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MORIOKA,
Japan
— Japanese researchers have developed a device that
can measure cashmere fabric purity via electromagnetic
radiation, a finding that could help reduce the time and
cost involved in checking whether cashmere products are
accurately labeled.
According
to the researchers, the device can quickly detect
whether wool and other fibers have been mixed with
cashmere by vibrating the fibers at the molecular level
and emitting terahertz waves.
The
research team at
Iwate Prefectural University
is led by Prof.
Toru Kurabayashi
, 52, a specialist in electronics.
According
to Kurabayashi, each fiber oscillates at a different
wavelength and intensity after being bombarded with
terahertz waves, enabling each strand of material to be
distinguished individually. "It's like identifying
people through their fingerprints," Kurabayashi
said.
The study
group began the research after a request from a major
cashmere distributor to develop a way to easily
distinguish cashmere and other fibers.
The team
studied oscillating waves of about 30 fibers, including
cashmere, wool, cotton, acrylic and nylon. Because each
fiber has a distinctive wave, the group was able to
discern between cashmere and wool, which have similar
textures.
Cashmere,
which is known for its soft texture, is produced by
weaving downy hairs of the cashmere goat. Because the
goats yield only about 200 grams of cashmere, the fiber
is highly sought after.
Many
"cashmere products" that actually contain wool
and other fibers are passed off as genuine cashmere
products.
People in
the cashmere industry say the volume of
"cashmere" products circulating on world
markets is four times larger than the fiber's true
production volume.
The Japan Wool Products Inspection Institute Foundation
uses a microscope to inspect fibers from cashmere
products one by one after extracting them from the
products. However, each product takes an hour and costs
more than
15,000 yen
to check, a toll that causes furrowed brows among
wholesalers and distributors.
The
device is about two meters long and one meter wide. The
study group's next task is to downsize the device,
Kurabayashi said.
"By
using the device, users can check the purity of cashmere
products accurately in several tens of seconds, which
enables companies to cut costs significantly. The next
step is to put the device to practical use. We want to
develop small devices by collaborating with the private
sector."
Terahertz
waves have a frequency range of 0.1 to 10 terahertz. The
frequency is lower than the frequency of light waves,
but higher than those of radio waves.
Junichi Nishizawa
, former president of the prefectural university,
devised a method to generate terahertz waves about 40
years ago. In the future, the waves are expected to be
used during checks for gunpowder, narcotics and food
additives that cannot be detected by X-ray.
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