Nonwovens

Start here: ten words every newcomer needs

Overheard on the job

Real-sounding lines from the floor, translated into plain English.

• Beam two is throwing drips again, so plan a pack change before the camera starts rejecting rolls.

  TranslationThe second spinning station is dropping polymer lumps into the fabric, so schedule a replacement of its spin pack before the inspection system fails the product.

• MB is full of shot since they pushed throughput, hydrohead on the SMS is down ten centimeters.

  TranslationRaising output on the meltblown layer has created polymer beads instead of fine fibers, and the barrier rating of the three-layer fabric has dropped.

• Calender ran hot on second shift, the whole batch is boardy and the panel hates the hand.

  TranslationThe bonding rolls were too hot, so the fabric came out stiff and papery and failed the softness assessment.

• Card is roping and loading on this lot, check the finish before we blame the humidity.

  TranslationFibers are twisting into strings and clogging the carding machine's wire teeth, which points to a problem with the fiber's spin finish.

• Jet streak at 80 centimeters, pull the strip on injector four.

  TranslationA line along the hydroentangled fabric lines up with a plugged hole in one water-jet strip, so replace that strip.

• Customer wants 25 gsm TAB topsheet with the new bico, and strike-through has to stay under three seconds.

  TranslationThe buyer wants a 25 g/m2 through-air bonded skin-contact layer made with a new bicomponent binder fiber, passing liquid in under three seconds.

• Doff at 6,000 meters, slit it into pancakes for the trial and festoon the rest.

  TranslationTake the full roll off the winder at 6,000 meters, slit part of it into simple narrow rolls for a trial and package the remainder as folded strip in boxes.

Staple fibers, filaments, binder fibers, resins and the units used to describe them.

• Bicoalso bi-co, bicomp
  Shop clip for bicomponent fiber, usually meaning sheath-core binder fiber bought for thermal bonding. Shop talk
• Bicomponent fiberalso bicomponent, conjugate fiber
  Fiber spun from two different polymers in one cross section, such as a low-melting sheath around a strong core.
• Binder fiberalso binder, bonding fiber
  Low-melting fiber blended into a web so that, when heated, it softens and glues the other fibers together.
• Chipsalso pellets, resin
  Shop word for the polymer pellets fed to spunbond, meltblown and fiber extrusion lines. Shop talk
• Crimpalso fiber crimp
  The waviness built into staple fibers so they cling together during opening and carding.
• Denieralso den, d
  Unit of fiber fineness equal to the mass in grams of 9,000 meters of fiber or filament.
• dtexalso decitex
  Decitex: fiber fineness unit equal to the mass in grams of 10,000 meters of fiber, the European standard.
• Filamentalso continuous filament, CF
  A fiber of effectively unlimited length, extruded and laid down without cutting, as in spunbond webs.
• Fluff pulpalso fluff, comminution pulp
  Bleached softwood pulp made to be shredded dry into a soft, bulky fiber mass for absorbent cores and airlaid.
• Lo-meltalso low-melt, LMPET
  Shop name for low-melt polyester binder fiber, usually a copolyester sheath on a standard PET core. Shop talk
• Melt flow ratealso MFR, MFI
  Grams of molten polymer pushed through a standard die in 10 minutes, the basic measure of how easily a resin flows.
• PPalso polypropylene, polyprop
  Polypropylene: the most widely used polymer in nonwovens, especially spunbond and meltblown fabrics.
• Spin finishalso finish, fiber finish
  Thin coating applied to fibers during manufacture to control friction, static and wettability in processing.
• Splittable fiberalso segmented pie fiber, splittable bico
  Bicomponent fiber built to split into much finer microfibers after it has been laid into a web.
• Staple fiberalso staple, cut fiber
  Fibers cut to a fixed, finite length, as opposed to continuous filament, used in carded, airlaid and wetlaid webs.
• Viscosealso rayon, viscose rayon
  Regenerated cellulose fiber, the main absorbent man-made fiber in spunlace wipes and hygiene products.

Carding, airlaid, wetlaid, spunbond, meltblown and the other routes that lay fibers into a web.

• Airlaidalso air-laid, airlaid paper
  Web formed by suspending short fibers, mostly fluff pulp with some binder fiber, in air and depositing them on a wire.
• Battalso batting, lap
  Thick layer of fibers built up from several webs, usually by cross-lapping, ready for needling or thermal bonding.
• Beamalso spinning beam, S beam
  Line talk for one spinning or meltblown station across the width of a spunmelt line. Shop talk
• Cardingalso card
  Combing staple fibers between wire-covered rolls to open them and form an even, mostly parallel web.
• Coformalso co-form
  Composite web made by blowing wood pulp fibers into a meltblown fiber stream as it forms.
• Cross-lapperalso crosslapper, lapper
  Machine that lays a light card web back and forth across a slower conveyor to build a wider, heavier batt.
• Curtainalso filament curtain
  Line slang for the wide sheet of falling filaments between a spunbond spinneret and the laydown belt. Shop talk
• Drylaidalso dry laid, drylaid web
  Describes webs formed from dry staple fibers, chiefly by carding and by air laying.
• Flashspunalso flash-spun, flashspinning
  Describes sheet made by spinning a hot, pressurized polymer solution so the solvent flashes off and leaves a web of fibrils.
• Fleecealso Vlies, fibre fleece
  European name for an unbonded or lightly bonded fiber web or batt, from the German word Vlies.
• Highloftalso high-loft, fiberfill batt
  Low-density, thick nonwoven made for bulk and trapped air rather than strength, such as fiberfill and padding.
• Meltblownalso melt-blown, MB
  Web of very fine fibers made by blasting molten polymer from a row of tiny die holes with hot, high-speed air.
• Nonwovenalso nonwoven fabric, engineered fabric
  Fabric made directly from fibers or filaments locked together by needles, water jets, heat or binder instead of woven or knitted yarn.
• Quenchalso quench air, cooling air
  Stream of cooled, conditioned air that solidifies filaments just below the spinneret in spunbond and fiber spinning.
• SMSalso spunbond-meltblown-spunbond
  Spunbond-meltblown-spunbond: a three-layer composite of strong spunbond outer layers around a meltblown barrier core.
• Spinneretalso spin plate, spinnerette
  Metal plate drilled with many small holes through which molten polymer is extruded into filaments.
• Spunbondalso spunbonded, SB
  Nonwoven of continuous filaments extruded, air-drawn and laid on a belt, then usually bonded by a hot calender.
• Spunlaidalso spun-laid, polymer-laid
  Describes webs made by extruding polymer into filaments and laying them down directly in one continuous line.
• Spunmeltalso spun-melt
  Collective term for spunbond and meltblown processes and the composite fabrics made by combining them.
• Webalso fibrous web, card web
  Thin layer of fibers or filaments made in the first stage of nonwoven production, before or after bonding.
• Wetlaidalso wet-laid, wet-formed
  Describes webs formed from fibers dispersed in water and drained on a screen, on equipment adapted from papermaking.

Needling, water jets, heat, binders and ultrasound: the ways a loose web becomes fabric.

• Barbalso needle barb
  Small notch cut into the working blade of a felting needle that catches fibers and carries them through the batt.
• Bond areaalso bonded area, bond percentage
  Percentage of a point-bonded fabric's surface covered by fused bond points.
• Calender bondingalso thermal calendering, calendering
  Thermal bonding in a heated roll nip, either across the whole surface or at points set by an engraved roll.
• Chemical bondingalso resin bonding, latex bonding
  Bonding a web with a liquid binder, usually a latex, that is applied, dried and cured to glue the fibers together.
• Hydroentanglingalso hydroentanglement, spunlacing
  Bonding a fiber web by blasting it with rows of very fine, high-pressure water jets that tangle the fibers together.
• Latexalso latex binder, emulsion binder
  Water-based polymer dispersion used as the binder in chemically bonded nonwovens.
• Needle loomalso needle-punch loom, needler
  Machine that drives boards of barbed needles through a moving batt to bond it mechanically.
• Needlepunchalso needle punching, needling
  Mechanical bonding in which barbed needles punch repeatedly through a batt, dragging fibers through and tangling it.
• Point bondingalso pattern bonding, spot bonding
  Calender bonding with an engraved roll that fuses the web only at small, regularly spaced points.
• Punch densityalso needling density, penetrations per square centimeter
  Number of needle penetrations per square centimeter of fabric, the basic dose of needling.
• Spunlacealso spunlaced, hydroentangled nonwoven
  Fabric bonded by hydroentangling, and the usual trade name for the whole process family.
• Stitchbondingalso stitch bonding, stitch-bonded
  Bonding a fiber web or layers of yarn by knitting rows of chain stitches through them.
• Stripalso jet strip, nozzle strip
  Line name for the thin perforated metal jet strip that forms the water jets in a hydroentangling injector. Shop talk
• TABalso air-through, hot-air nonwoven
  Through-air bonded: shop and spec shorthand for fabrics bonded by hot air drawn through the web. Shop talk
• Thermal bondingalso thermobonding, heat bonding
  Bonding a web by heating it so thermoplastic fibers or binder fibers soften and fuse at their crossing points.
• Through-air bondingalso through-air bonded, air-through bonding
  Thermal bonding that pulls hot air through the web so binder fibers fuse without the web being crushed.
• Ultrasonic bondingalso ultrasonic welding, ultrasonic lamination
  Bonding or laminating by vibrating a horn at ultrasonic frequency against a patterned anvil roll to melt fibers locally.

Weight, strength, softness, liquid handling, barrier and filtration measurements.

• Absorbencyalso absorbent capacity, liquid absorption capacity
  How much liquid a nonwoven takes up and how fast, usually reported as grams per gram and absorption time.
• Air permeabilityalso air perm, air permeance
  Rate of air flow through a fabric at a fixed pressure difference, reported per unit area.
• Basis weightalso grammage, weight
  Mass of a nonwoven per unit area, almost always given in grams per square meter.
• BFEalso bacterial filtration efficiency
  Bacterial filtration efficiency: the percentage of a bacteria-laden aerosol that a mask or filter fabric stops.
• CDalso cross direction, cross-machine direction
  Cross direction: the direction across the width of a nonwoven roll, at right angles to machine travel.
• CValso coefficient of variation
  Coefficient of variation: standard deviation divided by the mean, the yardstick of nonwoven uniformity.
• Drapealso drape coefficient, drapability
  How readily a fabric hangs and folds under its own weight, a comfort property for gowns, drapes and wipes.
• Electretalso electret filter, charged media
  Filter fabric, usually meltblown, carrying a long-lasting electrostatic charge that pulls particles out of the air.
• Grab tensilealso grab strength, grab test
  Tensile test in which jaws narrower than the specimen grip its center, so neighboring fibers help carry the load.
• gsmalso g/m2, grams per square meter
  Grams per square meter, the shorthand unit for nonwoven basis weight on specs, labels and the line.
• Handalso handle, feel
  How a fabric feels to the touch: softness, smoothness, stiffness, drape and warmth taken together.
• Hydroheadalso hydrostatic head, HSH
  Shop and spec clip for hydrostatic head: the water pressure a fabric holds before water comes through. Shop talk
• Lintalso linting, particle shedding
  Loose fibers and fragments a fabric sheds during handling, flexing or use.
• Loftalso bulk
  Thickness and springiness of a nonwoven, especially its ability to recover thickness after being compressed.
• MDalso machine direction, longitudinal direction
  Machine direction: the direction a nonwoven travels through the line, along the length of the roll.
• Rewetalso wetback, wet-back
  Amount of liquid that comes back up through a topsheet under pressure after the pad has absorbed it.
• Strike-throughalso strike-through time, liquid strike-through
  Hygiene test time for a set dose of liquid to pass through a topsheet into the absorbent pad underneath.
• Strip tensilealso strip tensile strength, strip test
  Tensile test in which the full width of a narrow strip is clamped and pulled to break.
• Wet-outalso wetting, wettability
  Line and lab talk for how readily a fabric lets liquid soak in and spread instead of beading on top. Shop talk
• Wickingalso capillary rise, wick
  Capillary movement of liquid along or through a fabric, measured as how far liquid climbs a strip in a set time.

Roll goods and the hygiene, wipes and filling products made from them.

• ADLalso acquisition distribution layer, surge layer
  Acquisition distribution layer: the lofty layer under a diaper topsheet that takes in liquid and spreads it to the core.
• Backsheetalso back sheet, outer cover
  Outer, liquid-proof layer of a diaper or pad, usually breathable film laminated to a soft nonwoven.
• Flushablealso dispersible, flushable wipe
  Describes wipes and similar products designed to break up and pass safely through toilets, drains and sewers.
• Roll goodsalso rollgoods, nonwoven rolls
  Nonwoven fabric sold in rolls to converters, as opposed to finished products made from it.
• Topsheetalso coverstock, top sheet
  Soft, liquid-permeable nonwoven layer of a diaper or pad that touches the skin.
• Waddingalso batting, fiberfill
  European and textile-trade term for a loose, bulky batt used for padding, insulation or filling.

Slitting, winding, packaging, laminating and the roll-handling words of the converting floor.

• Aperturingalso apertured, perforating
  Making a regular pattern of holes in a nonwoven, mainly so liquid passes through topsheets faster.
• Butt rollalso stub roll, short roll
  Leftover partial roll from the end of a mother roll or slitting set that is too short for a full order. Shop talk
• Corealso roll core, tube
  Tube, usually paperboard, on which nonwoven fabric is wound to make a roll.
• Doffalso doffing, roll change
  To take a finished roll off a winder and start winding on a fresh core or shaft. Shop talk
• Edge trimalso trim, edge strips
  Strips cut from both sides of a nonwoven web to give clean edges and the correct finished width.
• Embossingalso embossed pattern, emboss
  Pressing a raised or recessed pattern into a nonwoven with engraved, usually heated, rolls.
• Festoonalso festooned package, festooning
  Package in which narrow nonwoven strip is folded back and forth into a box instead of being wound on a roll.
• Laminationalso laminating, laminate
  Joining a nonwoven to film, another nonwoven or other material to make one multilayer product.
• Mother rollalso jumbo roll, master roll
  Full-width roll wound at the end of the production line, before it is slit into customer rolls. Shop talk
• Pancakealso planetary roll, pancake roll
  Shop word for a narrow slit roll wound straight on itself, far wider in diameter than it is tall. Shop talk
• Reproalso regrind, reclaim
  Polymer recovered from trim, start-up waste and off-spec fabric, repelletized and fed back to the extruders. Shop talk
• Secondsalso off-spec, B-grade
  Off-quality nonwoven sold at a discount instead of as prime, such as start-up material or off-spec rolls. Shop talk
• Slittingalso slit, slitter-rewinding
  Cutting a wide nonwoven roll lengthwise into narrower rolls on a slitter-rewinder.
• Splicealso joint, flying splice
  Joint made when the end of one roll is attached to the start of the next to keep material running.
• Spoolingalso traverse winding, traverse-wound spool
  Winding a narrow strip back and forth across a wide core, like thread on a spool, to pack very long lengths.
• Telescopingalso telescoped roll
  Roll defect in which wound layers slide sideways so the roll end pokes out like an extended telescope.

The faults, slang and maintenance jobs heard around a running nonwovens line.

• Boardyalso papery, stiff
  Describes a nonwoven that feels stiff, harsh and papery, usually from over-bonding. Shop talk
• Delaminationalso delam, ply separation
  Separation of the layers of a laminate or multilayer nonwoven, such as an SMS or a film composite.
• Dripalso drips, polymer drip
  Lump of polymer that falls from a spinneret or die and lands in the web as a hard, often glassy spot. Shop talk
• Flyalso flyings, fiber fly
  Loose airborne fibers released by opening, carding and cutting that settle on machines and floors. Shop talk
• Fuzzalso fuzzing
  Loose fiber ends on the surface of a nonwoven that lift into pills or lint when rubbed. Shop talk
• Jet streaksalso jet lines, jet marks
  Lines running in the machine direction of a spunlace fabric, caused by blocked or damaged water jets. Shop talk
• Loadingalso card loading, cylinder loading
  Buildup of fiber and finish residue in card clothing, which clogs the teeth and spoils the web. Shop talk
• Nepalso neps, fiber nep
  Small, tight knot of tangled fibers that shows as a speck or pimple on the fabric surface.
• Pack changealso spin pack change, pack swap
  Replacing the spin pack, including its filters and spinneret, on a spunbond beam or fiber spinning position. Shop talk
• Pinholealso pin hole, hole
  Tiny hole in a barrier fabric or film that lets liquid or particles through.
• Ropealso roping, fiber rope
  Twisted bundle of fibers that forms in a carded or airlaid web and shows as a dense streak or knot. Shop talk
• Shotalso shot defect, polymer beads
  Small beads or lumps of polymer that failed to form fibers and sit embedded in a meltblown web. Shop talk
• Wrapalso wraps, roll wrap
  Fibers or web winding around a roll instead of passing through, which can stop a line or damage the roll. Shop talk

Frequently asked questions

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