The same "fire-proof hood" in "Journey to the West", it turns out that everyone has seen it!

There is a story in Journey to the West, one of the four great classics of China, about a monk named Tang who was passing by Guanyin Temple and staying overnight. The monk's precious brocade cassock aroused the greed of the abbot of the temple. In order to get the treasure, he thought of letting the monks set fire to the monk and his disciples at night, so that he could take the cassock for himself. But how could this little trick be hidden from Wukong's fiery eyes? In order to punish them, Wukong went to find Guangmu Tianwang, one of the four heavenly kings, to borrow the treasure - the fireproof cover , so that the monk's life was saved in the fire, but Guanyin Temple was burned to ashes.

The fire shelter in Journey to the West

Source: TV series "Journey to the West"

The magical fireproof cover in the story fascinates readers, and they can't help but sigh that there is such a rare treasure in the world that can avoid the invasion of flames. However, this fireproof cover is not just a fairy treasure imagined by the ancients. Its prototype already existed in ancient my country, that is, the "fireproof clothing" made of fireproof cloth as raw material.

1

Does fire-resistant cloth really exist?

The "huo" in "huohuanbu" is used as a verb, meaning to burn, and the "huan" here means washing clothes. In other words, when this kind of cloth is stained with stains, it does not need to be washed with water, but it is burned with fire to remove the dirt. Therefore, early Chinese historical books often call it "huohuanbu".

It also appears in my country's mythological records. For example, the "Records of the Ten Continents in the Sea" in the "Classic of Mountains and Seas" records a creature called the fire-washing rat, whose hair is the fire-washing cloth.

As for the origin of fire-washed cloth in ancient times, "Liezi·Tangwen" describes: "King Mu of Zhou went on a great expedition to the Western Rong, and the Western Rong presented the sword of Kun and the cloth of fire-washing". Coincidentally, "Book of the Later Han·Biography of the Western Regions·Daqin Kingdom" also mentioned: "Golden coating and fire-washed cloth were made... All kinds of foreign treasures came from there", and "Records of the Three Kingdoms·The Fourth Chapter of the Chronicle of the Three Young Emperors" mentioned that "the Western Regions re-translated and presented fire-washed cloth, and the general and the general were ordered to test it to show the officials"... These records tell us that the origin of fire-washed cloth is not the Central Plains, but the tribute of foreign tribes in the Western Regions . It even appeared in "The Travels of Marco Polo".

However, fire-washed cloth was also extremely rare in ancient times. The "Taiping Yulan" mentioned that Shi Chong was a famous rich man in ancient times. Once a foreign country paid tribute to the rare fire-washed cloth, and Emperor Hui of Jin had it made into a fire-washed shirt, and wore it to Shi Chong's house to show off. As a result, fifty servants in Shi Chong's family all wore fire-washed shirts, and Emperor Hui of Jin was so ashamed that he could not face anyone. As a result, the fire-washed shirt also became a synonym for luxury.

2

Fire-resistant cloth is so magical, what exactly is it?

What material is fireproof cloth made of? In fact, the material of fireproof cloth is asbestos. Asbestos, also known as asbestos, is the general name for natural fibrous silicate minerals. It is also the only natural mineral fiber . It comes from rocks under dynamic metamorphic conditions and is spinnable, so it is called cotton. At the same time, it also has extremely strong fire resistance, thermal insulation and electrical insulation. It is an important fireproof, heat-insulating and insulating material . It is precisely its fire resistance that makes it a material for making fireproof clothing.

Fibrous tremolite asbestos on muscovite

Source: Wikipedia

In real life, its application range is very wide. In the mechanical industry , it can be used as a material for transmission, heat preservation, thermal insulation, insulation, sealing and other components; in construction, it is mainly used to make asbestos boards, asbestos paper fireproof boards, thermal insulation and other materials; in national defense , it can be made into rocket anti-ablation materials, aircraft wings, and sound insulation and heat insulation materials in tanks.

Asbestos Fiber

Source: China Textile Network

In experiments, asbestos mesh is an old friend of all scientific researchers. It has appeared in chemistry experiment classes since junior high school. When we heat a beaker, we always lay out asbestos mesh, which makes the beaker heat evenly, and it will not ignite when it comes into direct contact with the flame.

Asbestos mesh used in laboratory heating beakers

Source: Wikipedia

3

Asbestos, a double-edged sword

Seeing this, many people may be curious, why such a piece of clothing that is both fireproof and does not need to be washed has not become popular in modern times?

In fact, asbestos is a very dangerous material. Although it is not toxic in itself, when asbestos fiber products are damaged, the tiny fibers (i.e. dust) in them can easily float in the air, causing serious pollution to the environment. If people live or work nearby without taking formal protection, once inhaled, it will adhere to and deposit in the lungs, causing serious lung diseases and causing serious and long-term pain and damage. At present, asbestos has been identified as a carcinogen by the International Agency for Research on Cancer .

Source: china.cn

Therefore, although asbestos has excellent chemical and physical properties and is widely used in many fields closely related to our lives, as people's environmental awareness continues to improve, my country's attention to the safe use of asbestos materials and the treatment of asbestos-containing waste is also increasing. Fireproof cloth is cool, but human health is the most important.