The Effects of Boiling Times, Concentrations of Alkali and Enzyme Solutions on Yield, Length, and Linear Density of Insee 2 Sweet Corn Husk Fibers

Abstract

This study aimed to investigate the effects of boiling time, and concentrations of alkali and enzyme solution on the yield, length, and linear density of Insee 2 sweet corn husk fibers. The experiment included three factors: two alkali solution concentration levels (2.5 and 5.0 g/L), four boiling time levels (30, 60, 90, and 120 min), and two enzyme solution concentration levels (0.2% and 0.4% of fiber weight). A 2 × 4 × 2 factorial experiment was conducted using a completely randomized design (CRD). Data were analyzed using means, standard deviations, three-way analysis of variance, and mean comparisons using the least significant difference (LSD) method. The fiber bundles extracted from dried corn husks produced average fiber yields of 24.18%–86.67%, fiber lengths of 125.13–140.98 mm, and fiber linear density of 31.19–64.32 tex. Analysis of variance revealed that the alkali solution concentration and boiling time significantly affected the yield, length, and linear density of the fibers (p .05). The enzyme solution concentration significantly affected the yield and linear density of the fibers (p .05) but did not affect the fiber length (p > .05). The interaction between alkali solution concentration and boiling time significantly affected fiber yield (p .05) but had no effect on fiber length and linear density (p > .05). Additionally, the yield, length, and linear density of the fibers were not significantly affected by the interactions between alkali solution concentration and enzyme solution concentration, boiling time and enzyme solution concentration, and the three-way interaction among all factors (p > .05).