The Viscose Process

Viscose fibres are made from cellulose from wood pulp. The cellulose is ground up and reacted with caustic soda.
After an ageing waiting period, the ripening process during which depolymerisation occurs, carbon disulphide is added. This forms an orange crumb known as cellulose xanthate, which is easily dissolved in more caustic soda to give a viscous orange solution. This solution is pumped through a spinneret, which contains hundreds of holes, into a dilute sulphuric acid bath where the cellulose is regenerated as fine filaments as the xanthate decomposes.