Toughened polylactic acid fibers

• Main Authors: EBY TOM, ZHOU PEIGUANG, MCENEANY RYAN J, TOPOLKARAEV VASILY A, WIDEMAN GREGORY J
• Format: Patent
• Language: Chinese; English
• Published: 24.04.2013
• Subjects: APPARATUS SPECIALLY ADAPTED FOR THE MANUFACTURE OF CARBONFILAMENTS; BRAIDING; CHEMICAL FEATURES IN THE MANUFACTURE OF ARTIFICIAL FILAMENTS,THREADS, FIBRES, BRISTLES OR RIBBONS; COTTON-WOOL; FABRICS MADE BY SUCH PROCESSES OR APPARATUS, e.g. FELTS,NON-WOVEN FABRICS; KNITTING; LACE-MAKING; MAKING TEXTILE FABRICS, e.g. FROM FIBRES OR FILAMENTARYMATERIAL; MECHANICAL METHODS OR APPARATUS IN THE MANUFACTURE OFARTIFICIAL FILAMENTS, THREADS, FIBRES, BRISTLES ORRIBBONS; NATURAL OR ARTIFICIAL THREADS OR FIBRES; NON-WOVEN FABRICS; SPINNING; TEXTILES; TRIMMINGS; WADDING

Polylactic acid fibers formed from a thermoplastic composition that contains polylactic acid and a polymeric toughening additive are provided. The present inventors have discovered that the specific nature of the components and process by which they are blended may be carefully controlled to achieve a composition having desirable morphological features. More particularly, the toughening additive can be dispersed as discrete physical domains within a continuous phase of the polylactic acid. These domains have a particular size, shape, and distribution such that upon fiber drawing, they absorb energy and become elongated. This allows the resulting composition to exhibit a more pliable and softer behavior than the otherwise rigid polylactic acid.; Through selective control over the components and method employed, the present inventors have discovered that the resulting fibers may thus exhibit good mechanical properties, both during and after melt spinning.