kapok | plant fibre - Encyclopedia Britannica

kapok, (Ceiba pentandra), also called Java cotton, ceiba, or Java kapok, seed-hair fibre obtained from the fruit of the kapok tree or the kapok tree itself. kapok TableofContents kapok Introduction FastFacts 2-MinSummary Facts&RelatedContent Media Images More Contributors ArticleHistory Home Technology Industry NaturalProducts kapok plantfibre Actions Cite verifiedCite Whileeveryefforthasbeenmadetofollowcitationstylerules,theremaybesomediscrepancies. Pleaserefertotheappropriatestylemanualorothersourcesifyouhaveanyquestions. SelectCitationStyle MLA APA ChicagoManualofStyle CopyCitation Share Share Sharetosocialmedia Facebook Twitter URL https://www.britannica.com/topic/kapok GiveFeedback ExternalWebsites Feedback Corrections?Updates?Omissions?Letusknowifyouhavesuggestionstoimprovethisarticle(requireslogin). 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ExternalWebsites MolecularExpressions-KapokFiber BritannicaWebsites ArticlesfromBritannicaEncyclopediasforelementaryandhighschoolstudents. kapok-StudentEncyclopedia(Ages11andup) Alternatetitles:Javacotton,Javakapok,ceiba By TheEditorsofEncyclopaediaBritannica • EditHistory TableofContents kapok Seeallmedia RelatedTopics: milkweedfloss Bombaxmalabarica silkcottontree ...(Showmore) Seeallrelatedcontent→ Summary Readabriefsummaryofthistopic kapok,(Ceibapentandra),alsocalledJavacotton,ceiba,orJavakapok,seed-hairfibreobtainedfromthefruitofthekapoktreeorthekapoktreeitself.Thekapokisagigantictreeofthetropicalforestcanopyandemergentlayer.Commonthroughoutthetropics,thekapokisnativetotheNewWorldandtoAfricaandwastransportedtoAsia,whereitiscultivatedforitsfibre,orfloss.Thekapok’shugebuttressedtrunktapersupwardtoanalmosthorizontal,spreadingcrownwherelarge,compoundleavesaremadeupoffivetoeightlong,narrowleaflets.Infullsun,thekapokcangrowupto4metres(13feet)peryear,eventuallyreachingaheightof50metres(164feet).kapoktreeWoollyseedsproducedbytheseedpodsofthekapoktree(Ceibapentandra).NormanMyers—BruceColemanInc.Thekapokisdeciduous,droppingitsfoliageafterseasonalrainyperiods.Floweringoccurswhenthetreeisleafless,therebyimprovingaccessforthebatsthatfeedonthesugar-ladennectarofkapokblossoms.Indoingso,thebatsunwittinglypollinatethetree’sflowers.Theflowersopenatnightandhavefivepetalsthatarewhiteorpinkontheoutside.Onlyafewflowersonagivenbranchwillopenonanyparticularnightduringthetwoorthreeweeksthatthetreeblooms.Kapoksdonotbloomeveryyear,andsomemaygo5–10yearswithoutflowering.Whenthetreedoesbloom,however,itisprolific,producingupto4,000fruitsmeasuringupto15cm(6inches)long.Eventuallythesepodsopenonthetree,exposingthepalekapokfibrestothewindfordispersal.Thefibres,inwhichover200seedsarelooselyembedded,issometimesreferredtoassilkcottonandisyellowishbrown,lightweight,andlustrous.Inharvestingkapokfibre,thepodsareeithercutdownorgatheredwhentheyfall,thenbrokenopenwithmallets.Theseedandfibre,removedfromthepodsbyhand,arestirredinabasket;theseedsfalltothebottom,leavingthefibresfree.Theseedsmaybeprocessedtoobtainoilformakingsoap,andtheresidueisusedasfertilizerandcattlefeed.Individualfibresare0.8to3.2cm(0.3to1.25inches)long,averaging1.8cm(0.7inch),withdiametersof30to36micrometres(amicrometreisabout0.00004inch).Kapokisamoisture-resistant,quick-drying,resilient,andbuoyantfibre.Thefibrescontainbothlignin,awoodyplantsubstance,andcellulose,acarbohydrate.Theinelasticfibre,orfloss,istoobrittleforspinning,butitweighsonlyone-eighthasmuchascotton.Theflosshasbeenusedinlifepreserversandotherwater-safetyequipment,supportingasmuchas30timesitsownweightinwater.Buoyancyislostslowly,withonetestshowingonly10percentlossafter30daysofwaterimmersion.Kapokisalsousedasstuffingforpillows,mattresses,andupholstery,asinsulationmaterial,andasasubstituteforabsorbentcottoninsurgery.KapokischieflycultivatedinAsiaandIndonesia;theflossisanimportantproductofJava.Itishighlyflammable,however,andthefibre’simportancehasdecreasedwiththedevelopmentoffoamrubber,plastics,andsyntheticfibres.Althoughkapokwooddoesnotholdscrewsornailswell,thetimberisusedforavarietyofwoodproducts,includingpaper.Localpeopleshavelongusedkapoklogsforcarvingintocanoes.Indiankapok,flossfromthesimalcottontree(Bombaxmalabarica),nativetoIndia,hasmanyofthequalitiesoftheJavatypebutismorebrownishyellowincolourandlessresilient.Immersedinwater,itsupportsonly10to15timesitsownweight.Allthesetreesaremembersofthehibiscus,ormallow,family(Malvaceae),somemembersofwhichproducetreecotton(bombaxcotton)inBrazilandtheWestIndies,andtowhichcottonitselfalsobelongs.ThegenusnameoftheJavakapok,Ceiba,isthoughttobederivedfromaCaribwordforadugoutboat. ThisarticlewasmostrecentlyrevisedandupdatedbyAmyTikkanen.