Classifications

• • D—TEXTILES; PAPER
  • D01—NATURAL OR MAN-MADE THREADS OR FIBRES; SPINNING
  • D01F—CHEMICAL FEATURES IN THE MANUFACTURE OF ARTIFICIAL FILAMENTS, THREADS, FIBRES, BRISTLES OR RIBBONS; APPARATUS SPECIALLY ADAPTED FOR THE MANUFACTURE OF CARBON FILAMENTS
  • D01F1/00—General methods for the manufacture of artificial filaments or the like
  • D01F1/02—Addition of substances to the spinning solution or to the melt
  • D01F1/10—Other agents for modifying properties
• • D—TEXTILES; PAPER
  • D01—NATURAL OR MAN-MADE THREADS OR FIBRES; SPINNING
  • D01F—CHEMICAL FEATURES IN THE MANUFACTURE OF ARTIFICIAL FILAMENTS, THREADS, FIBRES, BRISTLES OR RIBBONS; APPARATUS SPECIALLY ADAPTED FOR THE MANUFACTURE OF CARBON FILAMENTS
  • D01F1/00—General methods for the manufacture of artificial filaments or the like
  • D01F1/02—Addition of substances to the spinning solution or to the melt
  • D01F1/08—Addition of substances to the spinning solution or to the melt for forming hollow filaments
• • D—TEXTILES; PAPER
  • D01—NATURAL OR MAN-MADE THREADS OR FIBRES; SPINNING
  • D01D—MECHANICAL METHODS OR APPARATUS IN THE MANUFACTURE OF ARTIFICIAL FILAMENTS, THREADS, FIBRES, BRISTLES OR RIBBONS
  • D01D5/00—Formation of filaments, threads, or the like
  • D01D5/08—Melt spinning methods
• • D—TEXTILES; PAPER
  • D01—NATURAL OR MAN-MADE THREADS OR FIBRES; SPINNING
  • D01D—MECHANICAL METHODS OR APPARATUS IN THE MANUFACTURE OF ARTIFICIAL FILAMENTS, THREADS, FIBRES, BRISTLES OR RIBBONS
  • D01D5/00—Formation of filaments, threads, or the like
  • D01D5/24—Formation of filaments, threads, or the like with a hollow structure; Spinnerette packs therefor
  • D01D5/247—Discontinuous hollow structure or microporous structure
• • D—TEXTILES; PAPER
  • D01—NATURAL OR MAN-MADE THREADS OR FIBRES; SPINNING
  • D01F—CHEMICAL FEATURES IN THE MANUFACTURE OF ARTIFICIAL FILAMENTS, THREADS, FIBRES, BRISTLES OR RIBBONS; APPARATUS SPECIALLY ADAPTED FOR THE MANUFACTURE OF CARBON FILAMENTS
  • D01F6/00—Monocomponent artificial filaments or the like of synthetic polymers; Manufacture thereof
  • D01F6/58—Monocomponent artificial filaments or the like of synthetic polymers; Manufacture thereof from homopolycondensation products
  • D01F6/62—Monocomponent artificial filaments or the like of synthetic polymers; Manufacture thereof from homopolycondensation products from polyesters
• • D—TEXTILES; PAPER
  • D01—NATURAL OR MAN-MADE THREADS OR FIBRES; SPINNING
  • D01F—CHEMICAL FEATURES IN THE MANUFACTURE OF ARTIFICIAL FILAMENTS, THREADS, FIBRES, BRISTLES OR RIBBONS; APPARATUS SPECIALLY ADAPTED FOR THE MANUFACTURE OF CARBON FILAMENTS
  • D01F8/00—Conjugated, i.e. bi- or multicomponent, artificial filaments or the like; Manufacture thereof
  • D01F8/04—Conjugated, i.e. bi- or multicomponent, artificial filaments or the like; Manufacture thereof from synthetic polymers
  • D01F8/14—Conjugated, i.e. bi- or multicomponent, artificial filaments or the like; Manufacture thereof from synthetic polymers with at least one polyester as constituent
• • D—TEXTILES; PAPER
  • D01—NATURAL OR MAN-MADE THREADS OR FIBRES; SPINNING
  • D01F—CHEMICAL FEATURES IN THE MANUFACTURE OF ARTIFICIAL FILAMENTS, THREADS, FIBRES, BRISTLES OR RIBBONS; APPARATUS SPECIALLY ADAPTED FOR THE MANUFACTURE OF CARBON FILAMENTS
  • D01F9/00—Artificial filaments or the like of other substances; Manufacture thereof; Apparatus specially adapted for the manufacture of carbon filaments
  • D01F9/08—Artificial filaments or the like of other substances; Manufacture thereof; Apparatus specially adapted for the manufacture of carbon filaments of inorganic material
• • D—TEXTILES; PAPER
  • D10—INDEXING SCHEME ASSOCIATED WITH SUBLASSES OF SECTION D, RELATING TO TEXTILES
  • D10B—INDEXING SCHEME ASSOCIATED WITH SUBLASSES OF SECTION D, RELATING TO TEXTILES
  • D10B2331/00—Fibres made from polymers obtained otherwise than by reactions only involving carbon-to-carbon unsaturated bonds, e.g. polycondensation products
  • D10B2331/04—Fibres made from polymers obtained otherwise than by reactions only involving carbon-to-carbon unsaturated bonds, e.g. polycondensation products polyesters, e.g. polyethylene terephthalate [PET]
• • Y—GENERAL TAGGING OF NEW TECHNOLOGICAL DEVELOPMENTS; GENERAL TAGGING OF CROSS-SECTIONAL TECHNOLOGIES SPANNING OVER SEVERAL SECTIONS OF THE IPC; TECHNICAL SUBJECTS COVERED BY FORMER USPC CROSS-REFERENCE ART COLLECTIONS [XRACs] AND DIGESTS
  • Y10—TECHNICAL SUBJECTS COVERED BY FORMER USPC
  • Y10T—TECHNICAL SUBJECTS COVERED BY FORMER US CLASSIFICATION
  • Y10T428/00—Stock material or miscellaneous articles
  • Y10T428/29—Coated or structually defined flake, particle, cell, strand, strand portion, rod, filament, macroscopic fiber or mass thereof
  • Y10T428/2913—Rod, strand, filament or fiber
  • Y10T428/2927—Rod, strand, filament or fiber including structurally defined particulate matter

Definitions

• the present invention generally relates to reduced density synthetic fiber comprising polymer material and hollow microcapsules, to insulation comprising the synthetic fiber, to articles comprising the synthetic fiber, and to methods of forming the synthetic fiber.
• Fibers have different physical properties depending on, inter alia , their nature and composition.
• natural fibers such as wool fibers have different properties from polymeric fibers
• polymeric fibers have different properties depending upon the polymer(s) from which they are made.
• fiber denier and fiber polymer material constant, achieving a lightweight article typically depends on fabric construction and amount of fiber used.
• the present invention satisfies the need for improved fiber having reduced density.
• the inventive fiber lends itself toward use in insulation that demonstrates desired properties (e.g., thermal performance) without undesirably increasing the weight of the insulation.
• the present invention may address one or more of the problems and deficiencies of the art discussed above. However, it is contemplated that the invention may prove useful in addressing other problems and deficiencies in a number of technical areas. Therefore, the claimed invention should not necessarily be construed as limited to addressing any of the particular problems or deficiencies discussed herein.
• the invention provides a synthetic fiber comprising:
• the invention provides insulation material comprising the synthetic fiber according to the first aspect of the invention.
• the invention provides an article comprising the synthetic fiber according to the first aspect of the invention.
• the invention provides a non-limiting method of making the inventive synthetic fiber, insulation, or article comprising the synthetic fiber, said method comprising: mixing the hollow microcapsules and the polymer material, thereby forming a microcapsule/polymer mixture; extruding the microcapsule/polymer mixture; and optionally performing one or more additional processing steps, thereby forming the synthetic fiber.
• the reduced density of the inventive fiber lends itself toward advantageous use in, for example, yarn, woven and nonwoven insulation materials, and articles (e.g., apparel, footwear, bedding and industrial fabrics).
• Embodiments of the synthetic fiber may offer low density construction and desirable thermal performance suitable for use in, inter alia , making yams, fabrics, and insulation for apparel.
• FIG. 1 depicts an embodiment of a spherical glass hollow microcapsule
• FIG. 2 depicts hollow microcapsule/polymer pellets according to an embodiment of the present disclosure floating in water;
• FIG. 3 is a side perspective view of a container with hollow microcapsules mixed into polymer material according to certain embodiments of the present disclosure
• FIG. 4 is an enlarged view of a synthetic fiber containing hollow microcapsules according to certain embodiments of the present disclosure
• FIG. 5 is a view of a polymer pellet containing hollow microcapsules according to certain embodiments of the present disclosure
• FIG. 6 is an enlarged, cross sectional view of the pellet of FIG. 5 taken along line 6—6 according to certain embodiments of the present disclosure
• FIG. 7A is a photograph of a microscope image of cross-sections of fibers according to an embodiment of the present disclosure
• FIG. 7B is a simplified line drawing of cross-sections of fibers according to an embodiment of the present disclosure
• FIG. 8 A is a photograph of a microscope image of fibers according to an embodiment of the present disclosure
• FIG. 8B is a simplified line drawing of fibers according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.
• Achieving a lightweight article has often come at the expense of an undesirable sacrifice in one or more other properties (e.g., thermal properties).
• the present invention addresses this and other problems by integrating hollow microcapsules into polymer material prior to making, for example, fabrics, insulation, articles, etc. This is accomplished by forming hollow microcapsules-comprising synthetic fiber.
• Embodiments of the inventive synthetic fiber, and insulation and articles formed from the synthetic fiber may have, for example, reduced density, while at the same time maintaining satisfactory desired other properties, such as thermal performance and/or breathability.
• insulation and articles comprising the synthetic fiber have good thermal properties and decreased density, as compared to insulation and articles comprising the same fiber composition but lacking hollow microcapsules.
• the invention provides a synthetic fiber comprising:
• Denier is a unit of measure defined as the weight in grams of 9000 meters of a fiber or yam. It is a common way to specify the weight (or size) of the fiber or yarn.
• polyester fibers that are 1.0 denier typically have a diameter of approximately 10 micrometers.
• Micro-denier fibers are those having a denier of 1.0 or less, while macro-denier fibers have a denier of greater than 1.0.
• the denier of the inventive synthetic fiber is 0.1 to 11.0 (e.g., 0.1, 0.2, 0.3, 0.4, 0.5, 0.6, 0.7, 0.8, 0.9, 1.0, 1.1, 1.2, 1.3, 1.4, 1.5, 1.6, 1.7, 1.8, 1.9, 2.0, 2.1, 2.2, 2.3, 2.4, 2.5, 2.6, 2.7, 2.8,
• the synthetic fiber has a denier of 0.5 to 4.0 denier.
• the synthetic fiber comprises 0.4 to 30.0 wt% hollow
• microcapsules e.g., 0.4, 0.5, 0.6, 0.7, 0.8, 0.9, 1.0, 1.1, 1.2, 1.3, 1.4, 1.5, 1.6, 1.7, 1.8, 1.9, 2.0, 2.1, 2.2, 2.3, 2.4, 2.5, 2.6, 2.7, 2.8, 2.9, 3.0, 3.1, 3.2, 3.3, 3.4, 3.5, 3.6, 3.7, 3.8, 3.9, 4.0, 4.1, 4.2, 4.3, 4.4, 4.5, 4.6, 4.7, 4.8, 4.9, 5.0, 5.1, 5.2, 5.3, 5.4, 5.5, 5.6, 5.7, 5.8, 5.9, 6.0, 6.1, 6.2, 6.3, 6.4, 6.5, 6.6, 6.7, 6.8, 6.9, 7.0, 7.1, 7.2, 7.3, 7.4, 7.5, 7.6, 7.7, 7.8, 7.9, 8.0, 8.1, 8.2, 8.3, 8.4, 8.5, 8.6,
• the hollow microcapsules have an average diameter of 4 to 30 pm (e.g., 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, or 30 pm), including any and all ranges and subranges therein (e.g., 5 to 20 pm, 5 to 18 pm, 4 to 12 pm, 4 to 11 pm, 4 to 10 pm, etc.).
• the“diameter” of a microcapsule refers to a straight line passing from side to side through the center of the microcapsule.
• the diameter refers to a straight line passing from side to side through the center of the microcapsule at the largest dimension (e.g., for an ovoid-shaped microcapsule, the diameter would be the straight line passing from side to side through the center of the microcapsule along the longitudinal (longest) dimension of the body).
• At least 90% e.g., at least 91, 92, 93, 94, 95, 96, 97, 98, 99,
• the hollow microcapsules present in the inventive fiber have sizes of less than 20 pm (e.g., less than 19, 18, 17, 16, 15, 14, 13, 12, 11, or 10 pm).
• FIG. 1 depicts an embodiment of a spherical glass hollow microcapsule 10.
• Microcapsule 10 is a microsphere (i.e., the
• microcapsule has a spherical shape) made of glass (e.g., borosilicate glass), i.e., outer shell 12 is made of glass.
• the outer shell 12 defines a hollow inner portion 14.
• Microcapsule 10 has a diameter Y, which is about 4 to 30 pm.
• the hollow microcapsules used in the inventive fiber can have various shapes.
• the hollow microcapsules comprise microcapsules having a spherical, ovoid, ellipsoid, prolate (elongated) spheroid, oblate (flattened) spheroid, cylindrical shape, or any variation or combination thereof.
• the hollow microcapsules are substantially spherical (e.g., the average shape of the hollow microcapsules is spheroid).
• the hollow microcapsules are spherical (i.e., the hollow microcapsules are microspheres).
• microcapsules may be of any art-acceptable desired composition.
• the microcapsules are inorganic glass microcapsules (i.e., the outer shell surrounding the inner hollow portion of the microcapsule is made of glass).
• the outer shell surrounding the inner hollow portion of the microcapsule is made of glass.
• the microcapsules are borosilicate glass microcapsules.
• the microcapsules are soda-lime borosilicate glass microcapsules.
• the microcapsules have an average density, of, e.g., from 0.15 to 0.90 g/cm 3 (e.g., 0.15, 0.16, 0.17, 0.18, 0.19, 0.20, 0.21, 0.22, 0.23, 0.24, 0.25, 0.26, 0.27, 0.28,
• g/cm 3 0.80, 0.81, 0.82, 0.83, 0.84, 0.85, 0.86, 0.87, 0.88, 0.89, or 0.90 g/cm 3 ), including any and all ranges and subranges therein (e.g., 0.1 to 0.8 g/cm 3 , 0.2 to 0.75 g/cm 3 , 0.3 to 0.60 g/cm 3 , etc.).
• the synthetic fiber comprises 70 to 99.6 weight % polymer material (e.g., 70.0, 70.1,
• the polymer material used in the synthetic fiber comprises any desired polymer matrix within which the hollow microcapsules are comprised.
• the polymer material is selected from polyester, nylon, acrylic, polylactic acid (also known as polylactide) (PLA), polyolefin, acetate, aramid, lyocell, spandex, viscose, modal, polypropylene, polyamide, poly(butyl acrylate) (PBA), acrylate, rayon, and combinations thereof.
• the polymer material comprises polyester.
• the polymer material comprises PET or PBT.
• the polymer material is or comprises a thermoplastic polymer (e.g., a polyester elastomer, such those marketed by Hytrel, e.g., Hytrel Type 5556).
• a thermoplastic polymer e.g., a polyester elastomer, such those marketed by Hytrel, e.g., Hytrel Type 5556.
• the polymer material is or comprises a thermoplastic polymer having properties similar to those of the Hytrel Type 5556 polyester elastomer.
• the polymer material is or comprises a polymer having one or more quantifiable properties, P ; , in the range of P5556 +/- 0.
• the inventive fiber comprises polymeric material having a density of 1.19 g/cc +/- 0.18 g/cc).
• the polymer material comprises polyester, wherein said polyester is selected from polyethylene terephthalate (PET), poly(hexahydro-p-xylylene terephthalate), polybutylene terephthalate (PBT), poly-l,4-cyclohexelyne dimethylene (PCDT) and terephthalate copolyesters in which at least 85 mole percent of the ester units are ethylene terephthalate or hexahydro-p-xylylene terephthalate units.
• the polyester is polyethylene terephthalate.
• the polymer material comprises recycled polymer material, for example, post-consumer recycled (PCR) or post-industrial recycled (PIR) material.
• PCR post-consumer recycled
• PIR post-industrial recycled
• the polymer material comprises recycled polyester (e.g., recycled PET or PBT).
• Embodiments of the inventive synthetic fiber provide polymeric fibers within which hollow microcapsules are embedded in polymer material.
• the hollow microcapsules are homogenously mixed within the polymer material, meaning, the mixture of polymer material and hollow microcapsules comprised within the synthetic fiber has a
• substantially uniform i.e., 90 - 100% uniform, e.g., at least 90.0, 90.1, 90.2, 90.3, 90.4, 90.5, 90.6,
• the hollow microcapsules may be, for example, completely or at least partially covered by the polymer material.
• the majority of hollow microcapsules present i.e., greater that 50%, e.g., greater than 51, 52, 53, 54, 55, 56, 57,
• the inventive synthetic fiber has a lower weight to volume ratio when compared to fibers having similar composition, but lacking the hollow microcapsules.
• the inventive synthetic fiber has a density of 0.7 to 1.35 grams per cubic centimeter (g/cc) (e.g., 0.70, 0.71, 0.72, 0.73, 0.74, 0.75, 0.76, 0.77, 0.78, 0.79, 0.80, 0.81, 0.82, 0.83, 0.84, 0.85, 0.86, 0.87, 0.88, 0.89, 0.90, 0.91, 0.92, 0.93, 0.94, 0.95, 0.96, 0.97, 0.98, 0.99, 1.0, 1.01, 1.02, 1.03, 1.04, 1.05, 1.06, 1.07, 1.08, 1.09, 1.10, 1.11, 1.12, 1.13, 1.14, 1.15, 1.16, 1.17, 1.18, 1.19, 1.20, 1.21, 1.22, 1.23, 1.24, 1.25, 1.26, 1.27, 1.28, 1.29, 1.30, 1.31, 1.32, 1.33, 1.34, or 1.35 g/cc), including any and all ranges and subranges there
• the synthetic fiber is siliconized.
• the term“siliconized” means that the fiber is coated with a silicon-comprising composition (e.g., a silicone). Siliconization techniques are well known in the art, and are described, e.g., in U.S. Patent No. 3,454,422.
• the silicon-comprising composition may be applied using any method known in the art, e.g., spraying, mixing, dipping, padding, etc.
• the silicon-comprising (e.g., silicone) composition which may include an organosiloxane or polysiloxane, bonds to an exterior portion of the fiber.
• the silicone coating is a polysiloxane such as a
• methylhydrogenpolysiloxane modified methylhydrogenpolysiloxane, polydimethylsiloxane, or amino modified dimethylpolysiloxane.
• silicon-comprising is known in the art, the silicon-comprising
• composition may be applied directly to the fiber, or may be diluted with a solvent as a solution or emulsion, e.g. an aqueous emulsion of a polysiloxane, prior to application. Following treatment, the coating may be dried and/or cured.
• a catalyst may be used to accelerate the curing of the silicon-comprising composition (e.g., polysiloxane containing Si— H bonds) and, for convenience, may be added to a silicon-comprising composition emulsion, with the resultant combination being used to treat the synthetic fiber.
• Suitable catalysts include iron, cobalt, manganese, lead, zinc, and tin salts of carboxylic acids such as acetates, octanoates, naphthenates and oleates.
• carboxylic acids such as acetates, octanoates, naphthenates and oleates.
• the fiber may be dried to remove residual solvent and then optionally heated to between 65° and 200° C to cure.
• the synthetic fiber may be crimped or uncrimped.
• Various crimps including spiral (i.e., helical) and standard crimp, are known in the art.
• the synthetic fiber may have any desired crimp.
• the synthetic fiber is a staple fiber (i.e., a fiber having a standardized length).
• the synthetic fiber is a staple fiber having a length of 5 to 120 mm (e.g., 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21,
• the invention provides a plurality of staple fibers.
• the synthetic fiber is a filament.
• a filament is a single long threadlike continuous textile fiber/strand. Unlike staple fibers, which are of finite length, filaments are of indefinite length, and can run for yards or miles (or e.g., where employed in yarn, can run the entire length of yarn). In some embodiments, the filament ranges in length from 5 inches to several miles, including any and all ranges and subranges therein. For example, in some embodiments, the filament may be at least 5 inches in length (e.g., at least 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12,
• the filaments may be at least 1 foot in length (e.g., at least 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8,
• Filaments may be created by a process known as extrusion (which can also be called melt spinning).
• extrusion which can also be called melt spinning
• the resultant hollow microcapsules/polymer mixture may be extruded as a hollow microcapsules /polymer pellet.
• a plurality of pellets, including at least the hollow microcapsules/polymer pellet may be extruded into fiber.
• pellets can be extruded through well-known techniques, such as by bringing them to or beyond their melting point, thereby forming liquid hollow
• the extruded filaments may optionally be combined with those of another (e.g., an adjoining) spinneret to increase the number of filaments in a bundle.
• a bundle of filaments may be drawn (stretched) to make each filament thinner, and may optionally be texturized, as described below.
• Texturizing techniques may be performed on filament bundles (used, e.g., in yam) to disrupt the parallelization of the filaments. Such techniques may serve, for example, to add bulk without adding weight, which can make the resultant yam seem lighter in weight, have improved hand-feel (softness), appear more opaque, and/or have improved temperature insulating properties. While any art-acceptable texturizing processes may be employed, examples of texturizing processes conducive to use in the invention include crimping, looping, coiling, crinkling, twisting then untwisting and knitting then deknitting.
• the synthetic fiber comprises a lubricious additive, such as that disclosed in U.S. 3,324,060. In some embodiments, the synthetic fiber does not comprise a lubricious additive, such as that disclosed in U.S. 3,324,060.
• the synthetic fiber additionally comprises one or more additional additives.
• the synthetic fiber additionally comprises aerogel.
• the synthetic fiber additionally comprises aerogel particles, as in, e.g., the synthetic fiber described in International Application Publication No. WO 2017/087511.
• the inventive fiber comprises 0.1 to 15 wt % aerogel particles, including any and all ranges and subranges therein (e.g., 1 to 10 wt %,
• said aerogel particles having an average diameter of 0.3 to 20 pm, including any and all ranges and subranges therein (e.g., 0.8 to 2 pm).
• the invention provides insulation material comprising the synthetic fiber according to the first aspect of the invention.
• the insulation material is batting.
• the insulation material is blowable insulation or filling material.
• the insulation material is blowable insulation or filling material, comprising a plurality of discrete, longitudinally elongated floccules each formed of a plurality of synthetic fibers according to an embodiment of the invention, the floccules including a relatively open enlarged medial portion and relatively condensed twisted tail portions extending from opposing ends of the medial portion.
• the insulation material is a blowable floccule insulation as described in International Application Publication No. WO 2017/058986, which comprises the inventive fiber.
• inventive fiber may generally be used in place of or in supplement to synthetic fiber used in any insulation material.
• the insulation material is fabric, fleece, a pad, blowable insulation material or batting.
• the insulation material is textile insulation material (i.e., insulation material used in the textile field).
• the insulation material is insulation material used in home goods (e.g., cushions, pillows, beds, bedding, etc.).
• the invention provides batting comprising the synthetic fiber.
• the batting has a thickness of 1 mm to 160 mm (e.g., 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9,
• the thickness is less than or equal to 40 mm, e.g., 2 to 40 mm.
• the batting has a density of 1 to 10 kg/m 3 (e.g., 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, or 10 kg/m 3 ), including any and all ranges and subranges therein.
• the insulation material is yam comprising the inventive synthetic fiber.
• the invention provides an article comprising the synthetic fiber of the first aspect of the invention, or the insulation material of the second aspect of the invention.
• the article is an article of footwear (e.g., shoes, socks, slippers, boots), outerwear (e.g.
• outerwear garments such as a jacket, coat, shoe, boot, pants (e.g., snow pants, ski pants, etc.) glove, mitten, scarf, hat, etc.), clothing/apparel (e.g., shirts, pants, undergarments (e.g., underwear, thermal underwear, socks, hosiery, etc.), sleepwear (e.g., pajamas, nightgown, robe, etc.)), active wear (e.g., clothing, including footwear, worn for sport or physical exercise), sleeping bag, bedding (e.g., comforter), pillow, cushion, pet bed, home good, etc.
• the inventive fiber is comprised within at least a part of one of the articles listed above.
• the invention provides a non-limiting method of making the inventive synthetic fiber, insulation, or article comprising the synthetic fiber, said method comprising: mixing the hollow microcapsules and the polymer material, thereby forming a microcapsule/polymer mixture; extruding the microcapsule/polymer mixture; and optionally performing one or more additional processing steps, thereby forming the synthetic fiber.
• both the hollow microcapsules and the polymer material are dry.
• said extruding the hollow microcapsules/polymer mixture comprises subjecting a dry hollow microcapsules/polymer mixture to a melt extrusion process, thereby forming a hollow microcapsules/polymer pellet or fiber.
• said additional processing steps comprise forming the synthetic fiber from the microcapsules/polymer pellet.
• the hollow microcapsules/polymer pellet is extruded so as to form the synthetic fiber.
• extruding the microcapsule/polymer mixture forms a fiber of denier X
• the method further comprising drawing the fiber of denier A" in one or more drawing steps, thereby converting the fiber of denier X to a fiber of denier Y, wherein F ⁇ 1 In some embodiments, Y ⁇ 0.7X.
• the inventive method comprises 1, 2, 3, 4, or more drawing steps.
• the drawing step(s) may be any drawing steps.
• the drawing steps comprise, e.g., hot water quench drawing and/or hot oven drawing.
• solid polymer material is obtained in pre-ground form, or the polymer material is grinded, such that the polymer material is in the form of particles.
• the polymer material is ground polymer material that resembles the consistency of sand.
• Hollow microcapsules of a desired size are mixed with the polymer material to form a microcapsule/polymer mixture. The weight concentration of microcapsules to polymer may be selected for the desired properties of the resultant fibers.
• the microcapsule/polymer mixture may then be extruded or otherwise formed into an intermediary product (e.g., as microcapsule/polymer pellets 22, as depicted as depicted in FIG. 2, which have a density of 0.86 g/cm 3 ) that can later be used to make fiber.
• an intermediary product e.g., as microcapsule/polymer pellets 22, as depicted as depicted in FIG. 2, which have a density of 0.86 g/cm 3
• this intermediary product may be referred to as a“master batch.”
• the microcapsule/polymer mixture may be directly extruded into fiber.
• the intermediary product may optionally later be mixed with other material (e.g., other polymer material or other pellets that comprise a different microcapsule loading, or no microcapsules) so as to control and achieve a desired loading percent of microcapsule in subsequently-formed fiber.
• other material e.g., other polymer material or other pellets that comprise a different microcapsule loading, or no microcapsules
• Embodiments of the inventive method comprise forming fiber, either directly from the microcapsule/polymer mixture, or from the intermediary products (e.g., pellets), using appropriate textile fiber production methods, as are well known in the art.
• the textile fiber production method may include, for example, melt spinning, wet spinning, dry spinning, gel spinning, electro spinning, and the like as known in the art.
• a mixture e.g., the microcapsule/polymer mixture, or a mixture containing the intermediary products - for example, a mixture comprising melted intermediary products and optionally one or more other materials
• spinnerets may be extruded through spinnerets to form continuous filaments.
• the continuous filaments may then be manipulated by, for example, drawing, texturizing, crimping, and/or cutting, or another known method in the art, to form fibers in the most usable form for their final application.
• the continuous filaments may be cut to a specific length and packaged into a bale.
• the bale may then be sent, e.g., to a yam spinner that processes the staple fibers into yam (which could be further processed, e.g., for use in apparel such as base layer garments).
• Processing steps undertaken to form the synthetic fiber or articles comprising the synthetic fiber can differ depending on the fiber that is intended to be formed.
• the inventive process forms a continuous filament by, e.g., drawing, texturizing, and optionally adding one or more desired finish chemistries.
• the method forms staple fibers by, e.g., drawing, cutting, optionally crimping, and optionally adding one or more desired finish chemistries. It is contemplated that any desired finish chemistries may be used in accordance with the invention. Finish chemistries are well known in the art and include, e.g., siliconization, durable water repellency treatment, etc.
• the synthetic fiber may be incorporated into articles (e.g., end products), for example, garments, fabric, or insulation.
• the hollow microcapsules are introduced into a polymer material, and, once mixed, the microcapsule/polymer mixture may be extruded into pellets (e.g., pellets 22 in FIG. 2), which may be referred to as a“master batch”.
• the master batch may be transferred to a manufacturer for extruding (e.g., melt blown spinning).
• the master batch may be used to produce fibers.
• the master batch is used to produce a fibrous, non-woven batting of filaments.
• the master batch may be combined with pellets of other formulations to produce a desired material for use in fibers according to embodiments of the invention.
• the method includes mixing a polymer material 110 (any desired polymer, e.g., polyester pellets that are ground down to a sand-like consistency), with hollow microcapsules 120 so as to form a microcapsule/polymer mixture 100, as shown in FIG. 3, wherein the hollow microcapsules 120 are mixed within the polymer material 110.
• the mixture can comprise any additional additives, but in some embodiments, the mixture does not comprise additional additives.
• the mixture may be extruded into fiber 130 (which may be a filament or may be cut to staple fiber) as depicted in FIG.
• pellets 140 are formed into pellets 140, as described in greater detail above and shown in FIGS. 5 and 6.
• the pellets may optionally be combined with additional pellets (to control microcapsule and any additional additive loading, e.g., aerogel loading), and may subsequently be extruded into fibers.
• FIG. 4 An embodiment of the inventive synthetic fiber 130 is illustrated in FIG. 4. As shown, the polymer material 110 of the synthetic fiber 130 contains a plurality of hollow microcapsules 120 dispersed throughout the polymer material 110.
• the microcapsules 120 may be
• FIG. 4 shows the microcapsules 120 completely embedded into the polymer material 110, it is also contemplated that in some instances the microcapsules 120 may be only at least partially embedded into the polymer material 110.
• the weight percentage of microcapsules 120 dispersed throughout the polymer material 110 will be dependent upon the desired properties (including weight) of the resultant synthetic fiber 130.
• the pellets containing hollow microcapsule/polymer mixture 140 are illustrated in FIGS. 5 and 6.
• the pellets 140 contain a plurality of hollow microcapsules 120 dispersed throughout the polymer material 110.
• the hollow microcapsules 120 may be homogeneously distributed throughout the polymer material 110, as shown in FIGS. 5 and 6.
• FIGS. 5 and 6 show the hollow microcapsules 120 completely embedded into the polymer material 110, it is also contemplated that in some instances the hollow microcapsules 120 may be only at least partially embedded into the polymer material 110 in some locations of the pellets 140.
• the weight percentage of hollow microcapsules 120 dispersed throughout the polymer material 110 will be dependent upon the desired properties of the resultant fiber or insulation made from the pellets 140.
• a hollow microcapsules/polymer mixture is prepared by mixing the following:
• the hollow microcapsules/polymer mixture is then extruded into pellets, which are subsequently mixed with polyester pellets.
• the pellet mix is later heated and extruded through a spinning method, for example spinnerets, to form continuous filaments.
• a spinning method for example spinnerets
• the continuous filaments may be drawn, crimped, and/or cut to a specific length to form staple fibers which are then packaged into bale, which may be optionally sent to a yam spinner for the staple fibers to be processed into yarns.
• the yams may then be used downstream to create an article, such as, apparel and industrial fabrics.
• the yarns and insulation made from the synthetic fiber containing the polymer material and hollow microcapsules allow for fabrics and articles having reduced density.
• FIG. 7A is a photograph of a microscope image of cross sections of fibers 130, which are polymer material 110 (polyester fibers made from the Hytrel 5556) comprising soda-lime borosilicate microspheres 120.
• the fibers 130 are 10 denier fibers.
• FIG. 7B is a simplified line drawing of cross sections of fibers 130, which are polymer material 110 comprising microspheres 120.
• FIG. 8A is a photograph of a microscope image of portions of fibers 130 comprising polyester polymer material 110 with soda-lime borosilicate microspheres 120 having a diameter of less than 20 pm comprised within.
• FIG. 8B is simplified line drawing of portions of fibers 130 comprising polymer material 110 with microspheres 120 having a diameter of less than 20 pm comprised within.
• a hollow microcapsules/polymer mixture is prepared by mixing the following:
• PBT polybutylene terephthalate
• the hollow microcapsules/polymer mixture is then extruded into master batch (MB) pellets, which are subsequently mixed with polybutylene terephthalate (PBT) pellets and extruded into fiber.
• MB master batch
• PBT polybutylene terephthalate
• the subsequent fiber blend ratio is 25:75 (MB:PBT).
• each range is intended to be a shorthand format for presenting information, where the range is understood to encompass each discrete point within the range as if the same were fully set forth herein.
• each range is intended to be a shorthand format for presenting information, where the range is understood to encompass each discrete point within the range as if the same were fully set forth herein.

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• Engineering & Computer Science (AREA)
• Textile Engineering (AREA)
• Chemical & Material Sciences (AREA)
• Chemical Kinetics & Catalysis (AREA)
• General Chemical & Material Sciences (AREA)
• Manufacturing & Machinery (AREA)
• Mechanical Engineering (AREA)
• Artificial Filaments (AREA)
• Curing Cements, Concrete, And Artificial Stone (AREA)
• Spinning Methods And Devices For Manufacturing Artificial Fibers (AREA)
• Yarns And Mechanical Finishing Of Yarns Or Ropes (AREA)

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• 2018
  • 2018-11-13 EP EP18822535.3A patent/EP3710620A1/en not_active Withdrawn
  • 2018-11-13 WO PCT/US2018/060626 patent/WO2019099350A1/en unknown
  • 2018-11-13 KR KR1020197038762A patent/KR20200083950A/ko not_active Application Discontinuation
  • 2018-11-13 JP JP2019571205A patent/JP2021503046A/ja active Pending
  • 2018-11-13 US US16/627,115 patent/US20200141029A1/en not_active Abandoned
  • 2018-11-13 CN CN201880043729.3A patent/CN110832123A/zh active Pending
  • 2018-11-13 RU RU2019144045A patent/RU2019144045A/ru unknown
  • 2018-11-14 TW TW107140305A patent/TW201925555A/zh unknown

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