copper, gold
or silver and extruded or deposited from more brittle ones, such as
nickel, aluminum or iron. See also Stainless steel fibers.

Carbon fiber
Carbon fibers are often based on oxidized and via pyrolysis
carbonized polymers like PAN, but the end product is almost pure
carbon.

Silicon carbide fiber

Silicon carbide fibers, where the basic polymers are not hydrocarbons
but polymers, where about 50% of the carbon atoms are replaced by
silicon atoms, so-called poly-carbo-silanes. The pyrolysis yields an
amorphous silicon carbide.

Fiberglass
Fiberglass, made from specific glass, and optical fiber, made from
purified natural quartz, are also man-made fibers that come from
natural raw materials, silica fiber, made from sodium silicate (water
glass) and basalt fiber made from melted basalt.

Mineral fibers
Mineral fibers can be particularly strong because they are formed
with a low number of surface defects, asbestos is a common one.[8]

Polymer fibers
Polymer fibers are a subset of man-made fibers, which are based on
synthetic chemicals (often from petrochemical sources) rather than
arising from natural materials by a purely physical process

Natural fibres from plants

1) Cotton
 Used for making jeans, T-shirts and towels and has the following
qualities:
 cool to wear
 very absorbent, dries slowly
 soft handle
 good drape
 durable
 creases easily
 can be washed and ironed

2) Linen
Used for summer clothing, tea towels and tablecloths and has the
following qualities:
 fresh and cool to wear
 very absorbent, dries quickly
 stiffer handle
 good drape
 durable
 creases badly
 can be washed and ironed

Natural fibres from animals

1) Wool
Used for jumpers, suits and blankets and has the following qualities:
 warm to wear
 absorbent, dries slowly
 breathable, repels rain
 soft or coarse handle
 can shrink, should be dry cleaned
 good drape
 not durable
 creases drop out

2) Silk
Used for evening wear and ties and has
the following qualities:
 warm to wear
 absorbent
 soft handle
 good lustre and drape
 durable
 creases drop out
 dry clean

Synthetic fibre
1) Acrylic
Used for jumpers, fleece jackets and blankets and has the following
qualities:
 warm to wear
 non-absorbent, dries quickly
 stiffer handle, like wool
 good drape
 durable
 crease resistant
 easy care

2)Nylon (Tactel)
Used for active sportswear, fleece jackets, socks and seat belts and has
the following qualities:
 warm to wear
 absorbent, dries slowly
 breathable, repels rain
 soft or coarse handle
 can shrink, should be dry cleaned
 good drape
 durable
 creases drop out
3)Polyester
Used for raincoats, fleece jackets,
children's nightwear, medical textiles and
working clothes and has the following
qualities:
 low warmth
 non-absorbent, dries quickly
 soft handle
 good drape
 very durable
 crease resistant
Figure-1
 OBJECTIVE

The objective of the project is to determine the strength of different types

of fibres and the effect of alkali and acid on the tensile strength of the
fibre. This project enables us to know which is the appropriate one for the
appropriate use.

One cannot judge the fibre thread by just looking but can conclude after
performing the following experiments.
 SCOPE AND LIMITATION
As this experiment is carried out to investigate whether plant fibre under
tension are stronger or weaker than concrete, tensile strength has to
be calculated. Theoretically, tensile strength of plant fibre should be more
than 2.0 x N/m2
which is the tensile strength of concrete. However, there are a
few limitations in this experiment. First, the fibre strands taken from the
stem have different maturity. If extracted from different part or different
plant but of the same species,the strengths may have big variations. Other
than that, in a fibre, the diameter may be different at different part along
the strand. For example, the end of fibre may have thicker diameter but
thinner in the middle. Besides, when drying the fibre, the fibre may
become over-dried. This will result in more brittleness in the fibre. Thus
the fibre may snap easily even with the smallest mass of loads and give a
wrong implication on their real tensile strength.
The scope of this project is to study the dependence of the tensile strength
of stone wool fibres on various factors and to understand the fracture
characteristics. These factors are:

a) Production-related factors:

i. hyper quenching,
ii. Melting atmosphere
iii. Fibre diameter variations and
iv. Applied axial tension during forming

b) Fibre surfaces characteristics:

i. surface homogeneity,
ii. Surface roughness and
iii. Surface reactivity

These factors are of course highly correlated. This correlation will be

discussed both in the short overview part of the thesis and in the four
articles belonging to this thesis. The mechanical performances of both
continuous and discontinuous fibres will be studied by measuring their
tensile strength as functions of the production parameters.
 THEORY
Depending upon the source, various fibres can be categorized as:
1. Animal fibre(e.g., silk and wool)
2. Vegetable fibre(e.g., cotton and linen)
3. Synthetic fibre(e.g., nylon and rayon)
Natural fibres can be classified according to their origin.
The vegetable, or cellulose-base, class includes such important fibres
as cotton, flax, and jute; the animal, or protein-base, fibres
include wool,mohair, and silk; an important fibre in the mineral class
is asbestos.
The vegetable fibres can be divided into smaller groups, based on
their origin within the plant. Cotton, kapok, and coir are examples of
fibres originating as hairs borne on the seeds or inner walls of the
fruit, where each fibre consists of a single, long, narrow
cell. Flax, hemp, jute, and ramie are bast fibres, occurring in the
inner bast tissue of certain plant stems and made up of overlapping
cells. Abaca, henequen, and sisal are fibres occurring as part of the
fibro vascular system of the leaves. Chemically, all vegetable fibres
consist mainly of cellulose, although they also contain varying
amounts of such substances as hemicellulose, lignin, pectins, and
waxes that must be removed or reduced by processing. The animal
fibres consist exclusively of proteins and, with the exception of silk,
constitute the furor hair that serves as the protective epidermal
covering of animals. Silk filaments are extruded by the larvae of
moths and are used to spin their cocoons.
With the exception of mineral fibres, all natural fibres have an affinity
for water in both liquid and vapour form. This strong affinity
produces swelling of the fibres connected with the uptake of water,
which facilitates dyeing in watery solutions.
Unlike most synthetic fibres, all natural fibres are nonthermoplastic
—that is, they do not soften when heat is applied. At temperatures
below the point at which they will decompose, they show little
sensitivity to dry heat, and there is no shrinkage or high extensibility
upon heating, nor do they become brittle if cooled to below freezing.
Natural fibres tend to yellow upon exposure to sunlight and moisture,
and extended exposure results in loss of strength.
All natural fibres are particularly susceptible to
microbial decomposition, including mildew and rot. Cellulosic fibres
are decomposed by aerobic bacteria (those that live only in oxygen)
and fungi. Cellulose mildews and decomposes rapidly at high
humidity and high temperatures, especially in the absence of light.
Wool and silk are also subject to microbial decomposition by bacteria
and molds. Animal fibres are also subject to damage by moths and
carpet beetles; termites and silverfish attack cellulose fibres.
Protection against both microbial damage and insect attacks can be
obtained by chemical modification of the fibre substrate; modern
developments allow treatment of natural fibres to make them
essentially immune to such damage.

Structure of a polysaccharide.
Figure-2

Structure of a polyamide.

Figure-3
 Structure of a nylon6,6.

Figure-4
 EXPERIMENT NO:-1

AIM:-To compare tensile strength of cotton, silk and nylon

fibres.

Apparatus Requirements:- Cotton, wool, silk, polyester,

hook, weight hanger, weights.

Procedure:-
1. Take equally cut pieces of cotton, silk and nylon fibres
from given sample of same diameter.
2. Tie one end of the cotton fibres to hook and the other
end to weight hanger.
3. Now start adding weights gradually until breaking
point is reached. Note the minimum weight required to
break the fibre.
4. Repeat this procedure taking silk and then nylon
thread. Make observations and record them.
Observations:-

S.No. Type of Minimum weight required at

fibre breaking of thread.(N)
1. Cotton 8.50
2. Silk 3.50
3. Wool 9.20
4. Polyester 7.00

Precautions:-

(i) Thread must be of identical diameters.

(ii) Always take the same length of the threads.
(iii) Add the weights in small amounts very slowly.
 EXPERIMENT NO:-2

AIM:-To find the effect of acids and on the tensile strength

of cotton, wool and silk fibres.
Apparatus Requirements:- Cotton, wool, silk, polyester,
hook, weight hanger, weights.

Chemical Requirement:- Hydrochloric acid( ).

Procedure:-
1. Cut out equal length of cotton, wool and silk threads
from given samples. The threads should be nearly the
same thickness.
2. Determine the tensile strength of each fibre as
explained in experiment 1.
3. Soak a given thread into a dilute solution of HCL for
about 5 minutes.
4. Take it out of HCL solution and wash it thoroughly
with water and dry it in sun or oven at 40°C.
5. Determine again the tensile strength of woolen thread
as explained in experiment 1

6. Repeat the above procedure for the sample of cotton

and nylon fibres.
Observations:-

Sl.no. Type of Tensile strength of fibre(N)

fibre Before After soaking in HCl
soaking
1. Cotton 8.50 8.20
2. Wool 9.20 9.20
3. Silk 3.50 3.50
4. Polyester 7.00 7.00

Result
(i) The tensile strength of woolen fibre decreases on soaking in
alkalies but practically remains unaffected on soaking in acids.

Precautions

(i) Thread must be of identical diameters.

(ii) Always take the same length of the threads.

(iii) Add the weights in small amounts very slowly.

 EXPERIMENT NO:-3

AIM:-To find the effect of BASES and on the tensile

strength of cotton, wool and silk fibres.
Apparatus Requirements:- Cotton, wool, silk, polyester,
hook, weight hanger, weights.

Chemical Requirement:- NAOH ( ).

Procedure:-
1. Cut out equal length of cotton, wool and silk threads
from given samples. The threads should be nearly the
same thickness.
2. Determine the tensile strength of each fibre as
explained in experiment 1.
3. Soak a given thread into a dilute solution of sodium
hydroxide for about 5 minutes.
4. Take it out of NaOH solution and wash it thoroughly
with water and dry it in sun or oven at 40°C.
5. Determine again the tensile strength of woolen thread
as explained in experiment 1
6. Repeat the above procedure for the sample of cotton
and nylon fibres.

Observations:-
Sl.no. Type of Tensile strength of fibre(N)
fibre Before After soaking in
soaking NaOH
1. Cotton 8.50 8.50
2. Wool 9.20 8.90
3. Silk 3.50 3.00
4. Polyester 7.00 7.00

Result
(i) The tensile strength of cotton fibre decreases on soaking in acids
but remains practically unaffected on soaking in alkalies.

(ii) The tensile strength of nylon fibres remain practically unaffected

on soaking either in acids or in alkalies.

Precautions

(i) Thread must be of identical diameters.

(ii) Always take the same length of the threads.

(iii) Add the weights in small amounts very slowly.

DEFORMATION OF FIBRES
Polyster:
A typical engineering stress-strain curve from tensile test of individual
polyester (PET) fiber is shown in figure-5. According to previous
literature [12], one PET fi ber consists of microfi brils aligned along
the fi ber axis. These microfi brils, in turn, consistof crystalline and
amorphous regions, and connected to other microfi brils by another
kind of amorphous phase, known as mesamorphous phase. The
different regions observed in the tensile stress-strain curve can be
explained by the deformation of the different microstructural regions
mentioned above. During the initial deformation, the amorphous
regions within the microfi brils align themselves in the similar
orientation as the mesamorphous phase. The stress-strain curve goes
through another point of infl exion when the applied load starts to
strain the bonds in both amorphous and crystalline phases. The fi nal
part of the curve represents slippage between microfi brils.

7.00N
Figure-5 showing the stress vs strain graph of a polyester.

Wool:-
The tensile deformation behavior in an individual wool fiber is
shown . These fibers can be stretched about 30% of their original
length before failure, much higher strains compared to other fibers.
Although the fiber diameter is uniform along the length of the
fibers,
the expected defect distribution in the natural fiber is higher.
When the variation in dynamic storage modulus with strain is
plotted (Figure 6), there is a slight drop corresponding to the yield
engineering stress-strain curve. This correlates to the molecular
movement in the microfi brils to align themselves along the fiber
axis. As this alignment process dissipates energy, it increases the
loss factor
After the molecules in the microfi brils are aligned, the deformation
is mostly due to stretching of various hierarchical layers along the
fi ber axis. More systematic microstructural characterization is
needed to completely understand the deformation process.

9.
20N
Figure-6 showing the stress vs strain graph of wool

Cotton:-
The engineering stress-strain curve for a typical test on a single strand
of cotton is shown in Figure 7. Although the cellulose crystals in the
mercerized cotton fibers exhibit high modulus and strength, they are
also the least ductile compared to the other fibers studied herein. The
electron micrograph in Figure8 clearly shows the anisotropic cross-
section of the cotton fiber. Moreover, the mechanical properties
of cotton also vary with the length of the fiber and the chemical
treatment it undergoes before application.

8.50N

Figure-7
showing the stress vs strain graph of a nylon.
 CONCLUSION
From the above experiments, the following inferences can be
drawn.
1. The tensile strength of cotton fibres decreases after
treatment in acidic medium whereas basic medium has
no effect on its tensile strength

2. The tensile strength of wool fibres decreases after

treatment in basic medium whereas acidic medium has
no effect on its tensile strength .

3. The tensile strength of nylon is unaffected by both acidic

and basic medium
 BIBLIOGRAPHY:-

 Comprehensive practical chemistry-XII

 Wikipedia
 Encyclopedia - Britannica Online Encyclopedia
 www.textileschool.com
 www.meritnation.com.
 http://cp.literature.agilent.com/litweb/pdf/