Essity Hygiene and Health Aktiebolag

Sca Hygiene Products Ab

Arie Venema

Gaatze Wijbenga

Mikael Strandqvist

Hannu Ahoniemi

Agneta Jonsson

Mikael Standqvist

A process and an apparatus for producing nonwoven materials are disclosed. The process includes the following steps:

Process and apparatus for wetlaying nonwovens

A process for producing nonwoven materials is provided. The process includes: providing a three-phase (gas-liquid-solid) suspension, providing a first moving carrier sieve, applying the three-phase suspension onto the first moving carrier sieve to produce a fibrous web, removing aqueous residue of the three-phase suspension through the first carrier sieve, recycling the aqueous residue, pre-integrating the fibrous web by flushing the web with water and collecting flushed water, transferring the pre-integrated fibrous web from the first moving carrier sieve to a second moving carrier sieve, and hydroentangling the fibrous web. The three-phase suspension contains natural and/or manmade fibres, a surfactant, and air.

Process for producing nonwoven

A process and an apparatus for producing nonwoven materials are disclosed. The process comprises the following steps: a) providing a three-phase (gas-liquid-solid) suspension containing air, water, fibrous material and a surfactant, b) depositing the suspension onto a moving carrier sieve to produce a fibrous web on the carrier, c) removing aqueous residue of the suspension through the carrier sieve, d) conveying the aqueous residue through one or more phase separation tanks in an essentially horizontal direction while providing a depressurised headspace above the aqueous residue, e) recycling the aqueous residue conveyed in step d) to step a), f) preferably pre-integrating the fibrous web.

A method of producing a nonwoven material by hydroentangling a fiber mixture containing spunlaid filaments, natural fibers and synthetic staple fibers, wherein a first fibrous web () of natural fibers and at least 10% by fiber weight manmade staple fibers is wetlaid and hydroentangled in a first hydroentangling station (), spunlaid filaments () are laid on top of the hydroentangled first fibrous web () and a second fibrous web () including natural fibers is wetlaid on top of said spunlaid filaments (). The second fibrous web () is hydroentangled together with the spunlaid filaments () in a second hydroentangling station () and the combined webs are reversed and the first fibrous web () of natural fibers and manmade staple fiber is hydreoentagled together with the spunlaid filaments () in a third hydroentangling station ().

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Suameer, Netherlands

Arie Venema