|
What Are
Non-wovens?
"Non-woven fabrics are
fiberous sheet or web structures produced by bonding or interlocking
fibers by mechanical, thermal or chemical means."
Non-woven products most
familiar to the consumer are: disposable diapers, towels, and scrub pads.
Less well known since they are less visible are non-wovens used as
quilting pads inside bedspreads, draperies, ski parkas, sleeping bags, and
upholstered furniture. Further materials of non-woven construction are
used extensively by manufacturers in the form of gaskets, air and water
filters, and most recently in road construction. In fact the list of
products is endless and grows constantly as non-wovens take over markets
formerly dominated by felts and woven goods.
A History of
Non-Wovens
In the 19th century, (when England was the leading
textile producing country), realizing that large amounts of fiber were
wasted as trim, a textile engineer named Garnett developed a special
carding device to shred this waste material back to fiberous form. This
fiber was used as filling material for pillows. The Garnett Machine,
though greatly modified, today still retains his name and is a major
component in the non-woven industry.
Later on, manufacturers in Northern England began
binding these fibers mechanically (using needles) and chemically (using
glue) into batts. These were the precursors of today's non-wovens.
This art remained the same into the middle of the
20th century and patents as late as the 1930's depict such batts specially
made to insulate railroad box cars in the U.S.
Now in the 21st century, though some fillings and
paddings are still made as they were in England almost 2 centuries ago,
non-wovens have progressed beyond Garnett's dreams. Non-woven fabric was
used between the Space Shuttle Discovery's heat resistant tiles and
the spaceship's skin and non-wovens were part of the space suits worn to
the moon. The limits to the use of non-wovens remains only in the
imagination of man, and new innovations are developed on a steady basis.
|
