Historical Developments of Flax Industry for Improving Fibers Quality and Fabrics Properties

Flax (Linum usitatissimu) is one of the main crops in Canada for the production of linseed oil, which is used in food and chemical industries. The seeds are crushed to make linseed oil, and the remaining cake is used for fodder. Moreover, the boiling of seed oil is used in making paints, varnish and printing ink. The degradation of flax fibers is a crucial aspect in the development of natural fiber. Cellulose controls the major degradation behavior of flax fibers. Retting of flax is the separation of fibers and fiber bundles from non-fiber tissues in the stems. Bast fibers are processed by various means that may include retting, breaking, scutching, hackling, and combing. In order to bleach the flax and to keep the fiber tenacity high enough it is necessary to remove the lignin and partially to preserve the pectin. The problem of the classical hydrolyzing treatment with alkalis and oxidizers is due to the effect of these chemicals not only on the pectin and the lignin but also the cellulose itself resulting on the drastically decrease the material strength