JP7488688B2 - Absorbent articles - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to an absorbent article.

Composite nonwoven fabrics made from spunbond nonwoven fabrics and pulp fiber webs combine the strength of spunbond nonwoven fabrics with the liquid absorbency of pulp fibers, and are therefore widely used in a variety of applications, including industrial wipers such as rags, and personal wipers such as hand towels and towels.

Patent Document 1 discloses a composite nonwoven fabric in which a spunbond nonwoven fabric and a pulp fiber web are layered and integrated by a hydroentanglement process in which a high-pressure water jet (water flow) is sprayed onto the spunbond nonwoven fabric. As described above, the spunbond nonwoven fabric has excellent strength, and therefore functions as a backing layer for the composite nonwoven fabric produced. On the other hand, the pulp fiber web has excellent liquid absorption properties, as described above. Therefore, this composite nonwoven fabric is offered to consumers as an excellent wiper product that combines the advantages of a pulp fiber web that has good liquid absorption properties for both aqueous and oil-based liquids, and a spunbond nonwoven fabric that has excellent strength.

On the other hand, typical adult disposable diapers include tape-fastened types, urine-absorbing pads, and pants-types, and these disposable diapers are selected and used appropriately depending on the wearer's level of need for care in terms of excretion. Absorbent articles such as disposable diapers are composed of a liquid-permeable top sheet, a liquid-impermeable back sheet, and an absorbent body placed between the two sheets. By adopting this configuration, bodily fluids such as urine pass through the top sheet of the absorbent article and are absorbed by the absorbent body, and the back sheet prevents them from leaking to the outside.

Apart from preventing leakage, absorbent articles are also required to absorb body fluids quickly and with minimal return of fluid. To achieve this, technologies such as placing an air-through nonwoven fabric made of thermoplastic fibers between the top sheet and the absorbent body, or providing slits or embossing in the absorbent body are used.

Japanese Patent No. 2533260

Recently, many large pads with large absorption capacity that can repeatedly absorb bodily fluids are commercially available. Since bodily fluids tend to leak from the back side, especially when sleeping, pads that are inserted into outer disposable diapers (tape-fastened type or pants type) are desired to have a long back side in the width direction. However, conventional pads do not fit well between the three-dimensional gathers of the disposable diaper when inserted into the disposable diaper, which can cause bodily fluids to leak outside the disposable diaper. In addition, because the pad has ears that are wide on the back side, the sides of the ears flutter and the degree of adhesion to the disposable diaper is reduced, which can cause leakage and difficulty in putting on the pad. There is still room for further improvement in terms of preventing leakage when used while sleeping and the ease of putting the pad on the disposable diaper.

The objective of the present invention is to provide an inner-type absorbent article that has a wide structure on the back side, yet is easy to put on the outer disposable diaper, and can prevent leakage of bodily fluids outside the disposable diaper.

The inventors conducted extensive research to solve the above problems. As a result, they succeeded in obtaining the desired absorbent article by providing SAP sheets made of pulp-containing nonwoven fabric on both sides of the wide part of the rear part (back side) of the absorbent article, and thus completed the present invention. That is, the present invention relates to the following absorbent article.

(1) An absorbent article having a liquid-permeable top sheet, a liquid-impermeable back sheet, and an absorbent body disposed therebetween, the absorbent article having a longitudinal length of 400 mm or more and a width length of 140 mm or more,
a front region that is primarily in contact with the wearer's abdomen, a urination region that is primarily in contact with the wearer's crotch area, and a rear region that is primarily in contact with the wearer's back,
The width of the rear region is wider than the width of the urination region and the width of the front region, and is 200 mm or more and 350 mm or less.
The width of the absorbent body in the rear region is
The width of the absorbent body is wider than the width of the urination region and the width of the front region, and is 160 mm or more and 320 mm or less.
a ratio of the width of the front region to the width of the rear region (the width of the front region: the width of the rear region) is 140:200 or more and 200:350 or less, and a ratio of the absorbent body width in the front region to the absorbent body width in the rear region is 125:160 or more and 190:340 or less (the absorbent body width in the front region: the absorbent body width in the rear region),
The absorbent body in the rear region forms a pair of ear portions extending outward in the width direction,
An absorbent sheet is provided on the top sheet side and/or the back sheet side of the ear portion,
The absorbent sheet comprises a multi-layer pulp-containing composite nonwoven fabric sheet and a highly absorbent polymer supported between the multi-layers,
An absorbent article, characterized in that at least the ear portions have a bending rigidity of 5.0 gf·cm ² /cm or more.
(2) The absorbent article of (1) above, wherein the pulp-containing composite nonwoven fabric sheet comprises a spunbonded nonwoven fabric and a pulp fiber web integrated onto one surface of the spunbonded nonwoven fabric, and has an uneven portion in which convex portions protruding towards the spunbonded nonwoven fabric in the thickness direction and concave portions recessed towards the pulp fiber web in the thickness direction are alternately arranged in a predetermined pattern in the surface direction.
(3) The absorbent article of (2) above, wherein one and the other pulp-containing composite nonwoven fabric sheets are arranged so that the internal space of the convex portion of one of the pulp-containing composite nonwoven fabric sheets faces the internal space of the convex portion of the other of the pulp-containing composite nonwoven fabric sheets to form a superabsorbent polymer retaining space, and the bottom surface of the concave portion of one of the pulp-containing composite nonwoven fabric sheets faces the bottom surface of the concave portion of the other of the pulp-containing composite nonwoven fabric sheets, and the superabsorbent polymer is enclosed in the superabsorbent polymer retaining space.
(4) The absorbent article according to (2) or (3) above, wherein the recess is interposed between one of the protrusions and another of the protrusions adjacent thereto, and has a generally groove-like cross-sectional shape.
(5) An absorbent article according to any one of (2) to (4) above, wherein the bottom surface of the recess of one of the pulp-containing composite nonwoven fabric sheets and the bottom surface of the recess of the other of the pulp-containing composite nonwoven fabric sheets are joined to such an extent that they are separated by swelling of the superabsorbent polymer enclosed in the superabsorbent polymer retention space as it absorbs bodily fluids.
(6) An absorbent article according to any one of (2) to (5) above, wherein the pattern of the uneven portion is a lattice pattern, a wave pattern, an acorn pattern, a polka dot pattern, a fish scale pattern, or a checkered pattern, or a pattern in which a plurality of polygons are arranged at equal intervals in the up, down, left and right directions.
(7) Any of the absorbent articles according to ⁽²⁾ to ( ⁶⁾ above, wherein the height of the internal space of the convex portion is 0.2 mm or more and 3.0 mm or less, the area of the bottom surface of the convex portion is 7 mm2 or more and 95 mm2 or less, and the area ratio (opening area of the concave portion: top surface area of the convex portion) is 38:62 or more and 62:38 or less.
(8) The absorbent article of any of (2) to (7) above, wherein the pulp-containing composite nonwoven fabric sheet is a hydroentangled integrated product of the spunbond nonwoven fabric and the pulp fiber web, and the hydroentangled integrated product includes the pulp fiber web, at least a portion of the pulp fibers of which are entangled with the fibers constituting the spunbond nonwoven fabric and/or other pulp fibers, and which is fixed to one side of the spunbond nonwoven fabric, and pulp fibers exposed outward from the other side of the spunbond nonwoven fabric.
(9) The absorbent article according to any one of (2) to (8) above, wherein the spunbond nonwoven fabric is a spunbond nonwoven fabric made of polypropylene.

The present invention provides an inner-type absorbent article that has a wide structure on the back side, yet is easy to put on the outer disposable diaper and prevents leakage of bodily fluids outside the disposable diaper.

1A is a schematic diagram showing a schematic configuration of an absorbent article according to a first embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 2A and 2B are schematic diagrams showing a schematic configuration of an absorbent article according to a second embodiment of the present invention, in which (a) is a plan view and (b) is a cross-sectional view taken along the line B ₁ -B ₁ shown in FIG. 2A and 2B are schematic diagrams illustrating a schematic configuration of an absorbent article according to a third embodiment of the present invention, where (a) is a plan view and (b) is a cross-sectional view taken along the line B ₂ -B ₂ in FIG. 3 is a schematic plan view showing a schematic configuration of an absorbent sheet laminated on an ear portion of an absorbent body in the absorbent article of the present embodiment. FIG. 5 is a schematic cross-sectional view of the absorbent sheet taken along the Y ₁ -Y ₁ cutting line shown in FIG. 4. FIG. 2 is a schematic cross-sectional view of the absorbent sheet after absorbing body fluids.

In this specification, wearing an absorbent article refers to the state in which the absorbent article is attached to the body, regardless of whether bodily fluids have been absorbed or not. In an absorbent article, the longitudinal direction is the direction that spans the front and back of the body via the wearer's crotch when the absorbent article is worn on the body, the width direction is the direction perpendicular to the longitudinal direction, and the thickness direction is the direction in which each component is layered. The skin side is the surface that contacts the wearer's skin and faces the skin when the absorbent article is worn, and the non-skin side is the surface that contacts the wearer's clothing or faces the clothing. Body fluids refer to liquids discharged from the body to the outside, such as urine, blood, and water in loose stools.

<Absorbent Articles>
Hereinafter, the absorbent articles 1, 2, and 3 shown in Figs. 1 to 3 are collectively referred to as the absorbent article of this embodiment. Figs. 1(a) and 1(b) are a plan view and a cross-sectional view of the absorbent article 1 of the first embodiment. Fig. 4 is a plan view showing a schematic configuration of the absorbent sheets 14, 15, 16, and 17 (hereinafter, sometimes collectively referred to as "absorbent sheets 14 to 17") used in the absorbent article of this embodiment. Fig. 5 is a cross-sectional view of the absorbent sheets 14 to 17 taken along the Y ₁ -Y ₁ cutting line shown in Fig. 4. Fig. 6 is a schematic cross-sectional view of the absorbent sheets 14 to 17 after absorbing bodily fluids. These drawings, including Figs. 2 and 3 described later, do not specify the shape, dimensions, size relationship, etc. of each component of the absorbent article of this embodiment. In Figs. 1(b), 2(b), and 3(b), some components are shown to be in close contact with each other in the thickness direction, but this is not limited thereto, and gaps may exist between them.

The absorbent article of this embodiment can be used as various absorbent articles for both babies and adults. Examples include light incontinence pads, urine absorption pads, pants-type paper diapers, tape-fastened paper diapers, etc. Among these, it is preferable to combine the absorbent article of this embodiment inserted as an inner with various paper diapers as an outer. Here, tape-fastened and pants-type paper diapers are preferable.

As shown in FIG. 1, the absorbent article 1 according to the first embodiment has a liquid-permeable top sheet 10, a liquid-impermeable back sheet 11, and an absorbent body 12 disposed therebetween. In this embodiment, both the skin side and non-skin side of the absorbent body 12 are covered by core wrap sheets 13A and 13B. The absorbent article 1 according to this embodiment is divided in its longitudinal direction into a front region 6 that mainly contacts the wearer's abdomen when the absorbent article 1 is worn, a urination region 7 that mainly contacts the wearer's crotch region, and a rear region 8 that mainly contacts the wearer's back.

As will be described in detail later, the absorbent body 12 of the absorbent article 1 of this embodiment has a pair of ears 50, 51 extending outward on both sides in the width direction of the absorbent article 1 in the rear region 8, and absorbent sheets 14, 16 are disposed between the ears 50, 51 and the top sheet 10, respectively. The absorbent sheets 14, 16 each comprise a multi-layered pulp-containing composite nonwoven fabric sheet 30 and a highly absorbent polymer 37 supported between the multi-layered layers. Furthermore, the bending stiffness of the laminated portion of the ears 50 of the absorbent body 12 and the absorbent sheets 14, 15 in the rear region 8 is 5.0 gf·cm ² /cm or more. Furthermore, the absorbent article 1 may comprise fixing means 19, 20 as necessary.

Moreover, the absorbent article 1 of this embodiment has the following dimensional features.
The longitudinal length a is in the range of 400 mm or more, or in the range of 400 mm to 720 mm, and the widthwise length b is in the range of 140 mm or more, or in the range of 140 mm to 200 mm. The width of the rear region 8 is wider than the width of the front region 6 and the width of the urination region 7, and is in the range of 200 mm to 350 mm. The ratio of the width of the front region 6 to the width of the rear region 8, expressed as the width of the front region 6:the width of the rear region 8, is in the range of 140:200 to 200:350. By setting the length a in the range of 400 mm or more, the width of the rear region 8 in the range described above, and the ratio of the width of the front region 6 to the width of the rear region 8 in the range described above, when the absorbent article 1 is used as an inner layer of various paper diapers (outer layers), the absorbent article 1 is less likely to be displaced or partially turned up, and tends to be stably stored in the paper diaper.

By configuring as described above, an absorbent article can be obtained which has a wide structure in the rear region 8 (back side) yet is easily fitted to the outer disposable diaper and can reduce leakage of bodily fluids outside the disposable diaper; in other words, there is almost no leakage of the outer disposable diaper, the outer disposable diaper is well adhered to the disposable diaper, and when combined with the outer disposable diaper, the absorbent article has excellent wearing comfort.
Each of the sheet-like or plate-like components will be described in detail below in order. Each of the components may have a three-dimensional shape other than a sheet or plate shape.

(Top sheet)
The top sheet 10 is a liquid-permeable sheet-like member that allows bodily fluids to pass quickly toward the absorbent body 12. As the top sheet 10, any liquid-permeable material can be used without particular limitation, but since it may come into contact with the wearer's skin, a substrate that is soft to the touch and does not irritate the skin is preferable. Examples of the substrate include hydrophilic nonwoven fabrics, composite nonwoven fabrics that are laminates of the same or different hydrophilic nonwoven fabrics, open-ended films such as open-ended polyethylene films, and foamed films such as urethane foam films. Hydrophilic nonwoven fabrics can be obtained by processing synthetic fibers made of synthetic resins such as polypropylene and polyethylene, regenerated fibers such as rayon, and natural fibers such as cotton using known methods such as the air-through method, the thermal bond method, the spunlace method, and the spunbond method.

The top sheet 10 may be embossed or perforated on the surface in order to improve liquid permeability. The embossing or perforation can be performed, for example, according to a known method. In addition, in order to reduce irritation to the skin, the top sheet 10 may contain lotion, antioxidant, anti-inflammatory component, pH adjuster, antibacterial agent, moisturizer, etc. From the viewpoints of strength, processability, and liquid return amount, the basis weight of the top sheet 10 is, for example, 15 g/m ² or more and 40 g/m ² or less. The shape of the top sheet 10 is not particularly limited, but it may be a shape that covers the absorbent body 12 according to the planar shape of the absorbent body 12 in order to guide body fluid to the absorbent body 12 without leakage.

(Absorber)
The absorbent body 12 of this embodiment is disposed between the top sheet 10 and the back sheet 12 with both its skin side and non-skin side covered by the core wrap sheets 13A, 13B, and absorbs and retains, for example, bodily fluids. As shown in Fig. 1, the absorbent body 12 of this embodiment extends in a strip shape from the middle of the front region 6 toward the urination region 7, its width dimension increases continuously along a partially arcuate edge that is recessed inward in the width direction from the urination region 7 to the rear region 8, spreads in a fan shape from the urination region 7 toward the rear region 8, and forms a pair of ears 50, 51 that extend outward in both width directions in the rear region 8.

In the absorbent 12, the ratio of the width of the absorbent 12 in the front region 6 to the width of the absorbent 12 in the rear region 8 is in the range of 125:160 to 190:340 or in the range of 125:200 to 160:260, where 125:200 is the absorbent width in the front region 6 and the absorbent width in the rear region 8. The width of the absorbent 12 in the rear region 8 is wider than the widths of the absorbent 12 in the front region 6 and the urination region 7, and is in the range of 160 mm to 320 mm or in the range of 200 mm to 260 mm. By configuring the dimensions of the absorbent 12 as described above and configuring the dimensions of the absorbent article 1 as described above, the absorbent 12 has a pair of ears 50, 51 extending outward in the width direction in the rear region 8, but the absorbent article 1 has improved insertability and adhesion into the paper diaper, is less likely to shift inside the paper diaper, and does not impair the excellent wearing comfort of the paper diaper.

In this embodiment, the absorbent width in the rear region 8 is read as the "maximum absorbent width in the rear region 8" and the absorbent width in the urination region 7 is read as the "maximum absorbent width in the urination region 7", and is configured to conform to the above-mentioned dimensional regulations. In this embodiment, the absorbent 12 has the above-mentioned fan-shaped planar shape, but is not limited to this, and also includes embodiments in which the width dimension of the absorbent 12 increases stepwise from the urination region 7 toward the rear region 8, and embodiments in which the width dimension of the absorbent 12 increases stepwise or continuously from the side of the rear region 8 adjacent to the urination region 7 to the side away from it. In addition, the absorbent 12 may be provided with slits or grooves as shown in the second embodiment, and may further be embossed.

The absorbent body 12 includes, for example, an absorbent base material and an absorbing component carried by the absorbent base material.
The absorbent substrate may be, for example, an absorbent substrate contained in sanitary napkins, diapers, urine pads, etc., and may be, for example, fluff pulp, hydrophilic sheets, etc. The fluff pulp may be, for example, a cotton-like defibrated material such as wood pulp, synthetic fiber, or non-wood pulp such as synthetic resin fiber, etc. The hydrophilic sheet may be, for example, tissue, absorbent paper, hydrophilic nonwoven fabric, etc. Also, an opened fiber body of acetate tow may be used as the absorbent substrate.

The absorbent component may be, for example, a superabsorbent polymer (hereinafter also referred to as "SAP"). As the superabsorbent polymer used in this embodiment, various polymers that can absorb and retain body fluids and prevent backflow of body fluids can be used without particular limitation, and examples thereof include polymers containing carboxyl group-containing monomers as structural units, such as polyacrylates, polyaspartates, (starch-acrylic acid) graft copolymers, (acrylic acid-vinyl alcohol) copolymers, (isobutylene-maleic anhydride) copolymers, and saponified products thereof. The superabsorbent polymers may be used alone or in combination of two or more. Among these, polyacrylates are preferred from the viewpoint of the amount of body fluid absorbed per weight, and sodium polyacrylate is more preferred.

The form of the superabsorbent polymer is not particularly limited, but from the viewpoint of suppressing the occurrence of gel blocking, etc., it is preferably in the form of particles, and more preferably in the form of particles having a median particle diameter. The median particle diameter of the superabsorbent polymer is, for example, in the range of 50 μm to 600 μm or in the range of 50 μm to 550 μm. The basis weight of the superabsorbent polymer is, for example, 90 g/m ² to 240 g/m ² from the viewpoint of the balance between the body fluid absorption capacity (body fluid absorption amount) of the absorbent body 12 and the wearing comfort after repeatedly absorbing body fluid. The absorbent body 12 is configured in the form of a single-layer or multi-layer sheet using the above-mentioned absorbent base material and absorbent component. Among these, it is preferable to mix a hydrophilic fiber matrix of a fluff pulp web made from wood pulp with SAP particles.

The absorbent 12 may be used in two or more layers. The thickness of the absorbent 12 is appropriately selected depending on the type of bodily fluid to be absorbed and the shape and material of the absorbent 12. From the viewpoints of absorbency and retention of bodily fluids, shape retention of the absorbent 12, prevention of SAP falling off, etc., the entire absorbent 12 may be covered with a hydrophilic sheet as necessary. In order to prevent leakage of SAP particles and stabilize the shape of the absorbent 12, the absorbent 12 may be wrapped in a hydrophilic sheet (not shown) such as tissue.

(Core wrap sheet)
The core wrap sheets 13A and 13B cover the surface of the absorbent 12 facing the top sheet 10 and the surface of the back sheet 11, respectively, and are interposed between the absorbent 12 and the absorbent sheets 14 and 16 in the thickness direction of the absorbent article 1, and function, for example, to distribute bodily fluid supplied via the top sheet 10 approximately uniformly over the entire skin side or non-skin side of the absorbent 12. The basis weight of the core wrap sheets 13A and 13B is not particularly limited, but is, for example, in the range of 40 g/ ^m2 or more, or in the range of 40 g/ ^m2 or more and 60 g/ ^m2 or less.

The core wrap sheets 13A and 13B are not particularly limited as long as they are liquid-permeable substrates, and examples thereof include nonwoven fabrics such as air-through nonwoven fabrics, thermal bonded nonwoven fabrics, and spunbonded nonwoven fabrics; composite nonwoven fabrics made by laminating the same or different types of nonwoven fabrics such as thermal bonded nonwoven fabrics and spunbonded nonwoven fabrics; foamed films made of urethane foam, polyethylene foam, and the like; and composite sheets that are laminates of two or more of these. Among these, air-through nonwoven fabrics are preferred from the viewpoint of preventing the transfer of body fluids to the three-dimensional gathers 18. The planar shape of the core wrap sheets 13A and 13B is not particularly limited as long as it is a shape that covers the entire skin side or non-skin side of the absorbent body 12. In this embodiment, the core wrap sheets 13A and 13B are arranged at the above-mentioned positions, but this embodiment also includes an embodiment in which the core wrap sheets 13A and 13B are not arranged.

(Absorption sheet)
As shown in Figures 4 and 5, the absorbent sheets 14, 16 are laminated on the skin side of the ear portions 50, 51 of the absorbent body 12. By providing the absorbent body 12 with the ear portions 50, 51 and disposing the absorbent sheets 14, 16, an absorbent article 1 is provided that can prevent multiple leakage of bodily fluids to the outside, particularly to the back side. In this embodiment, the absorbent sheets 14, 16 are disposed on the top sheet 10 side of the ear portions 50, 51, but the present invention is not limited to this and includes an embodiment in which the absorbent sheets 14, 16 are disposed on both the top sheet 10 side and the back sheet 11 side of the ear portions 50, 51, an embodiment in which the absorbent sheets are disposed only on the back sheet 11 side of the ear portions 50, 51, an embodiment in which the absorbent sheets are disposed on either the top sheet 10 side or the back sheet 11 side of the ear portions 50, 51, and an embodiment in which the absorbent sheets are disposed on either the top sheet 10 side or the back sheet 11 side of the ear portions 50, and on the other of the top sheet 10 side or the back sheet 11 side of the ear portions 51, and the like.

In this embodiment, the laminated portion composed of the absorbent sheet 14, the core wrap sheet 13A, the ear portion 50, and the core wrap sheet 13B, and the laminated portion composed of the absorbent sheet 16, the core wrap sheet 13A, the ear portion 51, and the core wrap sheet 13B each have a bending rigidity in the range of 5.0 gf·cm ² /cm or more, or in the range of 5.0 gf·cm ² /cm or more and 30 gf·cm ² /cm or less. The lower the bending rigidity value, the easier it is to bend. By making the bending rigidity 5.0 gf·cm ² /cm or more, the absorbent article 1 can be smoothly inserted into the paper diaper, and the wearing stability of the absorbent article 1 in the paper diaper (prevention of slippage, etc.) is improved. The bending rigidity can be adjusted, for example, by appropriately selecting the thickness and material of the ear portions 50, 51, the absorbent sheets 14 to 17, the core wrap sheets 13A, 13B, etc.

The laminated portion (hereinafter also simply referred to as the "laminated portion") for which bending stiffness is measured varies depending on the arrangement of the constituent members of the laminated portion in the thickness direction near the ears 50 and 51. When the core wrap sheets 13A and 13B are not arranged, for example, it is the laminated portion between the ears 50 and the absorbent sheets 14 and 15. When only the core wrap sheet 13A (or core wrap sheet 13B) is arranged, it is the laminated portion between the ears 50 and the core wrap sheet 13A (or core wrap sheet 13B) and the absorbent sheets 14 and 15. When the core wrap sheets 13A and 13B are not arranged and only the absorbent sheet 14 (or absorbent sheet 15) on the top sheet 10 (or back sheet 11) side is arranged, it is the laminated portion between the ears 50 and the absorbent sheet 14 (or absorbent sheet 15). It is the same as the laminated portion of the ears 51 and the laminated portion of the ears 50.

The bending stiffness is measured by inserting a sample (a specific laminated portion) between the fixed chuck and the movable chuck of a bending tester (product name: KES-FB2, manufactured by Kato Tech Co., Ltd.). The movable chuck moves to the maximum positive curvature of +2.5 cm ^-1 , reverses, passes through a curvature of 0, and then moves to the maximum negative curvature of -2.5 cm ^-1 , reverses, and ends at a curvature of 0, thus obtaining a reciprocating curve of the bending moment for one cycle of curvature. In the reciprocating curve of the bending moment, the average value of the slope between curvatures of 0.5 cm ^-1 and 1.5 cm ^-1 and the slope between curvatures of -0.5 cm ^-1 and -1.5 cm ^-1 is taken as the bending stiffness.

The absorbent sheets 14 to 17 of this embodiment each have a configuration in which a superabsorbent polymer 37 is enclosed between two pulp-containing composite nonwoven fabric sheets 30. The number of layers of the pulp-containing composite nonwoven fabric sheet 30 of this embodiment is two, but is not limited to this, and any number of layers of three or more can be selected. In one embodiment of the absorbent sheets 14 to 17, the pulp-containing composite nonwoven fabric sheet 30 includes a spunbond nonwoven fabric 31 and a pulp fiber web 32 integrated therewith, and has an uneven portion 40 on its entire surface. In this embodiment, the uneven portion 40 is formed on the entire surface of the pulp-containing composite nonwoven fabric sheet 30, but is not limited to this, and may be formed on only a part of the pulp-containing composite nonwoven fabric sheet 30.

In one embodiment, the absorbent sheets 14 to 17 are formed by stacking two pulp-containing composite nonwoven fabric sheets 30 such that the pulp fiber webs 32 of the two pulp-containing composite nonwoven fabric sheets 30 face each other and are in partial contact with each other, the convex portions 35 of the two pulp-containing composite nonwoven fabric sheets 30 face each other to form a highly absorbent polymer holding space 34, and the internal spaces of the concave portions 36 of the two pulp-containing composite nonwoven fabric sheets 30 face each other, with the bottom surfaces of the pulp fiber webs 32 serving as the contact surface or loose joint surface 33. The materials constituting the pulp-containing composite nonwoven fabric sheets 30 will be described later, and here the concave and convex portions 40 will be described first.

As shown in FIG. 4, the uneven portion 40 of this embodiment has a configuration in which convex portions 35 having a substantially hexagonal top surface and groove-shaped concave portions 36 are alternately arranged in a predetermined pattern in the surface direction of the pulp-containing composite nonwoven fabric sheet 30. The pattern of this embodiment is a pattern in which one convex portion 35 and six surrounding convex portions 35 in the left-right direction, upper diagonal left-right direction, and lower diagonal left-right direction are arranged so that one of the six sides of the hexagon is substantially parallel and is separated from each other by the concave portions 36 arranged along the periphery of the convex portion 35, and is one embodiment of a pattern in which a plurality of polygons are arranged at equal intervals in the up-down-left-right direction. Here, examples of polygons include substantially equilateral triangles, substantially squares, substantially rectangles, substantially rhombuses, substantially parallelograms, substantially pentagons, and substantially polygons having hexagons or more. The pattern of the uneven portion 40 is not limited to this embodiment, and may be a lattice pattern, a wave pattern, an acorn pattern (a continuous acorn shape), a polka dot pattern, a scale pattern, a checkered pattern, etc. A combination of two or more patterns is also acceptable. Any pattern is the same in that it forms a high-absorbent polymer retention space 34 that is essentially a closed space, and it is self-evident that the same effect can be obtained.

The convex portion 35 of this embodiment protrudes toward the spunbond nonwoven fabric 31 (or the top sheet 10) in the thickness direction of the pulp-containing composite nonwoven fabric sheet 30, and its top surface is a flat surface having a substantially hexagonal shape in plan view. The concave portion 36 is a groove that is concave toward the pulp fiber web 32 (or the bag sheet 12) and extends linearly while bending along the edge of the convex portion 35, and is likely to become a diffusion path for bodily fluids. Therefore, the concave portion 36 further improves the liquid absorption and bodily fluid diffusion properties that the pulp fiber web 32 originally has, and allows almost all of the superabsorbent polymer 37 in the absorbent sheets 14 to 17 to be used for absorbing bodily fluids. As a result, the amount of superabsorbent polymer 37 enclosed in the absorbent sheets 14 to 17 can be adjusted to an appropriate range, and the thickness of the laminated portion between the ear portions 50, 51 of the absorber 12 and the absorbent sheets 14 to 17 can be thinned to a degree that does not impair the good wearing comfort of the absorbent article 1.

The recess 36 may be inverted trapezoidal (with the diameter of the opening larger than the diameter of the bottom), U-shaped, V-shaped, etc. in cross section. The width dimension X (FIG. 4) of the opening of the recess 36 is appropriately selected depending on the area of the top surface of the protrusion 35, the shape in plan view, the arrangement pattern of the protrusion 35 and the recess 36, etc., but is, for example, 0.3 mm or more and 1.0 mm or less from the viewpoint of realizing a loose joint state described later.

The convex portion 35 of one pulp-containing composite nonwoven sheet 30 (hereinafter also referred to as "one convex portion 35") and the convex portion 35 of the other pulp-containing composite nonwoven sheet 30 (hereinafter also referred to as "other convex portion 35") face each other in their internal spaces to form a superabsorbent polymer holding space 34. The superabsorbent polymer 37 enclosed in the superabsorbent polymer holding space 34 may be fixed to the surface of the pulp fiber web 32, which is the inner wall surface of the superabsorbent polymer holding space 34, or may not be fixed, or may be partially fixed and the remaining portion not fixed. For example, a hot melt adhesive or the like is used to fix the superabsorbent polymer 37. The superabsorbent polymer 37 enclosed in the superabsorbent polymer holding space 34 may be the same superabsorbent polymer as that used in the absorbent body 12, without any particular restrictions.

The height of the internal space of the protrusions 35 is, for example, 0.2 mm or more and 3.0 mm or less from the viewpoint of the balance between the amount of superabsorbent polymer 37 enclosed in the superabsorbent polymer holding space 34 and the thickness of the absorbent body 11 at the time of maximum absorption of body fluid, the shape retention of the protrusions 35, etc. Here, the height of the internal space of the protrusions 35 is the height in the direction perpendicular to an imaginary plane connecting a plurality of contact surfaces or loosely joined surfaces 33 in the vertical and horizontal directions. In addition, the area of the opening of the protrusions 35 on the pulp fiber web 32 side is, for example, 7 ^mm2 or more and ⁹⁵ mm2 or less from the viewpoint of adjusting the amount of superabsorbent polymer 37 enclosed, etc. When the protrusions 35 are columnar, the area of the top surface of the protrusions 35 and the area of the opening on the pulp fiber web 32 side are approximately equal.

In addition, the bottom surface (hereinafter also referred to as the "bottom surface of the first recess 36") of the recess 36 (hereinafter also referred to as the "first recess 36") of one pulp-containing composite nonwoven fabric sheet 30 on the pulp fiber web 32 (or back sheet 12) side and the bottom surface (hereinafter also referred to as the "bottom surface of the other recess 36") of the recess 36 (hereinafter also referred to as the "other recess 36") of the other pulp-containing composite nonwoven fabric sheet 30 on the pulp fiber web 32 (or back sheet 12) side face each other as shown in FIG. 5, forming a contact surface or a loosely joined surface 33. Here, the loosely joined surface refers to a joint in which the bottom surfaces of the first and other recesses 36 are joined together to make each of the superabsorbent polymer holding spaces 34 a closed space, but when the superabsorbent polymer 37 absorbs body fluids and swells, the joined state is dissolved due to the volume expansion, and the bottom surfaces of the first and other recesses 36 are separated from each other. Here, known methods such as heat fusion and ultrasonic bonding can be used as the joining method. In addition, to achieve loose bonding, various bonding conditions can be set while keeping the amount of superabsorbent polymer 37 enclosed constant, and repeated experiments can be performed to appropriately select bonding conditions that can achieve the aforementioned loose bonding according to the amount of superabsorbent polymer 37 enclosed.

On the surface of the spunbond nonwoven fabric 31 side of the pulp-containing composite nonwoven fabric sheet 30, the area ratio (opening area of the recessed portion 36:top surface area of the protruding portion 35) is, for example, 38:62 or more and 62:38 or less, from the viewpoints of the amount of superabsorbent polymer 37 enclosed, bonding strength, and ensuring diffusibility. The dimensions of the protruding portion 35 and the recessed portion 36 are determined, for example, using an analysis application of a one-shot 3D shape measuring machine (product name: Controller VR-3000 Series, manufactured by Keyence Corporation). For example, by measuring the height difference between the protruding portion 35 and the recessed portion 36 using the analysis application, the height of the protruding portion 35 and the depth of the recessed portion 36 can be determined. Furthermore, by measuring the distance between the centers of the protruding portions 35, the spacing between the protruding portions 35 can be determined.

As the spunbond nonwoven fabric 31 of the pulp-containing composite nonwoven fabric sheet 30, a nonwoven fabric produced by a spunbond method, a melt-blowing method, a flash spinning method, or the like can be used without any particular limitation, but as the material, for example, synthetic resins such as nylon (trade name), vinylon, polyester, acrylic resin, polyethylene, polypropylene, polystyrene, etc. can be preferably used. The spunbond nonwoven fabric 31 may contain a plurality of synthetic resin fibers. Among these, from the viewpoint of strength, softness, etc., a spunbond nonwoven fabric 31 containing polypropylene fibers is preferable, and a spunbond nonwoven fabric 31 whose constituent fibers are all polypropylene fibers is more preferable. In addition, the basis weight of the spunbond nonwoven fabric 31 is not particularly limited, but from the viewpoint of tensile strength and softness to the touch, it is, for example, 7 g/m ² or more and 20 g/m ² or less.

The pulp fiber web 32 is not particularly limited, but examples thereof include a layer of nonwoven fabric mainly composed of pulp fibers (hereinafter also referred to as "pulp nonwoven fabric"), a layer in which pulp fibers are entangled with each other, and a layer in which pulp fibers are fixed with a very small amount of adhesive or binder. Among these, a layer in which pulp fibers are entangled with each other is preferred from the viewpoints of strength, softness, etc. The pulp fibers used here are not particularly limited, but examples thereof include coniferous bleached kraft pulp (hereinafter also referred to as "NBKP") such as radiata pine, slash pine, southern pine, lodgepole pine, spruce, and Douglas fir. NBKP can be used alone or in combination of two or more types. The basis weight of the pulp fiber web 32 is not particularly limited, but from the viewpoints of uniformity, touch, absorbency, etc., it is, for example, 30 g/m ² or more and 70 g/m ² or less.

The pulp fiber content is, for example, 65% to 90% by mass of the total amount of the pulp-containing composite nonwoven fabric sheet 30, with the remainder being spunbond nonwoven fabric 31, or 70% to 85% by mass, with the remainder being spunbond nonwoven fabric 31. If the pulp fiber content is less than 65% by mass, a pulp-containing composite nonwoven fabric sheet 30 that is stable in terms of absorbency, diffusibility, etc. of body fluids tends not to be formed, and if it exceeds 90% by mass, the pulp-containing composite nonwoven fabric sheet 30 tends to become hard.

The basis weight of the entire pulp-containing composite nonwoven fabric sheet 30 is, for example, 40 g/ ^m2 to 80 g/ ^m2 , or 40 g/ ^m2 to 60 g/ ^m2 . If it is less than 40 g/ ^m2 , the pulp-containing composite nonwoven fabric sheet 30 tends to be too soft, and if it exceeds 80 g/ ^m2 , the pulp-containing composite nonwoven fabric sheet 30 tends to be too hard.

In addition, for the pulp-containing composite nonwoven fabric sheet 30, in a tensile strength test using a Tensilon, the force (tensile strength) required to stretch a test piece formed to a width of 25 mm in the longitudinal direction by 2 mm is not particularly limited, but is, for example, 1.5 N/25 mm or more and 5.0 N/25 mm or less.

The thickness of the pulp-containing composite nonwoven fabric sheet 30, when measured using a thickness gauge (product name: dial thickness gauge "PEACOCK (registered trademark), manufactured by Ozaki Manufacturing Co., Ltd.), is, for example, 0.25 mm to 0.50 mm, or 0.30 mm to 0.45 mm. If the value is lower than this range, the pulp-containing composite nonwoven fabric sheet 30 becomes too soft, and the pulp-containing composite nonwoven fabric sheet 30 tends not to be stably fixed during the manufacture of the absorbent article 1. If the value is higher than this range, the pulp-containing composite nonwoven fabric sheet 30 tends to become hard.

The spunbond nonwoven fabric 31 and the pulp fiber web 32 can be integrated by, for example, a thermocompression method, a hydroentanglement method, integration by adhesives, etc. Among these methods, the hydroentanglement method can be used to obtain a pulp-containing composite nonwoven fabric sheet 30 that has both a soft appearance and feel and strength. According to the hydroentanglement method, wood pulp fibers are sprayed onto the non-skin side surface of the spunbond nonwoven fabric 31 together with a water flow without using a binder or adhesive, so that the pulp fibers are entangled in the pulp fiber web 32 and the constituent fibers of the spunbond nonwoven fabric 31 are entangled with the pulp fibers, resulting in a hydroentangled integrated product in which the spunbond nonwoven fabric 31 and the pulp fiber web 32 are firmly integrated.

As an embodiment of such a hydroentangled integrated product, there is a hydroentangled integrated product including a pulp fiber web 32 in which at least a part of the pulp fibers are entangled with the fibers (synthetic resin fibers) constituting the spunbond nonwoven fabric 31 and/or other pulp fibers and fixed to one side of the spunbond nonwoven fabric 21, and pulp fibers penetrating the spunbond nonwoven fabric in the thickness direction and protruding outward from the other side. When the above-mentioned uneven portion 40 is formed in this embodiment, the pulp fibers are exposed on the surface of the spunbond nonwoven fabric 31 side of the convex portion 35 and the concave portion 36, and these exposed pulp fibers become guideways for bodily fluids, and the three-dimensional structure of the uneven portion 40 (especially the concave portion 36) and the pulp fiber web 32 cooperate synergistically to obtain extremely rapid diffusion and absorption retention of bodily fluids throughout the absorbent body 12, increasing the absorption speed and improving wetback. The hydroentangled integrated product of the above embodiment can be obtained, for example, by appropriately adjusting the pressure of the water flow sprayed on the spunbond nonwoven fabric 31. Among the hydroentangled integrated products of the above embodiment, it is more preferable that the spunbond nonwoven fabric 31 be a spunbond nonwoven fabric made of polypropylene from the standpoints of strength, softness, and absorbency.

The uneven portion 40 is formed on the pulp-containing composite nonwoven fabric sheet 30 by, for example, embossing. Examples of embossing include known methods such as heat embossing, ultrasonic embossing, and high-frequency embossing. Pressurization and/or heating and embossing may be performed simultaneously.

<Preparation of Absorbent Sheet>
The absorbent sheets 14 to 17 can be produced, for example, by preparing one pulp-containing composite nonwoven fabric sheet 30 with the top surfaces of the protrusions 35 facing downward, storing superabsorbent polymer 37 fixed and/or unfixed in the internal spaces of the protrusions 35, layering another pulp-containing composite nonwoven fabric sheet 30 on top of the first pulp-containing composite nonwoven fabric sheet 30 with the top surfaces of the protrusions 35 facing upward, bonding the four peripheral edges of the first and other pulp-containing composite nonwoven fabric sheets 30, and further loosely bonding the bottom surfaces of the pulp fiber web 32 sides of the recesses 36 together, as necessary. The four peripheral edges of the first and other pulp-containing composite nonwoven fabric sheets 30 and the bottom surfaces of the pulp fiber web 32 sides of the recesses 36 can also be bonded together simultaneously.

(Back seat)
The back sheet 11 is disposed on the most non-skin side of the absorbent article 1 and is made of a breathable or non-breathable liquid-impermeable substrate so that, for example, the body fluid held by the absorbent 12 does not wet clothing or adhere to the skin surface. Examples of the liquid-impermeable substrate for the back sheet 11 include resin films and composite sheets that are laminates of resin films and nonwoven fabrics. Examples of the resin films include films made of synthetic resins such as polyester, polyvinyl alcohol, polyethylene, and polypropylene, and composite films that are laminates of polyethylene films and polypropylene films. The nonwoven fabric used in the composite sheet is not particularly limited in its manufacturing method, and examples thereof include spunbond nonwoven fabrics, meltblown nonwoven fabrics, composite nonwoven fabrics that are laminates of spunbond nonwoven fabrics and meltblown nonwoven fabrics, and composite nonwoven fabrics that are laminates of spunbond nonwoven fabrics, meltblown nonwoven fabrics, and spunbond nonwoven fabrics.

The basis weight of the back sheet 11 is not particularly limited, but is, for example, 15 g/m ² or more and 40 g/m ² or less from the viewpoint of strength and processability. In addition, in order to prevent stuffiness during wearing, there is a form in which breathability is imparted to the back sheet 11. The method of imparting breathability to the back sheet 11 is not particularly limited and a known method can be adopted, for example, a method of making a resin film, which is a back sheet substrate, porous, a method of embossing the back sheet substrate, etc. are mentioned. As an example of a method of making a resin film porous, a method of making a film by containing a filler in a resin and removing the filler from the obtained film, etc. are mentioned. As a filler, for example, an inorganic salt such as calcium carbonate can be mentioned.

(3D gathers)
The three-dimensional gathers 18 are provided, for example, to prevent side leakage of bodily fluids excreted by the wearer of the absorbent article 1. The three-dimensional gathers 18 of this embodiment include a three-dimensional gather sheet 18a having one widthwise end fixed near both widthwise ends of the skin side of the back sheet 11, a widthwise intermediate portion fixed near both widthwise ends of the top sheet 10, and the other widthwise end being a free end, covering the periphery of both widthwise ends of the top sheet 10 and extending in the longitudinal direction, and an elastic stretch member 18b disposed near the free end of the three-dimensional gather sheet 18a so as to extend in the longitudinal direction, and is a component provided so as to be freely bendable starting from the widthwise intermediate portion of the three-dimensional gather sheet 18a. By disposing the elastic stretch member near the free end of the three-dimensional gather sheet 18a, the free end is given an uprightness, making it possible to deform according to the body shape of the wearer. In this embodiment, one widthwise end of the three-dimensional gather 18 is fixed to the skin-side surface of the backsheet 11, but this is not limited to this. For example, the one widthwise end may be fixed to the non-skin-side surface of the backsheet 11, or may be fixed to a laminate composed of the topsheet 10 and the backsheet 11, or may further be fixed to the skin-side surface of the topsheet 10.

The three-dimensional gather sheet 13a may be a water-repellent or liquid-impermeable nonwoven fabric formed from hydrophobic fibers, such as a spunbond nonwoven fabric, a meltblown nonwoven fabric, or a composite woven fabric that is a laminate of a spunbond nonwoven fabric, a meltblown nonwoven fabric, and a spunbond nonwoven fabric. The elastic stretch member 13b may be a thread-, string-, or band-shaped member made of natural rubber, synthetic rubber, polyurethane, or the like. The absorbent article 1 of this embodiment also includes an embodiment that does not include three-dimensional gathers 18.

(Fixing means)
The backsheet 11 in the absorbent article 1 of this embodiment may have fastening means 20 in the front region 6 and fastening means 19 in the rear region 8 on the non-skin side as fastening means for removably attaching to the topsheet 10 of the disposable diaper in the front region 6 and the rear region 8. Fastening means may also be provided in the urination region 7 along both edges of the topsheet 10 in the width direction. By providing fastening means in two or three places, the absorbent article 1 and the disposable diaper are fastened to each other without generating extra space, sufficient fixation and fit can be obtained, and side leakage can be prevented. The fastening means is not particularly limited, but examples thereof include hook tape, hook-and-loop fasteners, and among these, hook tape is preferable.

<Method of manufacturing absorbent articles>
The method for manufacturing the absorbent article 1 is not particularly limited, and any conventionally known method can be used, and the absorbent article can be manufactured, for example, by laminating the back sheet 12, absorbent body 11, and top sheet 10 in this order from the clothing side, fixing the top sheet 10 and the back sheet 12 partially or entirely around the periphery using a hot melt adhesive, heat embossing, ultrasonic embossing, high frequency embossing, or the like, and further attaching three-dimensional gathers 18. Then, after individually packaging this in a package, it can be folded in thirds in the longitudinal direction.

2(a) and (b) are a plan view and a cross-sectional view of the absorbent article 2 of the second embodiment. The absorbent article 2 is a modified version of the absorbent article 1, and has the same configuration as the absorbent article 1, except that it has an absorbent body 12A instead of the absorbent body 12. In the absorbent article 2, the components that have the same functions as the absorbent article 1 are given the same reference numerals as in the absorbent article 1, and their explanations are omitted. The absorbent body 12A has a hollow slit 21 that extends in the longitudinal direction and penetrates in the thickness direction in the center of its width direction.

The slit 21 extends in the longitudinal direction from the end of the rear region 8 away from the urination region 7 to the end of the front region 6 close to the urination region 7 in the width direction center of the absorbent 12A. By providing the slit 21, it is possible to suppress the decrease in the absorption amount and absorption speed when repeatedly absorbing body fluids, and to further reduce side leakage of body fluids, especially leakage from the back side. In this embodiment, the opening of the slit 21 has an oval shape in plan view, but is not limited to this, and may be a rectangular shape, a rounded square with four corners of a rectangle, an elliptical shape that is long in one direction, etc. In addition, the number of slits 21 is one in this embodiment, but is not limited to this, and may be two or more. In addition, the length (longitudinal dimension) and width (width dimension) of the slit 21 are not particularly limited, but for example, the length is in the range of 100 mm to 300 mm, and the width is in the range of 10 mm to 40 mm. By setting the length and width within these ranges, it is possible to suppress a decrease in the amount of bodily fluids absorbed that would otherwise be caused by a decrease in the strength of the absorbent body 12, while maintaining the absorption rate even after repeated absorption.

Figures 3(a) and (b) are a plan view and a cross-sectional view of absorbent article 3 of the third embodiment. Absorbent article 3 is a modified version of absorbent article 1, and has the same configuration as absorbent article 1, except that absorbent body 12B is included instead of absorbent body 12. In absorbent article 3, components that have the same functions as absorbent article 1 are given the same reference numerals as absorbent article 1, and their explanations are omitted.

The absorbent body 12B has a horizontal T-shaped planar shape obtained by rotating a T 90° to the left, and in the rear region 8, the short sides of the T extend outward in both width directions to form a pair of ears 50, 51. The long sides of the T extend longitudinally from the center of the width direction of the short side of the T in the rear region 8 through the urination region 7 toward the front region 6. Even with this configuration, the same effects as those of the absorbent articles 1 and 2 can be obtained. The planar shape of the absorbent body 12B is a horizontal T-shaped in this embodiment, but within the dimensional range of the absorbent body 12 (absorbent body 12B) described above, the short sides of the horizontal T-shaped shape may be replaced with an oval shape, an ellipse shape, a rectangle with rounded corners, or the like, and the long sides of the horizontal T-shaped shape may be replaced with an I-shaped shape, an oval shape, an ellipse shape, a rectangle with rounded corners, or the like.

Although the present invention has been described above using embodiments, it goes without saying that the technical scope of the present invention is not limited to the scope of the above embodiments, and it is clear to those skilled in the art that various modifications and improvements can be made to the above embodiments. Furthermore, it is clear from the description of the claims that forms incorporating such modifications or improvements can also be included in the technical scope of the present invention.

The following examples and comparative examples will explain this embodiment in more detail.

Example 1
The absorbent article of Example 1 was produced in the same manner as in Figure 1, using an air-through nonwoven fabric (basis weight 20 g/ ^m2 ) as the top sheet, a breathable polyethylene film (basis weight 20 g/ ^m2 ) as the back sheet, an air-through nonwoven fabric (basis weight 20 g/ ^m2 ) as the core wrap sheet, an absorbent sheet (width dimension e: 70 mm) in which a superabsorbent polymer is supported between two layers of pulp-containing composite nonwoven fabric sheets at a basis weight of 150 g/m2, a Hydroknit nonwoven fabric (product name, manufactured by Kimberly-Clark Corporation, USA, a sheet in which pulp is hydroentangled with a polypropylene spunbond nonwoven fabric, basis weight 40 g/ ^m2 ) as the pulp-containing composite nonwoven fabric sheet, and a mixture of fluff pulp and SAP in the proportions shown in Table 1 as the absorbent body, each of which was a sheet-like material having a pair of ears extending outward in the width direction in the region located in the rear region, with the dimensions a to e shown in Table 1, and no absorbent sheet was placed between the core wrap sheet on the back sheet side and the back sheet.

Example 2
An absorbent article of Example 2 was produced using the same materials as in Example 1, having dimensions a to e shown in Table 1, and having the same structure as in FIG.

Example 3
An absorbent article of Example 3 was produced using the same material as in Example 1, with an oval slit extending from the rear region to the front region in the widthwise center of the absorbent body, the slit having the length and width dimensions shown in Table 1, dimensions a to e shown in Table 1, and the same structure as in Figure 2.

(Comparative Example 1)
An absorbent article of Comparative Example 1 was produced in the same manner as in Example 1, except that no absorbent sheet was used.

(Comparative Example 2)
An absorbent article of Comparative Example 2 was produced in the same manner as in Example 1, except that the width direction dimension b of the absorbent article was changed from 300 mm to 400 mm.

(Comparative Example 3)
An absorbent article of Comparative Example 3 was produced in the same manner as in Comparative Example 1, except that the absorbent body was changed from an absorbent body with ears to a straight (rectangular) absorbent body having a width of 160 mm.

(sensory evaluation)
The pads, which are absorbent articles of Examples 1 to 3 and Comparative Examples 1 to 3, were worn as innerwear of disposable diapers by 10 panelists who wear disposable diapers on a daily basis overnight (10 hours), and the discomfort when wearing the diapers after absorbing urine and the feeling of leakage outside the disposable diaper were evaluated according to the following criteria.
○: When 8 to 10 people answered "There was almost no discomfort when putting on the diaper after absorption" or "There was almost no leakage outside the diaper." △: When 5 to 7 people answered "There was some discomfort when putting on the diaper after absorption" or "There was some leakage outside the diaper." ×: When there were no people or 4 people or less answered "There was some discomfort when putting on the diaper after absorption" or "There was leakage outside the diaper."

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1, 2, 3 Absorbent article 6 Front region 7 Urinary region 8 Rear region 10 Top sheet 11 Back sheet 12, 12A, 12B Absorbent body 13A, 13B Core wrap sheet 14, 15, 16, 17 Absorbent sheet 18 Three-dimensional gathers 18a Three-dimensional gather sheet 18b Elastically stretchable member 19 Fixing means 20 Fixing means 21 Slit 30 Composite nonwoven fabric 31 Spunbond nonwoven fabric 32 Pulp fiber web 33 Contact surface or loosely joined surface 34 Highly absorbent polymer holding space 35 Convex portion 36 Concave portion 37 Highly absorbent polymer 40 Concave and concave portions 50, 51 Ear portions

Claims (9)

An absorbent article having a liquid-permeable top sheet, a liquid-impermeable back sheet, and an absorbent body disposed therebetween, the article having a length in a longitudinal direction of 400 mm or more and a length in a width direction of 140 mm or more,
a front region that is primarily in contact with the wearer's abdomen, a urination region that is primarily in contact with the wearer's crotch area, and a rear region that is primarily in contact with the wearer's back,
The absorbent article has a longitudinal length of 520 mm, a width of the rear region of 300 mm, and a width of the front region of 160 mm.
The absorbent body has a longitudinal length of 490 mm, a width of the rear region of 260 mm, and a width of the front region of 140 mm.
The absorbent body in the rear region forms a pair of ear portions extending outward in the width direction,
The absorbent sheet is provided on both sides in the width direction of the pair of ears, the absorbent sheet being disposed on the top sheet side and/or the back sheet side of the pair of ears, and not disposed in the region between the pair of ears ;
The absorbent sheet comprises a multi-layer pulp-containing composite nonwoven fabric sheet and a highly absorbent polymer supported between the multi-layers,
An absorbent article, characterized in that the bending stiffness of at least the laminated portion including the ear portions is 5.0 gf·cm ² /cm or more. The absorbent article according to claim 1, wherein the pulp-containing composite nonwoven fabric sheet includes a spunbond nonwoven fabric and a pulp fiber web integrated on one surface of the spunbond nonwoven fabric, and has an uneven portion in which convex portions protruding toward the spunbond nonwoven fabric in the thickness direction and concave portions recessed toward the pulp fiber web in the thickness direction are alternately arranged in a predetermined pattern in the surface direction. The absorbent article according to claim 2, wherein the one and the other pulp-containing composite nonwoven fabric sheets are arranged so that the internal space of the convex portion of one of the pulp-containing composite nonwoven fabric sheets faces the internal space of the convex portion of the other of the pulp-containing composite nonwoven fabric sheets to form a superabsorbent polymer holding space, and the bottom surface of the concave portion of one of the pulp-containing composite nonwoven fabric sheets faces the bottom surface of the concave portion of the other of the pulp-containing composite nonwoven fabric sheets, and the superabsorbent polymer is enclosed in the superabsorbent polymer holding space. The absorbent article according to claim 2 or 3, wherein the recess is interposed between one of the protrusions and another of the protrusions adjacent thereto, and has a generally groove-like cross-sectional shape. The absorbent article according to any one of claims 2 to 4, wherein the bottom surface of the recess of one of the pulp-containing composite nonwoven fabric sheets and the bottom surface of the recess of the other of the pulp-containing composite nonwoven fabric sheets are joined to such an extent that they are separated by swelling accompanying absorption of bodily fluids by the superabsorbent polymer enclosed in the superabsorbent polymer retention space. The absorbent article according to any one of claims 2 to 5, wherein the pattern of the uneven portion is a lattice pattern, a wave pattern, an acorn pattern, a polka dot pattern, a fish scale pattern, or a checkered pattern, or a pattern in which a plurality of polygons are arranged at equal intervals in the up, down, left, and right directions. The height of the internal space of the protrusion is 0.2 mm or more and 3.0 mm or less, the area of the bottom surface of the protrusion is 7 ^mm2 or more and ⁹⁵ mm2 or less, and the area ratio (the opening area of the recess: the top surface area of the protrusion) is 38:62 or more and 62:38 or less. The absorbent article according to any one of claims 2 to 6. The absorbent article according to any one of claims 2 to 7, wherein the pulp-containing composite nonwoven fabric sheet is a hydroentangled integrated product of the spunbond nonwoven fabric and the pulp fiber web, and the hydroentangled integrated product includes the pulp fiber web fixed to one side of the spunbond nonwoven fabric, with at least some of the pulp fibers entangled with the fibers constituting the spunbond nonwoven fabric and/or other pulp fibers, and the pulp fibers exposed outward from the other side of the spunbond nonwoven fabric. The absorbent article according to any one of claims 2 to 8, wherein the spunbonded nonwoven fabric is a spunbonded nonwoven fabric made of polypropylene.

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