Evaluation of Wetting Behaviour of Nonwoven Fabrics by Different Test Methods

Abstract

Nonwoven fabrics are used in a wide range of consumer and industrial products. Depending on the application, high-performance products can be obtained through raw material selection, web-forming and bonding methods, and advanced finishing processes to ensure cost-effective, flexible, and quickly produced products. One of the common qualifications sought in most nonwoven products is wetting and liquid transfer properties. Depending on the end-use area, this property significantly affects the comfort, functionality, and quick re-use properties of the product. Besides, there are several methods accepted to evaluate the wetting and/or water transfer properties of fabrics. Some of these methods need special testing devices, while some of them are easier to apply and more available. By considering these facts, the purpose of this study was to comparatively investigate the wetting/liquid transfer and drying properties of a wide range of nonwoven fabrics, addressing different technical areas such as wound dressings, cleaning cloths, apparel, and hygienic pads. For this purpose, 13 nonwoven fabrics were tested by the moisture management test (MMT), drop absorption test, drop spread test, contact angle test, and vertical wicking tests. Correlation analysis between different test methods highlighted that drop test results were in very good agreement with contact angle results, but due to the high level of absorbency of the selected samples, MMT and vertical wicking results performed better numerical distinguishability. In addition, the drop spread test provided visual data for the longer-time wetting property of samples compared to the drop absorption and contact angle results.

Keywords

• Nonwoven fabrics
• Wetting
• Drying
• Moisture management tester (MMT)
• Test methods

Supporting Institution

No funding was received from any institution for this study.

Ethical Statement

In this study, we undertake that all the rules required to be followed within the scope of the "Higher Education Institutions Scientific Research and Publication Ethics Directive" are complied with, and that none of the actions stated under the heading "Actions Against Scientific Research and Publication Ethics" are not carried out.

Thanks

Wound dressing, apparel, cleaning cloth, and top sheet nonwoven fabric samples were kindly supplied by Mogul Tekstil San. Tic. A.S. (Gaziantep, Türkiye). The MMT test was performed in the laboratory of Sun Tekstil Industry and Trade Inc. (Izmir, Türkiye). The author thanks the companies for their valuable supports.

Dokusuz Yüzey Kumaşların Islanma Özelliklerinin Farklı Test Metotlarına Göre Değerlendirilmesi

Abstract

Dokusuz yüzey kumaşlar çeşitli tüketim ürünleri ve endüstriyel ürünlerde kullanım alanı bulmaktadır. Uygulamaya bağlı olarak; hammadde seçimi, tülbent oluşturma ve bağlama yöntemleri ve gelişmiş terbiye işlemleri yoluyla yüksek performanslı ürünler elde edilerek uygun maliyetli, esnek ve hızlı üretim sağlanabilir. Çoğu dokusuz yüzey üründe aranan ortak niteliklerden biri ıslanma ve sıvı transfer özelliğidir. Bu özellik, son kullanım alanına bağlı olarak ürünün konforunu, işlevselliğini ve hızlı tekrar kullanım özelliklerini önemli ölçüde etkiler. Kumaşların ıslanma ve/veya sıvı transfer özelliklerini değerlendirmek için kabul görmüş çeşitli yöntemler bulunmaktadır. Bu yöntemlerden bazıları özel test cihazları gerektirirken, bazıları ise daha kolay uygulanabilir ve daha erişilebilirdir. Bu çalışmanın amacı; yara örtüsü, temizlik bezi, giysi ve hijyenik ped teknik alanlarında kullanıma uygun çeşitli dokusuz yüzey kumaşların ıslanma/sıvı transferi ve kuruma özelliklerini karşılaştırmalı olarak incelemektir. Bu amaçla, 13 farklı kumaş tedarik edilmiş ve nem yönetimi (MMT), damla, yayılma, temas açısı ve dikey emicilik testleri ile test edilmiştir. Farklı test yöntemleri arasındaki korelasyon analizi; damla testi sonuçlarının temas açısı sonuçlarıyla çok iyi uyum gösterdiğini, ancak seçilen numunelerin yüksek emicilik seviyesi nedeniyle MMT ve dikey emicilik sonuçlarının daha ayırt edici olduğunu ortaya koymuştur. Ayrıca, damla yayılma testi, numunelerin damla ve temas açısı testi sonuçlarına kıyasla daha uzun süreli ıslanma özelliğine dair görsel veriler sağlamıştır.

Keywords

• Dokusuz yüzey kumaşlar
• Islanma
• Kuruma
• Nem yönetimi testi (MMT)
• Test metotları

Supporting Institution

Çalışma için herhangi bir kurumdan fon alınmamıştır.

Ethical Statement

Bu çalışmada, “Yükseköğretim Kurumları Bilimsel Araştırma ve Yayın Etiği Yönergesi” kapsamında uyulması gereken tüm kurallara uyulduğu ve “Bilimsel Araştırma ve Yayın Etiğine Aykırı Eylemler” başlığı altında belirtilen eylemlerden hiçbirinin gerçekleştirilmediği taahhüt edilmektedir.

Thanks

Yara örtüsü, giysi, temizlik bezi ve hijyenik ped üst katmanları için dokusuz yüzey kumaş numuneleri Mogul Tekstil San. Tic. A.Ş. (Gaziantep, Türkiye) tarafından sağlanmıştır. MMT testi, Sun Tekstil Sanayi ve Ticaret A.Ş. (İzmir, Türkiye) laboratuvarında gerçekleştirilmiştir. Yazarlar, değerli destekleri için firmalara teşekkürlerini sunar.

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