Mat material and method for manufacturing the same

Abstract

A lightweight mat material having excellent sound absorption and thermal insulation properties comprises a mixture of glass fibers and sheath-core composite fibers, wherein the melting temperature of the sheath portion is lower than the melting temperature of the core portion. The glass fibers are fused with the sheath portions of the composite fibers by melting on at least one surface of the sheet-shaped mat material.

Description

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION[0001]1. Field of the Invention[0002]The present invention relates to a mat material and a method for manufacturing the same, and in certain preferred embodiments, to a lightweight mat material or the like having excellent sound absorption and / or thermal insulation properties.[0003]2. Description of the Related Art[0004]Various proposals have been made to achieve a mat material having excellent sound absorption and thermal insulation properties. For example, Japanese Patent Publication No. 2008-291393 discloses a vehicle mat material obtained by uniformly mixing an inorganic fiber having high heat resistance, a crimpable inorganic fiber or a flame-retardant organic fiber, and an organic fiber having a low melting point, and subjecting the cotton-like material to heat treatment.[0005]However, known mat materials have thus far been unable to achieve sufficient sound absorption and thermal insulation properties for certain applications and uses.SUMMARY OF THE...

AI Technical Summary

Benefits of technology

[0012]Mat materials according to the present teachings may have one or more of: improved flame retardant properties, decreased specific heat capacity and / or improved heat retention and thermal insulation properties due to the presence of the inorganic fibers. In particular, a fine count sheath-core composite fiber is preferably used, and the inorganic fiber is mixed with the sheath-core composite fiber, which preferably have different specific gravities from each other. In this case, a mat material is formed, in which sound energy is readily converted into thermal energy, so that good sound absorption properties are exhibited. Furthermore, if a semi-fused sheath-core composite fiber is used as the sheath-core composite fiber, a porous material is obtained, because the fibers will have a variety of diameters, thereby also improving the sound absorption properties.

[0013]As described above, in at least certain aspects of the present teachings, a lightweight mat material having excellent sound absorption and thermal insulation properties can be obtained.

Problems solved by technology

However, known mat materials have thus far been unable to achieve sufficient sound absorption and thermal insulation properties for certain applications and uses.

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