Evaluating Immature Fiber Bias In Cotton Fiber Cross Section Analysis

Fiber maturity-fineness characteristics can be determined using a variety of indirect methods such as the air-flow or electro-optical principles (FMT, AFIS…).  However, only fiber cross sectional analysis can measure fundamental features such as cell wall thickness and perimeter [1]. Currently, the Fiber Image Analysis System (FIAS) developed at UT Austin by Bugao Xu [2-3] is employed by several research laboratories in order to measure these cross sectional fiber properties. The standard operating procedure for the test consists of an image conversion and analysis phase done automatically by the software, followed by a “filtration” phase during which the technician visually examines the images and eliminates the fibers that appear suspect from the testing sample and from the data set (e.g., fibers clamped together or collapsed single fibers that cannot be adequately outlined by the software). The present research focuses on the second category of eliminated fibers (collapsed individual fibers) and attempts to quantify the impact of their elimination on the test results.