Fireball 2

Sammanfattning

The development within the textile industry is always ongoing with development of new and

better textiles, which often mean the use of non-natural materials like polyester. This doesn’t line

up with the work shared around the world against an improved environment, so the idea came to

use a form of linen fibers instead of polyester as the reinforcing material together with cotton.

The idea was to use flax, linen of low quality, which is seen as a waste product and garbage in

the production of high quality linen and flax seed oil. This flax of low quality needs to be

separated before it can be used in cotton spinning machines. Fireball 2 is just that, a process to

separate flax fibers through the treatment of a technique called electrohydraulic discharge.

The thesis works goal is to evaluate the Fireball 2 process ability to separate flax fiber. To

achieve this goal the process is described, which phenomenon that treat the flax fibers and how

they arise, as well as the components included in the system. Much of the work involves tests of

different electrodes as it shows that the electrode strongly contributes to the discharge property,

which is very important for the systems ability to treat flax.

Fireball 2 is marketed as an environmental technique as it doesn’t require any chemical additives

for the separation; the only thing needed is flax, water and electricity. For it to be considered

environmentally friendly is has to be efficient, therefore the thesis rapport discuss the discharge

efficiency.

The result of the fiber separation tests show that Fireball 2 separates flax with good results, both

in the form of analysis of separated fibers as well as energy efficiency. Measures under

performed tests have shown that the efficiency is high, close to 100 percent of the energy stored

in the system is released during treatment of the flax. Analysis made at De Montfort University

of the treated flax show that the flax is well separated.

When it comes to the electrode an satisfactory design of the electrodes conductive part have been

found during this thesis work, although more work is required to find an isolation material that

can withstand the high strain that the plasma channel cause.