Fiber Nonwoven Fabrics Research Articles

Effect of Hot-Pressing Process on Mechanical Properties of UHMWPE Fiber Non-Woven Fabrics.

In order to investigate the influence of a hot-pressing process on the mechanical properties of ultra-high molecular weight polyethylene (UHMWPE) fiber non-woven fabrics with stretch and in-plane shear, UHMWPE non-woven fabric samples were prepared by adjusting the temperature, time, and pressure of the hot-pressing process, and mechanical property tests were carried out so as to clarify the influence of the hot-pressing process on the mechanical properties of the samples. The results show that the hot-pressing process mainly affects the silk-glue bonding strength of the samples; in the test range, with the increase in hot-pressing temperature and time, the tensile strength and in-plane shear strength of the samples increase and then decrease, and the best mechanical properties are obtained at 130 °C and 7 min of hot pressing, respectively; at 130 °C, the in-plane shear strength is 39.94 MPa and the tensile strength is 595.43 MPa; at 7 min, the in-plane shear strength is 63.0 MPa and the tensile strength is 643.30 MPa; with the increase in the hot-pressing pressure, the in-plane shear strength of the samples increases and then decreases, and the highest is 52.60 MPa, achieved at 8 MPa; in the range of 5-8 MPa, the tensile strength of the specimens did not change significantly, and increased significantly at 9 MPa, reaching a maximum strength of 674.55 MPa.

Single-wall carbon nanotube fiber non-woven fabrics with a high electrothermal heating response

Single-wall carbon nanotube fiber non-woven fabrics with a high electrothermal heating response

Freestanding, flexible and interfused V2O5 nanowire/rGO composite fiber nonwoven fabric for high-capacity binder-free aqueous zinc-ion batteries

Aqueous zinc-ion batteries (ZIBs) have emerged as a promising alternative to traditional lithium-ion batteries due to their high safety, environmental friendliness, and cost-effectiveness, as well as their high theoretical capacity. However, developing freestanding cathodes with excellent electrochemical performance, including high specific capacity and energy density, still faces significant challenges. Herein, we present a freestanding, flexible, and interfused V2O5 nanowire/reduced graphene oxide (rGO) composite fiber nonwoven fabric for the cathode of aqueous ZIBs via a novel wet-spinning and wet-fusing assembly strategy. The resulting V2O5 nanowire/rGO composite fiber nonwoven fabric can be directly utilized as the cathode for aqueous ZIBs, demonstrating outstanding electrochemical performance, including high specific capacity (402.5 mAh g−1 at 0.1 A g−1), energy density (286.3 Wh kg−1 at 71.4 W kg−1), excellent rate capability, and long cycling life (4000 cycles). This study provides new insights into the development of high-performance flexible freestanding electrode materials for ZIBs

Predictive model of sound propagation in porous materials: Quantification of fiber nonwoven fabric by material density and fiber diameter

Predictive model of sound propagation in porous materials: Quantification of fiber nonwoven fabric by material density and fiber diameter

Oxidation resistance improvement of carbon fiber nonwoven fabrics through SiC coating technology

The oxidation resistance of carbon fiber (CF) was enhanced by SiC coating layer. A hybrid sol–gel approach and chemical vapor reaction (CVR) were utilized to produce coating layer. SiO2 was applied to the CF surface, after which SiOx and SiH4 vapor were added via CVR method to intensify SiC formation and bonding. Interfacial bonding was further reinforced by the addition of graphene oxide (GO) prior to heat treatment. Three different samples were generated, and the gas liberated upon conversion to SiC was evaluated to determine relationships with microstructure. The amount of gas released differed depending on the chemical used in the sol–gel, and the mechanism of SiC formation under different conditions was also distinct. The results of a flame test indicated approximately 20% improvement in oxidation resistance compared to CF. The proposed SiC coating can circumvent the restricted process method that necessitates specialized equipment to manufacture high-quality CF with improved oxidation resistance.

C-shaped porous polypropylene fibers for rapid oil absorption and effective on-line oil spillage monitoring

Development of efficient absorbent materials for detection and treatment of offshore oil spillages remained a challenge. In this work, C-shaped polypropylene oil-absorbent fibers with sub-micron internal pores were prepared by combining spun-bonding technique and thermally induced phase separation (TIPS). The effect of drawing speed on the phase separation and the porous morphology of the shaped fiber non-woven fabric (NWF) was investigated. C-shaped NWF with porous morphology had large water contact angle, higher porosity, larger specific surface area, and increased oil absorption speed and capacity. An online oil spillage detection system was developed using porous C-shaped NWF and an oxygen sensing probe, showing shorter response time and higher signal-to-noise (STN) ratio. The response time for detecting the spillage of soybean oil and diluted crude oil (0.5 mL/0.8 L) in water were only 24 s and 10 s, respectively. The reliable oil detection low detection limit (RLDL) of the oxygen sensing probe was reduced 173 times (from 36.5 g/L to 0.21 g/L) when combined with C-shaped porous fiber NWF.

Construction Sheets Made of High-Performance Flame-Retardant Nonwoven Fabrics and Combustion-Resistant Polyurethane Foam: Preparation Process and Property Evaluations

In this study, nonwoven fabrics, rigid polyurethane foam (RPUF), Basalt woven fabrics, and an aluminum foil film mold are used to produce multi-functional composite sheets with flame-retardant, sound-absorbing, and electromagnetic-shielding functions. The nonwoven layer is composed of Nomex fibers, flame-retardant PET fibers, and low-melting-point (LMPET) fibers via the needle rolling process. The optimal Nomex fiber/flame-retardant PET fiber/LMPET fiber (N/F/L) nonwoven fabrics are then combined with rigid polyurethane (PU) foam, Basalt woven fabric, and an aluminum foil film mold, thereby producing nonwoven/rigid polyurethane foam/Basalt woven fabric composite sheets that are wrapped in the aluminized foil film. The test results indicate that formed with a foaming density of 60 kg/m3 and 10 wt% of a flame retardant, the composite sheets exhibit electromagnetic interference shielding efficacy (EMI SE) that exceeds 40 dB and limiting oxygen index (LOI) that is greater than 26. The efficient and highly reproducible experimental design proposed in this study can produce multifunctional composite sheets that feature excellent combustion resistance, sound absorption, and EMI SE and are suitable for use in the transportation, industrial factories, and building wall fields.

Fire-retardant and electrocatalytic performance of N, P-graphene fiber nonwoven fabrics

Fire-retardant and electrocatalytic performance of N, P-graphene fiber nonwoven fabrics

Sound Absorbing Panels from Poly(lactic acid) Non-woven Fabric and Natural Fibers

This research studied the utilization of biodegradable polymer for nonwoven fabric production and applied to fabricate a sound absorbing panel by corporate with natural fiber nonwoven fabric. PLA was used as a biodegradable polymer and hemp nonwoven was used as a natural fiber nonwoven fabric. PLA nonwoven fabric was prepared using a melt jet spinning process. The spinning process was carried out at 250 and 260°C with screw speed of 10 rpm and air blown pressure of 0.3 and 0.5 MPa. The die-to-collector of fabric production was studied at 30 and 60 cm to compare the nonwoven fabric product property. It was found that the process temperature, air pressure and die-to-collector distance have significant effects on the nonwoven fabric thickness, GSM, and fabric density. Air permeability decreased with high fabric thickness as well as fine fibers which supported the property of sound absorbing panels. Therefore, the suitable conditions for sound absorbing panel fabrication were processed at temperature of 260°C, air pressure 0.5 MPa and die-to-collector distance of 60 cm. Sound absorbing coefficient measurement revealed that GSM fabric thickness had an effect on increasing sound absorption. The effect of nonwoven sheet order and arrangement of PLA nonwoven and hemp nonwoven of 3 layers sandwich indicated that the layers order of PLA/PLA/Hemp had high sound absorbing coefficient that was comparable with PLA/PLA/PLA due to fiber size and arrangement.

Regulation of dielectric and microwave absorption properties of needle-punched polyimide/carbon fiber nonwoven composites in X-band

The application of nonwoven fabrics in the field of microwave absorption is becoming more and more extensive because of its advantages of light weight, short manufacturing process and strong designability. In this article, polyimide and carbon fiber (PI/CF) nonwoven fabrics were prepared by needle punching process, and then they were immersed in water-based polyurethane (WPU) solution containing different contents of short carbon fiber (SCF, 0–3 mm) to prepare a series of PI/CF/WPU composites. As could be seen from the microscopic morphology that the materials were well impregnated by WPU, and the prepared composites had dense structures. The tensile strength and elongation at break of pure WPU were 13.4 MPa and 161.9%, respectively. The addition of 2 wt.% SCFs in WPU increased the tensile strength to 14.4 MPa by 7.4%, while the addition of 5 wt.% SCFs decreased the tensile strength by 8.2%. Adding 2 wt.% and 5 wt.% SCFs to WPU had little effect on improving the dielectric of pure WPU. But when the PI/CF nonwoven fabrics were added, the dielectric properties of the material greatly improved. The real and imaginary parts of the PI/CF/WPU were 20.2 and 9.5 at 8.2 GHz without SCF addition, 30.4 and 15.7 with 2 wt.% SCFs addition, and 47.2 and 182.8 with 5 wt.% SCFs addition. For PI/CF/WPU without SCF, the reflectivity in the entire X-band was lower than −10 dB in the thickness of 2–2.2 mm. When the thickness was 2.2 mm, the reflectivity reached the minimum value of −25 dB at 12.4 GHz.

High-strength and anti-bacterial BSA/carboxymethyl chitosan/silver nanoparticles/calcium alginate composite hydrogel membrane for efficient dye/salt separation

In order to solve the problems of poor mechanical property, non-antibacterial and low flux of calcium alginate (CaAlg) membrane, silver nanoparticles (AgNPs) were synthesized with bovine serum albumin (BSA) and carboxymethyl chitosan (CMCS) for improving CaAlg membrane in this paper. Meanwhile, the dispersion property of silver nanoparticles and the mechanical property, thermal stability, antibacterial property and filtration efficiency of the composite membrane were explored. The results illustrated CMCS observably strengthened the mechanical property and thermal stability of the composite membrane, and AgNPs endowed the composite membrane with excellent antibacterial property. The flux of the BSA/CMCS/AgNPs/CaAlg composite membrane was raised compared to CaAlg membrane. Finally, the viscose fiber/polyethylene terephthalate fiber (VF-PET) nonwoven fabric was introduced as the support layer to further improve the filtration flux and mechanical property of the composite membrane. VF-PET/BSA/CMCS/AgNPs/CaAlg membrane had a rejection rate of over 99.0 % for dye molecules and <9.0 % for salt ions, while the flux maintained 38.5 L·m−2·h−1. Furthermore, VF-PET/BSA/CMCS/AgNPs/CaAlg membrane also had excellent separation effect on actual dye wastewater. The separation of dye and salt by the membrane mainly depended on the screening mechanism of membrane pore size, rather than adsorption. The composite membrane had an outstanding performance on the separation of dye molecules and inorganic salt ions.

Development of Ceramic and Glass Fiber Needle-Punched Nonwoven Fabrics Part I: An Optimization

Abstract The study on the performance of areal density of web, needle punching density, and needle depth of penetration, particularly, the combination of glass and ceramic fiber nonwoven fabrics over the mechanical, thermal, and filtration properties were studied with the Box-Behnken experimental design. For the requirement of filtration behavior, three sets of samples with varying glass fiber areal densities of 250, 300, and 350g/m2 were taken and added with ceramic fibers to achieve sandwich-blend nonwoven materials of 60/40, 50/50, and 40/60 ratios. Then, the processing variables were taken as needle punch density and needle depth of penetration, and three optimized samples were predicted using the Box-Behnken experimental design based on the filtration efficiency of the exhaust along with their mechanical and thermal properties. It is also found that there was significant influence on the properties by the variables taken for the product development for the filters. It was found that there was a significant increase in the tensile properties in the optimized samples, and it was found that the results taken for the optimization process were unaltered.

Effect of the Carding Process and Reinforcement Method of Carbon Fiber/Polypropylene Fiber Nonwoven Fabrics on the Anisotropic Mechanical Properties of Hot-Pressed Composites

In this work, nonwoven fabrics made from carbon fibers (CFs) and polypropylene (PP) fibers were manufactured through a carding process and a cross-laying process and reinforced by either a needle punching method or a thermobonding method. The effects of the carding parameters (adding oil, increasing the gauge and decelerating the speed) and reinforcement method (needle punching method or thermobonding method) on the anisotropic mechanical properties of hot-pressed CF/PP composites were investigated. Additionally, the length, distribution and orientation of carbon fibers in the hot-pressed composites were studied. The carbon fibers were oriented by the carding method, and the composites exhibited anisotropic properties. Moreover, the fiber distribution results indicated that increasing the gauge and decelerating the speed had a slightly negative influence on the distribution of carbon fibers and that the cross-laying process led to a uniform distribution of fibers. Furthermore, adjusting the carding parameters and reinforcement method could reduce the damage sustained by carbon fibers during manufacturing and subsequently improve the mechanical properties of the CF/PP composites in the transverse direction (TD).

Sound absorption properties for multi-layer of composite materials using nonwoven fabrics with kapok

Kapok fiber with high degree of hollow and small fiber diameter has excellent sound absorption. To optimize the sound absorption characters at the low frequency, sound absorption coefficients and specific surface impedance of two-layer, three-layer, and four-layer materials as polyethylene film-reinforced kapok fiber nonwoven fabrics have been studied by using the impedance tube method in the frequency range of 100–2500 Hz. The layering sequence, the polyethylene films thickness, and the gradient thickness structure of nonwoven fabrics affected the sound absorption properties at the low frequency for multi-layer materials that have been analyzed. The results show that the multi-layer composite materials have better sound absorption than a single-layer nonwoven fabrics at the low frequency. The elastic vibration of polyethylene film contributes to sound absorption improvement at the low frequency. The sound absorption at the low frequency of multi-layer materials can be further improved by changing polyethylene film position or increasing polyethylene film thickness. In addition, the gradient thickness structure of nonwoven fabrics can effectively improve sound absorption at the low frequency, and the gradient change direction also exhibits remarkable effects on the sound absorption of multi-layer materials.

Integration of rCF in resin transfer pressing process

A new composite manufacturing process, resin transfer pressing, is introduced in this paper. In this process, nonwoven fabrics made of recycled carbon fibers are oversaturated with thermoset resin, i.e. they contain excess resin. The oversaturated nonwoven fabrics are prefabricated and used as resin carrier in a press process, where they are placed in a heated mold together with a dry textile-based preform. During pressing, the resin is pressed out and transferred from the nonwoven into the non-impregnated preform and hence impregnates the whole reinforcement. This study examines the oversaturation of nonwoven fabrics, the resin transfer pressing laminate manufacturing and the surface quality of the laminates. The ability of a nonwoven fabric to be oversaturated with resin is defined by the saturation degree, which was determined as up to 12 for glass fiber nonwoven fabrics and up to 60 for recycled carbon fiber nonwoven fabrics. Different laminates are manufactured by resin transfer pressing, and the impregnation quality is evaluated. With an optimized stacking sequence, a pore content &lt;1% was achieved. The use of recycled carbon fiber nonwovens in the resin transfer pressing process leads to a less wavy surface compared to a wet compression molding manufactured laminate, showing a decrease of waviness Wz25 of 11% minimum.

Distribution of fiber intersections in two-dimensional random fiber web cases with a mixture of two fiber lengths

The statistical distribution of the number of fiber intersections in a unit area is of great importance in determining the physical and mechanical properties of random fiber webs and the products produced. The distribution of the number of fiber intersections determines the non-uniformity of the basis weight and can be used in designing optimal control strategies relating to such physical properties as strength, elongation, air/water permeability, acoustics and filtering efficiencies of fiber webs and nonwoven fabrics. This paper developed a geometrical and probabilistic model for the number of fiber intersections in two-dimensional random fiber webs, where two distinct fiber lengths are mixed at varying ratios. This work is an extension of a previously derived paper where the model assumed that all fiber lengths are equal. Here, we present a geometrical probabilistic model, theories for deriving expectations and variances of the number of intersections in random fiber webs. The model and statistical parameters are validated through an extensive computer simulation study.

Ferroconcrete-inspired design of a nonwoven graphene fiber fabric reinforced electrode for flexible fast-charging sodium ion storage devices

Ferroconcrete-inspired graphene fiber nonwoven fabrics integrated with multi-functionalities for use as free-standing anodes/cathodes give superior performances as flexible sodium ion capacitors.

Preparation and characterization of composite fibrous membranes for oil spill cleanup

In this study, polyacrylonitrile (PAN) electrospun fibrous membranes were manufactured and applied for oil spill cleanup. Two kinds of composite fibrous membranes composed of PAN electrospun fibrous membranes and polyethylene/polyethylene terephthalate (PE/PET) core-shell fiber nonwoven fabric were fabricated. The fibrous structure, mechanical properties and surface wettability for water and oil, as well as oil absorption capacities and dynamic oil retention of the membranes, were investigated in detail. The addition of nonwoven fabric significantly enhanced the tensile strength of the PAN fibrous membranes. The oil absorption mechanisms of different membranes were studied as well. The sandwich structure composite fibrous membranes exhibited excellent mechanical property and oil absorption capacity, making it a promising candidate for treatment of oily wastewater.

Preparation and properties of antibacterial and mite-resistant TCM/PNA blend fiber

The acrylic fiber with antibacterial and mite-resistant function is prepared by wet spinning method by adding the extracts of LC with antibacterial function and the HX extract with the function of anti-mite to PAN (polyacrylonitrile) spinning liquid, and its morphological structure, basic properties of antibacterial and mite-resistant performance were tested. The results show that compared with pure PAN fiber, the fracture strength and elongation of the blend fiber of traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) / PAN decreased slightly with the addition of plant extract, and the thermal stability is improved. The inhibitory rate of the quantitative test is 93.83%; the removal rate of mites by TCM/PAN blend fiber non-woven fabrics is 83.21%, which had strong effect of preventing mites.

Design and characterization of flame resistant blended nondrip PA6/Lenzing FR®/PBI fiber nonwoven fabrics

AbstractIn current thermal protective clothing systems, maximizing the personal protection performance against fire and heat is in great demand. Additionally, minimizing the manufacturing cost by using low-cost materials is also a critical factor. In previous studies [1–3], a new type of low-cost inherently flame resistant (FR) non-drip Polyamide 6 (PA6) nanocomposite fiber was developed. In this paper, this FR non-drip PA6 fiber was tested in blends with two commercially available inherently FR fibers to form FR nonwoven fabrics. Different formulations of varying blending ratios were processed into nonwoven fabrics. The fiber morphology was observed by Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM). The fabric flammability and combustion properties were characterized using a Microscale Combustion Calorimeter (MCC), and a vertical flame tester, as well as Thermogravimetric Analysis (TGA). Tensile tests were conducted to characterize mechanical properties of these FR nonwoven fabrics. The water vapor permeability test was also performed to measure the wearability of the fabric. Results of several nonwoven blends were compared to find the one with optimum blend ratio which has the potential to be used as low-cost thermal protective fabric.