JP2000212866A - Heat-adhesive conjugate fiber, fiber aggregate and nonwoven fabric using the same - Google Patents

Abstract

(57) [Summary] [Problem] When mixed with cellulosic fiber and heated and adhered to be used as a nonwoven fabric, it is firmly adhered to the cellulosic fiber, and peeling from the bonding surface or falling of the fiber from the nonwoven fabric hardly occurs. Obtaining a bulky nonwoven fabric. SOLUTION: This fiber is used in combination with a cellulosic fiber, and the fiber is a vinyl monomer containing at least one selected from unsaturated carboxylic acids or unsaturated carboxylic anhydrides (hereinafter referred to as a denaturing agent) The modified polyolefin graft-polymerized (the modifier content is 0.05 to 2 mol / kg) is used as a first component, and a second component composed of a resin having a higher melting point than the first component is combined. The first component is formed so that at least a part of the fiber surface is continuously formed in the length direction, and the single component fineness is 0.5 to 50 denier, the fiber length is 3 to 25 mm, and the number of crimps is 5 to 30. Depends on the adhesive composite fiber.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a polyolefin-based conjugate fiber, a fiber assembly and a non-woven fabric having good heat adhesion to a cellulosic fiber. More specifically, a nonwoven fabric which has a high adhesiveness to cellulosic fibers such as pulp when used in combination with cellulosic fibers, hardly causes peeling or falling off of the cellulosic fibers, and is bulky and has a large specific volume. And a fiber aggregate or nonwoven fabric using the same.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art As a heat-adhesive conjugate fiber using crystalline polypropylene, a fiber obtained by melt-composite spinning crystalline polypropylene and polyethylene as a composite component has been known. Such a conventional heat-adhesive conjugate fiber is usually formed with a web, and then heated at a temperature not lower than the melting point of the low-melting-point polyethylene component and not higher than the melting point of the high-melting-point polypropylene component, whereby the inter-fiber contact portions of the web are formed. It fuses to form a non-woven fabric, but such non-woven fabric has poor adhesion to other foreign materials such as cloth, wood or metal. Therefore, when the above-mentioned nonwoven fabric is used by bonding it to another foreign material, or when it is combined with another material to form a composite material as a nonwoven fabric laminate, it is necessary to newly use a binder. Even if a binder is used, its adhesiveness is not always good.

In recent years, in order to solve these problems, an ethylene-vinyl acetate copolymer or a polymer containing a saponified product thereof has been used as one component of the conjugate fiber (Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. Sho 53 (1993)).
JP-A-126320), and a heat-adhesive fiber using an unsaturated carboxylic acid, a metal salt thereof, or a polyolefin modified with an unsaturated carboxylic anhydride.
No. 9). When these heat-adhesive fibers are mixed with pulp and used as a nonwoven fabric, a papermaking method by a wet method is known (Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 54-30929). However, in the case of the wet method, the obtained nonwoven fabric has a small specific volume,
Hard and inferior in texture. In recent years, there has been a demand for the development of a nonwoven fabric having a bulky and excellent texture for use in sanitary materials and the like. In addition, in the case of mixing by a dry method such as a carding method, which has been conventionally performed, hydrophilic fibers such as polyolefin fibers and cellulosic fibers have inferior affinity for both, and thus peeling or falling off during processing occurs. It was difficult to perform satisfactory processing.

[0004]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION It is an object of the present invention to provide a method of mixing a cellulose fiber with a cellulose fiber, heating and adhering it to use as a nonwoven fabric, thereby firmly adhering to the cellulosic fiber, peeling off from the bonding surface or removing the nonwoven fabric from the nonwoven fabric. An object of the present invention is to obtain a bulky nonwoven fabric in which fibers do not easily fall off. In order to achieve the object, a specific polyolefin-based heat-adhesive conjugate fiber is developed, and a processing method thereof is studied.

The present inventors have conducted intensive studies in order to achieve the above object, and as a result, obtained by mixing a thermoadhesive conjugate fiber using a specific polyolefin described later and a cellulosic fiber by an airlaid method. The inventors have found that it is effective to heat-treat the fiber assembly by a specific method, and have completed the present invention.

Further, a fiber treating agent comprising a specific polyoxyethylene alkyl ether, a specific quaternary ammonium phosphate salt or a specific polyorganosiloxane is adhered to the surface of the heat-adhesive conjugate fiber of the present invention. Thereby, more preferably, by applying a fiber treating agent containing these compounds in a specific ratio to a fiber surface at a specific ratio, the friction of the fiber surface can be reduced and the fiber opening property can be improved. The dispersibility of the adhesive fiber and the cellulosic fiber is improved, and uniform adhesion is provided between the two fibers. Therefore, it has been found that peeling or falling off of the cellulosic fiber from the nonwoven fabric can be prevented, and a nonwoven fabric having a good initial absorption ability can be obtained, and the present invention has been completed.

[0007]

According to the present invention having the following structure, the above object has been successfully solved. (1) A fiber used in combination with a cellulosic fiber, wherein the fiber is a vinyl monomer containing at least one selected from unsaturated carboxylic acids or unsaturated carboxylic anhydrides (hereinafter referred to as a denaturing agent and The first component is a modified polyolefin graft-polymerized with the above (the modifier content is 0.05 to 2 mol / kg), and the second component composed of a resin having a melting point higher than that of the first component is distributed in a composite form. The first component forms at least a part of the fiber surface continuously in the length direction, and has a single yarn fineness of 0.5 to 50 denier and a fiber length of 3 to
A heat-adhesive conjugate fiber having a length of 25 mm and a crimp number of 5 to 30. (2) The heat-adhesive conjugate fiber according to (1), wherein the denaturing agent contains at least one of maleic anhydride, acrylic acid, and methacrylic acid. (3) The heat-adhesive conjugate fiber according to (1), wherein the denaturing agent comprises maleic anhydride and styrene. (4) The heat-adhesive conjugate fiber according to (1), wherein the denaturing agent comprises maleic anhydride and at least one of an acrylic ester or a methacrylic ester.

(5) At least one selected from the group consisting of a component A comprising a polyoxyethylene alkyl ether represented by the following general formula (1) and a salt represented by the following general formula (2) and the following general formula (3): B component consisting of a kind of quaternary ammonium phosphate salt, and the following general formula (4)
In the fiber treating agent comprising the component C comprising the polyorganosiloxane represented by the formula (1), at least one of the components A, B and C is adhered, and the thermal adhesive property according to any one of the above items (1) to (4). Composite fiber.

[0009]

Embedded image

Wherein R is a hydrocarbon group having 12 to 30 carbon atoms; x is an integer of 10 to 50; R ¹ and R ³ are each independently an alkyl group having 5 to 18 carbon atoms, or R ² , R ⁶ , R ⁷ and R ⁸ each independently represent an alkyl group having 1 to 3 carbon atoms; R ⁴ represents hydrogen or an alkyl group or an alkenyl group having 5 to 18 carbon atoms;
R ⁵ represents an alkyl group or alkenyl group having 7 to 17 carbon atoms; X represents an alkyl group having 1 to 3 carbon atoms or H (O
A) represents a group represented by _q- ; Y represents an alkyl group having 1 to 3 carbon atoms or a group represented by H (OA ') _r- ; each A and each A' each independently represents an ethylene group or a propylene group; (OA) _q , (OA ′) _r , (OA) _l and (OA ′)
_m is independently a group consisting of a repeating structure of an oxyethylene unit, a group consisting of a repeating structure of an oxypropylene unit, or a group or block consisting of an oxyethylene unit and an oxypropylene unit, and having a structure in which they are randomly arranged. Represents a group having an arrayed structure; q and r are each independently an integer of 2 to 40;
r is four to forty-two; l and m are each independently an integer from 0 to 20, l + m is an integer from 0 to 20; y is 2 or ^{3; R 9, R 1 0} , R 11 And R ¹² are each independently an alkyl group having 1 to 6 carbon atoms, a phenyl group, a benzyl group,
Or z is a cyclohexyl group;
整数 is the integer of.

(6) 50 to 80% by weight of the component A,
10% to 40% by weight of component B and 3% to 20% by weight of component C
The contained fiber treatment agent is 0.1 to 1.5% by weight based on the fiber.
The heat-adhesive conjugate fiber according to item (5) attached. (7) A component comprising the polyoxyethylene alkyl ether represented by the general formula (1), wherein R has 12 to 3 carbon atoms.
The heat-adhesive conjugate fiber according to item (6), which is a polyoxyethylene alkyl ether having 0 hydrocarbon groups and x being an integer of 20 to 40. (8) When the thermoadhesive conjugate fiber according to any one of (1) to (7) is used in combination with a cellulosic fiber, 3 to 50% by weight of the fiber and 97 to 50% by weight of the cellulosic fiber are used. A heat-adhesive conjugate fiber in which the cellulosic fibers fall off from the nonwoven fabric when mixed and heated to form a nonwoven fabric, and the shedding rate is within 25%. (9) When the heat-adhesive conjugate fiber according to any one of (5) to (7) is used in combination with a cellulosic fiber, 3 to 50% by weight of the fiber and 97 to 50% by weight of the cellulosic fiber are used. A heat-adhesive conjugate fiber in which cellulosic fibers fall off from the nonwoven fabric when mixed and heated to form a nonwoven fabric. (10) 3 to 50% by weight of the heat-adhesive conjugate fiber according to any one of (1) to (9), and cellulosic fiber 97 to 5
A fiber aggregate in which 0% by weight is mixed by an air laid method. (11) The shedding rate of the cellulosic fibers obtained by subjecting the fiber aggregate described in the item (10) to a heat treatment and thermally bonding the fiber intersections of the thermoadhesive conjugate fibers is 25% or less. A nonwoven fabric having a volume of 40 cc / g or more. (12) The initial absorption capacity is 5.9 or more (1
The nonwoven fabric according to item 1). (13) A laminated nonwoven fabric obtained by laminating the fiber aggregate according to (10) and another fiber aggregate, and thermally bonding the heat-adhesive fibers. (14) A laminated nonwoven fabric obtained by laminating the fiber aggregate according to (10) and another sheet, and thermally bonding the thermoadhesive fibers. (15) A wiper using the fiber aggregate, nonwoven fabric, or laminated nonwoven fabric according to any one of (10) to (14). (16) An absorber using the fiber aggregate, nonwoven fabric or laminated nonwoven fabric according to any one of (10) to (14).

[0012]

BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION Hereinafter, the present invention will be described in detail.
The heat-adhesive conjugate fiber of the present invention refers to a modified polyolefin as a first component, a resin having a higher melting point than the first component as a second component, and the first component continuously extends at least a part of the fiber surface in the length direction. This is a composite fiber formed by forming. The modifying agent used for the modified polyolefin is a vinyl monomer containing at least one selected from unsaturated carboxylic acids and acid anhydrides thereof, and is specifically selected from maleic anhydride, maleic acid, acrylic acid, methacrylic acid, and the like. The unsaturated carboxylic acid thus obtained or its anhydride is an essential component, and may contain other vinyl monomers. As the other vinyl monomers, general-purpose monomers excellent in radical polymerizability can be used.

For example, styrenes such as styrene and α-methylstyrene, methacrylates such as methyl methacrylate, ethyl methacrylate, 2-hydroxyethyl methacrylate and dimethylaminoethyl methacrylate, or similar acrylates Can be mentioned. The concentration of these vinyl monomers in the modified polyolefin is 0.05 to 2 mol / kg. Among them, the total amount of the unsaturated carboxylic acid or acid anhydride is from 0.03 to 2
Mol / kg. The carboxylic acid or acid anhydride in the modified polyolefin is a component directly contributing to the adhesion, and other vinyl monomers help the adhesion from the side by helping the uniform dispersion of the acid in the polymer, and the polarity. It also imparts polarity to polyolefins with poor properties, improves affinity with cellulosic fibers, and contributes to improved uniform dispersion. The graft polymerization of these vinyl monomers to the backbone polymer can be carried out in a usual manner, using a radical initiator, mixing an unsaturated carboxylic acid or an acid anhydride and a vinyl monomer with a polyolefin to form a random copolymer. Or a side chain composed of a block copolymer obtained by sequentially polymerizing different kinds of monomers.

As the backbone polymer of the modified polyolefin, polyethylene, polypropylene, polybutene-1 and the like are used. High-density, linear low-density, low-density polyethylene is used as polyethylene. These have a density of 0.90
It is a copolymer with a homo or other α-olefin having a melting point of about 0.97 g / cm ³ and a polymer having a melting point of about 100 to 135 ° C. Polypropylene has a melting point of 130-170
It is a crystalline polymer at ℃ and is a copolymer with homo or another olefin. Polybutene-1 has a melting point of 110
It is a crystalline polymer at 130 ° C. and is a homo- or copolymer with another olefin. Among these polymers, polyethylene is preferable in consideration of the melting point range and the ease of the graft reaction.

The modified polyolefin used as the first component can be used alone as a mixture of two or more of the above modified polyolefins or as a mixture of the modified polyolefin and the base polymer. Even in the case of a mixture of different polymers, the content of the modifier in the polymer is 0.05.
What is necessary is just to be in the range of 2 mol / kg.

As the resin having a higher melting point than the first component used as the second component, the modified polyolefin backbone polymer or a crystalline polymer such as polyester or polyamide can be used. Among these polymers, a polypropylene homopolymer or a crystalline polypropylene copolymer which is a copolymer with an α-olefin such as ethylene or butene-1 is preferable from the viewpoint of chemical resistance and melting point.

The composite ratio of the first component and the second component is 10/90.
Spinning is possible in the range of ~ 90/10, but 30/70
~ 70/30 is preferred. If the first component is further reduced too much, the adhesiveness will be reduced, and if it is excessively increased, the spinnability will be lowered, and neither is preferable.

The resin used for the first component and the second component according to the present invention further includes an antioxidant, a light stabilizer, an ultraviolet absorber, a neutralizing agent, as long as the effects of the present invention are not impaired.
Additives such as a nucleating agent, an epoxy stabilizer, a lubricant, an antibacterial agent, a flame retardant, an antistatic agent, a pigment, and a plasticizer may be appropriately added as needed.

The heat-adhesive conjugate fiber of the present invention may be of a parallel type such that the first component forms at least a part of the fiber surface, or a sheath core having the first component as a sheath component and the second component as a core component. Using a mold or an eccentric sheath-core die, spinning can be performed by a commonly used melt spinning machine. Although the fiber surface formation ratio of the first component is small, it shows a certain level of adhesive strength. However, the adhesive strength is usually sufficient when the fiber cross-sectional circumference is 50% or more, and particularly strong when it is 50 to 100%. .

In the stretching step, the unstretched yarn obtained in the spinning step is treated at a temperature lower than the melting point of the first component at a Young's modulus of 100 kg.
It is performed under the condition of an arbitrary stretching ratio such that f / mm ² or more. The usual stretching ratio is 2 to 6 times. Young's modulus is 1
By setting the pressure to 00 kgf / mm ² or more, crimping of 5 to 30 ridges / inch can be easily obtained in the crimping step after the stretching step, and the crimp setting force can be changed to an arbitrary strength. . The crimping step may be mechanical crimping using a machine, or manifestation and latent crimping of the conjugate fiber itself.
If the number of peaks is 0 / inch, the effect of the present invention can be obtained.

When the number of crimps is less than 5 peaks / inch, the effect of preventing the separation and falling off of the cellulosic fibers can be obtained, but the bulk of the fiber aggregate is hardly developed. Further, even if the number of crimps exceeds 30 peaks / inch, the effect of preventing the separation and falling off of the cellulosic fibers can be obtained, but the productivity is significantly reduced. Furthermore, the number of crimps is 5
When the diameter is 30 hills / inch, a curved portion having a preferable size and shape is formed in the heat-adhesive conjugate fiber, and the cellulosic fiber is taken into the curved portion to reduce the peeling and falling off of the cellulosic fiber. it can. That is, when the number of crimps is 5 to 30 ridges / inch, the number of bonding points and the bonding state between the thermoadhesive conjugate fiber and the cellulosic fiber are preferable.

The heat-adhesive conjugate fiber of the present invention is used after being cut to a fiber length of 3 to 25 mm from the viewpoint of easiness of cotton mixing with cellulose fiber to be performed later and easiness of processing. Single yarn fineness is
Similarly, it is 0.5 to 50 denier, more preferably 0.5 to 10 denier, in consideration of cotton mixing and processability.

As described above, the heat-adhesive conjugate fiber of the present invention has a high affinity for cellulosic fibers, so that a fiber aggregate (web) mixed with cellulosic fibers strongly adheres to each other by heat treatment. Therefore, during the processing step and the like, the separation and detachment of the cellulosic fiber from the nonwoven fabric are small, and the detachment rate can be maintained within 25%.

The heat-adhesive conjugate fiber of the present invention has the following components A (polyoxyethylene alkyl ether), B (quaternary ammonium phosphate salt) and C (polyorganosiloxane) on the fiber surface. The fiber treating agent containing at least one of the following is 0.1 to 1.5 with respect to the fiber weight.
Preferably, it is attached in a weight percent. By using the predetermined fiber treating agent, the dispersibility of the heat-adhesive conjugate fiber of the present invention constituting the cellulosic fiber and the nonwoven fabric is improved, and a more uniform, nonwoven fabric in which both are firmly bonded can be obtained. In addition, the initial absorption capacity of the nonwoven fabric can be increased. If the amount of the fiber treatment agent is less than 0.1% by weight, the effects of hydrophilicity and dispersibility are insufficient, and the amount is 1.5% by weight.
When the value exceeds a large value, the fiber treatment agent causes contamination in the processing machine and a sticky feeling on the fibers, which causes a problem.

When such a fiber treating agent is adhered, the nonwoven fabric obtained by heat-treating the fiber aggregate mixed with the cellulosic fibers has an increased initial absorption capacity, and furthermore, the nonwoven fabric of the cellulosic fibers is reduced. In some cases, the peeling and falling off of the resin is further reduced, and the performance of the material having a falling rate of 15% or more can be improved to 15% or less.

The fiber treating agent used in the present invention will be described. The polyoxyethylene alkyl ether which is the component A is represented by the general formula (1), wherein R has 12 to 12 carbon atoms.
30 hydrocarbon groups, preferably having 18 to 30 carbon atoms.
Is a hydrocarbon group. In the general formula (1), x represents the average number of repeating units of ethylene oxide, and x is an integer of 10 to 50. Particularly preferably, x is from 20 to 40.

Specific examples of the polyoxyethylene alkyl ether used in the present invention include polyoxyethylene (x = 20) behen ether, polyoxyethylene (x
= 14) stearyl ether, polyoxyethylene (x
= 20) tetracosane ether, polyoxyethylene (x = 18) octakosan ether, polyoxyethylene (x = 10) triacontaether and the like, but the component A used in the present invention is not particularly limited thereto. Not something.

The polyoxyethylene alkyl ether is preferably used in an amount of 50 to 80, based on the total weight of the fiber treating agent.
% By weight, more preferably 60-70% by weight. If the content of the component A greatly exceeds 80% by weight in the fiber treating agent, the dispersibility effect of the heat-adhesive conjugate fiber of the present invention is hardly exhibited, and the structure inside the nonwoven fabric tends to be uneven. On the other hand, when the content is significantly lower than 50% by weight, the effect of imparting hydrophilicity of the heat-adhesive conjugate fiber tends to be hardly exhibited.

The quaternary ammonium phosphate salt as the component B is at least one quaternary ammonium phosphate salt selected from the group consisting of the salts represented by the general formulas (2) and (3). In the formula, R ¹ and R ³
Each independently represents an alkyl group having 5 to 18 carbon atoms or an alkenyl group, R ² , R ⁶ , R ⁷ and R ⁸ each independently represent an alkyl group having 1 to 3 carbon atoms, and R ⁴ represents hydrogen or R ⁵ represents an alkyl group or alkenyl group having 5 to 18 carbon atoms, and R ⁵ represents an alkyl group or alkenyl group having 7 to 17 carbon atoms.

X represents an alkyl group having 1 to 3 carbon atoms or a group represented by H (OA) _q- , and Y represents 1 to 3 carbon atoms.
Alkyl or H (OA ') -; represents _r represents a group represented by each A and each A' are each independently an ethylene group or a propylene _{group, (OA) q, (OA} ') r, (OA) _l and (OA ') _m each independently represent a group consisting of a repeating structure of oxyethylene units, a group consisting of a repeating structure of oxypropylene units, or a structure consisting of oxyethylene units and oxypropylene units, which are randomly arranged. Wherein q and r each independently represent an average number of repeating units of ethylene oxide and propylene oxide as integers of 2 to 40, and X represents H (OA) _q- Is the group shown,
When Y satisfies that it is a group represented by H (OA ') _r- , q + r is 4-42. Also, l and m
Each independently represents an average number of repeating units of ethylene oxide and propylene oxide as an integer of 0 to 20;
Is an integer of 0 to 20. It is not intended that the phosphate anion in the general formula (2) and the phosphate anion in the general formula (3) be exactly the same component. Further, n is 2 or 3 and represents the average number of repeating units of ethylene.

Examples of the quaternary ammonium cation constituting the quaternary ammonium phosphate salt used in the present invention include a trimethyloctyl ammonium cation, a triethyl stearyl ammonium cation, and a triethyl octyl amido propyl ammonium cation. Similarly, as the phosphate anion, polyoxyethylene lauryl phosphate anion, polyoxyethylene stearyl phosphate anion,
Octyl phosphate anion can be exemplified. Therefore, the quaternary ammonium phosphate salts include trimethyloctyl ammonium octyl phosphate, trimethyl octyl ammonium stearyl phosphate, trimethyl stearyl ammonium octyl phosphate, trimethyl stearyl ammonium stearyl phosphate, and triethyl octylamidopropyl ammonium polyoxy. Ethylene (4) octyl phosphate, triethyl octylamidopropyl ammonium polyoxyethylene (1
5) Stearyl phosphate, triethylstearylamidopropyl ammonium polyoxyethylene (2) / polyoxypropylene (1) block octyl phosphate, triethylstearylamidopropyl ammonium polyoxyethylene (5) / polyoxypropyl (1) random Stearyl phosphate and the like can be mentioned.

The quaternary ammonium phosphate salt as the component B is preferably blended in the range of 10 to 40% by weight, more preferably in the range of 20 to 30% by weight, based on the total weight of the fiber treating agent. Be blended. If the B component greatly exceeds 40% by weight in the fiber treatment agent, the stability of the fiber treatment agent decreases, and the A component, B component,
Separation of the C component tends to occur easily. Conversely, if the content of the B component is significantly lower than 10% by weight, the effect of suppressing the generation of static electricity tends to decrease.

The polyorganosiloxane as the component C is
It can be represented by the general formula (4). Wherein R ⁹ , R ¹⁰ ,
R ¹¹ and R ¹² are an alkyl group having 1 to 6 carbon atoms or a phenyl group, a benzyl group or a cyclohexyl group, which may be the same or different. Also, z is-(R ⁹ -SiO
-R ¹⁰ )-is an average number of repeating units, and is an integer of 200 to 1,000. The polyorganosiloxane may be any of linear, cross-linked two-dimensional, or those having a three-dimensional network structure,
Linear ones are particularly preferably used.

Preferred as the polyorganosiloxane is polydimethylsiloxane or one in which a part of the methyl group is substituted with another alkyl group or a phenyl group, a benzyl group, a cyclohexyl group, etc., and among these, the most preferred polyorganosiloxane is used. Is polydimethylsiloxane. The viscosity at 25 ° C. of the polyorganosiloxane is 1 to 100 Pa · sec, more preferably 5 to 20 Pa · sec. When the viscosity of the polyorganosiloxane is less than 1 Pa · sec, the adhesion to the fiber decreases, and when the viscosity exceeds 100 Pa · sec, the fiber surface becomes sticky.

The polyorganosiloxane as the component C is blended in an amount of preferably 3 to 20% by weight, more preferably 5 to 10% by weight based on the total weight of the fiber treating agent.
It is blended in the range. In the fiber treatment agent, the C component is 2
If it exceeds 0% by weight, the hydrophilicity of the fiber tends to decrease. Conversely, if it falls below 3% by weight, the effect of suppressing the friction between the nonwoven fabric processing machine and the fiber decreases.

In addition to the components A, B and C, esters as a leveling agent, for example, aliphatic esters such as 2-ethylhexyl stearate and isopropyl myristate, and natural fats and oils such as coconut oil and tallow And anionic surfactants as antistatic agents, such as alkyl sulfates, fatty acid soaps, alkyl sulfonates, alkyl phosphate esters and the like, and, if necessary, antioxidants, preservatives, rust inhibitors, antibacterial agents And a wettability improver can be blended within a range that does not impair the effects of the present invention. In addition, the adhesion to the heat-adhesive conjugate fiber is not particularly limited, such as a spinning step, a drawing step, and subsequent steps. Regarding the adhesion method, any method such as a touch roll, spraying, and immersion can be used. Good.

The fiber aggregate of the present invention comprises the heat-adhesive conjugate fiber (A) of the present invention obtained under the above conditions at 3 to 50% by weight, and the cellulosic fiber (B) at 97 to 50% by weight. Preferably, (A) is 7 to 35% by weight and (B) is 93 to 65% by weight. When the content of the heat-adhesive conjugate fiber (A) is less than 3%, the number of bonding points with the cellulosic fiber is reduced, so that the strength of the nonwoven fabric after heat bonding is reduced and the cellulosic fiber is separated from the nonwoven fabric. And dropping out easily. Further, as the number of the heat-adhesive conjugate fibers (A) increases, the adhesiveness tends to be improved. However, when the heat-adhesive conjugate fibers are excessive, the characteristics of the cellulosic fiber (B) are not clearly exhibited. Therefore, the mixing ratio of the heat-adhesive conjugate fiber (A) in the fiber aggregate or nonwoven fabric in the present invention is preferably in the above-described range.
In addition to this, any other fibers may be mixed as long as the effects of the present invention are not hindered.

The cotton mixing of the heat-adhesive conjugate fiber and the cellulosic fiber is performed by an air laid method. In the wet papermaking method, it is not possible to obtain a bulky nonwoven fabric intended for the present invention, and in the carding method, it is difficult to mix the heat-adhesive conjugate fiber and the cellulosic fiber, so that the falling rate of the cellulosic fiber is large, This is because a nonwoven fabric having a good texture cannot be obtained.

The airlaid method is a method of using a short fiber to form a fiber aggregate by the following procedure. First, short fibers made of the heat-adhesive conjugate fiber used in the present invention are put into a fiber opening machine, mechanically opened, and sent to a cotton feeding circulation duct. At the same time, the pulp is pulverized by a pulp pulverizer and sent to a cotton circulation duct. The heat-fusible conjugate fiber and the pulp are mixed in the cotton circulation duct, and pass through an air laid machine to form a fiber aggregate. There are various types of air laid machines. Typically, a mixed fiber material is dropped from a screen portion on a drum, suctioned by a suction device, and laminated to form a fiber aggregate. The screen part referred to here is a mesh having holes in a shape such as a circle or a square. The heat-adhesive conjugate fibers in the laminated fiber assembly are uniformly dispersed in any direction. Therefore, by lowering and laminating the fibrous material, the bulk of the fiber aggregate can be made higher than that of a conventional nonwoven fabric mixed with pulp. In addition, since the adhesive composite fibers are uniformly dispersed, the bonding points are uniformly dispersed,
As a result, the strength of the nonwoven fabric is improved.

Examples of the method of heat-treating and heat-bonding the fiber aggregate and the laminated fiber aggregate obtained as described above include methods such as a hot air drier and a suction band drier. By performing the heat treatment, the first component of the heat-adhesive conjugate fibers is melted, and the heat-adhesive conjugate fibers (A) or the intersections thereof with the cellulosic fibers (B) are heat-bonded to form a nonwoven fabric. As the number of intersections increases, the nonwoven fabric becomes stronger, peeling and falling off from other materials is prevented, and the strength of the nonwoven fabric itself is improved. The heat treatment is performed at a temperature not lower than the melting point of the first component and not higher than the melting point of the second component of the heat-adhesive conjugate fiber. The heat treatment time is selected according to the basis weight and the method of heat fusion.

After the nonwoven fabric is obtained, it is heat-treated by using a hot press machine or a conveyor-type hot press machine to obtain a nonwoven fabric having a desired thickness. Secondary processing can be performed later, and not only a flat plate but also an arbitrary shape becomes possible.

The heat-adhesive conjugate fiber (A), which is a component of the fiber aggregate of the present invention, has a polar group in its molecule, and thus is strongly adhered to the cellulosic fiber by mixing and heat treatment. . For this reason, the fiber aggregate in which the heat-adhesive conjugate fiber (A) is mixed hardly peels off or falls off from the cellulosic fiber during processing.

Further, the fiber aggregate or nonwoven fabric of the present invention is obtained by laminating another fiber aggregate, nonwoven fabric or sheet,
It can be a laminated nonwoven fabric. In the present invention, the fiber aggregate refers to an aggregate of fibers where the fiber intersections are not bonded, refers to a web or a knitted fabric, and the other fiber aggregates are other than the fiber aggregate of the present invention. The fiber aggregate is not limited to those made of synthetic fibers such as polyolefin, polyester, and polyamide, and those made of natural fibers such as wool, silk, hemp, and cotton. The nonwoven fabric refers to one in which the fiber intersections of the fiber assembly are bonded, and the other nonwoven fabric refers to one other than the nonwoven fabric of the present invention, and does not matter any of the above-mentioned materials. Examples of the sheet include urethane foam, a film, a paper-like material, a metal plate, a wooden plate, and a plastic plate. The term “laminated nonwoven fabric” refers to a laminate of a nonwoven fabric, a fiber aggregate, another nonwoven fabric, or a sheet. Laminating anything other than those described above does not hinder the present invention.
The basis weight of the fiber assembly, nonwoven fabric or laminated sheet of the present invention can be set to an arbitrary basis in accordance with the purpose of use or production method.

The non-woven fabric can be used in various applications. However, since the non-woven fabric is mixed with cellulosic fibers, it is particularly preferable to use the non-woven fabric in wipers and absorbers to bring out the characteristics of cellulosic fibers. preferable.

[0045]

EXAMPLES The present invention will be described below with reference to examples, but the present invention is not limited to these examples. In addition, the measuring method of the physical property value shown in the Example is shown below. Number of crimps: Measured according to JIS-L-1015. Single yarn fineness: Measured according to JIS-L-1015. Official moisture content: Measured according to JIS-L-1096. Weight per unit area: The weight of a nonwoven fabric having an area of 50 cm × 50 cm was weighed and expressed as a weight per unit area (g / m ² ). Drop-off rate: heat-adhesive conjugate fiber (A) having a predetermined length (60 mm in carding method, 5 mm in papermaking method, 1 in air-laid method)
0 mm) and the cellulosic fiber (B) were made into a fiber aggregate by a cotton mixing ratio, a basis weight, and a nonwoven fabric manufacturing method shown in Table 3, and heat-treated at a through air processing temperature of 138 ° C to obtain a nonwoven fabric. The weight (W1) of the nonwoven fabric having an area of 10 cm × 10 cm was measured, and then the weight (W2) after being attached to the flycom part of the card machine and vibrating for 3 minutes under the conditions of an amplitude of 3 cm and an amplitude frequency of 1700 rpm was measured. It was calculated from the following equation. {(W1)-(W2)} (W1) × 100 = fall-out rate (%) Specific volume: determined by the following equation. Specific volume (cm ³ / g) = thickness (mm) / weight (g / m ² ) × 1
000 Fiber treatment agent adhesion amount (%): Methanol 25 from 2 g of fiber
The fiber treatment agent was extracted in ml, and only the extracted methanol was evaporated, and the remaining residue was weighed and calculated as a percentage by weight based on the fiber. Initial water absorption capacity: The prepared nonwoven fabric was used as a test piece of 20 cm x 5 cm, and the weight (Y1) of the entire nonwoven fabric sampled was measured. Next, the test piece was immersed in ion-exchanged water for 0.5 seconds, and immediately thereafter, its weight (Y2) was measured, and the initial water absorption capacity was calculated from the following equation. {(Y2)-(Y1)} (Y1) = initial water absorption capacity

Examples 1 to 11 and Comparative Examples 1 to 8 Using the first component and the second component shown in Table 1, conjugate fibers were spun using a sheath-core or side-by-side spinneret. Drawing was performed under the conditions shown in Table 1 to obtain a heat-adhesive conjugate fiber. Table 1 shows these conditions and physical properties. Further, the fiber treating agents shown in Table 2 were applied by a touch roll in the stretching process.

[0047]

[Table 1]

PP: crystalline homopolypropylene PE: high-density polyethylene having a density of 0.960 g / cm ³ PET: polyethylene terephthalate Modified PE 1: linear low-density polyethylene having a density of 0.903 g / cc (abbreviated as LLDPE) A polymer obtained by graft copolymerizing a mixture of maleic anhydride and styrene (maleic anhydride content 0.31 mol / kg,
Styrene content 0.30 mol / kg) Modified PE2: LLDPE as a backbone polymer, acrylic acid,
Polymer obtained by graft copolymerization of 2-hydroxyethyl methacrylate (acrylic acid content: 1.1 mol / kg, 2-hydroxyethyl methacrylate content: 0.73 gmol / k)
g) Modified PE3: A polymer obtained by graft copolymerizing maleic anhydride with LLDPE as a trunk polymer (maleic anhydride content: 0.64 gmol / kg) Modified PE4: Mixing and grafting maleic anhydride and methacrylic acid with LLDPE as a trunk polymer Copolymerized (maleic anhydride content 0.21 g mol / kg, methacrylic acid content 0.28 mol / kg)

[0049]

[Table 2]

A1: Polyoxyethylene (x = 20) behen ether A2: Polyoxyethylene (x = 14) stearyl ether B1: Trimethyloctyl ammonium octyl phosphate B2: Triethyl octyl ammonium stearyl phosphate C1: 25 ° C. Polydimethylsiloxane having a viscosity of 10,000 centipoise C2: dimethylsiloxane having a viscosity of 15,000 centipoise at 25 ° C.

Using the heat-adhesive conjugate fiber obtained by spinning under the manufacturing conditions shown in Tables 1 and 2, a predetermined fiber length, that is, a carpet, conforming to the nonwoven fabric manufacturing method shown in Table 3 is used. It was cut to 60 mm in the ding method, 5 mm in the papermaking method, and 10 mm in the airlaid method. The cut heat-adhesive conjugate fiber (A) and the cellulosic fiber (B) were made into a fiber aggregate by a cotton mixing ratio, a basis weight, and a nonwoven fabric manufacturing method shown in Table 3,
Heat treatment was performed at a through-air processing temperature of 138 ° C. to obtain a nonwoven fabric. Using the obtained nonwoven fabric, the falling rate of the cellulosic fiber (B) was measured. The obtained fiber shedding rate is the third
It is shown in the table.

[0052]

[Table 3]

Example 12 The nonwoven fabric produced in Example 1 was cut into a size of 15 cm × 15 cm, laminated with a polyethylene film of the same size, and subjected to embossing heat treatment at 125 ° C. to obtain a wiper for wiping the floor.

Example 13 The nonwoven fabric produced in Example 1 was cut into a size of 10 cm × 25 cm, and the whole cut nonwoven fabric was wrapped with tissue to obtain an absorbent for a disposable diaper.

Comparative Example 9 The nonwoven fabric produced in Comparative Example 5 was cut into a size of 15 cm × 15 cm, and laminated with a polyethylene film of the same size.
An emboss heat treatment was performed at 25 ° C. to obtain a wiper for wiping the floor.

Comparative Example 10 The nonwoven fabric produced in Comparative Example 5 was cut into a size of 10 cm × 25 cm, and the whole cut nonwoven fabric was wrapped with tissue to obtain an absorbent for a disposable diaper.

The initial water absorption capacity was measured using the obtained nonwoven fabric, and the obtained initial water absorption capacity is shown in Table 4.

[0058]

[Table 4]

As is evident from Table 3, the heat-adhesive conjugate fiber of the present invention has a low fiber shedding rate and is excellent in adhesion to cellulosic fibers, and the nonwoven fabric obtained by the airlaid method is excellent in bulkiness. It is clear that. Comparative Examples 1 and 3 are inferior in bulkiness due to the papermaking method, and Comparative Examples 2, 4, 5 and 7 are inferior in adhesiveness because uniform mixing is not performed because of the card method. ing. That is, these Examples and Comparative Examples have a modified polymer having a specific structure excellent in adhesiveness on the fiber surface, and a composite fiber and a cellulosic fiber having a controlled single-filament fineness and crimp in an appropriate range are subjected to an air-laid method. It is shown that the nonwoven fabric which is bulky and has a small falling rate of the cellulosic fiber can be obtained for the first time by mixing cotton.

Further, as shown in Table 3, the heat-adhesive conjugate fiber of the present invention further reduces the falling off of the cellulosic fiber by adhering the fiber treating agent, and as shown in Table 4, the initial value. The absorption capacity is improved. That is, Example 1,
5, 9, 10 and 11 have the fiber treating agent component in the preferred range, so that the effects of the heat-adhesive conjugate fiber and the fiber treating agent are synergistically exhibited, the fiber shedding rate is further reduced, and the initial absorption capacity is improved. Is getting better. That is, the heat-adhesive conjugate fiber of the present invention to which the fiber treating agent is attached is uniformly dispersed because the dispersibility of the fiber inside the nonwoven fabric is good, so that the nonwoven fabric has a uniform distribution of the bonding points with the cellulosic fiber. Is, for this reason, the falling of the cellulosic fiber is further suppressed, and,
Since the fiber surface of the heat-adhesive conjugate fiber becomes hydrophilic, the initial absorption capacity becomes high.

Comparing Example 12 with Comparative Example 9, the wiper manufactured in Example 12 has a lower rate of pulp removal of the nonwoven fabric used than the nonwoven fabric used in the wiper manufactured in Comparative Example 9. Therefore, when used as a wiper, the pulp did not fall off, and the workability at the time of wiping was remarkably superior to the wiper manufactured in Comparative Example 9. In addition, because the adhesiveness with the sheet used for lamination is good,
Workability was excellent without delamination when using a wiper.

Comparison between Example 13 and Comparative Example 10 shows that the absorbent produced in Example 13 had a pulp falling rate smaller than that of the nonwoven fabric used in the absorbent produced in Comparative Example 10, The pulp shedding rate was significantly reduced during processing into an absorbent. Therefore, in Example 13, the workability of the absorber was improved, and the obtained absorber had significantly improved absorption performance. The absorber is
Even after absorbing water and the like, pulp was less likely to fall off from the absorber.

[0063]

According to the present invention, the fiber aggregate obtained by blending the heat-adhesive conjugate fiber and the cellulosic fiber of the present invention hardly adheres to each other by heat treatment. Workability is significantly improved. Further, the obtained nonwoven fabric has a large specific volume, is bulky, has a good texture, and is rich in flexibility. For example, sanitary materials,
When used as an absorber such as a wiper, it exhibits an extremely excellent effect on absorption and wiping. Furthermore, by using the fiber treating agent in combination, the fiber surface friction of the heat-bonding conjugate fiber of the present invention is reduced and becomes hydrophilic, so that the dispersibility, opening property, The hydrophilicity is improved. Accordingly, peeling and falling off of the cellulosic fiber are suppressed, and a nonwoven fabric having a high initial absorption capacity can be obtained.

──────────────────────────────────────────────────続 き Continued on the front page (51) Int.Cl. ⁷ Identification symbol FI Theme coat ゛ (Reference) D04H 1/72 D04H 1/72 D D06M 15/687 D06M 15/687 // A61F 13/53 A61F 13/18 307G 13/15

Claims (16)

[Claims] 1. A fiber used in combination with a cellulosic fiber, wherein the fiber is a vinyl monomer containing at least one selected from unsaturated carboxylic acids or unsaturated carboxylic anhydrides A modified polyolefin graft-polymerized with a modifier (the modifier content is 0.05 to 2 mol / kg) as the first component,
A second component comprising a resin having a higher melting point than the component is disposed in a composite, and the first component continuously forms at least a part of the fiber surface in the length direction, and has a single fiber fineness of 0.5 to 50 denier, A heat-adhesive conjugate fiber having a fiber length of 3 to 25 mm and a number of crimps of 5 to 30. 2. The heat-adhesive conjugate fiber according to claim 1, wherein the denaturing agent comprises at least one of maleic anhydride, acrylic acid or methacrylic acid. 3. The heat-adhesive conjugate fiber according to claim 1, wherein the denaturing agent comprises maleic anhydride and styrene. 4. The heat-adhesive conjugate fiber according to claim 1, wherein the denaturing agent comprises maleic anhydride and at least one of an acrylate or a methacrylate. 5. A component A comprising a polyoxyethylene alkyl ether represented by the following general formula (1), and at least one selected from the group consisting of salts represented by the following general formulas (2) and (3): In a fiber treating agent comprising a B component consisting of a quaternary ammonium phosphate salt and a C component consisting of a polyorganosiloxane represented by the following general formula (4), at least one of the A, B and C components adheres. The heat-bondable conjugate fiber according to any one of claims 1 to 4. Embedded image Wherein R represents a hydrocarbon group having 12 to 30 carbon atoms;
Is an integer of 10 to 50; R ¹ and R ³ each independently represent an alkyl group or an alkenyl group having 5 to 18 carbon atoms; R ² , R ⁶ , R ⁷ and R ⁸ each independently represent a carbon number R ⁴ represents hydrogen or an alkyl or alkenyl group having 5 to 18 carbon atoms; R ⁵ represents an alkyl or alkenyl group having 7 to 17 carbon atoms;
Represents an alkyl group having 1 to 3 carbon atoms or a group represented by H (OA) _q- ; Y represents an alkyl group having 1 to 3 carbon atoms or H
(OA ') represents a group represented by _r- ; each A and each A' each independently represent an ethylene group or a propylene group;
A) _q , (OA ') _r , (OA) _l and (OA') _m each independently represent a group having a repeating structure of oxyethylene units, a group having a repeating structure of oxypropylene units, or oxyethylene units and oxypropylene. A unit comprising a group consisting of randomly arranged structures or a group consisting of structures arranged in blocks; q and r are each independently an integer of 2 to 40, and q + r is 4 to 42. And l and m are each independently an integer from 0 to 20;
+ M is an integer from 0 to 20; y is 2 or 3;
R ⁹ , R ¹⁰ , R ¹¹ and R ¹² are each independently an alkyl group having 1 to 6 carbon atoms, a phenyl group, a benzyl group, or a cyclohexyl group; z is an integer of 200 to 1000}. 6. A fiber treating agent containing 50 to 80% by weight of the component A, 10 to 40% by weight of the component B and 3 to 20% by weight of the component C is 0.1 to 1.5% by weight based on the fiber. The heat-adhesive conjugate fiber according to claim 5, wherein the conjugate fiber is attached in a percentage. 7. An A component comprising the polyoxyethylene alkyl ether represented by the general formula (1), wherein R has 1 carbon atom.
7. A polyoxyethylene alkyl ether having 2 to 30 hydrocarbon groups and x being an integer of 20 to 40.
2. The heat-adhesive conjugate fiber according to item 1. 8. When the heat-adhesive conjugate fiber according to any one of claims 1 to 7 is used in combination with a cellulosic fiber, 3 to 50% by weight of the fiber and 97 to 50% by weight of the cellulosic fiber.
A heat-bondable conjugate fiber in which the cellulosic fibers fall off from the nonwoven fabric within 25% when the mixture is mixed and heated to form a nonwoven fabric. 9. When the heat-adhesive conjugate fiber according to claim 5 is used in combination with a cellulosic fiber, 3 to 50% by weight of the fiber and 97 to 50% by weight of the cellulosic fiber.
A heat-adhesive conjugate fiber in which cellulosic fibers fall off from the nonwoven fabric within 15% when the mixture is mixed and heated to form a nonwoven fabric. 10. The heat-adhesive conjugate fiber according to claim 1, which is 3 to 50% by weight and the cellulosic fiber 97 to 100%.
A fiber aggregate in which 50% by weight is mixed by the airlaid method. 11. The fiber aggregate according to claim 10, which is subjected to a heat treatment to thermally bond the fiber intersections of the heat-adhesive conjugate fiber, the cellulosic fiber having a falling rate of 2
A nonwoven fabric having a specific volume of not more than 5% and a specific volume of not less than 40 cc / g. 12. The nonwoven fabric according to claim 11, wherein the degree of initial absorption capacity is 5.9 or more. 13. A laminated nonwoven fabric obtained by laminating the fiber aggregate according to claim 10 and another fiber aggregate, and thermally bonding the thermoadhesive fibers. 14. A laminated nonwoven fabric obtained by laminating the fiber assembly according to claim 10 and another sheet and thermally bonding the heat-adhesive fibers. 15. A wiper using the fiber aggregate, nonwoven fabric or laminated nonwoven fabric according to claim 10. 16. An absorber using the fiber aggregate, nonwoven fabric or laminated nonwoven fabric according to any one of claims 10 to 14.