Methods of creating soft and lofty nonwoven webs

• Main Authors: Erdem, Gueltekin, Xu, Han
• Format: Patent
• Language: English
• Published: 26.09.2023
• 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

A method of creating a soft and lofty continuous fiber nonwoven web is provided. The method includes providing molten polymer to a spinneret defining a plurality of orifices, and flowing a fluid intermediate the spinneret and a moving porous member. The moving porous member is positioned below the spinneret. The method includes using the fluid to draw or push the molten polymer, in a direction that is toward the moving porous member, through at least some of the plurality of orifices to form a plurality of individual continuous fiber strands. The method includes depositing the continuous fiber strands on the moving porous member at a first location to create an intermediate continuous fiber nonwoven web, and removing and/or diverting some of the fluid proximate to the first location to maintain loft and softness in the deposited intermediate continuous fiber nonwoven web.