xin. A, 6 Valencia: Mechanical Extraction of Coir 281 



turers state that this machine will defiber from 1,200 to 1,600 

 husks per day according to their size, with a consumption of 

 3 horse power at 160 revolutions per minute. 



Table II. — Test of special fiber-extracting machine. 



Husks defibered: 





Kilograms 



1,523.5 



Number 



2,900 



Husk capacity of machine: 





Per hour 



106 



Per 10-hour day 



1,060 



Coir produced (kilograms) 



473.1 



Power required for driving: 





Kilowatts 



2 



Horse power 



2.7 



Time required to defiber: Total, 27 hours, 13 minutes; per 



husk, 33 seconds. 





Table II shows that the capacity of the machine is only slightly 

 less than that given by the makers, and also that the power 

 consumption is somewhat below that recommended. 



The final machine operation in the extraction of coir is a 

 willowing process which frees the filaments from loosely ad- 

 herent dust, short fibers, etc. The willowing machine consists 

 of a revolving cylindrical wire cage, in the center of which a 

 shaft, upon which are mounted iron beaters that shake the coir 

 free of dirt, rotates at a higher speed than the cage. The cage 

 may be adjusted at any pitch, depending upon the speed at 

 which the fiber is to pass through the machine, which in turn is 

 determined by the amount of dirt to be removed. The uncleaned 

 fiber is fed into the higher end of the cage, where it is seized 

 by the beater which twirls it about and causes the extraneous 

 matter to fall through the wire netting, and the cleaned coir 

 is eventually discharged at the lower end. When the crushed 

 husks were passed through the special fiber-extracting machine 

 for the first time, the product was composed of the finest fil- 

 aments with a high percentage of pulp, and each succeeding pass 

 yielded a coarser grade of fiber. The product of each operation 

 was separately cleaned in the willowing machine, thus preserv- 

 ing the grades. 



Table III. — Test of willowing machine. 





Husks defibered: 





Number 



2,900 



Kilograms 



1,523 



Husk capacity of machine: 





Per hour 



211 



Per 10-hour day 



2,110 



