Determination of Fiber lenght and width.

 Experiment

Object:

To determine fiber length and width.- Pharmacognosy experiment.

Reference:

Khandelwal K.R. "Practical Pharmacognosy" Nirali Prakashan, Pune 9th edition 2002 pp-159.

Requirements:

Eye piece microscope, stage micrometer, porcelain dish, slide, 

Theory: 

Fiber is composed of plant which resist human digestive enzymes, a definition that includes lignin and polysaccharides are of two types water soluble and insoluble. Fibers are natural and synthetic. Natural fibers are collected from plant sources.

Vegetable fibres are generally based on arrangement of cellulose, after with lignin. Example include cotton, hemp,jute,flex etc.

Fiber is a thread filament substance or textile is formed. This fibre containing substance such as cellulose,lignin, and protein that are resistant to the action of digestive enzymes.

Procedure:

1. Calibrate the eyepiece micrometer using stage micrometer was done and calculate the factor.
2. Then take small quality of drug which contains fiber and then boiled in carbohydrates solution.
3. Then chlorophyll free powder was removed and then it was stained with 1 drop of and conc. HCl.
4. After this the treated powder was taken on a slide and then this prepared slide was observed under the microscope 
5. Then the length and width was measured using eyepiece micrometer scale
6. Two measure the width the eyepiece micrometer scale was placed horizontally over the fibre and the divisions were covered were counted.
7. similarly the eyepiece micrometer was pledged vertically on the fibre and then number of divisions were covered by fibre were made counted to measure the length.
8.  Then the Length and width of 50 fiber particle were counted. And the size of fiber particle calculated using the formula.

Calculation:

Factor:

1 division of Stage Micrometer (SM) = 0.01mm/ 10micrometer.

Formula for fiber size.

Fiber size= L×W×Factor

Result: 

The size of fiber partical was found to be______Micrometer.