4. INTRODUCTION TO
HEMP • Hemp or industrial hemp (from Old English hænep),
typically found in the northern hemisphere, is a
variety of the Cannabis sativa plant species that is
grown specifically for the industrial uses of its derived
products. It is one of the fastest growing plants and
was one of the first plants to be spun into usable fiber
10,000 years ago. It can be refined into a variety of
commercial items including paper, textiles, clothing,
biodegradable plastics, paint, insulation, biofuel, food,
and animal feed.
5. Although cannabis as a drug and industrial hemp both
derive from the species Cannabis sativa and contain
the psychoactive component tetrahydrocannabinol
(THC), they are distinct strains with unique
phytochemical compositions and uses. Hemp has lower
concentrations of THC and higher concentrations of
cannabidiol (CBD), which decreases or eliminates its
psychoactive effects. The legality of industrial hemp
varies widely between countries. Some governments
regulate the concentration of THC and permit only
hemp that is bred with an especially low THC content.]
6. SCIENTIFIC CLASSIFICATION OF HEMP
KINGDOM : Plantae
ORDER : Rosales
FAMILY : Cannabaceae
GENUS : Cannabis L.
SCIENTIFIC NAME : Cannabis sativa
7. HISTORYOFHEMP
Hemp is possibly one of the earliest plants to be cultivated. An archeological site in the Oki Islands
near Japan contained cannabis achenes from about 8000 BC, probably signifying use of the plant.
Hemp use archaeologically dates back to the Neolithic Age in China, with hemp fiber imprints found
on Yangshao culture pottery dating from the 5th millennium BC. The Chinese later used hemp to
make clothes, shoes, ropes, and an early form of paper. The classical Greek historian Herodotus (ca.
480 BC) reported that the inhabitants of Scythia would often inhale the vapors of hemp-seed smoke,
both as ritual and for their own pleasurable recreation.
Textile expert Elizabeth Wayland Barber summarizes the historical evidence that Cannabis sativa,
"grew and was known in the Neolithic period all across the northern latitudes, from Europe
(Germany, Switzerland, Austria, Romania, Ukraine) to East Asia (Tibet and China)," but, "textile use of
Cannabis sativa does not surface for certain in the West until relatively late, namely the Iron Age. I
strongly suspect, however, that what catapulted hemp to sudden fame and fortune as a cultigen and
caused it to spread rapidly westwards in the first millennium B.C. was the spread of the habit of pot-
smoking from somewhere in south-central Asia, where the drug-bearing variety of the plant
originally occurred. The linguistic evidence strongly supports this theory, both as to time and
direction of spread and as to cause.
8. Jews living in Palestine in the 2nd century were familiar with the cultivation of hemp, as witnessed by
a reference to it in the Mishna (Kil'ayim 2:5) as a variety of plant, along with Arum, that sometimes
takes as many as three years to grow from a seedling. In late medieval Germany and Italy, hemp was
employed in cooked dishes, as filling in pies and tortes, or boiled in a soup. Hemp in later Europe was
mainly cultivated for its fibers, and was used for ropes on many ships, including those of Christopher
Columbus. The use of hemp as a cloth was centered largely in the countryside, with higher quality
textiles being available in the towns
]
The Spaniards brought hemp to the Western Hemisphere and cultivated it in Chile starting about
1545. However, in May 1607, "hempe" was among the crops Gabriel Archer observed being
cultivated by the natives at the main Powhatan village, where Richmond, Virginia is now situated; and
in 1613, Samuell Argall reported wild hemp "better than that in England" growing along the shores of
the upper Potomac. As early as 1619, the first Virginia House of Burgesses passed an Act requiring all
planters in Virginia to sow "both English and Indian" hemp on their plantations. The Puritans are first
known to have cultivated hemp in New England in 1645.
George Washington pushed for the growth of hemp and even grew hemp himself, as it was a cash crop
commonly used to make rope and fabric. In May 1765 he noted in his diary about the sowing of seeds each day
until mid-April. Then he recounts the harvest in October which he grew 27 bushels that year.
9. THERE IS SOME SPECULATION THAT GEORGE WASHINGTON SMOKED THE FLOWER OF THE CANNABIS
PLANT IN ORDER TO ACHIEVE A RECREATIONAL HIGH ("LIKE ALL FARMERS, WASHINGTON PROBABLY
SAMPLED THE QUALITY AND POTENCY OF WHAT HE GREW, AND HE MAY HAVE USED THIS HEMP TO
TREAT HIS CHRONIC TOOTH ACHES"), BUT THERE IS NO EVIDENCE IN ANY OF HIS WRITINGS THAT HE
GREW HEMP FOR ANYTHING OTHER THAN INDUSTRIAL PURPOSES. IT IS SOMETIMES SUPPOSED THAT
AN EXCERPT FROM WASHINGTON'S DIARY, WHICH READS "BEGAN TO SEPERATE THE MALE FROM
THE FEMALE HEMP AT DO.&—RATHER TOO LATE" IS EVIDENCE THAT HE WAS TRYING TO GROW
FEMALE PLANTS FOR THE FOUND IN THE FLOWERS. HOWEVER, THE EDITORIAL REMARK
ACCOMPANYING THE DIARY STATES THAT "THIS MAY ARISE FROM THEIR [THE MALE] BEING COARSER,
AND THE STALKS LARGER IN SUBSEQUENT DAYS, HE DESCRIBES SOAKING THE HEMP (TO MAKE THE
FIBERS USABLE) AND HARVESTING THE SEEDS, SUGGESTING THAT HE WAS GROWING HEMP FOR
INDUSTRIAL PURPOSES, NOT RECREATIONAL.
GEORGE WASHINGTON ALSO IMPORTED THE INDIAN HEMP PLANT FROM ASIA, WHICH WAS USED
FOR FIBER AND, BY SOME GROWERS, FOR INTOXICATING RESIN PRODUCTION. IN A LETTER TO
WILLIAM PEARCE WHO MANAGED THE PLANTS FOR HIM WASHINGTON SAYS, "WHAT WAS DONE
WITH THE INDIAN HEMP PLANT FROM LAST SUMMER? IT OUGHT, ALL OF IT, TO BE SOWN AGAIN;
THAT NOT ONLY A STOCK OF SEED SUFFICIENT FOR MY OWN PURPOSES MIGHT HAVE BEEN RAISED,
BUT TO HAVE DISSEMINATED SEED TO OTHERS; AS IT IS MORE VALUABLE THAN COMMON HEMP."[
10. C0LTIVATION
OFHEMPHemp is usually planted between March and
May in the northern hemisphere, between
September and November in the southern
hemisphere.[70] It matures in about three to
four months
A total of 26 varieties of hemp with low levels
of tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) are certified by
the European Union (EU). They have, unlike
other types, a very high fiber content of 30-
40%. In contrast to cannabis for medical use,
varieties grown for fiber and seed have less
than 0.2% THC and they are unsuitable for
producing hashish and marijuana. The most
important cannabinoid in industrial hemp is
cannabidiol (CBD) with a proportion of 1 to
5%.[citation needed]
11. •
The seeds are sown from mid-April to mid-
May with grain drills to 4–6 cm sowing depth.
Hemp needs less fertilizer than corn does. A
total of 60–150 kg of nitrogen, 40–140 kg
phosphorus (P2O5) and 75–200 kg of
potassium [5] per acre for hemp fiber made
before sowing and again later, maybe three to
four weeks. When practiced, especially in
France double use of fiber and seed
fertilization with nitrogen doses up to 100 kg /
ha rather low. Organic fertilizers such as
manure can utilize industrial hemp well.
Neither weeds nor crop protection measures
are necessary.
In soil, the optimum pH for the plant is 6.3 to
6.8. In hydroponic growing, the nutrient solution
is best at 5.2 to 5.8, making Cannabis well-
suited to hydroponics because this pH range is
hostile to most bacteria and fungi.
12. MORPHOLOGICAL STAGES OF DEVELOPMENT
Morphological stages Days after sowing
Emergence of seedlings Day 5-7
First true leaves Day 7-10
Second true leaves Day 10-12
Third true leaves Day 12-15
Fourth true leaves Day 15-25
Beginning of flowering Day 25-30
Beginning of pollination Day 30-35
Peak time of pollination Day 40-45
Apparent seed formation Day 55
End of pollination Day 55-65
Small smell from females Beginning day 50-60
30-70% mature seed Day 70-80
60-80% mature seed Day 90-100
Male flowers Normally dead by day 100
Harvest time Day 100-120 after sowing
13. CHEMICAL COMPOSITION OF HEMP
Hemp is a cellulosic natural fiber, so its chemical component is
cellulose. I have presenting the chemical composition of hemp
fiber as below:
Cellulose : 77.5%
Hemi-cellulose : 10%
Lignin : 6.8%
Pectin : 2.9%
Fat & wax : 0.9%
14. HARVESTING
•Smallholder plots are usually harvested by
hand. The plants are cut at 2 to 3 cm above
the soil and left on the ground to dry.
Mechanical harvesting is now common, using
specially adapted cutter-binders or simpler
cutters.
•The cut hemp is laid in swathes to dry for up
to four days. This was traditionally followed by
retting, either water retting (the bundled
hemp floats in water) or dew retting (the
hemp remains on the ground and is affected
by the moisture in dew, and by molds and
bacterial action).
15. HARVESTING PROCEDURE FOR HEMP
Hemp harvesting would be done in early September in
northern hemisphere.
Prosses includes
Cutting
Turning
Bailing
Retting
16. RETTING PROCESS OF HEMP
Once the hemp is harvested, it must go through a process
called retting in order to separate the fiber from the rest of the
plant. This is not an easy process and can be accomplished
through several methods where moisture, microorganisms, or
chemistry break down the bark tissue that binds the fiber and
non-fiber portions, making them easier to separate.
Dew retting occurs when the stalks are left in the field so that
rain, dew, or irrigation is used to keep the stems moist. This
may take up to 5 weeks and produces a coarse fiber with a
light brown color.
Water retting occurs when stems are bundled and then
submerged in water so that bacteria break down the pectin.
This takes 7-10 days and produces a better quality fiber
17. RETTING PROCESS OF HEMP
Warm water retting occurs when bundles are soaked for 24 hours after
which the water is replaced. Heat is then applied to warm the batch
for the next two or three days. This gives a very uniform, clean fiber.
Green retting is an all mechanical process that separates the
components and used when the fiber is needed for textiles, paper, or
fiberboard products.
Chemical retting occurs when chemicals are used to dissolve the
pectin, allowing the components to be separated. This shortens the
time to as little as 48 hours when the next process can then be
instigated. This produces a very high quality product.
18. BALINGANDSTORAGE
•Baling can be done with any kind of baler. Large round,
soft-core balers may are more satisfactory, allowing
bales to fry more quickly in storage. For some industrial
processes, the buyer may require a uniform large,
square bale, to fit into the processing system however
this may present a challenge in preventing spoilage if
the bales are stored for later delivery, as square bales
are packed more tightly, allowing less air passage than
round bales. Note: Sisal or Hemp twine must be used to
tie bales because polyester and plastic twines become
contaminants in the processing of hemp fibres.
Bales must be stored indoors under dry conditions to
stop the retting process before the fibres become
rotted. Stalk moisture should be less than 15% at time
of baling and should continue to dry to about 10%.
Hemp straw also absorbs air moisture quite readily.
21. CHARACTERISTICS OF HEMP FIBER
1. Three times stronger than cotton
2. Good abrasion resistance/very durable
3.Anti-microbial and UV resistance
4. Naturally resistant to mold, mildew, rot
5. Readily takes dyes
6. Softens with each washing, without fiber degradation
7.Breathable
8. Washable or dry cleanable
9. Wrinkles easily/poor resiliency
10. Poor drapeability
11. Not as soft as other fibers
22. KEY PROPERTIES OF HEMP
• Thermal Mass Insulation
• Negative Carbon
• Low Density
• Clean Air
• High Thermal Resistance
• High Thermal Inertia
• Vapor Permeable (breathable)
• Design Flexibility (adjustable thickness)
• Fire and Pest Resistant (NO Termites)
• Significantly Reduce Co2 Emissions
• Inherently Air tight
• No Waste
• No Mould
• No Termites
• No Dry Rot
• Natural Substrates for Plasters and
Renders
• Low Air Infiltration
• ZERO LAND FILL
24. FUTUREOVERVIEW
• Latest car made by hemp fiber is
introduced in market by BMW.
• German car companies including
Mercedes (Daimler/Chrysler), BMW, and
Audi Volkswagen have been leading the
way in incorporating plant fibers in their
models.
• Since the introduction of jute-based door
panels in the Mercedes E class five
years ago.
• German car companies have multiplied
their use of natural fibers till to-date.
25. • One highly important use of hemp has been
in detoxifying nuclear waste, as demonstrated
by experiments in the Ukraine, for example,
on the site of the Chernobyl nuclear disaster.
• Moreover, hemp fuel could actually replace
the dangerous and costly nuclear power
industry.
• We can use compression molding, injections
molding, simple hand lay-ups or hybrid
technologies to produce consumer goods.
•Such products include furniture (chair backs
or seats) sporting goods and recreational
products , luggage, musical instruments and
sound reinforcement gear..
