HISTORY OF ABACA USE
During the 19th century, the Abaca natural fiber was widely used for ships' rigging because of its
resistance to saltwater damage and the fact it does not swell or lose its strength in water. The pulp
was also used to make sturdy manila envelopes.
In 1925 the Dutch in Sumatra began to cultivate the fiber. Around that time also, the US Department
of Agriculture began to establish plantations in some areas of Central America.
Today, because Abaca is considered the strongest natural plant fiber, it is used to reinforce polymers
and is preferred over synthetic polymers. Recently, Mercedes Benz has used a mixture of
polypropylene thermoplastic and Abaca yarn in automobile body parts. Abaca fiber uses an
estimated 60% less energy than the energy used in the production of fiberglass.
Over 200,000 Filipino farming families produce Abaca natural fiber as their main source of income.
The Philippine nation supplies approximately 90% of the world's Abaca fiber. Other countries
including Indonesia, Costa Rica, and Ecuador have obtained Philippine Abaca planting materials and
are producing the fiber as well.
WHAT IS ABACA FIBER?
Abaca natural fiber comes from a species of inedible banana native to the Philippines. It is
sometimes called Manila Hemp or Musa.
(Abaca is pronounced a-ba-ca with the accent on the last syllable.)
The plant is self-sustaining, maturing from 16 to 24 months. It can be harvested 3 times
per year once it matures.
A mature Abaca plant consists of from 12 to 30 stalks radiating from a central root system,
each stalk from 12 to 20 feet in height.
The fibers are extremely strong and grow as layers of overlapping leaf sheaths which form
the stalk.
The fiber is more coarse on the outer stalks than on the inner ones.
Each stalk is cut into sheaths and then into strips. The strips are scraped to remove the
pulp, either by hand or machine.
There are 7 natural shades from the dark brown outer layers to the white inner layers.
The white fiber can be dyed to produce any other color.
ABACA FIBER USES/PRODUCTS:
Abaca fiber is a strong, versatile fiber. Since it needs no spinning and has strong, lightweight inner
fibers, it is used for garments, hats, and even shoes, as well as rugs, durable furniture, ropes and
fishing lines, decorative products such as wallcoverings and home and fashion accessories, as well as
specialized papers including coffee filters, tea bags, and banknotes. It is also used for roofing.
Lesser known uses include coatings, sausage casings, pill and surgical masks. It is also used in the
production of telephones, orthopedic joint replacements, and fracture-healing implants. In fact,
more than 200 different finished products are made from the Abaca plant fibers.
TUXYING
This is the process of separating the outer sheath, which contains the primary fibers, from
the inner leaf sheath, where the secondary fibers are found.
The separated outer leaf sheath is called a tuxy. Tuxying is done by hand stripping and
spindle stripping methods.
DECORTICATION
An alternative method of extracting the fiber is by decortication.
-In this process, the whole leaf sheath is used to extract the fiber, recovering both the
primary and the secondary fibers at the same time.
-Production with decortication yields from 3.0 to 3.5% fiber while hand tuxying fiber
recovery is at 1.0%.
-The spindle stripping process yields only from 1.5 to 2% fiber.
ADVANTAGES OF ABACA NATURAL FIBER
Strongest natural plant fiber.
Durable.
Flexible.
Long fiber length.
Does not swell or lose strength in water.
Resistant to saltwater damage.
Self-extinguishing.
Products obtained from Abaca fibers are eco-friendly.
Production is energy-efficient - 60% energy savings and reduction of CO2 emissions
as well.
ABACA ROPE MAKING PROCESS
1. cutting down the abaca plant
2. tuxying
3. decortication - EXTRACTION OF FIBERS
4. separating fibers from the finest to the coarse ONES
5. drying
6. BUNDLING
7. knotting
8. twining - TWISTING THE FIBERS/STRANDS TO CREATE A ROPE
ROPE MAKING PROCESS ON A ROPEWALK SHED.
This shed is called a ropewalk. Here ropes are made from Manila hemp. This factory is in the
Philippines. Making ropes by hand is a past art in the United States. Our ropes here are made by
machinery. But in the Philippines hand labor is cheap, and machines are not so much used. After the
abaca (ä´ bä-kä´) is dried, the fibers are known as Manila hemp. The fibers are then hackled. That is,
they are drawn through spikes to straighten them, and to remove the remaining pulp from them. A fair
per cent of this hemp is made into ropes. The method you see used here is simple, and is suggested by
the name of the building. The object is to twist the fibers into long strands, and in turn to twist strands
together. To do this the workmen have to walk back and forth many times across the shed. About their
waists the workmen carry bunches of fiber. One end of a small roll of fibers is fastened to a spindle.
This spindle is turned rapidly, twisting the fibers together tightly. As the rope twists, the workman
walks, feeding out fiber from his waist. The size of the rope depends on the number of fibers started
on the spindle. The length is determined by the market demands. Any length desired can be made by
splicing sections of the rope, or by adding to the rolls of fiber. Heavy ropes are made by taking small
ropes and twisting them together in the same fashion as the smaller ropes are made. In our New
England States, about the time of the Revolutionary War, there were many such ropewalks as this one.
Then New England was one of the chief ship-building sections of the world. The vessels were sailing
craft; and a great deal of rope was needed to handle the large amount of canvas each ship carried.
Keystone ID: 10047 Note: All titles, descriptions, and location coordinates are from the original
Keystone Slide documentation as supplied by the Keystone View Company. No text has been edited or
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