Near Infrared Measurement of Cotton Fiber Micronaire, Maturity and Fineness - a Comparative Investigation

A key cotton fiber quality property is micronaire, which acts as an indicator of the fiber’s maturity and fineness. Previous studies have demonstrated the ability of Near Infrared (NIR) instrumentation to measure these cotton properties with varying degrees of success, but these studies did not provide conclusions on the capabilities of NIR spectroscopy as a general technique for these analyses. Recent advances in NIR technology could result in improved measurements of these cotton properties. A comparative investigation was implemented to determine the capabilities of modern commercial bench-top and portable NIR systems to monitor cotton fiber micronaire, maturity, and fineness in order to gain insight as to the “universality” of the NIR measurements for these fiber properties. Cotton samples were analyzed on five commercial systems and an older, custom-built system. Very good spectral agreement was observed between the portable and bench-top NIR units. The rapid and simultaneous measurement of cotton mi...