Instrumentation for Measuring the Wet Frictional Property of Sanitary Pads

Abstract

Women wear sanitary pad for whole day during their menstruation period. They have direct skin contact with it even for sleeping and exercising. The presence of sweat and menstrual blood increases the moisture level and the adhesion of liquid to textile causing sensorial discomfort. This study describes the design and uses of modified Textile Stickiness Measurement System (TSMS) which can characterize the frictional properties of sanitary pads under both dry and wet conditions. The uniqueness of this measurement system is that the wetness level of the pad is adjustable and the surface profile of the contacting object (i.e. Lorica®Soft) does simulate the condition of human skin. Also, it does not have restriction on the type of sanitary pad that can be tested. Among the 12 sanitary pads tested (disposable and reusable types), the frictional force for the disposable sanitary pads is lower than the reusable pads whilst the performance of disposable sanitary pads with nonwoven surface is lower than the one with perforated surface. These can attribute to their liquid transport property and surface feature. For those with better liquid transport property, less water will stay on skin surface and so the adhesion between skin and textiles is lower. For those with protruding fibers on its surface, it reduced the contact area and so the frictional force is lower.