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ARS Home » Southeast Area » Stoneville, Mississippi » Cotton Ginning Research » Research » Publications at this Location » Publication #284296
Title: Genotype differences in seed coat fragments related to seed fragility and fiber-seed attachment force

Author
item Boykin Jr, James
item Bechere, Efrem
item Armijo, Carlos

Submitted to: Proceedings of the American Society of Agricultural and Biological Engineers International (ASABE)
Publication Type: Abstract Only
Publication Acceptance Date: 7/30/2012
Publication Date: N/A
Citation: N/A

Interpretive Summary: Cotton production in the U.S. is struggling at all levels to remain profitable in an increasingly competitive world market. Two key factors for increased profits in the cotton ginning industry are high fiber quality and low bale contamination. It is important that this cotton is processed efficiently while maintaining the quality demanded by domestic and foreign consumers. One issue that is becoming increasingly important is fragments of cottonseed that remain in cotton bales after ginning. These seed coat fragments (SCF) can cause the yarn to break during spinning resulting in costly down time in the mill. In addition, when the yarn or fabric is dyed, the SCF absorb the dye differently than the cotton lint and cause discoloration that is undesirable in the finished product. In the U.S., cotton is mechanically harvested and ginned which leads to the formation of SCF. The gin stand uses saws to separate fiber from the seed, and it is the major origin of SCF in a ginning facility. Cotton genotypes (varieties, cultivars, etc.) vary in SCF levels, but details are lacking regarding the cause of seed coat fragmentation. Therefore, the objective of this experiment was to evaluate SCF levels for ten genotypes. Seed fragility, fiber-seed attachment force, and other variables were analyzed to determine their relationship with SCF levels. High variability was found among genotypes for SCF levels measured in the fiber and fabric. SCF increased with fiber-seed attachment force. SCF was higher for one genotype with the lowest seed rupture force, but otherwise the trend was increased SCF with increased rupture force. These results show that multiple factors may contribute to cotton containing high SCF levels. These findings will be critical in future studies evaluating genotype differences in fiber-seed attachment force and SCF levels.

Technical Abstract: Seed coat fragments (SCF) are difficult to remove from ginned lint. Cotton genotypes vary in SCF levels, but details are lacking regarding the cause of seed coat fragmentation. Ten genotypes were evaluated with high variability in SCF as measured in lint manually and as seed coat neps (SCN). Autorate image analysis of fabrics produced from these genotypes also showed high variability among genotypes ranging from 146 to 611 SCF per image. Three genotypes were identified as “high SCF genotypes”. The attachment force of the fiber to the seed increased significantly with SCF levels, and net gin stand energy consumption increased with SCF levels suggesting fibers more strongly attached to seed were prone to SCF formation. Seed rupture force was measured, but only one genotype with very low seed rupture force had increased SCF; otherwise SCF increased with seed rupture force. These results show that multiple factors may contribute to cotton containing high SCF levels.