POWERHOUSE COLLECTION

Notes

During their development in 1930s, 40s, and 50s, synthetic fibres offered a cost effective solution to using natural materials, which were becoming increasingly expensive. Wool became scarce during World War II, owing to the vast amounts that were required to make military uniforms. Manufacturers quickly discovered new cheap and easily obtainable raw materials to use in the creation of textiles. Raw materials, such as casein from skim milk or protein from peanuts, could be dispersed in a solution of caustic soda and then have carbon disulphide added. The solution was then aged, and forced through a sieve like apparatus called a 'spinneret'. The resulting filaments could then be spun on a spinning machine. The synthetic fibres were then mixed with wool, rayon, or cotton to produce textiles that were used in numerous applications. These textiles are made from synthetic fibres that can be mixed with wool. These particular samples are made from the fibres 'Lanital' and 'Aralac', which are different trade names for synthetic casein fibres. Lanital was trade marked in 1937 by Italian firm Snia Viscosa, who were one of the worlds largest producers of synthetic fibres in the 1930s. Aralac is its American equivalent, patented a few years later. Casein is the protein found in milk and can be treated with alkalis and chemicals to be made into a fibre that closely resembles wool in its chemical composition. This technology was first developed in Italy, and the resulting textiles were also known as 'Italian Wool'. In 1935, the first experimental Lanital fibres possessed only 10 percent the strength of natural wool. Eventually it was found that a mix of 50% Lanital and 50% wool produced a much more desirable textile. The plastic properties of casein gave the textile a permanent creasing ability, and improved its fineness. One of the benefits of the casein fibre was that it could be easily mixed with other fibres. Arthur Penfold saw a great opportunity for the rabbit fur industry to utilise these new fibres, as the rabbit population was being dramatically decreased by the introduction of the myxomatosis virus at the time. He predicted correctly and the casein fibre became an important factor in the fur felt and wool fur hat industry, when rabbit fur became scarce in the late 1940s early 1950s. Real fur and wool was mixed with the casein fibre to produce a product almost equal in quality, and at a cheaper production cost. The manufacture of Lanital stopped after World War II but resumed again in 1952 under the name 'Merinova'. Similar fibres were in manufacture at the same time under names such as 'Fibrolane' and 'Casolana'. In 1945 the price for a pound of wool was approximately $1.50. Aralac could be produced for as little as 64 cents per pound. Arthur Penfold realised the benefits of using casein in synthetic fibres, stating that "there are great possibilities when you realise a cow, in the course of its productive life, could produce about forty suits." Reference: Penfold, A. R., 'Plastics and Synthetic Fibres', A.H. Pettifer, Government Printer, Sydney, 1956 Lanital, in Time Magazine, December, 1937.