Effect of degumming with sodium carbonate on properties of oak tasar silk filament

Degumming of cocoon is one of the major processes in post cocoon technology. Silk cocoon is degummed for the reeling of silk filaments, oak tasar cocoon is commonly degummed with sodium carbonate. Under the present study degumming of oak tasar cocoon was done with various concentrations of sodium carbonate. Effect of different concentration on fibre properties was assessed by testing the degummed silk fibre samples for its tensile strength, elongation and fineness. SEM images of each sample were also recorded to analyze the surface morphology. It was noticed that higher concentrations of sodium carbonate adversely affected the fibre properties. Present study shows that lower concentrations i.e. 0.3% to 0.5% on weight of material, of sodium carbonate can be used for the degumming of oak tasar cocoon without affecting fibre properties.