The ash content of natural fibers corresponds with their mineral content. The ash is obtained after burning of a defined amount of fibers in platinum crucibles over open flames or better in a muffle furnace and weighing out the residues quantitatively. The amount of the obtained residues is the ash content. The ash can be further analyzed by metal analysis with regard to its composition.
The amount of ash and the composition of the ash can give information on the provenience of the fibers (as the mineral composition of the earth where the natural fibers were grown influences their ash composition) or treatments which the fibers were subjected to (e.g., mordanting, dyeing with metal containing dyes etc.).
Ash content is the residue or the leftover after burning a known quantity of the material in question in muffle furnace at about 725 - 750 degrees for an hour and is attributed to inorganic mineral content which is not worth burning called as ash. It may be due to presence of metal oxides like silica or magnesia etc.
Generally natural fibers (NF) are mainly composed of Cellulose, hemicellulose, lignin. Apart from these three components, natural fibers contain a small amount of pectin, nitrogenous compounds, and the ash (inorganic mineral content) . The ash present in the NF can be obtained experimentally by burning (@600 °C) the definite amount NF crucibles in very controlled way and leftover residue is ash. In order to find the % ash content you have to weigh the sample before and after burning NF.
The below mentioned researcher has many articles on ash and silica of several types of lignocellulosic biomass, specially the older articles. Happy new year.
https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Yehia_Fahmy
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