ASIAN J. EXP. BIOL. SCI.

VOL 4 (1) 2013: 69-73

Society of Applied Sciences

ORIGINAL ARTICLE

Extraction and Characterization of Fiber from Three Plant Species of the

Genus Cleome, L.
Brindha, D., Vinodhini, S. and Alarmelumangai, K.
Department of Botany, PSGR Krishnammal College for Women, Peelamedu, Coimbatore-641 004. TamilNadu, India.
Department of Botany, PSGR Krishnammal College for Women, Peelamedu, Coimbatore-641 004. TamilNadu, India.
Received 11-10-2012
Revised 05-01-2013
Accepted 08-01-2013
ABSTRACT
The fiber extracted from three plants namely, Cleome viscosa, L., Cleome grandiflora, L. and Cleome burmanni,i Wight. &
Arn. were analyzed for their characterization in term of anatomical, physical, chemical and mechanical properties. Cleome
grandiflora and C. viscosa shows similar and higher cellulose (56.53%), hemicelluloses (21.74%) and lignin content
(21.73%) and physical properties. The higher moisture content (11.54%) of the fibers of Cleome grandiflora and C. viscosa
shows that these fibers may be useful in filter paper production. The runkle ratio of all the fibers is less than 1 which reveals
that they can also be utilized for high quality paper production.
Keywords: Cleome sps., Anatomy, Physical, Chemical and Mechanical Properties.

INTRODUCTION
Natural fibers are ligno-cellulosic in nature that mainly composed of cellulose, hemicellulose and lignin. These
natural fibers include cotton, jute and hemp which is the most predominantly used raw materials in fibers based
industries. But these fibers are insufficient to fulfill the world's needs such as paper and paper board, cloth and other
fiber-based products. Cultivation of these plant also required more amount of fertilizers, irrigation and also laborious.
Hence, there is a necessary for alternative resource in many fiber based industries.
The alternative source for wood fibers includes agricultural wastes, weeds and ornamentals. There have been many
reports available on the fibers from agricultural wastes, weeds and ornamentals which includes okra bast fiber [1],
banana psuedo-stem [17], Oil palm fruit fibers [19], Corn Stalk and Corn husks [14 & 15], Hibiscus vitifolius [11],
Abutilon sp., Sida sp., and Hibiscus rosa-sinensis [10] as a raw material for their usage in many fiber based industries
like textile, paper and pulp, composites for automobile industry, cordage, brush making etc.
But there is no reports available on the Cleome plants as a source for fiber based industries. Cleome sp. is a common
weed in fields and waste in all districts. It is an herb with simple leaves of 3-6 foliate, stems and leaves are glabrous not
asperous, flowers are yellow, purple or white basted on the species. Utilization of these plants as alternative fiber
source may reduce the demand of usage of cotton, jute, hemp and woods. Hence, the present study is focused on the
extraction of fibers from the stems of three species of Cleome plants namely, Cleome viscosa, L., Cleome grandiflora,
L. and Cleome burmannii Wight &Arn.
MATERIALAND METHODS
Fibre richness
The cross sections of the plant materials were taken to examine the presence of fibre bundles under light microscope
by staining them with 1% of Toluidene Blue 'O' and mounted in glycerine (10%). All the stained slides were scanned
under photomicroscope (Binocular microscope, Lambda-930386, KYOWA) and their anatomical features were
micro photographed. The number of vascular bundles, size of the fibre bundles and the cross sections of the plant parts
were measured with the help of a calibrated ocular micrometer. The fibre richness of a plant part was calculated as
follows.
% Fibre richness = (Area of fibre bundles /Area of Cross Section) X 100
Extraction of fibre
The fibre was extracted from the stem of three Cleome sps. by retting process. The obtained fibres were thoroughly

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Extraction and Characterization of Fiber from Three Plant Species of the Genus Cleome, L. ..............................................................Brindha, D, et al..

washed with water to remove dirt and pulp left to it that are stuck together and allowed to dry.
Cleaning
The fibres were then combed through an army of large nails hammered on a block of wood. The fibres were gathered
and straightened out.
Yield
The yield percentage of the fibre was calculated using the formula,
Yield (%) = Weight of the fibre X 100 / weight of the plant material
Length
The length of 20 randomly sampled fibres of each variety was measured in cm using a meter scale and the range was
represented.
Diameter
The diameter of 10 randomly sampled fibres of each variety was measured microscopically at 5 positions using a
calibrated ocular meter and the range was given in table.
Maceration process [8]
500mg of the each fibre variety was immersed in acidic solution (10% each aqueous nitric acid and chromic acid in 1:1
ratio) by maintaining the liquor ratio of 1:50 and kept overnight in room temperature (30oC 1). The macerated
substance was washed repeatedly in water by cyclic centrifugation and resuspension. The cleaned ultimate fibre cells
were stained with safranin (0.5%) for half an hour and mounted in glycerine (10%).All the stained slides were scanned
under photomicroscope and photomicrographs of important regions were taken.
Morphometric measurements [21]
The stained ultimate cells under light microscope were measured for its length (magnification of 10X), diameter,
lumen diameter and cell wall thickness (magnification of 40X) using calibrated ocular micrometer. Slenderness ratio,
runkel ratio and flexibility ratio were calculated using the following formulae:
Slenderness ratio (SR) = length of fibre / diameter of the fibre
Flexibility Ratio (FR) = lumen width of the fibre X 100 / diameter of the fibre
Runkel Ratio (RR) = cell wall thickness X 2 / lumen width
About 20 ultimate cell measurements were taken for each fibre and the range and average was calculated and given in
the table. For further calculation the average was considered.
Physical Properties
The physical properties like density, linear density and moisture absorption were quantified as follows.
Moisture regain [4]
It is defined as the amount of water present in a specimen expressed as a percentage of its dry mass. The fibre sample
was conditioned for 24h at 272oC and the weight was taken (L). The conditioned fibre sample was dried in oven at
105oC for 4h and the weight was taken (W). Moisture regain percentage of the given sample was calculated according
to the formula
Moisture regain (%) = L W X 100 / L
Fibre density [22]
The fibre sample was conditioned for 24h at 65% relative humidity and 25oC before carrying the density test. 2g of
fibre samples was immersed in toluene in a calibrated glass tube (10ml measuring cylinder) and the value of toluene
displaced was determined which is equal to the volume of fibre immersed. The density of the fibre was calculated from
the formula,
Density = Mass / Volume
Linear density [3]
Linear density of the fibre was measured at standard atmospheric conditions. The standard length (L) template (10
cm) of the fibre samples was cut and weighed (W). The denier (D) of the fibre sample is calculated using the formula,
D = (9000 X W) / (LX N)
Where, N is the number of fibre in the specimen.
Chemical analysis
Direct estimation of cellulose, hemicellulose and lignin was carried out using the method as described by Moubasher
et al., [12].
2g of fiber was boiled in ethanol (4 times) for 15min, washed thoroughly with distilled water and kept in oven for dry
weight at 400C over night, then divided into two parts in which one part is considered as A fraction. Second part of
residue was treated with 24% KOH for 4hrs at 250C, washed thoroughly with distilled water dried at 800C over night
and the dry weight taken as B fraction. The same samples again treated with 72% H2SO4 for 3hrs to hydrolyze the
cellulose and the refluxed with 5% H2SO4 for 2hrs. H2SO4 was removed completely by washing it with distilled water,
dried at 800C in oven for over night and dry weight taken as C fraction.
Cellulose
= B-C
Hemi cellulose =A-B
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Extraction and Characterization of Fiber from Three Plant Species of the Genus Cleome, L. ..............................................................Brindha, D, et al..

Lignin
= C itself.
Mechanical properties
Fibre tensile properties [2]
The tensile properties of the fibres in terms of the breaking tenacity, stress, strain, time at break and Young's modulus
were determined using an Instron Tensile Tester (Model 3342) at the gauge length of 50 mm and the cross head speed
of 5 mm/min.About 10 fibres were tested for each fibre samples and the average and standard deviation are reported to
give an indication of the variability of the samples.
RESULTSAND DISCUSSION
Anatomy of the plant
Cleome sps. are abundant weed in Coimbatore. The height of the plant is 30-45 cm. The C.S of the stem of C. viscosa,
C. grandiflora and Cleome burmannii shows three regions namely the outer epidermal region, cortex region and
vascular bundle region. The vascular bundles are arranged circular in the cortex. The vascular bundles consisted of
xylem, cambium and phloem. The phloem scelerenchyma cells form the fiber bundle. Hence, the fibers of Cleome
plants are bast fiber or phloem fiber.
Fiber richness and Yield
The fiber richness of the plant is the measure for occurrence of fiber bundles in that plant. Smole et al., [16] reported
the estimation of fiber richness by calculating the ratio of cross sectional area of the bundle and area of the plant. The
fiber richness is high in C. grnadiflora (15.28%) but the yield is higher in C.viscosa (2.83%). The variation for
calculated fiber richness to their yield is due to the lack of correlation between the richness and fiber yield, because of
the short fibers were removed during the cleaning process (Table. 1).
Table. 1 Fiber richness, yield and fiber length and width of three Cleome sps.
S.No.
1.
2.
3.

Plant Name

Fiber richness (%)

Fiber Yield (%)

Fiber length (cm)

Fiber width (m m)

Cleome grandiflora
C.viscosa
C.burmannii

15.28
14.00
12.00

2.83
2.95
2.50

15-20
15-22
14-20

300-320
290-320
240-290

Lengh and Diameter

The diameter and length of the fiber sample is ranged from 14-20 cm and 200-320 m respectively (Table 1) which are
varied based on the plant growth, soil, water and climatic condition.
Morphometric measurements of Ultimate Cell
All the three fiber samples were macerated to view the length, diameter, lumen width and cell wall thickness of the
ultimate fiber cells (Table 2). The average length of the ultimate fiber cell is ranged from 0.4 to 0.46mm. The diameter
and lumen width of the ultimate fiber cell is higher in Cleome grandiflora (0.0067 m and 0.0037m respectively)
than other two fiber samples. The cell wall thickness of the fibres C.grandiflora and C. viscosa are similar (0.0015
m) which is higher than the wall thickness of C.burmannii (0.0013 m).
Table.2. Morphometric measurements of ultimate fiber cell of three plants of the genus Cleome.
S.No.

Plant Name

1.
2.
3.

Cleome grandiflora
C.viscosa
C.burmannii

Length (mm)
0.46
0.45
0.41

Width (m m)
0.0067
0.0058
0.0061

Lumen width (m m)
0.0037
0.0032
0.0032

Cell wall thickness (m m)

0.0015
0.0013
0.0015

Derived values
The derived values are slenderness ratio (SR), runkel ratio (RR) and flexibility ratio (FR) which are important
parameters for the fiber usage in the different fiber-based industries. These values are derived from the morphometric
measurements of ultimate cells and given in Table 3.

S.No.
1.
2.
3.

Table. 3. Derived values of the ultimate fiber cells of three plants of the genus Cleome
Plant Name
Slenderness Ratio
Runkle Ratio
Flexibility Ratio
68.65
0.81
55.22
Cleome grandiflora
77.58
0.81
55.17
C.viscosa
67.21
0.94
52.45
C.burmannii

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Extraction and Characterization of Fiber from Three Plant Species of the Genus Cleome, L. ..............................................................Brindha, D, et al..

All the three fiber samples have the SR ranged from 67.21-77.58. They are higher than 33. The ultimate cells having
higher (>33) SR, the stronger will be resistance to tearing in paper production [18]. The fibers with the RR ranged from
0.81-0.94 which is less than 1.The fibers with RR value of less than 1 is useful for paper industry [20]. The FR of all the
fiber is less than 60 and ranged from 52.17-52.45.
Physical properties of fiber
The physical properties of the fibers include Moisture regain, density and linear density were analyzed and given in
Table 4.
The moisture regain of the fiber of C.burmannii was lower (8.86%) than C.grandiflora and C. viscosa which have
similar value (11.54%). The moisture regain of these plant fibers were almost similar to Flax (8-12%), but higher than
Cotton (7.5-8.0%) but lower than Jute (13.8%) fiber [5]. This high moisture regain of the fiber was due to the high
hemicellulose content. Due to high moisture regain, these fibers can be utilized for filter paper production and also for
metal absorption.
3
The density of the all the fiber were lower than Flax, Cotton (Table 4) and Coir (1.2g/cm ) [9 & 13]. Linear density of
all the fiber were lower than Kenaf (50 den), Hemp (3.2-20 den) and Cotton (3-8 den) fiber [5].
Table. 4. Physical and Chemical properties of fibers of three plants of the genus Cleome.

S.No.
I.
(1)
(2)
(3)
II.
(4)
(5)
(6)

C.grandiflora

Properties

C.viscosa C.burmannii

Cotton*

Flax*

Physical Properties
Moisture regain (%)
3

Density (g/cm )
Linear density (den)

11.54
0.52
0.44

11.54
0.52
0.44

8.86
0.79
0.79

7.5-8.0
1.5
3-8

8-12
1.5-1.56
3.2-20

49.25
31.88
18.84

82.70
5.70
-

64.17
16.70
2.0

Chemical Properties
Cellulose (%)
Hemi-cellulose (%)
Lignin (%)

56.53
21.74
21.73

56.53
21.74
21.73

Data were collected from the literature [5], [6] & [7].

Chemical Composition
The cellulose, hemicellulose and lignin content of the fiber is important for their usage in fiber-based industries.
From Table 4, the cellulose content of the fiber of C.grandiflora and C. viscosa (21.74%) were lower than Jute
(64.4%) and Flax (64.1%) fiber [7] and C. burmannii (49.25%). The hemicellulose content of the fibers of
C.grandiflora and C. viscosa (56.53%) and C. burmannii (31.83%) were very much higher than Cotton (5.7%), Jute
(12.0%) and Flax (16.7%) fiber [7]. Hence, these fibers can be utilized for light weight composites preparation as they
have high hemicellulose content.
The lignin content (18.84%) of the fiber of C. burmannii is lower than other two varieties. The lignin content of all the
fiber samples was very much higher than the Ramie (0.6%) and Sisal (9.9%) fiber [7].
Mechanical Properties
The mechanical properties include stress, strain, tenacity, time at break and Young's Modulus of the fiber samples
were given in Table 5 and compared with the standards. The stress (0.19 MPa) and tenacity (35.23 gf/den) of the fiber
of C.viscosa is higher than other two fiber samples. Strain (1.57%), Modulus (3130.57 gf/den) and time at break (1.31
Sec.) were higher in C. grandiflora than other two fiber samples.
Table. 5. Mechanical properties of fibers of three plants of the genus Cleome.

S.No. Plant Name

Modulus
(gf/den)

Stress
(Mpa)

Strain
(%)

Tenacity
(gf/den)

1.
2.
3.
4.
5.

3130.57
3054.16
2364.80
55-90
203-245

0.13
0.19
0.15
-

1.57
1.43
0.79
6-9
1.7-2.6

33.79
35.23
21.81
2.7-3.5
5.2-6.8

Cleome grandiflora
C.viscosa
C.burmannii
Cotton*
Hemp*

Time
Break
(Sec)
1.31
1.19
0.66
-

at

* Data for cotton and hemp are from [5].

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Extraction and Characterization of Fiber from Three Plant Species of the Genus Cleome, L. ..............................................................Brindha, D, et al..

The strain is the elongation. The elongation of the fiber of C. vicosa and C.grandiflora was closer to the minimum
value of Hemp (1.7-2.6%). The tenacity of all the fibers was higher than Cotton and Hemp (Table 5) and also Linen
(4.6-6.1 gf/den.) [5]. the higher in tenacity is due to the low molecular weight of the cellulose and the poor orientation
of the cellulose molecules on the fiber axis [14 & 15]. The modulus of all the fiber samples were also higher than
Cotton (55-90 gf/den), Linen (203 gf/den) and Hemp (203-245 gf/den) fiber [5]. This was due to the high lignin
content of the fiber. Hence these fibers can be used for the composite preparation.

CONCLUSION
The present study based on the anatomy, morphometric measurements and their derived values, physico- chemical
and mechanical properties reveals that the fibers from these three plants can be utilized as an alternative source for the
paper industry and composite preparation. If the fibers will be improved by processes like bio-softening and biobleaching in terms of their quality, they can have the better utilization in textile industry and other fiber applications.
ACKNOWLEDGMENT
TheAuthors wish to thank DST-TNSCST for providing the financial support to carry out this work.
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Corresponding Author: - Brindha, D., Department of Botany, PSGR Krishnammal College for
Women, Peelamedu, Coimbatore-641 004. TamilNadu, India.Email: 28brindha@gmail.com

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