Stitch-bonded bulky nonwoven fabric and process for making the same

Abstract

A stitch-woven fluffy nonwoven fabric and its manufacturing process are disclosed. This technology uses viscose fiber filaments and polyester silicone cotton as raw materials, and employs the following process: rollerless blending, where viscose fiber filaments and polyester silicone cotton are uniformly and thoroughly mixed; carding, where the fibers are carded using a double-cylinder double-doffer carding machine; clamping and web laying, where a high-speed clamping and web laying machine is used; and high-speed sewing, where a predetermined percentage of polyester filaments is stitched together for reinforcement, with a stitch spacing between 5.0 and 8.0 mm, forming the stitch-woven fabric. Compared with existing technologies, the advantages of this invention are: reduced raw material costs, improved oxygen index, better flame retardant effect, increased fabric fluffiness, softer fabric, simplified production process, increased fabric production speed, reduced equipment investment, reduced energy consumption during production, and reduced labor input.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This invention relates to the field of textile manufacturing, and in particular to an improved technique for stitching and weaving fluffy nonwoven fabrics. Background Technology

[0002] Stitch-woven fluffy nonwoven fabric (Lixin fabric) is a common fabric product widely used in mattresses, sofas, chairs, and other products, representing a very large-volume application. Currently, there are two main types of stitch-woven fluffy nonwoven fabric: flame-retardant needle-knitted cotton and flat-laid cotton. Flame-retardant needle-knitted cotton contains 80% flame-retardant viscose by weight, which, at current market prices, costs nearly 18,000 yuan per ton, making it expensive and costly. Its manufacturing process includes opening, blending, opening again, carding, web laying, needle punching, and pressing, involving numerous steps. The needle spacing is 2.0-2.5mm, and the production speed is only 3-6 meters per minute, resulting in low production efficiency. The production process of flat-laid cotton is largely similar to that of flame-retardant needle-knitted cotton, but after web laying, it requires drying and width adjustment in a tenter frame with an oven function. This equipment is large (8-12 meters long), expensive (around 2 million yuan per unit), and uses natural gas or steam for heating, resulting in high energy consumption. Therefore, the overall process cost is also high, and the production process is not environmentally friendly. In addition, the two types of stitched nonwoven fabrics mentioned above have low loft and poor hand comfort. Summary of the Invention

[0003] One objective of this invention is to provide a low-cost, high-loft stitch-woven nonwoven fabric. To achieve this objective, the invention employs the following solution: A stitched and woven fluffy nonwoven fabric includes a fiber layer formed by laying viscose fiber filaments and polyester silicone cotton, with reinforcing threads stitched onto the fiber layer.

[0004] As an optimization of the aforementioned solution, the stitch length of this reinforcing suture is between 5.0 and 8.0 mm.

[0005] As an optimization of the aforementioned scheme by the competitor, the flame-retardant fabric is composed of the following components by weight percentage: 68-79% viscose fiber, 17.5-29.8% polyester silicone cotton, and 1.5-3.5% polyester filament. The viscose fiber and polyester silicone cotton are laid together to form a fiber layer, and the polyester filament is sewn onto the fiber web layer.

[0006] As an optimization of the aforementioned scheme, the viscose fiber filament is a viscose fiber filament with a flame retardant layer on its surface.

[0007] As an optimization of the aforementioned solution, the thickness of this stitched, fluffy nonwoven fabric is between 3.5 and 5 mm.

[0008] As an optimization of the above scheme by the competitor, the specific specifications of each component are as follows: viscose fiber filament 1.5D-4D, length 38-90mm, polyester silicone cotton 3D-15D, length 51-90mm, and polyester filament 100D-150D.

[0009] Another objective of this invention is to provide a high-efficiency, low-energy-consumption process for manufacturing fluffy nonwoven fabrics using a stitch-knitting method. To achieve the above objective, this invention employs the following solution: A manufacturing process for a woven, fluffy nonwoven fabric, the specific process including: Rollerless blending: Viscose fiber filaments and polyester silicone cotton are mixed evenly and thoroughly. The fiber is combed using a double cylinder twin-doffer carding machine. The netting is clamped and laid using a high-speed clamping and laying machine, with a laying speed of [missing information]. High-speed sewing involves reinforcing a predetermined percentage of polyester filaments with stitch spacing between 5.0 and 8.0 mm to form a sewn-woven fabric.

[0010] As an optimization of the above-mentioned scheme by the competitor, after high-speed sewing, it also includes a flame retardant soaking step, a rolling mill step, and a drying step. The flame retardant soaking step involves immersing the product in hot water containing flame retardant for 10-20 seconds. The flame retardant content in the hot water is 10-50%, and the water temperature is 50-65 degrees Celsius.

[0011] As an optimization of the aforementioned scheme, the water content containing flame retardant after the rolling mill is 100%.

[0012] As an optimization of the aforementioned scheme by the competitor, the weight after drying increases by 8-15%.

[0013] Compared with the prior art, the beneficial effects of the present invention are: 1. The stitch-woven fluffy nonwoven fabric designed in this invention uses inexpensive viscose fiber filaments instead of the existing expensive flame-retardant viscose, which greatly reduces the cost of raw materials.

[0014] 2. The ordinary viscose fiber used in this invention has a flame retardant layer on its surface, which improves the oxygen index of the product and makes the product more flame retardant.

[0015] 3. Polyester silicone cotton was used, and the stitch spacing was set to 5-8mm, which improved the fluffiness of the fabric and made it softer.

[0016] 4. It simplifies the production process and increases the fabric production speed.

[0017] 5. The oven drying process in the existing product manufacturing process has been eliminated, reducing equipment investment and energy consumption during production.

[0018] 6. The simplified process reduces labor input. Detailed Implementation

[0019] To enable those skilled in the art to understand the technology of this application, the technology of this application will be described in detail below with reference to embodiments. Example

[0020] The stitch-woven fluffy nonwoven fabric disclosed in this embodiment can be widely used in products such as mattresses, sofas, and chairs. It includes a fiber layer formed by laying viscose fiber filaments and polyester silicone cotton, and reinforcing threads of polyester filaments stitched on the fiber layer. The stitch spacing of the reinforcing threads is between 5.0 and 8.0 mm.

[0021] In this embodiment, by weight percentage, the viscose fiber content is 74%, the polyester silicone cotton content is 24%, and the polyester filament content is 2%. The specific manufacturing process is as follows: Rollerless blending: A rollerless blending machine is used to thoroughly and evenly mix viscose fiber filaments and polyester silicone cotton. The fiber is combed using a double cylinder twin-doffer carding machine. The netting is laid using a high-speed clamping netting machine; High-speed sewing involves reinforcing a predetermined percentage of polyester filaments with stitch spacing between 5.0 and 8.0 mm to form a sewn-woven fabric.

[0022] In the above embodiment, the specific specifications of each component are as follows: viscose fiber filament 1.5D-4D, length can be 38-90mm, polyester silicone cotton 3D-15D, length can be 51-90mm, and polyester filament 100D-150D.

[0023] The stitch-woven nonwoven fabric formed using the above method can reach a thickness of 3.5-5mm and is more fluffy. Compared with existing technology products, for the same 200g weight, existing technology products can only reach a thickness of 1.3-1.4mm. It can be seen that the fluffiness of the technology in this application has been greatly improved.

[0024] Furthermore, the above solution is more cost-effective, especially since it uses inexpensive viscose fiber instead of the existing expensive flame-retardant viscose, which greatly reduces the cost of raw materials. According to the current market price, the price of flame-retardant viscose is about 17,300 yuan per ton, while the market price of viscose fiber used in this technology is about 13,000 yuan per ton, resulting in a significant price reduction.

[0025] Of course, to achieve better flame retardant performance for the product, viscose fiber filaments with a flame retardant layer on the surface could be used, although the cost reduction would be minimal. However, with viscose fiber filaments having a flame retardant layer, the product exhibits excellent flame retardant performance, with an oxygen index exceeding 26%, compared to the existing index of around 22%, demonstrating significantly better flame retardant performance.

[0026] This design extensively utilizes polyester silicone cotton material, and the stitch length is set to 5-8mm during the sewing process to further ensure the fabric's fluffiness and make it softer.

[0027] Compared to existing technologies, the above process is simpler and increases the fabric production speed. The current production speed of this type of fabric is only 30-55 meters / minute, while this solution can achieve 60-70 meters / minute.

[0028] Furthermore, compared to existing solutions, this application eliminates the oven drying process in the existing product manufacturing process, reducing equipment investment (the oven equipment costs approximately 2 million RMB, so this reduces equipment investment by at least 2 million RMB). The absence of an oven also lowers energy consumption during production (saving approximately 400 RMB per ton). The simplified process reduces the need for approximately four workers, thus also reducing labor costs. Example

[0029] After forming the stitch-woven fabric based on the above embodiments, to improve the flame-retardant effect, a flame-retardant soaking step, a rolling mill step, and a drying step can be performed. The flame-retardant soaking step involves immersing the product in hot water containing flame retardant (10-50% flame retardant content) at a temperature of 50-65 degrees Celsius for 10-20 seconds. The fabric containing flame retardant is then squeezed dry using a rolling mill to ensure 100% flame retardant content, guaranteeing the flame retardant concentration in the fabric. Finally, it is dried using ordinary drying equipment, resulting in an 8-15% increase in weight after drying.

[0030] To further illustrate the advantages of this technology, oxygen index and loft tests were conducted compared with existing similar products. The specific tests are as follows: Oxygen index test:

[0031] The test data above shows that the product with this solution has a better flame retardant effect.

[0032] Fluffiness test:

[0033] The test data above shows that the product with this solution is thicker, resulting in better fluffiness and a softer texture.

[0034] In the above embodiments, the content of each component can be other than the content used in the above embodiments. For example, the viscose fiber content can be any value between 68% and 79%, such as 68%, 76%, or 79%, etc.; the polyester silicone cotton content can be any value between 17.5% and 29.8%, such as 17.5%, 20%, or 29.8%, etc.; and the polyester filament content can be any value between 1.5% and 3.5%, such as 1.5%, 3%, or 3.5%.

[0035] The technical features of the above embodiments can be combined in any way. For the sake of brevity, not all possible combinations of the technical features in the above embodiments are described. However, as long as there is no contradiction in the combination of these technical features, they should be considered to be within the scope of this specification.

[0036] The above-described embodiments are merely preferred embodiments of the present invention, and while the descriptions are specific and detailed, they should not be construed as limiting the scope of the invention. It should be noted that those skilled in the art can make various modifications and improvements without departing from the concept of the present invention, and these modifications and improvements all fall within the scope of protection of the present invention.

Claims

1. A process for making a flame resistant stitch-bonded bulky nonwoven fabric, characterized by, include: A fiber layer is formed by laying viscose fiber filaments and polyester silicone cotton into a web. Reinforcing threads are sewn onto the fiber layer, with a stitch spacing of 5.0-8.0 mm. The components by weight percentage are: viscose fiber filaments 68-79%, polyester silicone cotton 17.5-29.8%, and polyester filaments 1.5-3.5%. The viscose fiber filaments and polyester silicone cotton web form the fiber layer, and the polyester filaments are sewn onto the fiber web layer. The resulting stitched, fluffy nonwoven fabric has a thickness of 3.5-5 mm. Specific processes include: Rollerless blending: Viscose fiber filaments and polyester silicone cotton are mixed evenly and thoroughly. The fiber is combed using a double cylinder twin-doffer carding machine. The netting is clamped and laid using a high-speed clamping netting machine; High-speed sewing involves reinforcing a predetermined percentage of polyester filaments with stitch spacing between 5.0 and 8.0 mm to form a stitch-woven fabric. The flame retardant soaking step involves immersing the product in hot water containing flame retardant for 10-20 seconds. The flame retardant content in the hot water is 10-50%, and the water temperature is 50-65 degrees Celsius. After the rolling mill process, the water content containing flame retardant is 100%. The drying process increases the weight by 8-15%.

2. A stitch-bonded bulky nonwoven fabric produced by the production process according to claim 1, characterized in that It includes a fiber layer formed by laying viscose fiber filaments and polyester silicone cotton, with reinforcing threads sewn onto the fiber layer; The stitch length of the reinforcing suture is between 5.0 and 8.0 mm; According to weight percentage, the nonwoven fabric is composed of: 68-79% viscose fiber, 17.5-29.8% polyester silicone cotton, and 1.5-3.5% polyester filament. The viscose fiber and polyester silicone cotton are laid together to form a fiber layer, and the polyester filament is sewn onto the fiber web layer. The thickness of this stitched, fluffy nonwoven fabric is between 3.5 and 5 mm.

3. The stitch-bonded bulky nonwoven fabric according to claim 2, wherein The viscose fiber filaments are viscose fiber filaments with a flame retardant layer on the surface.

4. The stitch-bonded bulky nonwoven fabric according to claim 2, wherein The specific specifications of each component are as follows: viscose fiber filament 1.5D-4D, length 38-90mm; polyester silicone cotton 3D-15D, length 51-90mm; polyester filament 100D-150D.

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