Third M.I.T. Conference on Computational Fluid and Solid Mechanics June 14–17, 2005  

Improvement of fiber twisting and crimping in the melt-blowing process

Ye-Hong Qua, Ji-Huan Heb,c,*, Qin-Fei Kea
aCollege of Textiles, Donghua University, Shanghai, China bKey Lab of Textile Technology, Ministry of Education, China cInstitute of Fibrous Materials Physics, College of Science, Donghua University, P.O. Box 471, 1882 Yan'an Xilu Road, Shanghai 200051, China
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ABSTRACT
This paper suggests a new apparatus for the melt-blowing process, whereby an air vortex is applied to the pneumatic chamber, causing the fibers to have a tendency to twist and crimp. Fabrics so produced can have improved mechanical characteristics; in addition, their web strength, softness, and feel can be mechanically controlled. A simple analytical model for the present invention is established to determine the strength of the air vortex twist acting on the fibers during melt-blowing spinning as a function of nozzle pressure, flow rate, jet orifice angle, and diameter of the jet orifice, so that the mechanical characters can be controlled.

Keywords:  Melt-blown apparatus; Air vortex; Fiber; Air-jet spinning
* Corresponding author. Tel.: + 86 (21) 623 79917; Fax: + 86 (21) 623 78926; E-mail: jhhe@dhu.edu.cn