Kanebo, Limited

Koin Asano

Hiroshi Nakagawa

Kenichi Tagawa

Hiroyuki Wakahara

A leather-like material having a soft feed and a high water vapor permeability comprises a substrate of a fiber aggregate and a microporous grain layer mainly comprising a polyurethane elastomer and having an average thickness between 20 .mu.m and 300 .mu.m, preferably between 20 .mu.m and 200 .mu.m, more preferably 20 .mu.m and 100 .mu.m. The grain layer has an inner layer portion permeating partly into interstices of the fiber aggregate and bonding thereto, a topside having been coagulated to set up with a flat and smooth, or animal skin-like, grain appearance and micropores having an average pore diameter gradient of from at least 4 .mu.m in the inner layer portion to at most 3 .mu.m in the surface layer portion. The leather-like material is characterized by a water vapor permeability of from 1 to 30 mg/cm.sup.2.hr and a Gurley stiffness ratio of article to substrate of at most 1.5. The leather-like material of the invention is manufactured by a process comprising the steps in sequence of: coating a release belt with a water-miscible solvent solution of a polyurethane elastomer; superimposing a water-moisturized substrate on the coated solution; heating the topside surface of the substrate to coagulate said polyurethane elastomer by the action of saturated water vapor forming within the substrate; and then releasing the resultant leather-like material from the release belt, followed by washing with water and drying.

Leather-like material having excellent water vapor permeability and

An artificial leather having chinchilla-like appearance and a natural suede-like feeling which comprising flocking piles of separable composite fibers which in transverse cross-section consist of at least three integral segments (A) of one polymer of polyamide and polyester wherein said segments diverge from each other substantially radially in the outward direction and extend to the perimeter of the fiber and wedge-shaped segments (B) of another polymer which fill the spaces between the segments (A) or consist of the above described segments (A), V-shaped segments (B') of the latter polymer and wedge-shaped segments (C) of the former polymer which fill the concavities of the V-shaped segments (B'), said V-shaped segments (B') and said wedge-shaped segments (C) filling the spaces between the segments (A), wherein all of the polymers extend to the perimeter of the fiber, on a substrate fabric applied with an adhesive, applying a swelling agent on the piles, brushing the thus treated piles to substantially separate each segment in the above described cross-section and then subjecting the brushed piles to a wet heat treatment.

Artificial leather having chinchilla-like appearance and natural

A simulated leather element comprising a surface sheet and a base, the sheet containing a polyurethane elastomer produced from a polyol comprising at least 50% by weight of polydipropylene adipate, an organic diisocyanate and a chain extending agent. A method of producing such an element is also disclosed.

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Takatsuki, Japan

Koin Asano