Utilization of Turkey Feather Fibers in Nonwoven Erosion Control Fabrics

Abstract

Currently, between two and four billion pounds of feathers are produced annually by the poultry processing industry (1). These feathers present a disposal problem, and are usually converted to animal feed. A method of effectively stripping the feather fibers from the quill without damaging the fibers has been patented, and as a result research is being conducted to determine uses for these fibers (4). Current research has focused on creating latex bonded fabrics containing turkey feather fibers for utilization as erosion control fabrics. These fabrics have been compared with currently available erosion control fabrics to determine their suitability for this particular purpose. The turkey fiber fabrics performed similarly to the commercially available erosion control fabrics tested in terms of light and water transmittance. None of the fabrics significantly affected the pH, nitrogen or phosphorus content of the soil even though the turkey fabrics had fully decomposed by the conclusion of the experiment. The turkey fabrics increased soil moisture content and decreased soil compaction, which are critical properties for successful ecological restoration of habitats. One significant drawback of the turkey fabrics was difficulty in handling and installation on the site compared to the two commercial erosion control fabrics tested.

Biodegradable Nonwovens with Poultry Feather Addition as a Method for Recycling and Waste Management

“…The use of feather waste in the production of nonwovens as agricultural products could be the perfect solution for the management of hazardous waste while simultaneously enriching the natural environment. The literature reports [28] that chicken feather fibres can be used as a cheap raw material for nonwoven production. Yet, due to poor length, they need to be combined with other material during the production process.…”

“…A wide range of bacteria, actinomycetes and filamentous fungi have been characterised as keratinolytic microorganisms. Special attention should be paid to bacteria belonging to the genus Bacillus, such as B. subtilis, B. pumilus, B cereus, B. coagulans, B. licheniformis or B. megatherium [28,35]. The type of microorganism is not the only factor that is essential for the degradation of materials.…”

Preparation and Warmth Retention of down Fiber Grafted with Zirconium Oxychloride

“…We have only been able to identify a limited number of papers specifically, albeit briefly and qualitatively, analyzing the structure and properties of down fibers and down assemblies [4,7,8]. In addition, few studies on the fractal methods of down fiber [9,10] and limited papers on the properties of poultry feathers [11,12] have been reported. In this paper, the integrative physical properties of down fibers and down fiber assemblies are studied and evaluated based on the fiber compression behavior [13] and the fiber softness [14].…”

Effect of Chemical Treatments on the Physicochemical and Tensile Properties of Cow Hair Fibre for Low Load Bearing Composites Development

“…Hitherto, bulk of the works of materials scientists on natural fibres for composites development has been intensive on vegetal fibres and this has irrefutably yielded in very few literatures available on animal fibres. In fact, these very few literatures available on animal fibres primarily focused on their potential applications in the civil and textile industries [22][23][24][25]. Animal fibres include feather, hair, wool and silk which are gotten from animals such as chickens, turkeys, spiders, llamas, alpaca, dogs, horses, rabbits and cows [26].…”