Sunday, March 4, 2012

Kapok ( Ceiba pentandra )


Fruit Warehouse | Kapok ( Ceiba pentandra ) | Produce Several hundred adult trees 15 cm (6 in) seed pods. The pods contain seeds surrounded by a fluffy, Yellowish fiber That is a mix of lignin and cellulose. Ceiba pentandra is a tropical tree of the order Malvales and the family Malvaceae (Previously Bombacaceae separated in the family), native to Mexico, Central America and the Caribbean, northern South America, and (as the variety C. pentandra var. Guineensis) to tropical west Africa. The tree is also known as the Java cotton, Java kapok, Ceiba or Silk cotton


The fiber is light, very buoyant, resilient and resistant to water. The process of harvesting and separating the fiber is labor-intensive and manual. Native tribes along the Amazon River harvest the kapok fiber to wrap around Their darts blowgun.


The fibers create a seal That allows the pressure to force the dart through the tube. The commercial tree is most Heavily cultivated in the Rainforests of Asia, Notably in Java (Hence its nicknames), Philippines, Malaysia, Hainan Island in China as well as in South America. This tree is the official national tree of Puerto Rico and Guatemala.


A pressed seed oil can be derived from the seeds of the kapok tree. The oil has a yellow color and a pleasant, mild odor and taste. It has similar characteristics to cottonseed oil. Kapok oil is produced in India, Indonesia and Malaysia. Kapok oil has some potential as a biofuel and in paint preparation.

No comments:

Post a Comment