JPH04361606A - Spinneret for manufactoring hollow fiber with section in three star form - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE: To provide a spinneret plate for manufacturing a hollow trilobal cross section filament which is provided with a specified shaped filament forming bore group having a central part and has excellent appearance, bulkiness, luster, dirt opacifying property, or the like, and is suitable for a carpet yearn. CONSTITUTION: A spinneret plate for manufacturing a trilobal filament is provided with a filament forming bores group 10 having a central part. The bore group 10 has three openings 11, 11' and 11" each of which has pivoting long legs 12, 12' and 12" and short legs 13, 13' and 13". The spinneret plate has an axially extending void at the center where each axis of each long leg 12, 12', 12" converges on the center of the bore group 10 and each Y-shaped short leg 13, 13', 13" diverges toward the center.

Description

[Detailed description of the invention]

0001

FIELD OF THE INVENTION This invention relates generally to synthetic polymeric fiber materials. In particular, the invention relates to a spinneret for producing hollow filaments with a three-star cross section.

0002

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION In various applications of fibrous synthetic polymers, it is desirable to minimize the weight of fibers per unit area. The characteristic of these fibers is their “appearance”
known as. Fibers used in specific applications (such as carpet yarns) also require additional dirt-hiding capabilities. It is also important to some end users to obtain sufficient appearance and good stain hiding without sacrificing shine and/or gloss. For example, in the case of carpet yarn, it is necessary to maintain gloss while enhancing appearance and hiding dirt as much as possible. Efforts have been made to create fibers with these characteristics, but
The characteristics of fibers that affect stain hiding properties also cause loss of gloss, so results have not yet been achieved. at present,
To the applicant's knowledge, no fiber exists that achieves all of these characteristics.

It is known that tristellate fibers have superior appearance compared to fibers with a round cross section. It is also known to use filaments in the shape of a three-star shape or a pseudo-three-star shape (for example, a triangle or a T-shape). Such fibers include, for example, U.S. Pat. No. 3,981,948 to Phillips; U.S. Pat. No. 3,194,002 to Reynolds and others; U.S. Patent No. 2,939
, 201, U.S. Patent No. 4,492,731 to Bankar et al.
There is No. 22574.

[0004] It is also known to provide voids in the filament and to use such voids to significantly improve soil hiding performance. U.S. Patent No. 3,745,06, issued to Mr. Champaneria and others.
No. 1, and U.S. Pat. No. 4,407,889 to Gintis et al., show unrounded filaments with one or more cavities.

It is further known to use tristar or pseudo-tristar fibers with one or more voids. Such fibers include, for example, U.S. Pat. No. 3,095,258 to Scott;
Jr. , U.S. Patent No. 3,357,048 issued to Mr.
No. 3,493,459 to Mr. McIntosh and others, U.S. Patent No. 3,558,420 to Mr. Opfell, and U.S. Patent No. 3,558,420 to Mr. Payne and others. No. 4,279,053
No. 4,364,996, issued to Mr. Sugiyama.
No. 4, U.S. Patent No. 4, issued to Mr. Samuelson.
No. 956,237, and British Patent No. 843,179 to Siemer and others.

US Pat. No. 4,648,830 to Peterson et al. shows a spinneret for producing hollow filaments of three-star cross section. The filaments described in these patents have a single axially extending hole in each projection.

[0007] The present invention provides a spinneret plate for use in producing tristellate fibers having a void approximately in the center. The spinneret includes a center and at least one group of filament-forming bores with three openings. Each aperture is 1
It is Y-shaped with long book legs. The axes of each long leg converge at the center of the bore group. The opening also has two short legs. Each of these short Y-shaped legs diverges toward the center of the boa group.

It is an object of the present invention to provide an improved hollow spinneret for producing tristar filaments. Other objects and advantages will be apparent to those skilled in the art upon reading the following detailed description of the invention.

[0009]

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS The term "deformation ratio" (MR) refers to the ratio of the radius R2 of the circumscribed circle to the radius R1 of the inscribed circle, as shown in FIG. The term “arm angle” (AA) is defined in Fig. 2
This is the angle formed by the side extension of the arm, as shown in .

FIG. 1 is a plan view showing one group of filament-forming bores of the spinneret of the present invention. The boa group 10 is
It consists of three approximately Y-shaped holes 11, 11', 11''. Each Y-shaped hole has a long leg 12, 12.
', 12'' and short legs 13, 13', 13''. The angle between the legs 12 and 12' is, for example, about 80 degrees to about 160 degrees, preferably about 100 degrees to about 140 degrees.
It is within the range of degrees and does not need to be constant. R1 is preferably about 0.5 to about 6 mm, more preferably about 1.
It ranges from 5 to 3.0 mm. R2 is preferably about 0.3 to about 2.5 mm, more preferably about 0.5
It is within a range of about 1.5 mm from The width of each leg is, for example, about 0.05 to about 0.15 mm, preferably about 0.0 mm.
6 to about 0.10 mm. Legs 13 and 13'
The gap therebetween ranges from about 0.05 to about 0.25 mm, preferably from about 0.08 to about 0.20 mm. The legs 13 and 12 have a length corresponding to the values of R1 and R2.

Although any filament count yarn can be produced, for convenience in explaining the present invention, a spinneret in which 58 filament bore groups are formed will be described. These bore groups are arranged in 8 rows in a circle, and each row has 9
filament-forming tubules are provided. The nylon 6 polymer is extruded under normal spinning conditions, deposited while cooling, drawn, and wound into packages. This yarn package is processed into carpet yarn, for example. The carpet yarn thus produced is tufted using a conventional tasseling method and made into a carpet. When used as a carpet surface yarn, it exhibits a better appearance than the well-known three-star carpet yarn without a central void, is bulky, glossy, has excellent stain hiding properties, is elastic, and has appearance maintenance performance. Excellent.

FIG. 2 shows a modification of the spinneret of the invention. The spinneret of the present invention is for producing fiber filaments of cross-section very similar to that shown in FIG. FIG. 3 is an enlarged view showing an example of a fiber 20 made according to the present invention. The filament 20 has three protrusions 2
It has a three-star shape with numbers 1, 22, and 23, and has a cavity 25 extending in the axial direction approximately in the center.

According to the present invention, filament 20 preferably has a deformation ratio in the range of about 2.5 to about 6 and about 7 degrees to 3 degrees.
It has an arm angle range of 5 degrees. The approximately centrally located void occupies about 3 to 10%, preferably 5 to 8%, of the total fiber volume measured including the volume of this void. This fiber 20 is described in a co-pending US patent application.

Using the spinneret of the present invention, filaments can be made from melt-spun synthetic thermoplastic polymers. Examples of the polymer include polyamides such as poly(hexamethylene adipamide), polycaprolactane, bis(4-aminocyclohexyl)methane, and 9,1
These include linear dicarboxylic acid polyamides and copolyamides containing 0 and 12 carbon atoms, poly(ethylene) terephthalic acid and its copolymers, and polyolefins such as polyethylene and polypropylene. Heterogeneous and homogeneous mixtures of these polymers can also be used.

As will be appreciated by those skilled in the art, filaments can be manufactured using well-known filament spinning techniques. Spinning is performed by extruding molten polymer through a spinneret orifice. The spinneret orifice is shaped to provide the required void volume and filament cross-section under spinning conditions to obtain the desired denier. The respective spinning conditions, spinneret orifice shape and dimensions can vary depending on the particular polymer and filament product being spun.

The spinning/cooling conditions can be varied appropriately to obtain the desired void ratio. For example, rapid cooling of the molten filament by increasing the melt viscosity of the polymer can generally increase the void ratio.

Test Method Vacancy Ratio: Both ends of a single filament yarn with a weight of 6 to 8 grams are melted and sealed using a flame. Measure the weight of the thread. Measure the density of the yarn using a commonly used hydrometer. Measure the density of a solid filament yarn using the same method and use this as the standard value. The void ratio can be determined by subtracting the density of the hollow filament yarn from the density of the solid standard filament yarn, dividing this by the density of the solid filament yarn, and multiplying by 100.

[0018] Stain resistance: (selected for testing) 3ft x 6ft (91cm x 183cm) of fibers with various cross-sectional shapes
) test specimen of imitation dyed carpet with a traffic volume of 50,000
Install it in a frequently traveled passageway set to 0 times. After cleaning the specimen with a standard vacuum cleaner after the test,
Classified according to the degree of dirt. The smaller the number, the less the degree of dirt.

Arm angle: The fiber cross section is magnified (300x) to measure the arm angle. Two tangent lines were drawn for each arm, and the angle formed by these two tangent lines was measured. The arm angles listed below represent the average value of 10 measurements.

Gloss: For carpets: Cut pile carpets are made by standard tasseling techniques using twisted and heat set yarns. After imitation dyeing, the carpets are visually ranked according to gloss. The degree of gloss increases as the number decreases. In the case of yarn: Obtain reflectance values using a recording optical goniometer (HunterLab optical goniometer GP-IR Serial 1050). Measure the reflectance values also at various angles using an optical goniometer as shown in the figure below. The incident angle is fixed (60 degrees) and the change in angle is detected (
-120 to 30 degrees). The yarn test specimen is 1.5″ x 4″ (
Wrap it parallel to a card measuring 3.81cm x 10.16cm). There are approximately 4 to 5 layers of thread wrapped around each card. The measurement conditions are as follows.

VS1-3 VS2-2 Neutral Density Filter #25 Scans over angle of incidence -60 degrees -120 to -30 degrees.

Schematic diagram of the measuring components of the optical goniometer:

[Table 1] Examine the actual reflection peak of each specimen from the recorded graph. The angle is approximately 60 degrees. Gloss is calculated using the following formula.

[0023]

[Formula 1] L=(1-D/S)×100 Here, D is the reflection ratio of the read scattered light. S is the reflection ratio of the read reflection peak.

Appearance: Two types of specimens, heat-set and non-heat-set, were soaked in warm water (210 degrees Fahrenheit (98.9 degrees Celsius)) for 30 minutes, dried, and kept at a constant temperature (Fahrenheit) overnight. 68 degrees (20 degrees Celsius), 65%
RH]. Collect yarn weighing approximately 4 grams and then measure the exact weight of each yarn. Individual specimens were fluffed by hand and placed in a Teflon cylinder (4 x 20 cm).
Load it loosely inside. The space occupied by the specimen is measured under a 9/10 full scale load (9,000 g) using an Instron instrument. The specific volume of the test specimen is calculated and expressed in cc/g. This procedure is repeated three times for each specimen. Record the average value of the three calculation results.

[0025] Durability of carpet: Test using a swivel chair: Carpet test specimen was 53 inches
Cut to 48 inches (134.6 cm x 121.9 cm). Attach the carpet specimen to the stand using carpet tape. Place a 100 lbs (45.36 kg) weight on a metal chair with casters and place it on the carpet. The chair is connected to a powered plunger rod, and the plunger rod is moved back and forth repeatedly to rotate the chair on the carpet. The orientation of the carpet specimen shall be changed periodically. After 1500 repeated tests,
The degree of damage is evaluated using the relative comparison method.

Relative comparison method: The relative comparison test is conducted by 11 observers. The evaluation is carried out by comparing two carpets at a time, and among those that have suffered a certain amount of damage, carpet test specimens with relatively good overall appearance are selected for evaluation. Data submitted by observers will be managed using comparison tables. Observer entries are processed in the following manner. S represents the score. Ai represents a series of carpet specimens i. Aj represents a series of carpet specimens j. t represents the total number of test specimens for relative comparative evaluation. If Ai >Aj, then Sij=1Ai=Aj
If Sij=0.5Ai <Aj
If Sij=0Sij=1 then Sji=0S
If ij=0.5, Sji=0.5Sij=0
If Sji=1, then Sji=1-Sij Sij=t(t-1)/2

Comparison table for relative comparative evaluation of five test specimens:

[Table 2]
(j)
A1 A2
A3 A4 A5
Total score A1 -
S12 S13 S14
S15 ΣS1j
A2 S21 - S2
3 S24 S25
ΣS2j(i) A3 S31 S3
2-S34 S35
ΣS3j A4
S41 S42 S43 -
S45 ΣS4j
A5 S51 S52
S53 S54 -
ΣS5j Specification Example 5 A spinneret with 8 filament tubules, 6 to 9
Individual thin tubes are arranged in a circular shape in eight rows. The capillaries are shaped as shown in FIG. 2 and are offset from adjacent rows of capillaries. Nylon 6 polymer is extruded under conventional spinning conditions, layered, cooled, drawn, woven, and wound into packages. The yarn of this package is processed into carpet yarn, for example. The carpet yarns were tufted to the primary backing material using conventional tasseling methods, and the carpet yarns were tufted to the primary backing material using conventional tufting methods and were
is made. Specimens A and C are untufted carpet yarns. The surface yarns of the carpet test specimens have excellent bulk, excellent gloss, stain hiding properties, elasticity, and excellent appearance maintenance performance. Comparative Examples U.S. Patent No. 4 to Bankar and others
, 492,731, the following test specimens 2, 3, 4,
5, C, b and c are made. Specimens 1 and a have other solid tristellate cross sections.

[0028]

[Table 3] ID Torsion MR Arm Denier Appearance Vacancy Gloss Stain resistance
(times/in) Angle
(cc/g) (%)
1 0 2.6
21 16 4.2
0 2 32 0
3.3 19 16
4.6 0 4 43
0 3.6 14
16 4.9 0
4 44 0 2
．． 8 28 16 4.6
0 2 35
0 3.5 20 16
4.8 0 4
46 0 2.5 3
5 20 5.2 6
1 17 0
3.1 11 20 6
．． 2 5 3 28
0 5.7 7 2
0 6.7 5 4
3

[0029]

[Table 4] ID Torsion MR
Appearance Gloss by photometer
(times/in)
(cc/g)
A 1.6 2.6
4.9
67 3.6
4.0
C
1.6 2.6
4.4 66
3.6
3.7
Swivel Chair Damaged (1,500 Cycles) Tufted Carpet Tile (2-ply heated set, 3.75 tpi, 1/10 gauge tufter, tuft height 0.18 inches, 26 oz per square yard)
．． ) The statistical analysis results of the total score obtained from the relative comparison test (11 observers) are shown in Table 5 below.
are listed in.

[0030]

[Table 5] ID Torsion MR Arm Denier
Appearance Vacancy Gloss Durability
(times/in) Angle
(cc/g) (%)
Score a 3.8 2.5
21 19 4.3
0 2 2.45b 3.8
3.0 14 19
5.0 0 3 2.59
c 3.8 3.1 21
19 5.2 0
2 1.64d 3.8 2
．． 8 24 19 5.7
6 1 7.09

[Brief explanation of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a plan view of a spinneret according to the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a plan view of another spinneret according to the present invention.

FIG. 3 is a plan view showing a cross section of filaments produced by the spinneret of the present invention.

[Explanation of symbols]

10 Boa group 11, 11', 11'' hole 12, 12', 12'' long legs 13, 13', 13'' short legs

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1. A spinneret plate for producing tristar fibers with a substantially central axially extending cavity, the spinneret comprising at least one group of filament-forming bores having a central portion; The bore group has three openings, each opening having a generally Y-shape with one long leg defining an axis, the axis of each long leg converging at the center of the bore group. and a spinneret plate in which the opening has two short legs, each of the short Y-shaped legs branching toward the center.