Type of fiber	Characteristics of the fiber
Type of fiber	Approaching flame	In the flame	Outside the flame	Smell	Debris
Cotton/ viscose	Do not shrink	Burn readily without melting	Continue to burn after glow	Burning paper	Small amount of light grey ash
Wool, silk	Curl away	Burn slowly sputter	Self-extinguish	Burning hair	Easily crushable black bead
Polyester	Shrinks away from flame	Melts, burns slowly, drips	Burns, drips may extinguish because of dripping	Sweet smell	Hard tough light color
Asbestos	Does not shrinks	Does not burn glows	Retains shape	None	Same as original
Nylon	Shrinks away from flame	Melts, burns slowly, drips	Burns, drips may extinguish because of dripping	Burning beans	Hard, tough tan bead
Polyethylene	Shrinks away from flame	Melts, burns slowly, drips	Continue to burn	Burning plastic	Hard, tough tan bead
Acrylic	Shrinks away from flame	Burns readily, sputters	Continue to burn	Acrid	Irregular, hard, black bead