Fibrous elements comprising fast wetting surfactants
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Solution Overview
Problem
Fibrous elements produced from aqueous polymer melt compositions often exhibit poor tensile properties due to inadequate water removal during spinning, leading to excessive bonding and larger average diameters, which is economically and energetically infeasible to address with increased drying air.
Innovation Solution
Incorporating a fast wetting surfactant into the aqueous polymer melt composition to enhance water removal from fibrous elements without increasing drying air usage, thereby improving tensile properties and reducing average diameters.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Quantity of substance
If larger amounts of drying air are used to remove water from fibrous elements, then water removal effectiveness is improved, but energy consumption and production cost increase significantly
Solution Approach 1:
The patent changes the chemical composition parameter of the polymer melt by incorporating surfactants, which modify the surface properties of the fibrous elements. This enables more effective water removal at lower drying air volumes, resolving the contradiction between water removal effectiveness and energy consumption
Solution Approach 2:
The surfactant acts as an intermediary substance that facilitates water removal from the fibrous elements. It mediates between the water molecules and the drying air, enabling more efficient evaporation without requiring proportionally increased energy input
2Ease of manufacture
If water is not effectively removed from fibrous elements during formation, then production process is simpler, but tensile properties deteriorate due to excessive bonding
Solution Approach 1:
The surfactant is incorporated into the polymer melt before spinning, performing preliminary action to prevent excessive water retention. This preliminary modification of the melt composition ensures that water will be effectively removed during drying, preventing excessive bonding while maintaining production simplicity
Solution Approach 2:
The surfactant serves as an intermediary that prevents direct harmful interaction between water and the fibrous element matrix. By mediating the water-fiber interaction, it prevents excessive bonding that would deteriorate tensile properties, while allowing the drying process to proceed effectively
3Quantity of substance
If water is not effectively removed from fibrous elements, then production cost is reduced, but average diameter increases impacting fibrous structure properties
Solution Approach 1:
The patent modifies the chemical parameters of the polymer melt composition by adding surfactants, which change the physical parameters of the resulting fibrous elements. This enables effective water removal that controls the average diameter, preventing the diameter increase that would occur with inadequate drying, while avoiding the high costs associated with aggressive drying processes
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
The use of fast wetting surfactants effectively removes water from fibrous elements, enhancing their tensile properties and reducing average diameters, resulting in improved fibrous structures with increased fail stretch, total dry tensile, and total energy absorbed without the need for increased drying air.
Implementation Method 1
incorporating a fast wetting surfactant into the aqueous polymer melt composition such that the water from the fibrous elements formed from the aqueous polymer melt composition is more effectively removed
Implementation Method 2
hot drying air is used to remove water from the aqueous polymer melt compositions during spinning
Data Source
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AI summary
Fibrous elements, such as filaments and/or fibers, and more particularly to fibrous elements that contain a fast wetting surfactant, fibrous structures made therefrom, and methods for making same are provided.