the burn test

I

III

97 bonneville/98 Z71
Does anyone know what exactly the burn test is when it comes to finding out if a cotton towel is really 100% cotton? I thought it was if you see a regular flame, then it's 100% cotton. But if all you see is black smoke and melting fibers, then it's not. Is this correct? I tried burning 3 different towels the other day and they all burned the same way. I can't tell if they would be considered cotton or not. The flame looked like a regular candle flame and the towel fibers quickly became black. No black smoke. I should note that one of these towels was 85% cotton/15% polyetser, which leads me to believe that maybe the other 2 towels are really not 100% cotton even though they say they are?
 
Have to watch out for polyesters and such in my beekeeping arsonal. Snd since burning is what we beekeepers do in our smokers, I know a smidge about burning.



You don't study the flame, you study the smoke and the residue.

The synthetics tend to clump and go sticky. You'll often find droplets after the burn. You may also find a web pattern left over after the burn. The smoke *may* exhibit a sticky quality as well, but that's only if you've got a lot of synthetics in the cloth. You will frequently detect a petrochemical quality to the smoke in both consistency and scent when burning synthetics, though it takes a good bit to cause it to stand out.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top