Hills, Inc.

Reifenhäuser Gmbh & Co. Maschinenfabrik

Other

Honeywell International Inc.

Basf Corporation

Fiber Innovation Technology, Inc.

Arnold E Wilkie

Arthur Talley, Jr

Jeffrey S Haggard

James E Brang

Jeff S Haggard

Jeffrey Scott Dugan

Hermann Balk

William H Hills

Karl H Buchanan

Frank O Harris

Angel Antonio De La Hoz

Jing-Peir Yu

Mark R Miller

Brian Johnston

Hans-Georg Geus

Hans Georg Geus

Tony Owen

Fumin Lu

Michael W Felber

W Scott Harris

William R Baker

Kevin Moschetti

Ben F Shuler

Brent Soucier

Ted Mire

John Quinlivan

Ruey Chern

Jerry Taylor

John Hagewood

Jeffrey Haggard

An apparatus for producing polymeric nanofibers utilizes a meltblown spinneret die having spin holes formed by grooves in plate(s) surface(s) of plate(s) where polymer exits at the plate(s) edge(s). The grooves are smaller than 0.005&#x2033; wide&#xd7;0.004&#x2033; deep and have an L/D at least as large as 20:1. Flow rates of polymer through the apparatus are very low, on the order of 0.01 ghm or less. A meltblown fabric having fibers mostly less than 0.5 microns in diameter is produced.

Method and apparatus for production of meltblown nanofibers

A continuous filament spun-laid web includes a plurality of polymer fibers within the web, the web having a first thickness and the web being free of any thermal or mechanical bonding treatment. Activation of the web results in at least one of an increase from the first thickness prior to activation to a second thickness post activation in which the second thickness is at least about two times greater than the first thickness, a decrease in density of the web post activation in relation to a density of the web prior to activation, the web being configured to withstand an elastic elongation from about 10% to about 350% in at least one of a machine direction (MD) of the web and a cross-direction (CD) of the web, and the web having a tensile strength from about 50 gram-force/cmto about 5000 gram-force/cm.

Method of forming a continuous filament spun-laid web

A spunbond system for manufacturing a non-woven web of fibers includes a spin beam assembly configured to process and deliver a plurality of polymer streams for extrusion through spinneret orifices. The spin beam assembly includes a plurality of manifold sections within the spin beam assembly, each manifold section including a distribution pipe configured to transfer a respective polymer component to a plurality of piping sections extending within the manifold section and a heat transfer medium that flows within the manifold section and around the piping sections extending into the manifold section so as to maintain the respective polymer component at a selected temperature. The system further includes a quenching zone configured to receive and quench extruded filaments from the spinneret orifices, a drawing unit in communication with the quenching zone and configured to receive and attenuate the quenched filaments, and a forming surface configured to receive drawn filaments emerging from the drawing unit and form a non-woven fibrous web on the forming surface.

Method and apparatus for producing polymer fibers and fabrics including multiple polymer components

Nonwoven fibrous webs are formed including a first group and a second group of fibers, where fibers of the first group are imparted with a degree of shrinkage that differs from a degree of shrinkage imparted to fibers in the second group. During or after bonding of the web, the web may be subjected to heat treatment causing fibers in one of the groups to shrink a greater amount in comparison to fibers in the other group, resulting in nonwoven products with desired textures and other physical characteristics.

Production of nonwoven fibrous webs including fibers with varying degrees of shrinkage

A nonwoven web product including ultra-fine fibers is formed utilizing a spunbond apparatus that forms multicomponent fibers by delivering first and second polymer components in a molten state from a spin pack to a spinneret, extruding multicomponent fibers including the first and second polymer components from the spinneret, attenuating the mulicomponent fibers in an aspirator, laying down the multicomponent fibers on an elongated forming surface disposed downstream from the aspirator to form a nonwoven web, and bonding portions of at least some of the fibers in the nonwoven web together to form a bonded, nonwoven web product. The multicomponent fibers can include separable segments such as islands-in-the-sea fibers, where certain separated segments become the ultra-fine fibers in the web product. In addition, carbon tubular fibers can be formed by extruding island-in-the-sea fibers including polyacrylonitrile or pitch sheath segments in the fibers, separating the segments of the fiber, and converting the polyacrylonitrile of pitch to carbon by a carbonization process.

Methods of forming ultra-fine fibers and non-woven webs

A packer for downhole use features interacting elements of swelling material. Preferably the elements are in contact for relative movement from an initial diameter for run in. As the elements swell, they move with respect to each other to enlarge the diameter of the assembly so that a sealing contact is made. Each element exerts a residual force on the adjacent element to enhance the seal. Each element is preferably coated with a material that allows well fluids to reach the swelling material and then later to stiffen and become impervious from exposure to such fluids. The assembly can be covered for run in to delay the onset of expansion until the target depth is reached for the packer to be set.

Swelling packer with overlapping petals

A temperature control system for use in a fiber extrusion process includes a number of metering pump assemblies including inlets to receive at least two molten polymer streams from a supply source that is connectable to the system. A pump block disposed proximate the metering pump assemblies includes a plurality of flow paths extending within the pump block, where the flow paths are aligned to receive molten polymer flowing from outlets of the metering pump assemblies and to deliver the molten polymer to a spinneret. The flow paths are arranged in flow path sets within the pump block, and each flow path set includes at least one flow path and is spaced a selected distance from the other flow path sets within the pump block so as to facilitate independent control of the temperature of a molten polymer flowing through each flow path set.

Temperature control system to independently maintain separate molten polymer streams at selected temperatures during fiber extrusion

A closed fiber spinning system includes a spin beam assembly including a plurality of polymer distribution manifolds to independently deliver different polymer component fluid streams to a spin pack and independently maintain those fluid streams at different temperatures. The spin beam assembly in combination with the closed spinning system facilitates the production of a wide variety of multiple polymer component fiber and fabric products having a desired denier and degree of uniformity.

Method and apparatus for producing polymer fibers and fabrics including multiple polymer components in a closed system

An apparatus for controlling airflow in a fiber extrusion process includes a fiber flow region between an inlet through which extruded fibers are received and an outlet through which the extruded fibers are discharged and at least one surface providing a boundary between the fiber flow region and another region, wherein the surface includes apertures permitting air to flow between the fiber flow region and the other region to control airflow at the outlet of the fiber flow region. The apparatus can include a housing which contains at least one chamber, with the surface forming a boundary between the fiber flow region and the chamber, such that the apertures permit air to flow between the fiber flow region and at the chamber. In a spunbond process, the airflow control device receives drawn filaments exiting an aspirator and deposits the filaments onto a web-forming surface with reduced air disturbance.

Methods and apparatus for controlling airflow in a fiber extrusion system

The dissolution of dissolvable components in plural component polymer fibers is achieved by providing a polymer fiber including at least two sections, where at least one fiber section includes a dissolvable component. The rate at which at least part of the fiber dissolves is controlled by at least one of a fiber section having a non-round cross-sectional geometry, and at least two fiber sections including two different dissolvable components. In an exemplary embodiment, island-in-the-sea fibers are formed with non-round and elongated cross-sectional geometries. In another embodiment, sheath-core fibers are formed in which the sheath and core include different dissolvable components.

Controlling the dissolution of dissolvable polymer components in plural component fibers

Thermally divisible multicomponent fibers having at least a first component including an elastomeric polymer and at least a second component including a non-elastomeric polymer. The multicomponent fibers are useful in the manufacture of nonwoven structures, and in particular nonwoven structures used as synthetic suede and filtration media.

Splittable multicomponent elastomeric fibers

A spinneret ( ) for extruding side-by-side bicomponent fibers includes a spinneret hole ( ) having a cross-sectional shape transverse to the direction of polymer flow that is asymmetric with respect to the arrangement of the side-by-side streams of polymer components therein. The lower viscosity component flows through a portion of the spinneret hole having a higher perimeter-to-area cross-sectional shape than the portion of the spinneret hole through which the higher viscosity component through which the lower viscosity component flows. The increased surface area (i.e., cross-sectional perimeter) of the spinneret hole contacting the lower viscosity polymer flow compensates for the viscosity differential between the polymer components that would otherwise result in dogleg bending of the extrudate.

Spinneret hole configuration for preventing bending of bicomponent extrudate

Thermally divisible multicomponent fibers ( ) having at least a first component including an elastomeric polymer ( ) and at least a second component including a non-elastomeric polymer ( ). The multicomponent fibers are useful in the manufacture of nonwoven structures, and in particular nonwoven structures used as synthetic suede and filtration media.

Process of making microfilaments

A self-set yarn made from bicomponent fibers forms helical crimps that lock in twist and form bulk.

Self-setting yarn

A synthetic fiber is formed with a plurality of longitudinally-extending cavities ( and ) which hold a medicament that is intended to be absorbed into tissue brought into contact with the fiber. The fiber can be formed by dissolving a soluble polymer component of an extruded plural-component fiber , leaving cavities that extend inward from the outer surface of the fiber in the locations of the dissolved polymer. After the fiber has been exposed to a solvent, the cavities left by the dissolved component are filled with a medicament . Specifically, the cavities are filled with a medicament that is mixed with a viscous carrier which solidifies within the cavities. The fibers can be used to make sutures, textile prostheses for insertion into the body, and epidermal pads and bandages. Fibers having internal cavities , i.e., cavities not extending to the external surface of the fiber, can be formed by extruding a single-component fiber from a spinneret orifice having a number of T-shaped slots extending from a central hub. A medicament is introduced into the internal cavities by soaking the fiber in a liquid containing the medicament. The internal-cavity fiber is therefore formed of polymer having some capability for liquid transport, e.g., nylon.

Growing community of inventors

Merrit Island, FL, United States of America

Arnold E Wilkie