A decorticator (from Latin: cortex, bark) is a machine for stripping the skin, bark, or rind off nuts, wood, plant stalks, grain, etc., in preparation for further processing.
History
editIn 1933, a farmer named Bernagozzi from Bologna manufactured a machine called a "scavezzatrice", a decorticator for hemp.[1] A working hemp decorticator from 1890, manufactured in Germany, is preserved in a museum in Bologna.[2]
In Italy, the"scavezzatrice" faded in the 1950s because of monopolisation from fossil fuel, paper interests, synthetic materials and from other less profitable crops.
Many types of decorticators have been developed since 1890.[citation needed]
In 1919, George Schlichten received a U.S. patent on his improvements of the decorticator for treating fiber bearing plants.[3] Schlichten failed to find investors for production of his decorticator and died in 1923, a broken man. His business was revived a decade after death in 1933.[4][5]
Newer, high-speed kinematic decorticators, use a different mechanism, enabling separation into three streams; bast fibre, hurd, and green microfiber.
Current usage
editIn some decorticators, the operation is "semi-automatic", featuring several stops during operation, while more modern systems, such as high-speed kinematic decorticators, are fully automatic.
There are companies who produce and sell decorticators for different crops.
References
edit- ^ Ranalli, Paolo; Venturi, Gianpietro (Jan 1, 2004). "Hemp as a raw material for industrial applications". Euphytica. 140 (1): 1–6. doi:10.1007/s10681-004-4749-8 – via Springer Link.
- ^ "1890 GERMAN DECORTICATOR".
- ^ "1919: SCHLICHTEN'S DECORTICATOR".
- ^ "Modern Times". userpages.bright.net.
- ^ US 2463278, V, Johansen John & C, Westergaard Carl, "Control mechanism for decorticating machines", published Mar 1, 1949
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