Here's how to safely set steel wool (also called wire wool) alight using nothing more than a 9V battery. It's not difficult but you must take care as the wool and the dish can get very hot - adult ...

Now, how they used to do carding in the old days, these have got wire on them, so what they do is they you would put the wool on, and you'd put one on top of the other, and you'd pull them apart ...