Search

Background: The lint percentage of seed cotton is one of the most important parameters for evaluating seed cotton quality and affects its price. The traditional measuring method of lint percentage is labor-intensive and time-consuming; thus, an efficient and accurate measurement method is needed. In recent years, classification-based deep learning and computer vision have shown promise in solving various classification tasks. Results: In this study, we propose a new approach for detecting the lint percentage using MobileNetV2 and transfer learning. The model is deployed on a lint percentage detection instrument, which can rapidly and accurately determine the lint percentage of seed cotton. We evaluated the performance of the proposed approach using a dataset comprising 66 924 seed cotton images from different regions of China. The results of the experiments showed that the model with transfer learning achieved an average classification accuracy of 98.43%, with an average precision of 94.97%, an average recall of 95.26%, and an average F1-score of 95.20%. Furthermore, the proposed classification model achieved an average accuracy of 97.22% in calculating the lint percentage, showing no significant difference from the performance of experts (independent-sample t-test, t = 0.019, P = 0.860). Conclusion: This study demonstrated the effectiveness of the MobileNetV2 model and transfer learning in calculating the lint percentage of seed cotton. The proposed approach is a promising alternative to traditional methods, providing a rapid and accurate solution for the industry. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Two field experiments were conducted at Sakha Research Station, Cotton Research Institute, Agricultural Research Center at Giza, Egypt during the two summer growing seasons ,2014 and 2015 The aim of the work was to study the effect of the combination among nano-fertilization ,mineral fertilization and organic fertilization on growth, yield and fiber technological properties of Egyptian cotton Giza 94 cultivar. The most important results can be summarized as follows: Response of cotton yield and lint properties to mineral N.P.K nano-fertilization the complex treatment contains half dose of both the nanofertilizer and the bio-organic fertilizer gave the highest reading for plant height (cm), number of fruiting branches per plant, number of open bolls per plant, boll weight (gram), lint percentage, Seed index, Seed cotton yield (Kentar/fed.) , Lint cotton yield (Kentar/fed.), fiber maturity ratio (MR), upper half mean (UHM)mm, fiber uniformity index (UI), fiber strength (g/tex), and micronaire value flowed by the treatment 100% nano then the recommended dose of mineral fertilizer NPK. On the other hand, the lowest values for all the above traits, were recorded from the half does of NPK mineral fertilizer in 2014 and 2015 seasons, .While, There were no significant differences between the means of the fiber elongation % due to the treatments applied during the study in 2014 season .It's worthy to mention that, the percentage of fiber elongation had no constant trend due to fertilizer transactions applied on the adopted genotype during` 2015 season, meaning that nano-fertilizer is boosting the fiber elongation percent. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

With the increasing acceptance of high volume instrument (HVITM) instrumental leaf grade index in both domestic and international trading, there is a continued interest in the relationship between instrumental leaf grade and equivalent trash gravimetric content (% percent by mass) from cotton customers and regulators. Due to the complexity of not only trash type, size, and its weight distribution but also the nature of HVI and gravimetric methods, it is an on-going challenge to examine such a relationship. In this study, the Shirley Analyzer (SA) was used to determine the gravimetric cotton trash in percent by mass (%). This system is the traditional cotton trash reference method that is still utilized as a routine tool in the cotton industry, despite being a destructive process that is both labor-intensive and time-consuming. This study first investigated the correlations between three SA trash readings (SAvisible, SAinvisible, and SAtotal) and respective leaf grade categories, and it revealed a general trend of increasing SAvisible and SAtotal trash content with elevating leaf grade. Then, comparison of SAvisible trash content in the current study to that in separate studies indicated a good agreement for low leaf grade cottons (<4). Next, the principal component analysis of near infrared spectra from SAvisible trash portions revealed a different pattern in PC1 score between low leaf grade (1-4) and high leaf grade (5 and 6) SA visible trash remains, implying a general change of more leaf-related trash in low leaf grade cottons to more non-leafrelated trash in high leaf grade cottons. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Summary: Cotton fibre is an important natural fibre for the textile industry. The number of fibre initials determines the lint percentage, which is an important factor for cotton fibre yield. Although fibre development has been described by transcriptomic analysis, the mechanism by which the long noncoding RNA manipulates the initiation of lint and fuzz fibres remains unknown. In this study, three lines with different lint percentages were developed by crossing Xu142 with its fibreless mutant Xu142 fl. We collected the epidermal cells from the ovules with attached fibres at 0 and 5 days post anthesis (DPA) from Xu142, the fibreless mutant Xu142 fl and the three lint percent diversified lines for deep transcriptome sequencing. A total of 2641 novel genes, 35 802 long noncoding RNAs (lncRNAs) and 2262 circular RNAs (circRNAs) were identified, of which 645 lncRNAs were preferentially expressed in the fibreless mutant Xu142 fl and 651 lncRNAs were preferentially expressed in the fibre‐attached lines. We demonstrated the functional roles of the three lncRNAs in fibre development via a virus‐induced gene silencing (VIGS) system. Our results showed that silencing XLOC_545639 and XLOC_039050 in Xu142 fl increased the number of fibre initials on the ovules, but silencing XLOC_079089 in Xu142 resulted in a short fibre phenotype. This study established the transcriptomic repertoires in cotton fibre initiation and provided evidence for the potential functions of lncRNAs in fibre development. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The present work assessed the usefulness of a set of spectral indices obtained from an unmanned aerial system (UAS) for tracking spatial and temporal variability of nitrogen (N) status as well as for predicting lint yield in a commercial cotton (Gossypium hirsutum L.) farm. Organic, inorganic and a combination of both types of fertilizers were used to provide a range of eight N rates from 0 to 340 kg N ha-1. Multi-spectral images (reflectance in the blue, green, red, red edge and near infrared bands) were acquired on seven days throughout the season, from 62 to 169 days after sowing (DAS), and data were used to compute structure- and chlorophyll-sensitive vegetation indices (VIs). Above-ground plant biomass was sampled at first flower, first cracked boll and maturity and total plant N concentration (N%) and N uptake determined. Lint yield was determined at harvest and the relationships with the VIs explored. Results showed that differences in plant N% and N uptake between treatments increased as the season progressed. Early in the season, when fertilizer applications can still have an effect on lint yield, the simplified canopy chlorophyll content index (SCCCI) was the index that best explained the variation in N uptake and plant N% between treatments. Around first cracked boll and maturity, the linear regression obtained for the relationships between the VIs and both plant N% and N uptake was statistically significant, with the highest r2 values obtained at maturity. The normalized difference red edge (NDRE) index, and SCCCI were generally the indices that best distinguished the treatments according to the N uptake and total plant N%. Treatments with the highest N rates (from 307 to 340 kg N ha-1) had lower normalized difference vegetation index (NDVI) than treatments with 0 and 130 kg N ha-1 at the first measurement day (62 DAS), suggesting that factors other than fertilization N rate affected plant growth at this early stage of the crop. This fact affected the earliest date at which the structure-sensitive indices NDVI and the visible atmospherically resistant index (VARI) enabled yield prediction (97 DAS). A statistically significant linear regression was obtained for the relationships between SCCCI and NDRE with lint yield at 83 DAS. Overall, this study shows the practicality of using an UAS to monitor the spatial and temporal variability of cotton N status in commercial farms. It also illustrates the challenges of using multi-spectral information for fertilization recommendation in cotton at early stages of the crop. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Studies on the effect of nitrogen (N) application rates on lint yield and fiber quality in irrigated and rainfed cotton were conducted for two years. In 2013, cotton was planted in 48 plots. Twenty-four plots were irrigated and the other 24 pots were rainfed. Six N application rates (0, 39, 67, 101, 135, and 168 kg/ha) with four replicates were randomly assigned to the irrigated and rainfed plots. In 2014, five N treatments (0, 56, 112, 168, and 224 kg/ha) with four replicates were assigned to 20 irrigated plots. Effect of N application rates on cotton lint yield was significant in 2014 (p = 0.0196), but not in 2013. Yield showed a quadratic relationship with leaf N content in irrigated cotton in both 2013 (p = 0.0268) and 2014 (p = 0.0099). Correlation between leaf N and yield of rainfed cotton was not significant in 2013. Leaf N of irrigated cotton in 2014 had significant correlation with fiber length (p = 0.0037), UQL (p = 0.0001), and UHML (p < 0.0001). Yellowness was linearly related with leaf N content. Fiber strength showed a linear relationship with leaf N in 2013 rainfed cotton (p = 0.0495), a quadratic relationship with irrigated cotton in 2013 (p = 0.0231) and 2014 (p = 0.0365). Overuse of nitrogen fertilizer in cotton could result in loss of yield and fiber quality. When the fiber quality from irrigated cotton was compared with rainfed cotton, irrigation increased lint yield by 26% and fiber length by 2%. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Household dust and laundry dryer lint are important indoor environmental matrices that may have notable health effects on humans due to chronic exposure. However, due to the sample complexity the studies conducted on these sample matrices until now were almost exclusively on the basis of target analysis. In this study, comprehensive two-dimensional liquid chromatography coupled with time-of-flight mass spectrometry (LC × LC-ToF MS) was applied, to enable non-target analysis of household dust as well as laundry dryer lint for the first time. The higher peak capacity and good orthogonality of LC × LC, together with reduced ion suppression in the MS enabled rapid identification of environmental contaminants in these complex sample matrices. A number of environmental contaminants were tentatively identified based on their accurate masses and isotopic patterns, including plasticizers, flame retardants, pesticides, drug metabolites, etc. The identity of seven compounds: tris(2-butoxyethyl) phosphate, tris(2-chloropropyl) phosphate, n-benzyl butyl phthalate, dibutyl phthalate, tributyl phosphate, triethyl phosphate and N , N -diethyl-meta-toluamide was confirmed using two-dimensional retention alignment and their concentrations in the samples were semi-quantitatively determined. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Foliar sprays of (PGR's) Cycocel and Alar were applied at concentrations of 250, 500, and 750 ppm after 105 days after plantation (square and boll setting stage) to Egyptian cotton cultivar planted at three plant densities (166.000, 222.000, and 333.000 plant ha-1). Number of opened bolls plant-1, seed-cotton yield plant-1, and earliness increased as plant density decreased in both years, as did seed-cotton and lint yield ha-1 in the second season. In the first year, the intermediate plant density gave highest yields. Plant density had no significant effect on lint percentage or fiber properties. Both Cycocel and Alar increased the number of opened bolls plant-1, boll weight, seed and lint indices, seed-cotton yield plant-1 and both seed-cotton and lint yield ha-1, but effects were not always significant and response varied for different traits. Neither Cycocel nor Alar affected lint percentage, yield earliness or fiber properties at any plant density. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The presence of foreign matter in ginned cotton lowers the quality and ultimately the monetary value of cotton. Previous studies have shown benefits of using ultraviolet excited fluorescence to detect certain cotton contamination that is difficult to detect using other methods. The overall goal of this study was to explore the feasibility of using hyperspectral fluorescence imaging as a complementary tool for foreign matter differentiation. The mean spectra of lint and seven types of foreign matter were extracted from the hyperspectral fluorescence images using a region-of-interest-based approach. The principal component analysis was applied to select the optimal features from a total of 113 wavelengths covering the spectral range of 425–700 nm. The linear discriminant analysis with the selected wavelengths achieved an average classification rate of 90% for all samples. Therefore, this imaging method could be used as a complementary sensing modality to current instruments that are employed for cotton quality assessment in the textile industry. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Fibers of cultivated cotton are classified into two types, lint and fuzz. Fuzzless seeds are cotton seeds lacking fuzz on almost the whole surface of the seed except for small amounts of fuzz at the micropylar or chalazal regions. Fuzzless seeds provide a number of advantages such as avoiding delintation processes and increasing the quality of feed rations. Therefore, it is important to develop varieties having seeds without fuzz but with high fiber ratios. This study, in which three different F2 populations have been developed by using three distinct genotypes as parents, was conducted to investigate the quantitative inheritance of fuzz and fiber formation and to generate a genetic mapping population. F2 populations showed 3:1 segregation for fuzz initiation and 15:1 for fiber initiation, meaning that fuzz initiation was controlled by one dominant gene while fiber initiation was controlled by two dominant genes. The ranges were between 2% and 40% for gin turnout, between 0 and 0.04 g for lint index, and between 5.5 and 15.9 g for seed index in the Stoneville 453 PI 528429 population, while the same characters ranged from 2% to 36%, from 0 to 0.046 g, and from 9.45 to 15.42 g, respectively, for the PI 528429 Stoneville 453 population. The last F2 population (Fiberless Stoneville 453) showed segregation values that varied between 0% and 42% for gin turnout, between 0 and 0.045 g for lint index, and between 5.56 and 12.98 g for seed index. Additionally, there was a significant (P < 0.01) and positive correlation between gin turn out and lint index, between seed index and lint index, and between fuzz and gin turn out and lint index. These populations will provide a valuable genetic resource for fiber and fuzz initiation as well as quantitative trait locus mapping experiments. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Evaluation of genetic effects in cotton (Gossypium hirsutum L.) high fibre strength lines is necessary for the genetic improvement of fibre properties. Six breeding lines with high fibre strength and five transgenic Bt cultivars were diallely crossed. Fibre properties and agronomic traits of 11 parents and resultant 30 F1 hybrids were analyzed by an additive-dominant model with genotype by environment interaction effects. Lint percentage, seed index, fibre length, strength and micronaire were primarily controlled by additive effects. Lint yield was mainly governed by dominance effects. Boll size was equally influenced by additive and dominance effects. A9-1 was a desirable general combiner for lint percentage, micronaire and fibre length. Yumian1 and Jinxing2 were good general combiners for fibre strength. Gk22 was a desirable general combiner for lint yield and boll size but poor for fibre length and strength. Some F1 hybrids were identified with favourable heterozygous dominant effects for lint yield and various fibre properties. This study revealed that current transgenic Bt cotton cultivars can be improved in fibre quality and lint yield by using some of the lines with high fibre strength in crosses with them. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Detection of pseudo-foreign fibers based on Automatic Vision Inspection system is crucial to improve the classification accuracy of foreign fibers in cotton, and justify the quality and grade of lint. Pseudo-foreign fibers are dried cotton leaves, seed-coats, barks, grass and dust which mixed into cotton during production, they usually have relative small sizes and large quantities compared to the foreign fibers, so it is hard to detect and segment them from images. In this paper a novel algorithm is proposed to solve the problem. 110 images with pseudo-foreign fibers are tested, and the result showed that both spots and slender shaped pseudo-foreign fibers can be segmented clearly with average speed of 0.67 s, which can meet the requirement of online cotton trash detection. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Cotton exhibits moderately high vegetative tolerance to water-deficit stress but lint production is restricted by the available rainfed and irrigation capacity. We have described the impact of water-deficit stress on the genetic and metabolic control of fiber quality and production. Here we examine the association of tentative consensus sequences (TCs) derived from various cotton tissues under irrigated and water-limited conditions with stress-responsive QTLs. Three thousand sixteen mapped sequence-tagged-sites were used as anchored targets to examine sequence homology with 15,784 TCs to test the hypothesis that putative stress-responsive genes will map within QTLs associated with stress-related phenotypic variation more frequently than with other genomic regions not associated with these QTLs. Approximately 1,906 of 15,784 TCs were mapped to the consensus map. About 35% of the annotated TCs that mapped within QTL regions were genes involved in an abiotic stress response. By comparison, only 14.5% of the annotated TCs mapped outside these QTLs were classified as abiotic stress genes. A simple binomial probability calculation of this degree of bias being observed if QTL and non-QTL regions are equally likely to contain stress genes was P(x ≥ 85)=7.99  × 10−15. These results suggest that the QTL regions have a higher propensity to contain stress genes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A pneumatic fractionator was assessed as a lint cleaning device for ginned lint. Results from a test that used two line pressures and three fractionation times showed that higher line pressure and longer fractionation time produced fiber that was shorter in staple length, contained more neps, and had less dust, trash, and visible foreign matter (including leaf). Short fiber content was not different among fractionator treatments, and all treatments had varying degrees of classer prep calls. The fractionator was effective in removing foreign matter. Overall, the least aggressive treatment had the best fiber properties, and the most aggressive fractionator treatment did the most cleaning. Results from a lint cleaning test that compared the least and most aggressive fractionator treatments with a conventional saw-type lint cleaner showed that the fractionator did not preserve fiber length any better than conventional lint cleaning. The most aggressive fractionator treatment was more effective in removing foreign matter, but had considerably more neps than conventional lint cleaning. The fractionator treatments received prep calls and the conventional lint cleaner treatments did not. The most aggressive fractionator treatment was more harmful to fiber than conventional lint cleaning, and the least aggressive treatment had fiber properties similar to one saw-type lint cleaner. The most aggressive fractionator treatment had the highest cleaning efficiency, largest amount of lint cleaner waste, and lowest bale value. The highest bale value was achieved with either no lint cleaning or with the least aggressive fractionator treatment. Further work is needed to determine the interactions of the fractionator with different cultivars and cottons of varying foreign matter content as well as determine any effects of the fractionator on spinning performance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Linting occurs when small particles are removed from the paper surface by the splitting of the tacky ink film. Excessive linting reduces printing quality and can affect the pressroom efficiency. An improved method, using video camera technology, has been utilized to measure the dynamics of linting during the printing process. This technology makes it feasible to estimate the removal of lint particles from the paper and from the blanket surfaces. This article presents the latest development of the lint camera system and its applications under different press conditions, including ink color. The lint measurements obtained by the camera system were compared with the established measurement methods (blanket tape pull and blanket wash). The main result from this study indicates some similarities in the lint area distribution measured by the camera system and the blanket tape pull. The differences in the lint area distribution from the filtered sample at small particle sizes is likely due to disaggregation of the agglomerated lint particles during the washing and filtering, and as a result, of more small particles being measured from the tape pulls. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This report is part of a project to characterize cotton gin emissions from the standpoint of stack sampling. The impetus behind this project was the urgent need to collect additional cotton gin emissions data to address current regulatory issues. A key component of this study was focused on Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) total particulate emission factors. EPA AP-42 emission factors are generally assigned a rating, from A (Excellent) to E (Poor), to assess the quality of the data being referenced. Current EPA total particulate emission factor ratings for cotton gins are extremely low. Cotton gin data received these low ratings because the data were collected almost exclusively from a single geographical region. The objective of this study was to collect additional total particulate emission factor data for mote trash systems from cotton gins located in regions across the cotton belt using EPA-approved stack sampling methodology. The project plan included sampling seven cotton gins. Key factors for selecting specific cotton gins included: 1) facility location, 2) production capacity, 3) processing systems and 4) abatement technologies. Two gins with mote trash system exhausts were sampled. The average production rate during testing for the two gins was 31.6 bales/h. The average mote trash system total particulate emission factor based on two tests (6 total test runs) was 0.018 kg/227-kg bale (0.039 lb/500-lb bale). This average total particulate emission factor was lower than that currently published in 1996 EPA AP-42, which was 0.035 kg/bale (0.077 lb/bale).The mote trash system emission rate test averages ranged from 0.47 to 0.60 kg/h (1.03-1.33 lb/h). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This report is part of a project to characterize cotton gin emissions from the standpoint of stack sampling. The impetus behind this project was the urgent need to collect additional cotton gin emissions data to address current regulatory issues. A key component of this study was focused on Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) total particulate emission factors. EPA AP-42 emission factors generally are assigned a rating, from A (excellent) to E (poor), to assess the quality of the data being referenced. Current EPA total particulate emission factor ratings for cotton gins are extremely low. Cotton gin data received these low ratings because the data were collected almost exclusively from a single geographical region. The objective of this study was to collect additional total particulate emission factor data for combined lint cleaning systems from cotton gins located in regions across the cotton belt using EPA-approved stack sampling methodology. The project plan included sampling seven cotton gins. Key factors for selecting specific cotton gins included: 1) facility location, 2) production capacity, 3) processing systems, and 4) abatement technologies. Three gins with combined 1st and 2nd stage lint cleaning system exhausts were sampled. The average production rate during testing for the seven gins was 32.6 bales/h. The average combined lint cleaning system total particulate emission factor based on three tests (nine total test runs) was 0.211 kg/227-kg bale (0.466 lb/500-lb bale). This average total particulate emission factor was less than that currently published in 1996 EPA AP-42, which was 0.26 kg/ bale (0.58 lb/bale). The test average emission rates ranged from 2.04 to 12.39 kg/h (4.49-27.30 lb/h). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This report is part of a project to characterize cotton gin emissions from the standpoint of stack sampling. The impetus behind this project was the urgent need to collect additional cotton gin emissions data to address current regulatory issues. A key component of this study was focused on Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) total particulate emission factors. There is no total particulate emission factor published for 2nd stage lint cleaning systems in the 1996 EPA AP-42. The current AP-42 factor represents 1st and 2nd stage lint cleaning systems combined. The objective of this study was to collect total particulate emission factor data for 2nd stage lint cleaning systems from cotton gins located in regions across the cotton belt using EPA-approved stack sampling methodology. The project plan included sampling seven cotton gins. Key factors for selecting specific cotton gins included: 1) facility location, 2) production capacity, 3) processing systems, and 4) abatement technologies. Four gins with 2nd stage lint cleaning system exhausts that were not combined with 1st stage lint cleaning system exhausts were sampled. The average production rate during testing for the four gins was 29.0 bales/h. The average 2nd stage lint cleaning system total particulate emission factor based on four tests (11 total test runs) was 0.023 kg/227-kg bale (0.050 lb/500-lb bale). The 2nd stage lint cleaning system test average emission rates ranged from 0.22 to 1.50 kg/h (0.49-3.31 lb/h). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This report is part of a project to characterize cotton gin emissions from the standpoint of stack sampling. The impetus behind this project was the urgent need to collect additional cotton gin emissions data to address current regulatory issues. A key component of this study was focused on Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) total particulate emission factors. There is no total particulate emission factor published for 1st stage lint cleaning systems in the 1996 EPA AP-42. The current AP-42 factor represents 1st and 2nd stage lint cleaning systems combined. The objective of this study was to collect total particulate emission factor data for 1st stage lint cleaning systems from cotton gins located in regions across the cotton belt using EPA-approved stack sampling methodology. The project plan included sampling seven cotton gins. Key factors for selecting specific cotton gins included: 1) facility location, 2) production capacity, 3) processing systems, and 4) abatement technologies. Four gins with 1st stage lint cleaning system exhausts that were not combined with 2nd stage lint cleaning system exhausts were sampled. The average production rate during testing for the four gins was 25.7 bales/h. The average 1st stage lint cleaning system total particulate emission factor based on four tests (12 total test runs) was 0.070 kg/227-kg bale (0.155 lb/500-lb bale). The 1st stage lint cleaning system emission rate test averages ranged from 0.67 to 3.56 kg/h (1.49-7.84 lb/h). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Industria Textila is the property of Institutul National de Cercetare-Dezvoltare pentru Textile si Pielarie and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Lint percentage is an important character of cotton yield components and it is also correlated with cotton fibre development. In this study, we used a high lint percentage variety, Baimian1, and a low lint percentage, TM-1 genetic standard for Gossypium hirsutum, as parents to construct a mapping populations in upland cotton ( G. hirsutum). A quantitative trait locus/loci (QTL) analysis of lint percentage was performed by using two mapping procedures; composite interval mapping (CIM), inclusive composite interval mapping (ICIM) and the F populations in 2 years. Six main-effect QTL (M-QTL) for lint percentage (four significant and two suggestive) were detected in both years by CIM, and were located on chr. 3, chr. 19, chr. 26 and chr. 5/chr. 19. Of the six QTL, marker intervals and favourable gene sources of the significant M-QTL, qLP-3(2010) and qLP-3(2011) were consistent. These QTL were also detected by ICIM, and therefore, should preferentially be used for marker-assisted selection (MAS) of lint percentage. Another M-QTL, qLP-19(2010), was detected by two mapping procedures, and it could also be a candidate for MAS. We detected the interaction between two M-QTL and environment, and 11 epistatic QTL (E-QTL) and their interaction with environment by using ICIM. The study also found two EST-SSRs, NAU1187 and NAU1255, linked to M-QTL for lint percentage that could be candidate markers affecting cotton fibre development. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This report is part of a project to characterize cotton gin emissions from the standpoint of stack sampling. The impetus behind this project was the urgent need to collect cotton gin emissions data to address current regulatory issues. A key component of this study was focused on EPA emission factors for particulate matter with a particle diameter nominally less than or equal to 10 μm (PM10). The 1996 EPA AP-42 emission factors were assigned quality ratings, from A (Excellent) to E (Poor), to assess the quality of the data being referenced. Emission factor quality ratings for cotton gins were extremely low. Also, some commonly used cotton gin systems were not represented or were combined with another system under a single emission factor in AP-42. No EPA AP-42 emission factors were published for 1st stage lint cleaning systems. The objective of this study was to collect PM10 emission factor data for 1st stage lint cleaning systems at cotton gins located in regions across the cotton belt based on EPA-approved stack sampling methodology, Method 201A. The project plan included sampling seven cotton gins across the cotton belt. Key factors for selecting specific cotton gins included: 1) facility location, 2) production capacity, 3) processing systems and 4) abatement technologies. Four of the seven gins were equipped with 1st stage lint cleaning systems where the exhaust airstreams were not combined with 2nd stage lint cleaning systems. In terms of capacity, the four gins were typical of the industry, averaging 28.1 bales/h during testing. Some test runs, included in the analyses, had cotton lint fibers that collected in the ⩽ 10 μm samples. This larger lint material can affect the reported emissions data, but EPA Method 201A does not suggest methods to account for these anomalies. The 1st stage lint cleaning system average emission factors for PM10 and total particulate were 0.041 kg/227-kg bale (0.091 lb/500-lb bale) and 0.066 kg/bale (0.146 lb/bale), respectively. System average PM10 and total particulate emission factors were lower than those currently published in EPA AP-42 for 1st and 2nd stage lint cleaning systems combined. The 1st stage lint cleaning system PM10 emission rate test averages ranged from 0.26 to 2.92 kg/h (0.58-6.44 lb/h). The ratio of 1st stage lint cleaning system PM10 to total particulate was 62.3%. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This report is part of a project to characterize cotton gin emissions from the standpoint of stack sampling. The impetus behind this project was the urgent need to collect cotton gin emissions data to address current regulatory issues. A key component of this study was focused on Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) emission factors for particulate matter with a particle diameter nominally less than or equal to 10 μm (PM10). The 1996 EPA AP-42 emission factors were assigned quality ratings, from A (Excellent) to E (Poor), to assess the quality of the data being referenced. Emission factor quality ratings for cotton gins were extremely low. Also, some commonly used cotton gin systems were not represented or were combined with another system under a single emission factor in AP-42. There were no 1996 EPA AP-42 emission factors published for 2nd stage lint cleaning systems. The objective of this study was to collect PM10 emission factor data for 2nd stage lint cleaning systems at cotton gins located in regions across the cotton belt based on EPA-approved stack sampling methodology, Method 201A. The project plan included sampling seven cotton gins across the cotton belt. Key factors for selecting specific cotton gins included: 1) facility location, 2) production capacity, 3) processing systems and 4) abatement technologies. Four of the seven gins were equipped with 2nd stage lint cleaning systems where the exhaust airstreams were not combined with the 1st stage lint cleaning systems. In terms of capacity, the four gins were typical of the industry, averaging 29.4 bales/h during testing. Some test runs were excluded from the test averages because they failed to meet EPA Method 201A test criteria. Also, other test runs, included in the analyses, had cotton lint fibers that collected in the ⩽ 10 μm samples. This larger lint material can affect the reported emissions data, but EPA Method 201A does not suggest methods to account for these anomalies. The 2nd stage lint cleaning system average emission factors for PM10 and total particulate were 0.018 kg/227-kg bale (0.039 lb/500-lb bale) and 0.035 kg/bale (0.078 lb/ bale), respectively. System average PM10 and total particulate emission factors were lower than those currently published in EPA AP-42 for 1st and 2nd stage lint cleaning systems combined. The 2nd stage lint cleaning system PM10 emission rate test averages ranged from 0.15 to 0.98 kg/h (0.33-2.17 lb/h). The ratio of 2nd stage lint cleaning system PM10 to total particulate was 50.5%. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This report is part of a project to characterize cotton gin emissions from the standpoint of stack sampling. The impetus behind this project was the urgent need to collect additional cotton gin emissions data to address current regulatory issues. A key component of this study was focused on EPA emission factors for particulate matter with a particle diameter nominally less than or equal to 10 μm (PM10). The 1996 EPA AP-42 emission factors were assigned quality ratings, from A (Excellent) to E (Poor), to assess the quality of the data being referenced. Emission factor quality ratings for cotton gins were extremely low. Cotton gin data received these low ratings because they were collected almost exclusively from a single geographical region. The objective of this study was to collect additional PM10 emission factor data for overflow systems at cotton gins located in regions across the cotton belt based on EPAapproved stack sampling methodology, Method 201A. The project plan included sampling seven cotton gins across the cotton belt. Key factors for selecting specific cotton gins included: 1) facility location, 2) production capacity, 3) processing systems, and 4) abatement technologies. Three of the seven gins had overflow systems where the exhaust airstreams were not combined with other major systems. Another sampled gin had an overflow system where the exhaust was combined with a trash handling system prior to the cyclone. In terms of capacity, the three gins were typical of the industry, averaging 24.8 bales/h during testing. Some test runs, included in the analyses, had cotton lint fibers that collected in the ⩽ 10 μm samples. This larger lint material can affect the reported emissions data, but EPA Method 201A does not suggest methods to account for these anomalies. The overflow system average emission factors for PM10 and total particulate were 0.013 kg/227-kg bale (0.029 lb/500-lb bale) and 0.033 kg/bale (0.072 lb/bale), respectively. The system average PM10 emission factor was higher than the emission factor currently published in EPA AP-42, whereas the system average total particulate emission factor was about equal to the AP-42 factor. Overflow system PM10 emission rate test averages ranged from 0.12 to 0.42 kg/h (0.26-0.93 lb/h). The ratio of overflow system PM10 to total particulate was 40.3%. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In cotton production, delaying defoliation exposes open bolls to rainfall, reducing lint yield and fiber quality. However, premature defoliation has detrimental effects on both yield and quality. Currently, one management strategy for defoliation is based on heat-unit (HU) accumulation after physiological cutout or five nodes above white flower (NAWF = 5). Results have been inconsistent across environments when utilizing HU accumulation; therefore, adoption of this method has been limited. Studies were conducted in the Brazos River bottom and upper Texas Gulf Coast to identify an upper temperature threshold (UTT) for calculating degree days for defoliation timing. Experimental design was a split-plot with main plots of temperature thresholds (32°C, 35°C, and no upper limit) and subplots of HU timings (361, 417, 472, 528, and 583) accumulated from cutout. Utilizing an UTT to calculate daily HU failed to explain differences in the optimum time to defoliate based on accumulated HU; however, accumulated HU had an impact on defoliation timing. Comparison of locations showed that maximum lint yield was obtained at 472 HU and 52% open boll in Wharton County versus a maximum of 528 HU and 62% open boll for Burleson County. Employing the NACB = 4 method to time defoliation at both locations would have resulted in premature application of harvest aids and reduced lint yields. There were no differences in adjusted gross income values at Wharton County among the 417, 472, 528, and 583 HU treatments. For Burleson County, adjusted gross income peaked in value at 528 HU. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The analysis of genetic correlations between fiber length (Len), strength (Str), micronaire, and 12 other traits was conducted using the additive (A)-dominance (D) genetic model, which considers genotype × environment interaction effects, in intraspecific upland cotton ( Gossypium hirsutum L.) hybrids to effectively improve the quality of cotton cultivars in high planting density cases. Decision-making coefficients were computed based on the genetic correlation and path analysis of three fiber quality traits. The decision-making coefficient analysis of three fiber traits in cross breeding was beneficial for the improvement of Len by increasing the additive effects of Str and length of boll (LB) and decreasing lint percentage (LP), boll number of the top three fruit-bearing branches. The analysis was also beneficial for the improvement of Str and fiber fineness by increasing or decreasing the additive effects of other traits. Utilizing heterosis in hybrids was beneficial to the heterosis of Len by selecting the high dominance effects of number of nodes of the 1st fruit-bearing branch and LB and decreasing the dominance effects of diameter of boll (DB) and LP and for improving Str by increasing the dominance effects of DB and decreasing the dominance effects of number of fruit-bearing branches and number of nodes of the main stem (NNMS). Utilizing heterosis was also beneficial for improving fineness by increasing the dominance effects of LB, Str, and lint yield and decreasing the dominance effects of NNMS and Len. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A study to determine the effect of supplemental foliar-applied potassium on cotton (Gossypium hirsutum L.) yield and lint quality under drought stress was conducted using six cotton varieties, three drought tolerant (CIM-496, CIM-473 and FH-1200) and three drought sensitive (CIM-534, CIM-554 and FH-945) and two levels of supplemental foliar- applied potassium (0 and 1 %). The experiment was conducted in lysimeter for consecutive two years with four water levels i.e. well watered (100% FC), medium watered (80% FC), low watered (60% FC) and soil stored moisture (40% FC). Results indicated that tolerant cotton variety maintained higher yield and lint quality at all drought stress levels. Supplemental foliar application (1%) of potassium significantly improved the drought tolerance potential and yield in all cotton varieties. However, cotton variety CIM-473 ranked first in fiber strength and fiber length whereas fiber micronaire was higher in cotton variety CIM-496. The variety FH-1200 with the foliar application (1%) of potassium produced the highest cotton yield. Foliar application of 1% potassium as supplementary source under drought stress conditions was found helpful in improving yield and quality of cotton. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A study was done to determine 1) how the length distribution of a medium staple upland cultivar was affected by the possible range of ginning and lint cleaning treatments, 2) the length distribution of the fiber lost during increasing levels of lint cleaning changed, and 3) how these changes affected textile processing. An upland cultivar that was midrange for length and strength was used for the study. In comparing roller ginning with saw ginning there was a significant shift towards shorter fibers in the length distribution with the saw-ginned fiber as would be expected. What was unexpected was the percentage of fibers in the 2.21 to 2.54-cm (0.87 to 1.00 in) length range stayed relatively constant whereas the percentage above this range decreased as the percentage below increased with increased mechanical processing. Some long fiber was lost to lint cleaning at all stages but most of that fiber was not of significant textile value and more than 33% of the fiber lost at any stage was equal to or less than 1.27 cm (0.50 in) in length. Subsequent textile processing showed that the carding operation removed approximately the same amount of total waste from cleanly harvested spindle-picked upland cotton regardless of the amount of machining the fiber received during ginning and subsequent lint cleaning. While the level of waste in the raw fiber was not a significant factor the differing levels of fiber distribution did significantly affect yarn quality. But the change in fiber distribution did not affect dying properties as indicated by white specks in dyed cloth. Future research should concentrate on reducing fiber breakage during lint cleaning. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Nitrogen (N) is important for cotton production but if poorly managed it can lead to reduced lint yield and low N use efficiency. This study was conducted to evaluate cotton's ability to recover from early season N deficiency and determine if a sensor-based N rate calculator (SBNRC) can be used to make mid-season N recommendations in cotton. The effect of sidedress N fertilizer (0, 33, 67, 101, and 134 kg N ha-1) applied at early pinhead square (EPHS), first white flower (FWF), 30 d after first white flower (30 DAFWF), and four levels of preplant N (0, 33, 67, and 101 kg ha-1), on cotton lint yield was investigated at two locations in Oklahoma. The results indicated that at 0 and 33 kg ha-1 preplant N applications, cotton yield was significantly impacted by the timing of sidedress N. However, at Altus in 2009 and Lake Carl Blackwell (LCB) in 2010, cotton recovered from early season N deficiency and attained near maximum lint yield when sidedress N fertilizer was applied at EPHS or FWF. At Altus in 2010, cotton recovered when sidedress N was applied at EPHS and reduced when sidedress N was delayed until FWF. Yields were significantly (P < 0.05) reduced when application was delayed to 30 DAFWF at all sites. The results indicate normalized difference vegetative index (NDVI) could be used to make sidedress N recommendation for cotton at EPHS or FWF stage. This research validates the use of the SBNRC to improve inseason N recommendations in cotton production. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The urban water demand in Southwest Texas has grown rapidly in recent years due to steady increases in population. Improved irrigation schemes are needed to support new water-use plans as solutions to the conflict between municipal and agricultural water use. Deficit irrigation is one possible technique for conserving water while maintaining crop yield and/or economic returns. A field experiment was conducted at the Texas AgriLife Research and Extension Center at Uvalde, TX in the summers of 2008 and 2009 to examine the water saving potential of four traditional (T) and two regulated (R) deficit irrigation treatments against a full irrigation treatment. Two deficit irrigation treatments (80T and 70R) were found to be able to maintain lint yield similar to the full irrigation treatment for most cotton varieties tested. Although some differences were observed in lint quality parameters, these differences were not large enough to cause changes in the economic returns to the grower. In addition, a third treatment (50R) was able to maintain economic returns similar to the full irrigation treatment. These results indicate that the regulated deficit irrigation scheme could be further developed to achieve a possible increase in water conservation and economic sustainability for production in this region. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A new reference method for water content in lint cotton, based on Karl Fischer Titration, is highly selective for water and gives precise results. The aim of this study was to evaluate the influence of cultivar, defoliation time and gin-drying temperature on water content of lint cotton, raw and cleaned. Five cultivars were grown in the field in Mississippi in 2009 and subjected to two possible defoliation dates and gin-drying temperatures. The ginned lint underwent further processing including mechanical cleaning, and scouring and bleaching. Also, prediction models were developed to help understand how defoliation timing influences water content changes within cultivars. Overall, the mean water content across all samples analyzed was (%): raw, 7.83; cleaned, 7.69; and scoured and bleached, 8.10. Within cultivar range of the averaged water data from the various processing treatments was (%): raw, 0.19; mechanically cleaned, 0.13; and scoured and bleached, 0.08. The hypothesis that the different genetic backgrounds of the cultivars, defoliation dates and gin-drying temperatures would not affect water content of cleaned samples within cultivars was accepted as true, but only for the scoured and bleached samples. Model predictions of the change in water content with defoliation timing agreed well with experimental data. The data demonstrates that a change in water content in the botanical trash in ginned lint (raw cotton) may be confused with that due to a change in maturity. It is recommended that the correlations between water content and maturity be limited to cleaned cottons. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Presence of non-lint materials (trash) in commercial cotton bales at various amounts degrades market values and further influences end-use qualities. To ensure fair trading, the USDA Agricultural Marketing Service introduced the High Volume Instrument (HVI) measurement as a universal standard index. Trash contents from HVI module represent the trash portion only on a sample's surface. In additional to HVI's geometric method, gravimetric-based Shirley Analyzer (SA) and Advanced Fiber Information System (AFIS) also have been utilized to quantify the trash contents. With the increasing acceptance of HVI readings in the domestic and international trading, there is interest in the relationship between HVI and SA trash from cotton customers and regulators. Due to the complexity of not only trash type, size, and weight distribution but also the nature of HVI and SA tests, there have been few studies that compare the two types of trash readings. This study investigated the correlations between two HVI trash readings, and revealed a general conversion of HVIcount=104.5*HVIarea among low trash samples. Then, correlations between the HVI and SA trash and also against AFIS trash were examined, and a stronger relationship between HVI and SA trash than between HVI and AFIS trash was observed. Next, the samples were subgrouped subjectively according to the ratios of HVIarea/SAvisible (or HVIcount/ SAvisible), and from the plots with the lowest axis intercept values, it was proposed two general conversions of SAvisible = 6.82*HVIarea and SAvisible = 0.069*HVIcount. To verify the likely conversion, NIR spectra were correlated with HVIarea readings. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Whitefly honeydew contamination resulting in sticky cotton lint is a significant problem in the textile industry throughout the world. We conducted studies in 1995 and 1996 to determine the effects of cotton cultivars, cotton plant densities, and insecticides on Bemisia argentifolii Bellows & Perring populations and the subsequent effects on honeydew cotton lint contamination. In 1995, cotton plant densities of25 or 100,000 plants per hectare had no effect on numbers of B. argentifolii, adults, eggs, or nymphs based on adult leaf turns and immatures counted on leaf disks. There also was no effect on extracted honeydew sugars from lint samples or thermodetector sticky cotton counts (the international standard for measuring cotton lint stickiness). Higher numbers of whiteflies occurred in early-season in ‘Pima S-7’ cotton than in ‘Deltapine (DPL) 50’ in 1995 and 1996 or ‘DPL 5415’ cotton in 1995. In 1995, amounts of trehalulose and melezitose (insect honeydew sugars) extracted from cotton lint and thermodetector counts of lint samples were higher for DPL 50 compared with Pima S-7 but not DPL 5415. Insecticide treatments, in both years, reduced thermodetector counts and honeydew sugars extracted from lint. Increases in thermodetector sticky cotton counts and trehalulose and melezitose were significantly correlated to increasing B. argentifolii nymphal and adult populations. Thermodetector sticky cotton counts did not reach levels of concern (≥5) until adult leaf-turn counts were 8.9 or when all life stage nymphs were 3.2 per square centimeter of leaf disk during the open mature cotton boll period. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Procedural recommendations have been developed for the application of customs chemical examination of cottonlint cellulose in international economic transactions. Standard documents for cotton cellulose are given. The main parameters of cotton cellulose have been studied by determining the commercial condition, chemical composition, and fibre length, and criteria have been determined for each grade and type of cotton lint. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]