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Fiber (also spelled fibre in British English; from Latin: fibra) [1] is a natural or artificial substance that is significantly longer than it is wide. [2] Fibers are often used in the manufacture of other materials. The strongest engineering materials often incorporate fibers, for example carbon fiber and ultra-high-molecular-weight polyethylene.
Hair from animals such as horses is also an animal fiber. Horsehair is used for brushes, the bows of musical instruments and many other things. Along with mink hair, it's also a common choice for eyelash extensions and similar cosmetics. The best artists brushes are made from Siberian weasel, many other fibers are used including ox hair and hog ...
Cellulose is a polymer made of repeating glucose molecules attached end to end. [4] A cellulose molecule may be from several hundred to over 10,000 glucose units long. Cellulose is similar in form to complex carbohydrates like starch and glycogen. These polysaccharides are also made from multiple subunits of glucose.
Some animals, particularly ruminants and termites, can digest cellulose with the help of symbiotic micro-organisms that live in their guts, such as Trichonympha. In human nutrition , cellulose is a non-digestible constituent of insoluble dietary fiber , acting as a hydrophilic bulking agent for feces and potentially aiding in defecation .
Some examples are flax, jute, kenaf, industrial hemp, ramie, rattan, and vine fibers. [9] A field of jute Fruit fiber: Fibers collected from the fruit of the plant, for example, coconut fiber . Coir fibre Coconut fibre (coir) Stalk fiber: Fibers from the stalks of plants, e.g. straws of wheat, rice, barley, bamboo and straw. [7] Bamboo forest
Textile fibres or textile fibers (see spelling differences) can be created from many natural sources (animal hair or fur, cocoons as with silk worm cocoons), as well as semisynthetic methods that use naturally occurring polymers, and synthetic methods that use polymer-based materials, and even minerals such as metals to make foils and wires.
Dietary fiber (fibre in Commonwealth English) or roughage is the portion of plant-derived food that cannot be completely broken down by human digestive enzymes. [1] Dietary fibers are diverse in chemical composition and can be grouped generally by their solubility, viscosity and fermentability which affect how fibers are processed in the body. [2]
Kenaf, the interior of the plant stem is used for its fiber. Edible leaves. Lotus, used to produce lotus silk; Nettles used to make thread and twine, clothing made from it is both durable yet soft; Papyrus, a pith fiber, akin to a bast fiber; Ramie, a member of the nettle family. Spanish broom, a legume, its fiber has similar characteristics to ...