PET Melt Blown Nonwoven Fabric Thermostability and Texture Control
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Solution Overview
Problem
Polyethylene terephthalate (PET) resin-based melt blown nonwoven fabrics have low thermostability and strength due to slow crystallization, leading to excessive heat shrinkage and hard texture, limiting their application at high temperatures.
Innovation Solution
A melt blowing method and apparatus that includes a heating zone to promote crystallization and pseudo-drawing of PET fibers, followed by an air gap zone to maintain soft texture and enhance thermostability, allowing for the production of PET-series nonwoven fabrics with improved heat resistance and texture.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If PET resin is used for melt blown nonwoven fabric, then versatility is improved, but thermostability deteriorates due to low crystallization speed
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies preliminary action by introducing a heating zone before the collecting surface to promote crystallization of PET fibers during the melt blowing process itself. This preliminary crystallization action prevents excessive heat shrinkage later, resolving the thermostability issue while maintaining PET's versatility
2Reliability
If dry heat treatment is applied to improve thermostability, then surface shrinkage ratio is reduced, but texture becomes hard
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts the heat treatment step from the post-processing stage and integrates it into the melt blowing process itself through a heating zone. This eliminates the need for separate dry heat treatment that causes hardening, while still achieving thermostability through in-process crystallization
Solution Approach 2:
The patent introduces an air gap zone as an intermediary between the heating zone and the collecting surface. This air gap allows fibers to cool and maintain soft texture after crystallization in the heating zone, preventing the hardening effect while preserving thermostability
3Reliability
If heating zone is provided to promote crystallization, then thermostability is improved, but soft texture is deteriorated
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments the melt blowing process into distinct zones: a heating zone for crystallization, an air gap zone for cooling and texture maintenance, and a collecting surface. This segmentation allows crystallization without hardening by separating the heating function from the final fiber deposition
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 method produces PET-series nonwoven fabrics with reduced surface shrinkage at 200°C and soft texture, achieving excellent thermostability and maintaining fabric strength, enabling higher temperature processing and improved molding efficiency.
Implementation Method 1
provide a heating zone, following melt blowing spinning, so as to promote crystallization of PET molecules
Implementation Method 2
by providing an air gap zone having a predetermined range where fiber materials travel with accompanying jet following the heating zone
Data Source
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AI summary
Provided are a melt blown (MB) nonwoven fabric, a laminate using the same, a method of producing a melt blown nonwoven fabric as well as a melt blowing apparatus. A melt blowing apparatus 100 includes a die 10 configured to discharge a resin melt 42 with an accompanying jet to give fiber materials, a hollow cover 20, and a collector 60. The fiber materials 50 from the die 10 are heated to a temperature equal to or higher than a crystallization temperature of the crystalline thermoplastic resin inside the hollow cover 20 and collected on a collecting surface 62 of the collector 60. The hollow cover 20 and the collector 60 are separated by a distance of 5 cm or longer between a lower edge 28 of the hollow cover 20 and the collecting surface 62 in a line extending downwardly from the nozzle holes 12 in a vertical direction.