JP2004160905A - Sheet and manufacturing process for sheet - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a sheet which can fully demonstrate the capability of charcoal and to provide a manufacturing method for such a sheet. <P>SOLUTION: A blend material of charcoal granules and thermoplastic resin granules is laid on the surface of a first nonwoven fabric layer G1, the laid blend material is covered with a second nonwoven fabric layer G2 to construct a three-layer structure S, and, after the three-layer structure S is heated to a temperature of such an extent wherein the shape of the thermoplastic resin granules remains, the pressurization processing and cooling processing are provided for the three-layer structure S. By this, the charcoal granules will not be covered by the resin and be made possible to demonstrate fully its adsorbent ability on harmful substances, and moreover there is no coming-off of the charcoal granules. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2004,JPO

Description

[0001]
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a sheet used for, for example, the interior of a room or a vehicle, a floor mat, a shoe insole, a pet mat, a filter of an air conditioner, a material for a tatami mat, and a method of manufacturing the sheet. It is.
[0002]
2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, charcoal (eg, activated carbon, bamboo charcoal) has been used in various fields because of its high ability to adsorb harmful substances. In this case, the charcoal is rarely used as it is, and is often processed into an easy-to-use shape. For example, it has been practiced to enclose carbon granules in a sheet used as an interior material of a house or a passenger car, an insole of shoes, and the like.
[0003]
However, carbon granules are generally formed by mixing fine granules of charcoal in advance into a material such as plastic or rubber which constitutes a sheet. The granules are wrapped and held by plastic or the like. Therefore, the function of charcoal could not always be fully exhibited.
The present invention has been made to solve the problems contained in the conventional technology. An object of the present invention is to provide a sheet capable of sufficiently exerting the function of charcoal and a method for producing such a sheet.
[0004]
According to the first aspect of the present invention, there is provided a sheet comprising a carbon granule and a thermoplastic resin granule, wherein the sheet comprises a carbon granule and a thermoplastic resin granule. The gist of the present invention is that it is composed of an intermediate layer partially fused and a nonwoven fabric layer sandwiching the intermediate layer from the front and back. According to a second aspect of the invention, in addition to the configuration of the first aspect, the gist is that the intermediate layer and the nonwoven fabric layer are partially fused.
In the sheet configured in this way, the carbon granules are only partially fused with the thermoplastic resin granules, so that the adsorption performance of harmful substances is not hindered by the resin and hindered. In addition, the carbon granules do not spill because the front and back are sandwiched between the nonwoven fabric layers and are partially fused by the molten thermoplastic resin granules. Furthermore, air permeability is maintained by the nonwoven fabric layer.
In this case, it is preferable that the intermediate layer and the nonwoven fabric layer are partially fused. The fusion is performed by melting and re-solidifying the thermoplastic fibers mixed in the thermoplastic resin particles or the nonwoven fabric layer.
[0005]
According to the third aspect of the present invention, the mixed material of the carbon granules and the thermoplastic resin particles is laid on the surface of the first nonwoven fabric layer, and the laid mixed material is transferred to the second nonwoven fabric layer. To form a three-layer structure, and to apply a pressure treatment to the three-layer structure after heating the three-layer structure to a temperature at which the thermoplastic resin particles melt. This is the gist. According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, in addition to the configuration of the third aspect, the gist is that the temperature at which the thermoplastic resin particles melt is a temperature at which the shape of the thermoplastic resin particles remains. According to a fifth aspect of the present invention, in addition to the configuration of the third or fourth aspect, a cooling process is performed simultaneously with the pressurizing process. According to the invention of claim 6, in addition to the constitution of any of claims 3 to 5, the shape of the thermoplastic resin particles remains in at least one of the first and second nonwoven fabric layers. The main point is that thermoplastic fibers that melt at the temperature described above are mixed.
In such a configuration, a mixed material of the carbon granules and the thermoplastic resin granules is laid on the first nonwoven fabric layer, and the mixed material is sandwiched between the second nonwoven fabric layers by a three-layer structure. Make the body composed. At this time, since both the carbon granules and the thermoplastic resin granules are granules, they are easily mixed uniformly. It is preferable that the carbon granules and the thermoplastic resin granules have the same particle diameter (the particle diameters of most of the carbon granules and the thermoplastic resin granules are within a certain range). When the thermoplastic resin particles are heated to a temperature at which the thermoplastic resin particles are melted, the thermoplastic resin particles are melted and partially fused with the surrounding carbon particles and the first and second nonwoven fabric layers. In particular, it is preferable to heat to a temperature at which the shape of the thermoplastic resin particles remains. Next, the pressure treatment is performed on the three-layer structure in such an overlapping manner.
In this case, it is preferable to perform a cooling process simultaneously with the pressing process. In addition, it is preferable that at least one of the first and second nonwoven fabric layers contains thermoplastic fibers that melt at a temperature at which the shape of the thermoplastic resin particles remains.
[0006]
According to the first aspect of the present invention, since the carbon granules are not wrapped in the thermoplastic resin, the ability to adsorb harmful substances of charcoal can be sufficiently exhibited, and the intermediate layer is sandwiched by the nonwoven fabric layer. So that the granules do not spill.
According to the second aspect of the invention, in addition to the effect of the first aspect, the strength and rigidity of the sheet are improved.
According to the third and fourth aspects of the present invention, it is possible to manufacture a sheet in which the carbon granules are not wrapped in the thermoplastic resin, so that the harmful substance of the charcoal can be sufficiently exhibited, and the intermediate layer is made of a nonwoven fabric. Since the sheets sandwiched by the layers can be manufactured, the carbon granules do not fall off.
According to the fifth aspect of the invention, in addition to the effect of the third aspect, the sheet can be solidified while maintaining the thickness of the sheet formed by pressing.
According to the sixth aspect of the invention, in addition to the effects of the fourth or fifth aspect, at least one of the first and second nonwoven fabric layers into which the thermoplastic fibers are mixed by pressurization has a binder effect of the thermoplastic fibers. This increases rigidity.
[0007]
DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS One embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. First, the sheet will be described.
As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the sheet 11 includes an intermediate layer 12 and first and second nonwoven fabric layers 13 and 14 sandwiching the intermediate layer 12 from the front and back. The intermediate layer 12 is composed of activated carbon particles 15 as carbon particles and polypropylene (hereinafter referred to as PP) particles 17 as thermoplastic resin particles. The surface of the PP particles 17 is melted and partially fused to the surrounding members such as the activated carbon particles 15 and the nonwoven fabric layer 13.
The first nonwoven fabric layer 13 is made of a mixture of fibers including, for example, cotton, polyethylene (hereinafter, referred to as PE), polyolefin-based fibers such as low-melting PET, and nylon fibers. In the present embodiment, PE and PP correspond to thermoplastic resin fibers. Preferably, the thermoplastic resin fibers contain 15 to 50 weight percent of PE and PP. If the amount is less than 15% by weight, the binder effect will not be sufficient, and if it is more than 50% by weight, the cushioning properties will be lacking.
In the present embodiment, the second nonwoven fabric layer 14 is made of, for example, cotton and PE-derived recycled anti-wool. In the present embodiment, PE corresponds to a thermoplastic resin fiber. As the thermoplastic resin fiber, PE preferably contains 15 to 50% by weight for the same reason as described above.
The seat 11 configured as described above can be used for various purposes as, for example, interior of a room or a vehicle, floor mat, pet mat, air conditioner filter, tatami mat material, shoe insole, and the like.
[0008]
Next, a method for manufacturing the sheet 11 according to the embodiment will be described with reference to FIG. As shown in FIG. 2, a first nonwoven fabric drum 21 on which a first nonwoven fabric G1 is wound is rotatably supported by a feeding device 22 at the most upstream position of the first conveyor 20. . The first nonwoven fabric G1 is fed out as a continuous band and sent forward.
At the downstream side of the first nonwoven fabric G1 on the first conveyor 20, a spraying device 23 for spraying a mixed material of the carbon granules and the thermoplastic resin granules is provided. The spray device 23 agitates the activated carbon particles 15 and the PP particles 17 supplied from the hopper 24 inside, and supplies the activated carbon particles 15 and the PP particles 17 uniformly from the lower spray port 25 onto the first nonwoven fabric G1. At this time, since both the activated carbon particles 15 and the PP particles 17 have a particle shape, they are evenly mixed in the spraying device 23. In the present embodiment, the size of the activated carbon particles 15 and the size of the PP particles 17 before heating are both 200 to 700 μm (however, a fine powder portion generated in the production of the activated carbon particles 15 is practically mixed here. sell).
[0009]
A second nonwoven fabric drum 27 around which the second nonwoven fabric G2 is wound is rotatably supported by the feeding device 22 at a position downstream of the spraying device 23 in the first conveyor 20. The second nonwoven fabric G2 unwound from the second nonwoven fabric drum 27 is overlaid on a mixed material composed of the dispersed activated carbon particles 15 and PP particles 17 serving as an intermediate layer. That is, the three-layer structure S composed of the first nonwoven fabric G1, the dispersed mixed material, and the second nonwoven fabric G2 is sent forward in a continuous band shape.
[00010]
A heating chamber 31 is provided downstream of the second nonwoven fabric G2. After being heated in the heating chamber 31, the three-layer structure S is further transported downstream by the second conveyor 32. In the heating chamber 31, the PP particles 17 and the thermoplastic resin fibers are in a molten state. A pressing device 35 is provided downstream of the heating chamber 31, and the three-layer structure S is guided to the pressing device 35. Inside the press device 35, a rotary press 39 composed of upper and lower rollers 37 and 38 containing cooling water is provided.
When the three-layer structure S is conveyed into the press device 35, it is vertically pressed by the upper and lower rollers 37 and 38. At the same time, since the upper and lower rollers 37 and 38 are cooled, the PP resin or thermoplastic resin fiber in which the PP particles 17 are melted is cooled and solidified in the heating chamber 31.
At this time, as the PP resin melted from the PP particles 17 is solidified, the activated carbon particles 15 and the first and second nonwoven fabrics G1, G2 are fused with the PP particles 17 as nuclei.
Further, the first and second nonwoven fabrics G1, G2 are compressed by the upper and lower rollers 37, 38, and the molten thermoplastic fiber is compressed by the cooling action of the upper and lower rollers 37, 38, so that the thermoplastic fibers are simultaneously solidified with the press. The shape is stabilized.
A cutter device 40 is provided downstream of the press device 35. The cutter device 40 is a device that cuts the three-layer structure S to a predetermined length calculated by, for example, a rotary encoder. In the present embodiment, the pressed three-layer structure S is obtained by using the cutter device 40 to obtain a sheet 11 cut to a predetermined length (or obtained as a continuous sheet 11).
[0011]
With this configuration, the present embodiment has the following advantages.
(1) The sheet 11 can sufficiently exhibit the charcoal adsorption characteristics without the activated carbon particles 15 in the intermediate layer 12 being wrapped in the resin. On the other hand, since the activated carbon particles 15 are held by being fused to the PP particles 17, there is no deviation or spillage.
(2) Since the activated carbon particles 15 are only partially fused, the activated carbon particles 15 are easily retained but fall off. However, since the intermediate layer 12 is sandwiched between the first and second nonwoven fabric layers 13 and 14, the activated carbon particles 15 do not spill from the sheet 11.
(3) Since the activated carbon particles 15 and the PP particles 17 have the same particle size, they are very easy to mix and can be laid in a uniform mixing condition. For example, the PP particles 17 are concentrated and laid more. The problem that the activated carbon particles 15 are completely wrapped in the resin at the place where the activated carbon particles 15 are not melted, and conversely, the activated carbon particles 15 are not fused to the resin and are not sufficiently held can be prevented.
(4) Since the first and second nonwoven fabric layers 13 and 14 have good air permeability, the activated carbon particles 15 can sufficiently exhibit the charcoal adsorption characteristics.
(5) Since thermoplastic resin fibers are also mixed in the first and second nonwoven fabric layers 13 and 14, the adhesion to the intermediate layer 12 is improved, and the prevention of the activated carbon particles 15 from falling off the sheet 11 is further ensured. I have.
[0012]
The present invention can be embodied with the following modifications.
In the above embodiment, the size of the activated carbon particles 15 and the size of the PP particles 17 before heating were both 200 to 700 μm, but the point is that the carbon particles and the thermoplastic resin particles are both mixed so as to be uniformly mixed. The particle size is not limited to the above, and is not limited to the above particle size.
A material other than the PP particles 17, such as PE, may be used as the thermoplastic resin particles.
In the above embodiment, the shape of the PP particles 17 is maintained even when heated, but the PP particles 17 may be completely melted without maintaining the shape. This is because, even in this case, the mixing in the spraying device 23 can be evenly mixed without bias compared to the related art.
Materials other than the activated carbon particles 15 and the PP particles 17 may be mixed into the intermediate layer 12.
-The material of the 1st and 2nd nonwoven fabric layers 13 and 14 is not limited to the said embodiment. It is also free to mix thermoplastic fibers.
-The above-mentioned production line is an example, and the production line can be freely modified, for example, by changing the position of the cutter device 40.
In addition, the thickness of the intermediate layer 12 and the thicknesses of the first and second nonwoven fabric layers 13 and 14 can be freely changed according to the application, and can be freely implemented without departing from the gist of the present invention.
[0013]
[Brief description of the drawings]
FIG. 1 is a partially cutaway perspective view of a seat according to an embodiment of the present invention.
FIG. 2 is a side view illustrating an image of a sheet according to the embodiment of the present invention.
FIG. 3 is a process chart for explaining a sheet manufacturing process of the embodiment.
DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 11 ... sheet, 12 ... intermediate layer, 13 ... first non-woven fabric layer, 14 ... first non-woven fabric layer, 15 ... activated carbon particles as carbon granules, 17 ... PP as thermoplastic resin granules Particles, G1: first nonwoven fabric layer, G2: second nonwoven fabric layer, S: three-layer structure.

Claims (6)

It has a carbon granule and a thermoplastic resin granule, and is composed of an intermediate layer in which the carbon granule and the thermoplastic resin granule are partially fused, and a nonwoven fabric layer sandwiching the intermediate layer from the front and back. A sheet characterized by the above-mentioned. The sheet according to claim 1, wherein the intermediate layer and the nonwoven fabric layer are partially fused. A mixed material of carbon granules and thermoplastic resin particles is laid on the surface of the first nonwoven fabric layer, and the laid mixed material is covered with the second nonwoven fabric layer to form a three-layer structure. A sheet manufacturing method comprising the steps of: heating the three-layer structure to a temperature at which the thermoplastic resin particles melt; and then subjecting the three-layer structure to a pressure treatment. 4. The method according to claim 3, wherein the temperature at which the thermoplastic resin particles melt is a temperature at which the shape of the thermoplastic resin particles remains. 5. The sheet manufacturing method according to claim 3, wherein a cooling process is performed simultaneously with the pressing process. 4. The thermoplastic fiber which melts at a temperature at which the shape of the thermoplastic resin particles remains in at least one of the first and second nonwoven fabric layers. A method for producing a sheet according to any one of claims 1 to 5.

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