viscose process
viscose process
(vĭs`kōs), method widely used for the commercial preparation of rayonrayon,synthetic fibers made from cellulose or textiles woven from such fibers; more rayon is manufactured than any other synthetic fiber. The name was adopted (1924), in preference to "artificial silk," by the U.S. Dept. of Commerce and various commercial associations.
..... Click the link for more information. . Cellulose, prepared from either wood pulp or, less commonly, cotton linters, is treated with sodium hydroxide (an alkali) and then with carbon disulfide, the resulting product being a substance called cellulose xanthate. Dissolved in sodium hydroxide, this alkaline cellulose xanthate forms a thick solution called viscose. Rayon yarn is made by forcing the viscose through tiny openings in a spinneret into an acid solution, which coagulates it in the form of fine strands. Most of the rayon manufactured today is produced by this method, al though other processes are also in use. The viscose process was discovered in 1892 by the English chemist Charles Frederick Cross and his collaborator, Edward John Bevan.