Design and facile manufacturing of tri-layer laminated polyolefin microfibrous fabrics with tailoring pore size for enhancing waterproof breathable performance

Abstract

Polyolefin functional textiles consisting of micron-nanoscale fibers effectively protect vulnerable things in many applications, however, uniformed micron-scale fiber diameter and uncontrollable pore size cause compromised strength and waterproof breathable performance. In this work, a tri-layer laminated polyolefin composite fabric consisting of polypropylene (PP) microfibrous webs and polypropylene/polyethylene (PP/PE) fibrous webs is successfully designed and manufactured by a thermal bonding composited process. At the bonding pressure from 0.05 to 0.45 MPa, the samples exhibit a smooth surface (roughness of 11.5 μm), dense laminated structure (porosity of 78.8 %), and tunable modal pore size ranged 9.36 to 3.3 μm. Specifically, an excellent filtration efficiency of 99.11 %, large waterproof breathable performance—hydrostatic pressure of 35.9 kPa, water vapor transmission of 1890 g/m2*24 h, and high strength—tensile strength of 175.33 N in the machine direction and 68.28 N in cross direction is achieved. The developed tri-layer laminated polyolefin composite fabrics also showed acceptable writing and printing quality, suggesting to be a favorable contender for application in food packaging, personal protection, and power-saving building.