JP2007056405A - Fiber-treating agent and fiber-treating method - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a fiber-treating agent capable of imparting water repellency to fibers without deteriorating adhesiveness, in order to solve such a problem that the original water repellency of synthetic fibers is deteriorated, when an antistatic agent treatment is applied to prevent the generation of static electricity on the production of a nonwoven fabric from the synthetic fibers, and also in order to solve a problem such that the adhesiveness of hot melt adhesives and adhesive tapes for fixing sanitary products is deteriorated, when a nonwoven fabric comprising water repellency-deteriorated synthetic fibers treated with a water-repelling agent and used for sanitary products or the like is assembled into or mounted on the sanitary product. <P>SOLUTION: This fiber-treating agent is characterized by using a water-repelling agent and a water-soluble natural rubbery substance. The form of the fiber-treating agent is a one pack type fiber-treating agent wherein the water-soluble natural rubbery substance is contained in an aqueous emulsion of the water-repelling agent, or a two pack type fiber-treating agent which comprises the first liquid comprising an aqueous emulsion of the water-repelling agent and the second liquid containing a water-soluble natural rubbery substance. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2007,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a fiber treatment agent and a fiber treatment method.

    In recent years, non-woven fabrics have been widely used in sanitary products such as disposable diapers and sanitary products. However, with the spread of sanitary products, the demand for higher functionality has increased and various functions have been applied to non-woven fabrics used in sanitary products. Is now required. For this reason, hygiene products are configured by combining non-woven fabrics having different functions. For example, a non-woven fabric imparted with hydrophilicity is used on the surface of the absorbent body that absorbs bodily fluid (hereinafter sometimes referred to as a “facing surface”), and exudation of bodily fluids is prevented in the surrounding portion, such as the gathered portion and the exterior surface. Therefore, a water-repellent nonwoven fabric is used, and these are laminated together with a hot melt adhesive or the like to constitute a sanitary product. The sanitary product is configured to be fixed with an adhesive tape or the like when worn. Therefore, the nonwoven fabric used for sanitary products is required to have excellent adhesion to hot melt adhesives and pressure-sensitive adhesive tapes.

  Synthetic resin fibers are usually used for non-woven fabrics for sanitary materials, and these have inherently water repellency. Therefore, non-woven fabrics formed by methods that directly form non-woven fabrics such as the spun bond method and melt blow method have water repellency. is doing. However, non-woven fabrics processed by these methods are generally hard and poorly draped, so when used on the skin contact surface, they have poor comfort when worn, and tend to cause dermatitis due to friction. Yes. On the other hand, a nonwoven fabric formed by heat-sealing a fiber web that has been subjected to a sooting process using an air-through method, an embossing roll method, etc., using synthetic short fibers as a starting material, is characterized by a bulky texture and soft touch, especially It has suitable performance for use on the skin contact surface of sanitary materials. However, it is essential to control the friction of fibers and improve antistatic properties in order to pass the sooting process stably and prevent the spinning web from fluctuating due to electrification and the formation failure due to winding. In addition, it is indispensable to apply a process oil mainly composed of an antistatic agent. However, since the antistatic agent has hydrophilicity, the non-woven fabric obtained from the synthetic fiber treated with the antistatic agent has a reduced water repellency inherent to the synthetic fiber. Therefore, when using an air-through nonwoven fabric or embossed nonwoven fabric for sanitary products that originally require high water repellency or an interior rim, by using a water-repellent agent that achieves both antistatic properties and water repellency, The raw cotton is provided with process passability such as antistatic property and water repellency. As this type of water repellent, generally, solid or liquid paraffins, mineral oil, hydrophobic fatty acid esters or waxes, silicone compounds or fluorine-based water repellents are used alone or in combination, and have an antistatic function interface. It is used after being made into an aqueous emulsion with an activator or the like (Patent Document 1, Patent Document 2, Patent Document 3).

Published Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 3-180580 Published Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 8-291466 Japanese Patent No. 2752450

  However, non-woven fabric that has been water-repellent treated with a conventional water-repellent agent has a water-repellent agent layer formed on the surface, so that not only does it cause separation even when adhered to other materials, but the water-repellent agent itself Since it is difficult to wet, the affinity with the adhesive deteriorates, and the adhesiveness with the hot melt adhesive or pressure-sensitive adhesive tape used for assembling and wearing sanitary materials tends to be reduced. For this reason, when processing sanitary products by bonding non-woven fabrics and absorbent bodies with different functions, moisture-permeable films for exteriors, etc. with hot melt adhesives, this property not only becomes an obstacle to processing, but also for fixing There was a problem that the adhesive tape peeled off during use, causing accidents such as sanitary product slippage and dropout. Increasing the amount of hot melt adhesive used and increasing the adhesive strength by increasing the area of the adhesive tape results in increased rigidity of the sanitary product, which only increases design constraints. There was a fault that caused a decrease in wearing feeling.

  The present invention has been made in view of the above problems, and can impart excellent water repellency to the fiber, and the adhesiveness of the fiber after the treatment is not lowered, and the hot melt when the nonwoven fabric is used for a sanitary product. An object of the present invention is to provide a fiber treatment agent and a fiber treatment method capable of obtaining a non-woven fabric excellent in adhesion processability between non-woven fabrics with an adhesive or the like, and an adhesive property with an adhesive tape for fixing a sanitary product. .

That is, the present invention
(1) A fiber treatment agent characterized by using a water repellent and a water-soluble natural gum,
(2) The fiber treatment agent according to (1) above, which contains a water-soluble natural gum in an aqueous emulsion of a water repellent agent,
(3) The fiber treatment agent according to (1), comprising a first liquid comprising a water-based emulsion of a water repellent and a second liquid containing a water-soluble natural gum.
(4) With the fiber treatment agent according to any one of (1) to (3) above, a water repellent of 0.05 to 2% by weight of the fiber weight and a water-soluble natural of 0.05 to 2% by weight of the fiber weight A fiber treatment method characterized by treating the fiber so that the gum is attached to the fiber;
Is the gist.

  The fiber treatment agent of the present invention can impart excellent water repellency to the fiber and does not impair the adhesiveness of the fiber after the treatment. When manufacturing non-woven fabrics for sanitary goods that require water repellency through a sooting process, by processing with a process oil that imparts high water repellency in addition to antistatic performance and friction adjustment performance, process passing performance and repellency are achieved. Water is added at the same time. Disadvantages of lowering the adhesiveness to hot melt adhesives and adhesive tapes for fixing sanitary products when treated with conventional water-repellent treatment oils to produce sanitary products by bonding nonwoven fabrics However, when treated with the fiber treatment agent of the present invention, the fiber can be provided with excellent water repellency and has an advantage that adhesion to a hot melt adhesive, a pressure-sensitive adhesive tape or the like is not inhibited.

  In the present invention, examples of the water repellent include natural paraffin such as liquid paraffin, solid paraffin, mineral oil, fatty acid ester, carnauba wax, synthetic waxes such as oxidized polyethylene wax, dimethyl silicone, and modified silicone having water repellency. .

  Examples of the water-soluble natural gum include gum arabic, guar gum, and xanthan gum. All of these can achieve the object of the invention, but guar gum, xanthan gum, etc. cause the viscosity of the treatment liquid to increase from a relatively low concentration when the treatment agent is diluted. Gum arabic is particularly suitable.

  The fiber treatment agent of the present invention is either a one-part type containing a water repellent and a water-soluble gum, or a two-part type consisting of a treatment liquid containing a water repellent and a treatment liquid containing a water-soluble natural gum. Form may be sufficient. Examples of the one-pack type processing agent include a water-repellent aqueous emulsion mixed with a water-soluble natural gum. Examples of the two-pack type treatment agent include a first liquid composed of an aqueous emulsion of a water repellent and a second liquid containing a water-soluble natural gum.

  A water-based emulsion of water repellent is a water-repellent dispersed in an oil-in-water type. Normally, the water repellent is dispersed in water for both one-part and two-part treatment agents. An emulsifier is used in the process. Emulsifiers include anionic surfactants such as alkyl phosphates, polyoxyethylene alkyl ether phosphates, alkyl sulfates, polyoxyethylene alkyl ether sulfates, alkane sulfonates, dialkyl sulfosuccinates, fatty acid salts, poly ( Nonionic surfactants such as oxyalkylene) alkyl ethers, poly (oxyalkylene) fatty acid esters, poly (oxyethylene) sorbitan fatty acid esters, poly (oxyethylene) fatty acid amides are used. Two or more emulsifiers can be mixed and used.

  Among the emulsifiers, there are compounds having excellent antistatic property-imparting performance for fibers. By appropriately selecting and combining the emulsifiers, a fiber treatment agent having antistatic properties can be obtained. In particular, when an anionic surfactant and a nonionic surfactant are mixed and used in a ratio (weight ratio) of anionic surfactant: nonionic surfactant = 90: 10 to 20:80 From the standpoint of antistatic properties and the emulsifying balance of the water repellent component, it is preferable. The amount of emulsifier added varies depending on the type of water repellent, the type of emulsifier, etc., but it is usually preferable to use about 5 to 40% by weight of the water repellent weight.

  In the case of a one-pack type treatment agent containing a water repellent and a water-soluble natural gum, the water repellent and the water-soluble natural gum are in a weight ratio, and the water repellent: water-soluble natural gum is 95: 5 to 50. : It is preferable to contain in the ratio of 50. In the case of a two-pack type treatment agent comprising a first treatment liquid containing a water repellent and a second treatment liquid containing a water-soluble natural gum, the first treatment liquid and the second treatment liquid are mixed before the fiber treatment. Although it may be used for the treatment, the fiber may be treated with the first treatment liquid and then with the second treatment liquid, or with the second treatment liquid and then with the first treatment liquid. It is preferable that the one treatment liquid and the second treatment liquid are mixed and processed, or the first treatment liquid is used and then the second treatment liquid is used. When the first liquid and the second liquid are mixed before use in the treatment, the ratio of the water repellent and the water-soluble natural gum is such that the water repellent and the water-soluble natural gum in the one-pack type treatment It is preferable to mix the first liquid and the second liquid so as to obtain a ratio.

  The fiber treatment agent of the present invention may contain subcomponents such as propylene glycol, glycerin and butyl glycol in addition to the water repellent, water-soluble natural gum and emulsifier. These subcomponents are preferably used in a proportion of about 0 to 30% by weight based on the weight of the treatment agent. When these subcomponents are blended in a two-component processing agent, it may be added to a processing solution containing a water repellent or a processing solution containing a water-soluble natural gum, but usually in water. The insoluble subcomponent is added to the treatment liquid containing the water repellent, and the water-soluble subcomponent is added to the treatment liquid containing the water-soluble natural gum. Moreover, when using after mixing a 1st liquid and a 2nd liquid, you may add a subcomponent after mixing both.

  The fiber treatment method using the fiber treatment agent of the present invention includes a method of immersing fibers in a treatment bath containing the fiber treatment agent of the present invention, a method of spraying on a fiber bundle in a shower, a fiber by applying a treatment liquid to an oil supply roll or the like. For example, a method of transferring to a bundle. Examples of fibers that can be suitably treated with the fiber treating agent of the present invention include thermoplastic synthetic fibers, for example, olefinic synthetic fibers such as polyethylene and polypropylene, polyester, and nylon. Furthermore, a core-sheath type composite fiber having a polyolefin-based synthetic resin in the outer shell and formed of polyolefin, polyester, nylon or the like as an internal structure is preferably used.

  In the fiber treatment method using the fiber treatment agent of the present invention, the treatment is performed so that the water repellent is attached to 0.05 to 2% by weight of the fiber weight and the water-soluble natural gum is attached to 0.05 to 2% by weight of the fiber weight. However, it is preferable to treat so that the water repellent is attached to 0.2 to 1% by weight of the fiber weight and the water-soluble natural gum is attached to 0.1 to 0.5% by weight of the fiber weight. The amount of water repellent and water-soluble natural gums attached to the fiber is adjusted according to the processing conditions such as the concentration of the processing solution used for fiber processing, the fiber immersion time in the processing solution, the squeezing rate using a squeeze roll, centrifugal dehydrator, etc. can do.

Hereinafter, the present invention will be described in more detail with reference to examples.
Example 1 and Comparative Example 1
70 parts by weight of 125 ° F. solid paraffin as a water repellent, 20 parts by weight of polyoxyethylene (20 mol) sorbitan monostearate, 10 parts by weight of sorbitan monostearate and 10 parts of potassium stearyl phosphate as an emulsifier and antistatic agent The fiber treatment agent of Example 1 was obtained by dispersing in 260 parts by weight of water to make an oil-in-water emulsion and further adding 10 parts by weight of gum arabic to this emulsion. An oil-in-water emulsion obtained in the same manner as above except that no gum arabic was added was used as the fiber treatment agent of Comparative Example 1. Using these fiber treatment agents, treat the commercially available polyolefin-based composite fiber (2.2 dtex x 51 mm) raw cotton so that 0.6 wt% of the treatment agent adheres in terms of anhydride, and dry at 80 ° C. for 1 hour. It was. The treated raw cotton was used for card process passability, web drawing tension, surface leakage resistance, and water repellency test. Moreover, after attaching 0.6 weight% of processing agent in conversion of an anhydride to the nonwoven fabric (basis weight 20g / m < ² >) obtained using the raw material of the same polyolefin-type composite fiber, it was made to dry at 80 degreeC for 1 hour. A tape adhesion test was conducted. These results are shown in Table 1.

  The card process passability, web drawing tension, surface leakage resistance, water repellency, and tape adhesion were tested by the following methods.

Card process passability 20 g of raw cotton treated with a water repellent was taken, opened with a small spreader, and then spread with a small spreader. The soot was applied twice to the same treated raw cotton and adjusted so that the second spinning amount was 15 g. The state of the card web spun at the time of carding was visually confirmed and judged. In addition, the amount of electricity generated in the sooting process was measured on the spun web immediately after passing through the doffer using a collecting potential measuring device.

Web drawing tension An initial load of 20 g was applied to a card web of 5 cm × 20 cm adjusted to about 3.8 g, and the maximum tension when stretched at a gripping length of 80 mm and a pulling speed of 20 mm per minute was 25 ° C., 40% R.D. H. Measured in a temperature and humidity environment.

Surface Leakage Resistance A 3.8 g card web cut to about 8 cm × 10 cm was placed on a glass plate, and the surface leakage resistance of the sample was measured at 25 ° C. and 40% R.D. H. Measured in a temperature and humidity environment.

Water repellency (precipitation method)
0.5 g of the treated raw cotton rounded into 200 ml of ion-exchanged water adjusted to have a surface tension of 40 mN / m by adding 0.1% by weight of poly (oxyethylene) poly (oxypropylene) ether to the liquid surface It was dropped from a height of 2 cm above, and the time required to completely submerge from landing was measured.

Tape adhesiveness The center part of the nonwoven fabric cut into a width of 23mm x length of 300mm on an adhesive tape with an adhesive face exposed 20cm wide and 23mm wide with thick paper fixed at both ends. Load 400g from the upper part of the adhesive face for 1 minute. Give and glue. Align both ends of the nonwoven fabric and fix it to the upper end handle of the tensile tester, align both ends of the cardboard with adhesive tape fixed and fix it to the lower end handle of the tensile tester, and stretch at 20 mm per minute to peel off the adhesive surface The maximum tension when performed was 25 ° C. and 40% R.V. H. Measured in a temperature and humidity environment.

Example 2 and Comparative Example 2
70 parts by weight of isooctyl stearate as a water repellent, 10 parts by weight of polyoxyethylene (25 mol) hardened castor oil ether, 10 parts by weight of polyoxyethylene (20 mol) sorbitan monostearate as an emulsifier and antistatic agent, and A fiber treatment agent of Example 2 was obtained by dispersing 10 parts by weight of potassium stearyl phosphate in 260 parts by weight of water to obtain an oil-in-water emulsion, and further adding 10 parts by weight of gum arabic to this emulsion. An oil-in-water emulsion obtained in the same manner as above except that no gum arabic was added was used as the fiber treatment agent of Comparative Example 2. Using these fiber treatment agents, raw cotton treated in the same manner as in Example 1 was subjected to card process passability, web drawing tension, surface leakage resistance, water repellency test, and non-woven fabric tape adhesion test. The results are shown in Table 1.

Example 3 and Comparative Example 3
As a water repellent, 70 parts by weight of carnauba wax, as an emulsifier / antistatic agent, 15 parts by weight of diethanolamide laurate and 15 parts by weight of polyoxyethylene (7 mol) potassium lauryl ether phosphate, 230 parts by weight of water The fiber treatment agent of Example 3 was prepared by adding 20 parts by weight of gum arabic to this emulsion. An oil-in-water emulsion obtained in the same manner as above except that no gum arabic was added was used as the fiber treatment agent of Comparative Example 3. Using these fiber treatment agents, raw cotton treated in the same manner as in Example 1 was subjected to card process passability, web drawing tension, surface leakage resistance, water repellency test, and non-woven fabric tape adhesion test. The results are shown in Table 1.

Example 4 and Comparative Example 4
70 parts by weight of dimethyl silicone (viscosity 20,000 mm ² / s) as a water repellent, 10 parts by weight of alkylbenzenesulfonic acid sodium salt, 10 parts by weight of polyoxyethylene alkylphenyl ether, and stearyl phosphate as an emulsifier and antistatic agent A fiber treatment agent of Example 4 was prepared by dispersing 10 parts by weight of potassium in 567 parts by weight of water to obtain an oil-in-water emulsion, and further adding 10 parts by weight of gum arabic to this emulsion. An oil-in-water emulsion obtained in the same manner as above except that no gum arabic was added was used as the fiber treatment agent of Comparative Example 4. Using these fiber treatment agents, raw cotton treated in the same manner as in Example 1 was subjected to card process passability, web drawing tension, surface leakage resistance, water repellency test, and non-woven fabric tape adhesion test. The results are shown in Table 1.

Example 5, Comparative Example 5
Using 70 parts by weight of 125 ° F. solid paraffin as the water repellent, 20 parts by weight of polyoxyethylene sorbitan monostearate, 10 parts by weight of sorbitan monostearate, and 10 parts by weight of potassium stearyl phosphate as the emulsifier and antistatic agent Then, a dispersion of 260 parts by weight of water to form an oil-in-water emulsion is used as the first treatment liquid, and a 10% by weight aqueous solution of gum arabic is used as the second treatment liquid. After treatment with the first treatment liquid so that 0.6% by weight of solid paraffin adheres, and then with the second treatment liquid so that 0.06% by weight of gum arabic adheres, 80 A product dried at 1 ° C. for 1 hour was defined as Example 5. Moreover, after processing with the 1st process liquid similarly, the thing which did not process with the 2nd process liquid was made into the comparative example 5. In the same manner as in Example 1, the raw cotton after the treatment was subjected to card process passability, web drawing tension, surface leakage resistance, water repellency test and nonwoven fabric tape adhesion test. The results are shown in Table 2.

Example 6 and Comparative Example 6
70 parts by weight of isooctyl stearate as a water repellent, 10 parts by weight of polyoxyethylene (25 mol) hardened castor oil ether, 10 parts by weight of polyoxyethylene (20 mol) sorbitan monostearate as an emulsifier and antistatic agent, and The same as in Example 1 except that 10 parts by weight of potassium stearyl phosphate was dispersed in 260 parts by weight of water to give an oil-in-water emulsion, and the 10% by weight aqueous solution of gum arabic was the second treatment liquid. The raw fiber of polyolefin composite fiber is treated with the first treatment liquid so that the water repellent treatment agent of 0.6% by weight of the fiber adheres, and then gum arabic of 0.06% by weight of the fiber adheres. Example 6 was treated with the second treatment liquid and then dried at 80 ° C. for 1 hour. Moreover, after processing with the 1st process liquid similarly, the thing which did not process with the 2nd process liquid was made into the comparative example 6. In the same manner as in Example 1, the raw cotton after the treatment was subjected to card process passability, web drawing tension, surface leakage resistance, water repellency test and nonwoven fabric tape adhesion test. The results are shown in Table 2.

Example 7 and Comparative Example 7
As a water repellent, 70 parts by weight of carnauba wax, as an emulsifier and antistatic agent, 20 parts by weight of diethanolamide laurate and 15 parts by weight of polyoxyethylene (7 mol) potassium lauryl ether phosphate, 230 parts by weight of water An oil-in-water emulsion dispersed in a part is used as a first treatment liquid, and a 10% by weight aqueous solution of gum arabic is used as a second treatment liquid. After the treatment with the first treatment solution so that 6% by weight of the water repellent treatment agent adheres, and then with the second treatment solution so that 0.06% by weight of the gum arabic adheres, at 80 ° C. What was dried for 1 hour was defined as Example 7. Further, Comparative Example 7 was prepared by performing the same treatment as above only with the first treatment liquid without performing the treatment with the second treatment liquid. In the same manner as in Example 1, the raw cotton after the treatment was subjected to card process passability, web drawing tension, surface leakage resistance, water repellency test and nonwoven fabric tape adhesion test. The results are shown in Table 2.

Example 8 and Comparative Example 8
70 parts by weight of dimethyl silicone (viscosity 20,000 mm ² / s) as a water repellent, 10 parts by weight of alkylbenzenesulfonic acid sodium salt, 10 parts by weight of polyoxyethylene alkylphenyl ether, and stearyl phosphate as an emulsifier and antistatic agent The same polyolefin composite as in Example 1, with 10 parts by weight of potassium dispersed in 567 parts by weight of water as an oil-in-water emulsion as the first treatment liquid and 10% by weight aqueous solution of gum arabic as the second treatment liquid The fiber raw cotton is treated with the first treatment solution so that the water repellent treatment agent adheres to 0.6% by weight of the fiber weight, and then the second so that 0.06% by weight of gum arabic adheres to the fiber weight. Example 8 was treated with the treatment liquid and dried at 80 ° C. for 1 hour. Further, Comparative Example 8 was prepared by performing the same treatment as above only with the first treatment liquid without performing the treatment with the second treatment liquid. In the same manner as in Example 1, the raw cotton after the treatment was subjected to card process passability, web drawing tension, surface leakage resistance, water repellency test and nonwoven fabric tape adhesion test. The results are shown in Table 2.

Claims (4)

A fiber treatment agent characterized by using a water repellent and a water-soluble natural gum. 2. The fiber treatment agent according to claim 1, wherein the water repellent aqueous emulsion contains a water-soluble natural gum. 2. The fiber treatment agent according to claim 1, comprising a first liquid composed of an aqueous emulsion of a water repellent and a second liquid containing a water-soluble natural gum. The fiber treatment agent according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein a water repellent of 0.05 to 2% by weight of the fiber weight and a water-soluble natural gum of 0.05 to 2% by weight of the fiber are fibers. The fiber processing method characterized by processing a fiber so that it may adhere to.