CA2015581A1 - Absorbent cloth - Google Patents
Absorbent clothInfo
- Publication number
- CA2015581A1 CA2015581A1 CA 2015581 CA2015581A CA2015581A1 CA 2015581 A1 CA2015581 A1 CA 2015581A1 CA 2015581 CA2015581 CA 2015581 CA 2015581 A CA2015581 A CA 2015581A CA 2015581 A1 CA2015581 A1 CA 2015581A1
- Authority
- CA
- Canada
- Prior art keywords
- fibres
- fabric
- textile
- hydrophilic
- web
- Prior art date
- Legal status (The legal status is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the status listed.)
- Abandoned
Links
Classifications
-
- D—TEXTILES; PAPER
- D04—BRAIDING; LACE-MAKING; KNITTING; TRIMMINGS; NON-WOVEN FABRICS
- D04H—MAKING TEXTILE FABRICS, e.g. FROM FIBRES OR FILAMENTARY MATERIAL; FABRICS MADE BY SUCH PROCESSES OR APPARATUS, e.g. FELTS, NON-WOVEN FABRICS; COTTON-WOOL; WADDING ; NON-WOVEN FABRICS FROM STAPLE FIBRES, FILAMENTS OR YARNS, BONDED WITH AT LEAST ONE WEB-LIKE MATERIAL DURING THEIR CONSOLIDATION
- D04H1/00—Non-woven fabrics formed wholly or mainly of staple fibres or like relatively short fibres
- D04H1/40—Non-woven fabrics formed wholly or mainly of staple fibres or like relatively short fibres from fleeces or layers composed of fibres without existing or potential cohesive properties
- D04H1/44—Non-woven fabrics formed wholly or mainly of staple fibres or like relatively short fibres from fleeces or layers composed of fibres without existing or potential cohesive properties the fleeces or layers being consolidated by mechanical means, e.g. by rolling
- D04H1/46—Non-woven fabrics formed wholly or mainly of staple fibres or like relatively short fibres from fleeces or layers composed of fibres without existing or potential cohesive properties the fleeces or layers being consolidated by mechanical means, e.g. by rolling by needling or like operations to cause entanglement of fibres
- D04H1/48—Non-woven fabrics formed wholly or mainly of staple fibres or like relatively short fibres from fleeces or layers composed of fibres without existing or potential cohesive properties the fleeces or layers being consolidated by mechanical means, e.g. by rolling by needling or like operations to cause entanglement of fibres in combination with at least one other method of consolidation
- D04H1/488—Non-woven fabrics formed wholly or mainly of staple fibres or like relatively short fibres from fleeces or layers composed of fibres without existing or potential cohesive properties the fleeces or layers being consolidated by mechanical means, e.g. by rolling by needling or like operations to cause entanglement of fibres in combination with at least one other method of consolidation in combination with bonding agents
-
- D—TEXTILES; PAPER
- D04—BRAIDING; LACE-MAKING; KNITTING; TRIMMINGS; NON-WOVEN FABRICS
- D04H—MAKING TEXTILE FABRICS, e.g. FROM FIBRES OR FILAMENTARY MATERIAL; FABRICS MADE BY SUCH PROCESSES OR APPARATUS, e.g. FELTS, NON-WOVEN FABRICS; COTTON-WOOL; WADDING ; NON-WOVEN FABRICS FROM STAPLE FIBRES, FILAMENTS OR YARNS, BONDED WITH AT LEAST ONE WEB-LIKE MATERIAL DURING THEIR CONSOLIDATION
- D04H1/00—Non-woven fabrics formed wholly or mainly of staple fibres or like relatively short fibres
- D04H1/40—Non-woven fabrics formed wholly or mainly of staple fibres or like relatively short fibres from fleeces or layers composed of fibres without existing or potential cohesive properties
- D04H1/44—Non-woven fabrics formed wholly or mainly of staple fibres or like relatively short fibres from fleeces or layers composed of fibres without existing or potential cohesive properties the fleeces or layers being consolidated by mechanical means, e.g. by rolling
- D04H1/46—Non-woven fabrics formed wholly or mainly of staple fibres or like relatively short fibres from fleeces or layers composed of fibres without existing or potential cohesive properties the fleeces or layers being consolidated by mechanical means, e.g. by rolling by needling or like operations to cause entanglement of fibres
- D04H1/48—Non-woven fabrics formed wholly or mainly of staple fibres or like relatively short fibres from fleeces or layers composed of fibres without existing or potential cohesive properties the fleeces or layers being consolidated by mechanical means, e.g. by rolling by needling or like operations to cause entanglement of fibres in combination with at least one other method of consolidation
Abstract
Abstract of the Disclosure ABSORBENT CLOTH
An absorbent textile fabric including hydrophilic textile fibres comprises a non-woven web needle punched with between 5 and 90 punches per cm2. Preferably the fabric comprises a blend of hydrophilic textile fibres and other textile fibres which are thermoplastic and at least partially melt at a temperature at which the said hydrophilic fibres remain intact. Use of such a low density of needle punching can provide increased liquid retention capacity in the non-woven fabric.
An absorbent textile fabric including hydrophilic textile fibres comprises a non-woven web needle punched with between 5 and 90 punches per cm2. Preferably the fabric comprises a blend of hydrophilic textile fibres and other textile fibres which are thermoplastic and at least partially melt at a temperature at which the said hydrophilic fibres remain intact. Use of such a low density of needle punching can provide increased liquid retention capacity in the non-woven fabric.
Description
2~
~ 3313 TechnlcA~ ld Thi~ ~nv~ntlon relat~ to an ab~orbent f~bri¢, more part$cul~rly to ~n absorb-~t fabr~c au~tabl- ~or household U60 a8 a wlplng cloth, and having h$gh liquid r~tention pro~ertle-, It 1~ co~onplace to mak- non-woven ~abrlcs by a proc~ oo~pr~sing combinlng the relevant f$bres to~ether to ~orm 8 1005e ~eb and thereafter needle-punchin~ the web ln order to interlacs the fibres. In ~uoh proce~ses t~e n~dllng d~ns$ty ~8 relatively hlgh, typically o~ ~he order of lS0 pen~trations per ~q cm. Such a proceæs ~s oo~monly u~ed for ma~ing 1~5;~_gli~ blan~e~s, aarpets, ~elts and aertaln ~nd~ o~ ~urnl~hlng fa~x$c, ~or exa~ple for ~overlng seat~.
5~
Lower needl~ng d~neit~e3 are u~ed ~or ~oining p~eformed layer6 whlch if non-woven will themeelves have been needle pun~hsd at th~ ~yp~cal densi~y of 150 punches per cm2 mantio~ed abov~.
~he manufacture o~ non-woven fabric~ and the techni~ue of n~edle punchlng ar~ de~cri~ed in various ~ext~ lncluding "Non-woven sondQd Fabrio~" edited by Lunen8chlose and Albrecht, publlshed ~y Ellis ~o~wood, and ~Needle-punchlng~ by A.~.Purdy, a TeXtlle Institute Monoqraph.
~on-wov~n fabric~ a~e in use a~ hous~hold absorbent oloths. ~ho6~ 601d for ~hls purpo~e oan hav~ liqu1~
~etent~n cspaaitles up to 10.5 gram~ of liquid per gram of dry fabric, but lower levels of around 8 g/~ are ~ore U8~
~fl5~YF~bQ~ th~ Invention Contrary to what ~ight be predicted, w~ have ~cw found that the liquld r~t~ntion capaolty of a non-woven fabrlo oan bo 1ncr~ased by u~lng only a low density of needle punchlng.
~ roadly, ~n a fir~t aopect, th~ inven~ion provid~s an ab~orbent ~xtile ~abria whlch co~priseU hydrophilic textlle fibre-, ~he ~abrla bolng a non-woven web needle punched w~th ~stw~n 5 and 90 punahe0 per cm~.
Pre~erably the ~abr$c comprise a blend of ti) hydrophili~ textile ~ibres and ~i$) other tex~ile f~bre~
which are thermoplastic and at lea~t partially melt at a ~emperature at which tha said hydrophilic flbres remain intaot. The ratio by w~ght of ~ibres ~i) to tii) 5~
~ 3313 TechnlcA~ ld Thi~ ~nv~ntlon relat~ to an ab~orbent f~bri¢, more part$cul~rly to ~n absorb-~t fabr~c au~tabl- ~or household U60 a8 a wlplng cloth, and having h$gh liquid r~tention pro~ertle-, It 1~ co~onplace to mak- non-woven ~abrlcs by a proc~ oo~pr~sing combinlng the relevant f$bres to~ether to ~orm 8 1005e ~eb and thereafter needle-punchin~ the web ln order to interlacs the fibres. In ~uoh proce~ses t~e n~dllng d~ns$ty ~8 relatively hlgh, typically o~ ~he order of lS0 pen~trations per ~q cm. Such a proceæs ~s oo~monly u~ed for ma~ing 1~5;~_gli~ blan~e~s, aarpets, ~elts and aertaln ~nd~ o~ ~urnl~hlng fa~x$c, ~or exa~ple for ~overlng seat~.
5~
Lower needl~ng d~neit~e3 are u~ed ~or ~oining p~eformed layer6 whlch if non-woven will themeelves have been needle pun~hsd at th~ ~yp~cal densi~y of 150 punches per cm2 mantio~ed abov~.
~he manufacture o~ non-woven fabric~ and the techni~ue of n~edle punchlng ar~ de~cri~ed in various ~ext~ lncluding "Non-woven sondQd Fabrio~" edited by Lunen8chlose and Albrecht, publlshed ~y Ellis ~o~wood, and ~Needle-punchlng~ by A.~.Purdy, a TeXtlle Institute Monoqraph.
~on-wov~n fabric~ a~e in use a~ hous~hold absorbent oloths. ~ho6~ 601d for ~hls purpo~e oan hav~ liqu1~
~etent~n cspaaitles up to 10.5 gram~ of liquid per gram of dry fabric, but lower levels of around 8 g/~ are ~ore U8~
~fl5~YF~bQ~ th~ Invention Contrary to what ~ight be predicted, w~ have ~cw found that the liquld r~t~ntion capaolty of a non-woven fabrlo oan bo 1ncr~ased by u~lng only a low density of needle punchlng.
~ roadly, ~n a fir~t aopect, th~ inven~ion provid~s an ab~orbent ~xtile ~abria whlch co~priseU hydrophilic textlle fibre-, ~he ~abrla bolng a non-woven web needle punched w~th ~stw~n 5 and 90 punahe0 per cm~.
Pre~erably the ~abr$c comprise a blend of ti) hydrophili~ textile ~ibres and ~i$) other tex~ile f~bre~
which are thermoplastic and at lea~t partially melt at a ~emperature at which tha said hydrophilic flbres remain intaot. The ratio by w~ght of ~ibres ~i) to tii) 5~
p~eferably l~es in a rang~ from 50:50 to ~5:5, better 60s4C to 50:10.
~ n a ~oond b~oad aspect th~ lnvention prov~dee ~ethod o~ ~aking an ~b~or~nt ~abrio comprlln~
hydrophllic textils f~bres, the method co~p~islng ~ormlng the ~ro~ in~o a wQb without 6ubs~antially lnterlacing the flb~ss and then neodle punching tho web with ~tween 5 and 90 pun~heg p~r c~2.
Th~ needle punohlng d~nsity utili~ed in this lnvention ~ pre~erably at least 10, bett~r at l~ast 15 punahe~ per am2, ~or the ~X~ of a~hieving ~a~rl¢ strength through thl~ ~low) lev~ o~ interlaoing. Good levels o~
wat-r re~entlon oan b~ achleved with needl~ punch densiti~s up to 80 or 30 ~unch~ per cm2, but h$~her level~ of water ret~nt~on arQ obtained with needle punch den~iti~ d ao to 60, even b-tt~r ~0 to 40 punches per o~ .
~ he formation o~ a w~b whloh 18 ~ub~ected to n~edl~
punah~n~ ~ay b~ oArrl~d out by formin~ a plurality o~
th$nner web~ w~thout ~ubstanti~lly intorlac~ng thelr ~ibre~ and then layin~ the~e on top o~ one another to form a thiaker web, a~a~n oubstnntlally without lnterlacing the ~ibre6 pr$or to the ne~dl- punohing.
~ he ~ap~ o~ blending fi~res, for~ing one or more webs ~rom the~ and lay~n~ ~ultlple webs one on top of another may all be oarrled out uslng conventional t~chnology. Notably the ~ibre~ ~ay be air-lald to ~or~ -the web(~).
~he needl~ punohing may ~e carried out by 3s ~onvontional t~chnology, ~odi~d by redusing th~ number ~5~
_ 4 - C~313 and denslty o~ needle~ in ths array of n~edles whlch i8 used, andlor inorea~ing the cloth ~ed rate. Thi~
punchin~ w~ll reduce the th~ckness o~ ~he web ~o wh~ch is is applled, but no~ ~o greatly as doe~ a ¢onven~lonal, higher d~nslty o~ nee~l~ punching. I~ i6 8t~0ngly preferred that the needl~ punohed w~b i~ then compaoted to the de~ire~ thickne~s by pa~sing between oalender~ng rollQr~, Sultably the web ha6 a f$nal dry bulk den~ity of be~ween 0.95 an~ 0.125 g/c~3, more ~itably ~etween 0.10 and 0.1~ g/om3.
Pre~erably ~he fibres e~ployed are a ~lend of ~i) hydrophil~a t~xtil~ fib~es and ~il) oth~r f ibres whlch are ther~opla~tic ~nd at l~a5t partlally ~elt at a te~peratur-at whlah the flbras ~i) re~aln intact. When such a blend o~ flbre~ 1~ us~d, th- needle punchad web is, a~vantaq~ously, ~ub~ected to a h~at traat~nt stop cufflo~ent to ef~eot at least partial meltlng o~ the the~moplasti~ fi~r~s ~ . Th- ~often~ or m~lted thermopla~tic funotions a~ an adhe~lve to bond ~ibr~s wi~hin th~ fa~rla, ~o ~nhanclng the ~trength of the ~br~o.
The preferred trea~ment i6 a hoat trea~ment suffic$~nt to at least part~ally melt the thermoplas~lc f~bres ~i~) followed ~reotly by cal~ndering at a lower te~paratur~ to ~olidify the thermoplasti~ whils the fabric is ~o~pressed and henae ~et the ~a~ric in~o a aesire~
~hickness.
~0 ~ he heat ~eatment may ~e pa~eag~ throu~h an o~en or pa~sage ~etween ~ated calendar rollers.
It i~ preferred that bo~h exterior surfacss o~ ~he fabric are provlded ~y the non-woven ~a~erlal~ This i6 _ 5 _ C3313 p~tioularly deslrable for a cloth in~endod ~o bs used lther 6i~ up. A po~6ibil$ty woul~ be ~o apply an extorlor ~urfac~ layer to one or even ~oth ~ides, but thls 1 not prefer~ed.
A furthe~ po~slbility which læ preferred ~ to treat one or both 2xPoeed side surSaces wlth a ~indor mat~rlal whi~h w~ll a~here flbr~s ~oqether at ~he ~urf~ce but w~hout ~ubstantially reducin~ the poro~ity of the fabrlc.
Such ~ b~nder materlal may be applled by conventional m-thoda, e.g. a~ ~ fln~ sp~ay at a lovel of ~ to 50 grams ~or ~quaro ~etr~ of ~ur~Ace area, preferably 1 ~o 20 grams p~r ~uar~ m~r~. At such a level th~ binder will not impr~gnate th- porou~ fabrlc but wlll ~$nd ~ibr~ to~th~r lS at the ~uxfac~.
Applylnq a ~indar in th~ way i~ bene~lal in ~edu~in~ llnt$nq of the fa~rlc.
The ~ln~6h~d fabrio, 1~ lntend-d for hou6ehold u6e, wlll be cut into lndividual piea-~ o~ cloth whloh are p~ck3g~d for ~ala. The alze of ~uoh piece~ of aloth i~ a ~att~r o~ ahola-, but wlll genorally no~ bo le3s than an aroa o~ looO~2 or larger ~han 1~2.
~s ~ h- hy~rophllic ~ibre- whiah ar~ employed are ~ssential ~o the ab~or~en~y of tho fabrio which 15 ~orm~d and they oon~ltute a~ leas~ half, prefe~ably a ma~or frac~ion of any fibre blend. Sultably th~ hydrophilic ~ibres are cel~lo~ic, ~.g. co~ton, vi~ose rayon or other re~enerat~d sellulo~e or a m~xture o~ the~; other ex~mpl~s o~ collulosic ~ibres which aro not preferred are ~ute, hemp and ~ial. The hydrophilic fiPres could alternativ~ly be non-csllulo~ic synthetic pol~m~r ~ibres ~ ., L5~$
~ 6 - C3313 incorporating hyd~ophilic groups in the pol~mar ~halns or having hydrophilic m~terial 1n th~ ~oly~er ~atrix.
Other ~lb~es, able to melt at least partially while the hy~rophillc fibr~ re~aln lntact, wlll ~enerally be S synth~tic or~anis poly~er ~ibres. ~hese do not need to be hydrophllio ~although ~hey may be 1~ that happ4ns to be aonv~nl~nt~. Preferred are polyethylene and polypropyle~e. ~l~omponent fibres, ~l~o known ae sheath ~ore ~lb~eR, ~ay be used. I~ thece are used it i8 de~irablQ that a h~at treatment step should ~elt the outer laye~ ~heath) of the fibre~, to ~unction as an adh~ e with~n th~ ~ab~lc, while leav~ng the core of the fibres intaat, l It w~ e appreaiated that a pre~errQd blQnd o~
~lbra~ w$11 oon~lgt of ~ydxophllic ~ibre~ tl) which may or may not be ~h~oplastic and th~rmoplast$c fibrs~
whlch may or may not be hydrophilic. I~ both categorie5 of f~br~s happ~n to be th-~mopla~tlo and hydrophllic they wlll otlll b~ d~tinot oategorio~ bacau~s tho flbres (ii) ar~ requ$red to b- able to m-lt at least partially while the hydrophllic fibre~ ~i) remaln intaot.
2s Th- hydrophilic fibre- ~1) whlch remain lntact through any heat treatment suitably have a length of at least 2mm. An average length ~etween 30 and 60 mm oan convenlently be us~d. Lo~gor length~ are possible, e.g.
up to lOOm~ or more. ThQ f$br~ dt~X may lie in a ran~e up to ~5 dtex, espe~ially 1 to 6 d~ex. Diame er~
substantlally lar~er than this are not preferred as they would glv~ a aoars6r f~el. ~he oSh~r fibres lil) may al~o have lengths and diamete~ w~thin the a~ove ran~e~.
3~
_ 7 ~3313 Eit~er or both types o~ fibre~ (i) and (ii~ can be ~ollow. ~n~reas~d amount~ of liqui~ oan thu~ be absorbed by the ~abrio. Sui~ably any ~uçh hollow fibree have slmlla~ extern~l dimenslons to thos~ recommended ~bo~8 fo~
hydrophlli~ fibres. If desired at lea~t Eome of any S hollow ~ibr~s employed can be p~e-~illed with one or mcre ingredi~nts whlch are relea~d in U~e. ~xamples of ~uitable ingredients include ~urPactAnts for cleanlng, hyqienQ agents for Xilling and/or preven~ng the ~uild up of bacteria, vi'~us2s, fungi ~tc., perfume~, antistatic agents, poliehes, conditioners eto. ~nd mixture thereof.
~uch hollow ~$~re~ can fonm a signifioant proportio~ o~
the total f~br~s present without ~t~i~ent to the o~erall prop~rtlo3 of ths f~bric.
~lther lnstead of or in add~tion to the ~se of hollow fi~res, the textile fabrio can inolude ~lbre~ oontaining an e~bedd-d abrasive. sultably such fib~es can compriee ~ to 50wt% o~ th~ to~al ~1br~s pre~ent, and aould ~or ~xampl~ be pr~Gent on one ~lde only or one portion only of tho ~abr~a.
A blnde~ whlch iB sp~ayed on to th- neodle punohed fa~r~c may bs a polymeric emulsion and preferably this ha~
25 the ablllty to oros~ link on h~atlng.
Examples are the vinyl acetate-etbyle~e copolymers suoh a3 V1namul 32417 and Vina~ul 32440 supplied by Vinamul ~d. After curing by heating, ~he~e hav~ glas~
transitlon tempsrature below room ~emperature, gi~ing a soft handle ~o the ~abric.
The ~abric of the pre~e~t invention can be sold dry lntended fo~ use with ~ ~lu$d ~pplied in use or as ~ ~loth ~5 to ~op u~ spllls, or alternatlvely th~ pre~ent fabria can s~
- 8 - ~3313 be laden wlth ~ llqu~d prio~ to ~al~ ~nd appropria~ely paoke~ and ~old a~ a ready ~o u4~ wip~.
EmbodimQ~s~ ~ ~=
E~bodiments Or this inv~ntion will ~ow b~ de~aribed.
Fabrics ~mbodying ~he invention were pr~pared by the following general procedure.
Bal~ of t~e f$bres w~r~ open~ and the f~bres weighod lnto th~ required rat~o~. ~he fibres was mixed, aarded ~nd la$d to prodUCB an initial web having a w~ight $n the ordor o~ lo t~ram/~q~aro ~etr-.
~ ength~ o$ thie lniti~l w~b wQre oros~ la~d, on~ upon ~nothe~ to produce a thicker and wider web having a weight o~ 1~0-150 gram/squar- ~etre.
Thi~ web wa~ ne~dle punched w~th eaoh punch ext~nding 20 through the ~ull th~a~ne~s o~ ths w-b. Thls n-edl~
punchln~ aontraated the w~b, to 2 wolght o~ 140-lSo gra~ uar- ~otr~.
~he needl- punched web w~ pass~d ~hrough a hot air 25 tunnel ovon and dlrectly therea~ter through a palr o~ col~
ealendar roller~. ~h~ ro~ulting fabrio WA~ cut ln~o indl~dual cloth pieces o~ siz- 10 cm by 10 c~.
~ ho ~re~ omployed were cho~en from t~o cellulosic flbre- and two ~ynthetlc thermopla~ttc flbre~ as ~ollow :
~ Intermatt" eX Courtaulds, a v~scose ra~on o averag~
1.7 dtex and 51 mm length;
~5 _ 9 _ ~3313 Blea~hed cotton flbre, averags 20~ diameter ~nd 38mm len$th;
I'E8" ex Danaklon AS, a polyethylene shea'ch o~ er polypropylen~ cote ~ioomponent ~ibre of ~v~ra~ 3 . 3 dtex S ~nd 5 lm~ length ~
"~151'1 Polypropylene fibre, average 3. 3 dtsx arld 48mm length .
For all the fabrio~ the feed rate through ~he ~unnel oven wa~ 2 ~atre~/minute through a heateq zone 1 8 metre~
long ~nd ~ha cold cal~ndar qap was o ~m ~ "Esl~
blcompon~nt flbre w~s used the oven te~peratur- was ~ot at lSo c to m~lt th- polyethylene ~heath without melting t~e polypropylene core ~ polypropylene fi~ra w-~ used tho oven t~mp~rà~uro was lnoreased ~o 182~ to melt the polypropyl-n~
After prod~ction, the thiokn~s~ of t~e fabrio wae measur d with A Shirley thickne~ gaug- applylng 20 q~am p~r am pre~sur- The wate~ retentlon capability wa~
me~u~ed by ~ean~ ot a test ~p-alfla by th~ Euro~ean Di~posableo and Non-wove~s As~oalation ao a test o~ llquid abeorpti~e oapacity In t~lo to~t sa~p~e~ of fabria are we~ghed dry, lm~er~ad in ~ate~ whlle attached to a w~re gauzo, remov~d a~ter 60 seconds imm~r~lon, hung ve~tically and allowed ~o draln for lao second-, then ~eighed again ~ho te~t is repeated ~o~ five sa~pleg The bulk density of t~a dry fa~ric wa~ ~
calculated $rom the thlcXne~s, surface area and dry w~$ght of a 4a~ple Using this d~t~rm$nation of dry density, the ab~orptlon cap~city of ~ac~ cloth was calculated ~n ~rams 3s of water per cm3 o~ cloth ~hi~ 1ndiaates the e~fici~ncy s~
wlth which gpaces between ~lbres are utlli~ed for water a~orpt~on.
80~tne8~ of th~ fabric~ was also meaqured, using a t~8t maehine in whlc~ the ~abr1c ~ppliss force ~o a pie20el~0tric ~ensor, the harsher ~he fabrio, the hi~her th~ average volta~e produced.
Compo~it~ons of the ~abricc, together with ~eet r~ults, are set out ln ~he ~abl~ b~low. Included at the end of tbe table ar~ test result~ ~or various comme~cial cloths each o~ which wa~ a non woven co~pris~ng a ma~or proportion of celluloslo flbr~ and which a~ear~d to have bsen ~ad~ by conventional n~edle punching at a density of S over 100 punches per c~2. The aompositlons of these oloth~ ar- given, so far ~ they could be a~certained.
~1 3 ~ o o o o o ~ u~ r~ o In il~3~ ~ ~
3~ æ~
Il~ O
O
0 ~ 10 ~ tO ~ 0 ~
8 3 u ~ u o ~ o U~
r~
o ~
o o o o o N V
~' U~
U
U
~ n a ~oond b~oad aspect th~ lnvention prov~dee ~ethod o~ ~aking an ~b~or~nt ~abrio comprlln~
hydrophllic textils f~bres, the method co~p~islng ~ormlng the ~ro~ in~o a wQb without 6ubs~antially lnterlacing the flb~ss and then neodle punching tho web with ~tween 5 and 90 pun~heg p~r c~2.
Th~ needle punohlng d~nsity utili~ed in this lnvention ~ pre~erably at least 10, bett~r at l~ast 15 punahe~ per am2, ~or the ~X~ of a~hieving ~a~rl¢ strength through thl~ ~low) lev~ o~ interlaoing. Good levels o~
wat-r re~entlon oan b~ achleved with needl~ punch densiti~s up to 80 or 30 ~unch~ per cm2, but h$~her level~ of water ret~nt~on arQ obtained with needle punch den~iti~ d ao to 60, even b-tt~r ~0 to 40 punches per o~ .
~ he formation o~ a w~b whloh 18 ~ub~ected to n~edl~
punah~n~ ~ay b~ oArrl~d out by formin~ a plurality o~
th$nner web~ w~thout ~ubstanti~lly intorlac~ng thelr ~ibre~ and then layin~ the~e on top o~ one another to form a thiaker web, a~a~n oubstnntlally without lnterlacing the ~ibre6 pr$or to the ne~dl- punohing.
~ he ~ap~ o~ blending fi~res, for~ing one or more webs ~rom the~ and lay~n~ ~ultlple webs one on top of another may all be oarrled out uslng conventional t~chnology. Notably the ~ibre~ ~ay be air-lald to ~or~ -the web(~).
~he needl~ punohing may ~e carried out by 3s ~onvontional t~chnology, ~odi~d by redusing th~ number ~5~
_ 4 - C~313 and denslty o~ needle~ in ths array of n~edles whlch i8 used, andlor inorea~ing the cloth ~ed rate. Thi~
punchin~ w~ll reduce the th~ckness o~ ~he web ~o wh~ch is is applled, but no~ ~o greatly as doe~ a ¢onven~lonal, higher d~nslty o~ nee~l~ punching. I~ i6 8t~0ngly preferred that the needl~ punohed w~b i~ then compaoted to the de~ire~ thickne~s by pa~sing between oalender~ng rollQr~, Sultably the web ha6 a f$nal dry bulk den~ity of be~ween 0.95 an~ 0.125 g/c~3, more ~itably ~etween 0.10 and 0.1~ g/om3.
Pre~erably ~he fibres e~ployed are a ~lend of ~i) hydrophil~a t~xtil~ fib~es and ~il) oth~r f ibres whlch are ther~opla~tic ~nd at l~a5t partlally ~elt at a te~peratur-at whlah the flbras ~i) re~aln intact. When such a blend o~ flbre~ 1~ us~d, th- needle punchad web is, a~vantaq~ously, ~ub~ected to a h~at traat~nt stop cufflo~ent to ef~eot at least partial meltlng o~ the the~moplasti~ fi~r~s ~ . Th- ~often~ or m~lted thermopla~tic funotions a~ an adhe~lve to bond ~ibr~s wi~hin th~ fa~rla, ~o ~nhanclng the ~trength of the ~br~o.
The preferred trea~ment i6 a hoat trea~ment suffic$~nt to at least part~ally melt the thermoplas~lc f~bres ~i~) followed ~reotly by cal~ndering at a lower te~paratur~ to ~olidify the thermoplasti~ whils the fabric is ~o~pressed and henae ~et the ~a~ric in~o a aesire~
~hickness.
~0 ~ he heat ~eatment may ~e pa~eag~ throu~h an o~en or pa~sage ~etween ~ated calendar rollers.
It i~ preferred that bo~h exterior surfacss o~ ~he fabric are provlded ~y the non-woven ~a~erlal~ This i6 _ 5 _ C3313 p~tioularly deslrable for a cloth in~endod ~o bs used lther 6i~ up. A po~6ibil$ty woul~ be ~o apply an extorlor ~urfac~ layer to one or even ~oth ~ides, but thls 1 not prefer~ed.
A furthe~ po~slbility which læ preferred ~ to treat one or both 2xPoeed side surSaces wlth a ~indor mat~rlal whi~h w~ll a~here flbr~s ~oqether at ~he ~urf~ce but w~hout ~ubstantially reducin~ the poro~ity of the fabrlc.
Such ~ b~nder materlal may be applled by conventional m-thoda, e.g. a~ ~ fln~ sp~ay at a lovel of ~ to 50 grams ~or ~quaro ~etr~ of ~ur~Ace area, preferably 1 ~o 20 grams p~r ~uar~ m~r~. At such a level th~ binder will not impr~gnate th- porou~ fabrlc but wlll ~$nd ~ibr~ to~th~r lS at the ~uxfac~.
Applylnq a ~indar in th~ way i~ bene~lal in ~edu~in~ llnt$nq of the fa~rlc.
The ~ln~6h~d fabrio, 1~ lntend-d for hou6ehold u6e, wlll be cut into lndividual piea-~ o~ cloth whloh are p~ck3g~d for ~ala. The alze of ~uoh piece~ of aloth i~ a ~att~r o~ ahola-, but wlll genorally no~ bo le3s than an aroa o~ looO~2 or larger ~han 1~2.
~s ~ h- hy~rophllic ~ibre- whiah ar~ employed are ~ssential ~o the ab~or~en~y of tho fabrio which 15 ~orm~d and they oon~ltute a~ leas~ half, prefe~ably a ma~or frac~ion of any fibre blend. Sultably th~ hydrophilic ~ibres are cel~lo~ic, ~.g. co~ton, vi~ose rayon or other re~enerat~d sellulo~e or a m~xture o~ the~; other ex~mpl~s o~ collulosic ~ibres which aro not preferred are ~ute, hemp and ~ial. The hydrophilic fiPres could alternativ~ly be non-csllulo~ic synthetic pol~m~r ~ibres ~ ., L5~$
~ 6 - C3313 incorporating hyd~ophilic groups in the pol~mar ~halns or having hydrophilic m~terial 1n th~ ~oly~er ~atrix.
Other ~lb~es, able to melt at least partially while the hy~rophillc fibr~ re~aln lntact, wlll ~enerally be S synth~tic or~anis poly~er ~ibres. ~hese do not need to be hydrophllio ~although ~hey may be 1~ that happ4ns to be aonv~nl~nt~. Preferred are polyethylene and polypropyle~e. ~l~omponent fibres, ~l~o known ae sheath ~ore ~lb~eR, ~ay be used. I~ thece are used it i8 de~irablQ that a h~at treatment step should ~elt the outer laye~ ~heath) of the fibre~, to ~unction as an adh~ e with~n th~ ~ab~lc, while leav~ng the core of the fibres intaat, l It w~ e appreaiated that a pre~errQd blQnd o~
~lbra~ w$11 oon~lgt of ~ydxophllic ~ibre~ tl) which may or may not be ~h~oplastic and th~rmoplast$c fibrs~
whlch may or may not be hydrophilic. I~ both categorie5 of f~br~s happ~n to be th-~mopla~tlo and hydrophllic they wlll otlll b~ d~tinot oategorio~ bacau~s tho flbres (ii) ar~ requ$red to b- able to m-lt at least partially while the hydrophllic fibre~ ~i) remaln intaot.
2s Th- hydrophilic fibre- ~1) whlch remain lntact through any heat treatment suitably have a length of at least 2mm. An average length ~etween 30 and 60 mm oan convenlently be us~d. Lo~gor length~ are possible, e.g.
up to lOOm~ or more. ThQ f$br~ dt~X may lie in a ran~e up to ~5 dtex, espe~ially 1 to 6 d~ex. Diame er~
substantlally lar~er than this are not preferred as they would glv~ a aoars6r f~el. ~he oSh~r fibres lil) may al~o have lengths and diamete~ w~thin the a~ove ran~e~.
3~
_ 7 ~3313 Eit~er or both types o~ fibre~ (i) and (ii~ can be ~ollow. ~n~reas~d amount~ of liqui~ oan thu~ be absorbed by the ~abrio. Sui~ably any ~uçh hollow fibree have slmlla~ extern~l dimenslons to thos~ recommended ~bo~8 fo~
hydrophlli~ fibres. If desired at lea~t Eome of any S hollow ~ibr~s employed can be p~e-~illed with one or mcre ingredi~nts whlch are relea~d in U~e. ~xamples of ~uitable ingredients include ~urPactAnts for cleanlng, hyqienQ agents for Xilling and/or preven~ng the ~uild up of bacteria, vi'~us2s, fungi ~tc., perfume~, antistatic agents, poliehes, conditioners eto. ~nd mixture thereof.
~uch hollow ~$~re~ can fonm a signifioant proportio~ o~
the total f~br~s present without ~t~i~ent to the o~erall prop~rtlo3 of ths f~bric.
~lther lnstead of or in add~tion to the ~se of hollow fi~res, the textile fabrio can inolude ~lbre~ oontaining an e~bedd-d abrasive. sultably such fib~es can compriee ~ to 50wt% o~ th~ to~al ~1br~s pre~ent, and aould ~or ~xampl~ be pr~Gent on one ~lde only or one portion only of tho ~abr~a.
A blnde~ whlch iB sp~ayed on to th- neodle punohed fa~r~c may bs a polymeric emulsion and preferably this ha~
25 the ablllty to oros~ link on h~atlng.
Examples are the vinyl acetate-etbyle~e copolymers suoh a3 V1namul 32417 and Vina~ul 32440 supplied by Vinamul ~d. After curing by heating, ~he~e hav~ glas~
transitlon tempsrature below room ~emperature, gi~ing a soft handle ~o the ~abric.
The ~abric of the pre~e~t invention can be sold dry lntended fo~ use with ~ ~lu$d ~pplied in use or as ~ ~loth ~5 to ~op u~ spllls, or alternatlvely th~ pre~ent fabria can s~
- 8 - ~3313 be laden wlth ~ llqu~d prio~ to ~al~ ~nd appropria~ely paoke~ and ~old a~ a ready ~o u4~ wip~.
EmbodimQ~s~ ~ ~=
E~bodiments Or this inv~ntion will ~ow b~ de~aribed.
Fabrics ~mbodying ~he invention were pr~pared by the following general procedure.
Bal~ of t~e f$bres w~r~ open~ and the f~bres weighod lnto th~ required rat~o~. ~he fibres was mixed, aarded ~nd la$d to prodUCB an initial web having a w~ight $n the ordor o~ lo t~ram/~q~aro ~etr-.
~ ength~ o$ thie lniti~l w~b wQre oros~ la~d, on~ upon ~nothe~ to produce a thicker and wider web having a weight o~ 1~0-150 gram/squar- ~etre.
Thi~ web wa~ ne~dle punched w~th eaoh punch ext~nding 20 through the ~ull th~a~ne~s o~ ths w-b. Thls n-edl~
punchln~ aontraated the w~b, to 2 wolght o~ 140-lSo gra~ uar- ~otr~.
~he needl- punched web w~ pass~d ~hrough a hot air 25 tunnel ovon and dlrectly therea~ter through a palr o~ col~
ealendar roller~. ~h~ ro~ulting fabrio WA~ cut ln~o indl~dual cloth pieces o~ siz- 10 cm by 10 c~.
~ ho ~re~ omployed were cho~en from t~o cellulosic flbre- and two ~ynthetlc thermopla~ttc flbre~ as ~ollow :
~ Intermatt" eX Courtaulds, a v~scose ra~on o averag~
1.7 dtex and 51 mm length;
~5 _ 9 _ ~3313 Blea~hed cotton flbre, averags 20~ diameter ~nd 38mm len$th;
I'E8" ex Danaklon AS, a polyethylene shea'ch o~ er polypropylen~ cote ~ioomponent ~ibre of ~v~ra~ 3 . 3 dtex S ~nd 5 lm~ length ~
"~151'1 Polypropylene fibre, average 3. 3 dtsx arld 48mm length .
For all the fabrio~ the feed rate through ~he ~unnel oven wa~ 2 ~atre~/minute through a heateq zone 1 8 metre~
long ~nd ~ha cold cal~ndar qap was o ~m ~ "Esl~
blcompon~nt flbre w~s used the oven te~peratur- was ~ot at lSo c to m~lt th- polyethylene ~heath without melting t~e polypropylene core ~ polypropylene fi~ra w-~ used tho oven t~mp~rà~uro was lnoreased ~o 182~ to melt the polypropyl-n~
After prod~ction, the thiokn~s~ of t~e fabrio wae measur d with A Shirley thickne~ gaug- applylng 20 q~am p~r am pre~sur- The wate~ retentlon capability wa~
me~u~ed by ~ean~ ot a test ~p-alfla by th~ Euro~ean Di~posableo and Non-wove~s As~oalation ao a test o~ llquid abeorpti~e oapacity In t~lo to~t sa~p~e~ of fabria are we~ghed dry, lm~er~ad in ~ate~ whlle attached to a w~re gauzo, remov~d a~ter 60 seconds imm~r~lon, hung ve~tically and allowed ~o draln for lao second-, then ~eighed again ~ho te~t is repeated ~o~ five sa~pleg The bulk density of t~a dry fa~ric wa~ ~
calculated $rom the thlcXne~s, surface area and dry w~$ght of a 4a~ple Using this d~t~rm$nation of dry density, the ab~orptlon cap~city of ~ac~ cloth was calculated ~n ~rams 3s of water per cm3 o~ cloth ~hi~ 1ndiaates the e~fici~ncy s~
wlth which gpaces between ~lbres are utlli~ed for water a~orpt~on.
80~tne8~ of th~ fabric~ was also meaqured, using a t~8t maehine in whlc~ the ~abr1c ~ppliss force ~o a pie20el~0tric ~ensor, the harsher ~he fabrio, the hi~her th~ average volta~e produced.
Compo~it~ons of the ~abricc, together with ~eet r~ults, are set out ln ~he ~abl~ b~low. Included at the end of tbe table ar~ test result~ ~or various comme~cial cloths each o~ which wa~ a non woven co~pris~ng a ma~or proportion of celluloslo flbr~ and which a~ear~d to have bsen ~ad~ by conventional n~edle punching at a density of S over 100 punches per c~2. The aompositlons of these oloth~ ar- given, so far ~ they could be a~certained.
~1 3 ~ o o o o o ~ u~ r~ o In il~3~ ~ ~
3~ æ~
Il~ O
O
0 ~ 10 ~ tO ~ 0 ~
8 3 u ~ u o ~ o U~
r~
o ~
o o o o o N V
~' U~
U
U
Claims (12)
1. Absorbent textile fabric including hydrophilic textile fibres characterised in that the fabric is a non-woven web needle punched with between 5 and 90 punches per cm2.
2. Absorbent textile fabric according to claim 1 wherein the fabric is a non-woven web needle punched with between 10 and 80 punches per cm2.
3. Absorbent textile fabric according to claim 2 wherein the fabric is a non-woven web needle punched with between 20 and 60 punches per cm2.
4. Absorbent textile fabric according to any one of the preceding claims wherein the fabric in addition to hydrophilic textile fibres includes other textile fibres which are thermoplastic and at least partially melt at a temperature at which said hydrophilic fibres remain intact.
5. Absorbent textile fabric according to claim 4 wherein the ratio by weight of hydrophilic textile fibres to said other textile fibres lies in a range from 50:50 to 95:5.
6. Absorbent textile fabric according to claim 1 wherein at least one exposed side surface has been treated with a binder material.
7. Method of making an absorbent textile fabric including hydrophilic textile fibres characterised by forming the fibres into a web without substantially interlacing the fibres and then needle punching the web with between 5 and 90 punches per cm2.
8. Method according to claim 7 comprising needle punching the web with between 10 and 80 punches per cm2.
9. Method according to claim 7 wherein the fabric in addition to hydrophilic textile fibres includes other textile fibres which are thermoplastic and at least partially melt at a temperature at which said hydrophilic fibres remain intact, the method comprising subjecting the needle punched web including such a blend of fibres to a heat treatment step sufficient to effect at least partial melting of the thermoplastic fibres.
10. Method according to claim 7 or claim 9 comprising compacting the needle punched web by passing between calendering rollers.
11. Method according to claim 7 comprising treating at least one exposed side surface with a binder material.
12. The absorbent textile fabric as claimed in claim 1 and substantially as described herein.
Applications Claiming Priority (2)
| Application Number | Priority Date | Filing Date | Title |
|---|---|---|---|
| GB8909800.8 | 1989-04-28 | ||
| GB8909800A GB8909800D0 (en) | 1989-04-28 | 1989-04-28 | Absorbent cloth |
Publications (1)
| Publication Number | Publication Date |
|---|---|
| CA2015581A1 true CA2015581A1 (en) | 1990-10-28 |
Family
ID=10655926
Family Applications (1)
| Application Number | Title | Priority Date | Filing Date |
|---|---|---|---|
| CA 2015581 Abandoned CA2015581A1 (en) | 1989-04-28 | 1990-04-27 | Absorbent cloth |
Country Status (5)
| Country | Link |
|---|---|
| EP (1) | EP0470167A1 (en) |
| JP (1) | JPH04506686A (en) |
| CA (1) | CA2015581A1 (en) |
| GB (1) | GB8909800D0 (en) |
| WO (1) | WO1990013695A1 (en) |
Cited By (1)
| Publication number | Priority date | Publication date | Assignee | Title |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| US5509915A (en) | 1991-09-11 | 1996-04-23 | Kimberly-Clark Corporation | Thin absorbent article having rapid uptake of liquid |
Families Citing this family (3)
| Publication number | Priority date | Publication date | Assignee | Title |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| GB201111059D0 (en) | 2011-06-29 | 2011-08-10 | Lantor Uk Ltd | Compression bandages |
| US20130072891A1 (en) * | 2011-09-20 | 2013-03-21 | Paul Y. Fung | Fibrous absorbent material |
| AU2015202514A1 (en) * | 2011-09-20 | 2015-05-28 | Mcneil-Ppc, Inc. | Fibrous absorbent material |
Family Cites Families (8)
| Publication number | Priority date | Publication date | Assignee | Title |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| US3545442A (en) * | 1964-09-23 | 1970-12-08 | Huyck Corp | Bandaging and dressing material |
| US3481806A (en) * | 1964-09-23 | 1969-12-02 | Huyck Corp | Method of making a bandaging and dressing material |
| GB1408392A (en) * | 1971-10-18 | 1975-10-01 | Ici Ltd | Non-woven fabrics |
| JPS5128225B2 (en) * | 1972-06-30 | 1976-08-18 | ||
| JPS5016401A (en) * | 1973-06-09 | 1975-02-21 | ||
| US4275105A (en) * | 1978-06-16 | 1981-06-23 | The Buckeye Cellulose Corporation | Stabilized rayon web and structures made therefrom |
| JPH01168949A (en) * | 1987-12-25 | 1989-07-04 | Asahi Chem Ind Co Ltd | Composite nonwoven fabric |
| JPH023447U (en) * | 1988-06-15 | 1990-01-10 |
-
1989
- 1989-04-28 GB GB8909800A patent/GB8909800D0/en active Pending
-
1990
- 1990-04-27 CA CA 2015581 patent/CA2015581A1/en not_active Abandoned
- 1990-04-27 EP EP19900907322 patent/EP0470167A1/en not_active Withdrawn
- 1990-04-27 JP JP50698590A patent/JPH04506686A/en active Pending
- 1990-04-27 WO PCT/GB1990/000659 patent/WO1990013695A1/en not_active Application Discontinuation
Cited By (1)
| Publication number | Priority date | Publication date | Assignee | Title |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| US5509915A (en) | 1991-09-11 | 1996-04-23 | Kimberly-Clark Corporation | Thin absorbent article having rapid uptake of liquid |
Also Published As
| Publication number | Publication date |
|---|---|
| WO1990013695A1 (en) | 1990-11-15 |
| JPH04506686A (en) | 1992-11-19 |
| EP0470167A1 (en) | 1992-02-12 |
| GB8909800D0 (en) | 1989-06-14 |
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| EEER | Examination request | ||
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