ABSTRACT
Four temperature ranges (7-8 C, 25-28 C, 34-38 C, and 49-55 C) were used to obtain equilibrium moisture contents of cotton lint using small fluffy samples (500 mg) exposed to a moving air stream (flow rate of .0002 m3/s). The data agree with findings in the literature, and show that the equilibrium moisture content for raw cotton fiber absorption is consistently higher than the data reported for soda-boiled cotton. Below 49 C (120 F), the equilibrium moisture content of the lint decreases for constant values of relative humidity. For temperatures greater than 49 C and relative humidities above 65%, the equilibrium moisture content began to increase with increasing temperature. Desorption equilibrium data for raw cotton lint in the 49-55 C range shows that hysteresis does exist.
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