JPH07189103A - Fiber aggregate and its production - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To obtain a fiber aggregate having high shape retention, non-polluting, friendly to environment by sticking fibrillated cellulose to the surface of a fiber aggregate comprising a natural fiber and/or a regenerated fiber. CONSTITUTION:This fiber aggregate is obtained by spraying part or the whole of the surface or the back of a fiber aggregate comprising natural fibers such as cotton fibers or silk fibers and/or regenerated fibers, especially preferably silk fibers or rayon fibers alone or mixed fibers of both the fibers with a dispersion containing a fibrillated cellulose and drying and has excellent shape retention, can prevent scattering of fibers from the fiber aggregate, has improved biodegradability, does not evolve a harmful gas during combustion and has no bad influence on human body free from pollution. When a dispersion containing chitosan is used instead of water, antimicrobial effect, immune enhancing effect, etc., can be obtained.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a fiber aggregate such as a cosmetic puff made of natural fibers and / or recycled fibers and a method for producing the same. More specifically, the present invention relates to a surface treatment of the fiber assembly, a high shape retention property, and a fiber assembly capable of preventing scattering of fibers from the fiber assembly, and a method for producing the same.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Fiber aggregates such as cosmetic puffs, cotton swabs, and cotton balls are essentially shaped by the entanglement of crimps peculiar to the fibers.
Unlike fabrics, preventing the scattering of fibers has become an issue.

In order to solve this problem, conventionally, the main means has been to sprinkle a solution of synthetic resin on the surface of the fiber assembly or to mix the heat-sealing fibers into the fiber assembly. However, the materials used for these means are not decomposed by microorganisms and remain semipermanently in the soil. or,
There is a drawback that toxic gas is also generated during the combustion process, which leads to air pollution. In addition, for example, in the case of a cosmetic puff, there is a report that causes skin irritation by a petroleum-based synthetic resin solution depending on its constitution. That is, it is preferable to avoid the solution sprinkling of the synthetic resin and the mixing of the heat-sealing fibers in the fiber assembly used by touching the skin.

Therefore, a harmless fiber assembly and a harmless fiber assembly have been demanded. Further, the demand is extremely strict in some fields such as absorbent cotton for medical use.

On the other hand, although the fiber aggregate has various uses, there is a problem in that products such as cosmetic puffs, cotton swabs, and cotton balls lose their commercial value when they lose their shape, and excellent shape retention is demanded. ing.

The present invention is a material that is easy to decompose by microorganisms in soil, does not generate toxic gas when burned, does not affect the human body such as skin, is pollution-free, and is friendly to the global environment. It is intended to provide a fiber assembly excellent in shape retention property and suitable for various uses, and a method for producing the same.

[0007]

Means for Solving the Problems The present inventor has conducted diligent research on degradable materials based on the above-mentioned awareness of the problems, and as a result, when fibrillated cellulose fibers are attached to the surface of the fiber assembly, the fiber assembly is formed. It was discovered that the fibers of the body can be suppressed from scattering and the shape retention can be improved, and fibrillated cellulose is dispersed on the surface of fiber aggregates composed of natural fibers and regenerated fibers that have appropriate microbial degradability. The present invention has been completed by finding a manufacturing method for spraying a liquid.

The gist of the present invention is as described in the claims of the present application.

In the present invention, the natural fibers are vegetable fibers such as cotton, flax, jute and ramie, and animal fibers such as wool and silk. The regenerated fibers are rayon, cupra and the like. As the fiber assembly main body of the present invention, it is possible to use one made of only one kind of these fibers or one made of a mixture of two or more kinds.

In particular, when using a fiber assembly body composed of either cotton or rayon alone or a cotton and rayon blended cotton, high flexibility can be obtained.
For example, it is suitable for cotton balls, cotton swabs, cosmetic puffs, etc., and is a very useful invention that meets the needs of the sanitary material industry.

In the present invention, the fibrillated cellulose is obtained by fibrillating natural cellulosic fibers such as pulp and cotton. There are various methods for fibrillation, and any method can be used as long as fibrillation, that is, a state in which cellulose fibers are mainly torn in the fiber axis direction is obtained. Of course, fiber diameter 0.0
1 to 0.1 micron (μm), fiber length 0.5 to 20 mm
Such microfibrillated cellulose may also be used. For fibrillated cellulose, see Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 56-10080.
1, JP-A-63-196790, JP-A-1-249.
Various techniques such as No. 133 and Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 1-249843 have been developed, and various products have been put into practical use. It is easy to obtain. Further, there are various manufacturing methods, but the manufacturing is relatively easy.

The type of fibrillated cellulose is not particularly limited, and any one can be used, but 1 to 10
A fiber length of mm is more preferable.

To attach such fibrillated cellulose to the surface of the fiber assembly main body, the fibrillated cellulose is stirred and dispersed in a liquid such as water (or warm water), and the fiber assembly main body is added to the fibrillated cellulose dispersion. Various methods such as immersion method (immersion method), stirring and dispersing fibrillated cellulose in a liquid such as water (or warm water), and spraying (spraying) this fibrillated cellulose dispersion onto the fiber assembly body (spraying method). There is a means of.

The dipping method can be applied to fiber aggregates of various shapes, but on the other hand, since the solution easily penetrates into the fiber aggregates,
The shape of the fiber assembly is likely to change, the fiber assembly may harden, dehydration and drying take time,
It has the drawback of requiring a relatively large facility. On the other hand, since the spraying method can be applied only to the surface of the fiber assembly, there is little concern that the shape change and curing of the fiber assembly will occur, dehydration and drying are easy, and the equipment can be relatively inexpensive. It is advantageous.

As the liquid for stirring and dispersing the fibrillated cellulose, water may be usually used, but a chitosan solution may be used instead of water. As chitosan, deacetylated chitin is used. Chitosan has useful effects such as biocompatibility, anticoagulant property, immune enhancing property, and antibacterial property. Chitosan has viscosity and can also improve the strength of the fiber assembly.

Further, when the fiber assembly is processed to produce a rug or the like, it can be used as an antibacterial and deodorant mat by utilizing the property of chitosan.

Next, in the present invention, the fiber assembly is
It has a spherical shape, a rod shape, a sheet shape, and the like, and includes a cotton ball, a cotton swab, a cosmetic puff, and the like.

The present invention is characterized in that the above-mentioned fibrillated cellulose is adhered to a part or all of the surface of the above-mentioned fiber assembly main body. When it is attached to a part of the surface of the fiber assembly main body, masking or the like may be applied to the portion which is not attached.

The main object of the present invention is to improve the shape retention and prevent scattered fibers due to the effect of fibrillating cellulosic fibers and spraying the solution to coat the fiber aggregates. .

In the spraying method, specifically, a fiber assembly,
For example, 10 to 100 fibrillated cellulose solutions may be used on the front and back of a cotton strip having a certain basis weight (g / m 2) after carding.
It may be produced by spraying and drying so that the moisture content becomes%, and then inverting the cotton strip and spraying and drying the back layer by a method such as a surface layer. The method of spraying is easy by various means.

When the amount of fibrillated cellulose adhered to the fiber assembly is large, the adhesive strength is high, but it tends to give a semi-hard and stiff feel. However, the amount of fibrillated cellulose attached is not particularly limited. It may be adjusted according to the type of product.

[0022]

EXAMPLES Next, the fiber assembly of the present invention and the method for producing the same will be described with reference to examples, but the present invention is not limited thereto.

Example 1 100% cotton fiber alone, 10 rayon fiber (3 denier, fiber length 26.5 mm, the same in the following examples) 10
0%, 100% silk fiber alone, 50% cotton fiber and 50% rayon fiber, 70% cotton fiber and 30% silk fiber, 30% cotton fiber, 20% rayon fiber and silk Fibers made by mixing 50% of the fibers, each as a raw material, with a carding machine from 15 carding machines.
It was set to 0 g / m ² and was placed on the conveyor at a speed of 20 m / min. Before the dryer, fibrillated cellulose having a concentration of 10 g / l was first sprayed on the surface layer with a spraying amount adjusted so that the water content of the cotton strip was about 30%. After drying, the cotton strip was turned over and spray dried on the back layer in the same manner as the front layer. A cotton strip to which fibrillated cellulose was not adhered was similarly prepared as a comparative product, and the fiber dispersion and shape retention of the product of the present invention and the comparative product were tested by the following methods. The test results are shown in Table 1.

[Test Method of Fiber Scattering Degree] Cellophane tape was pressed against the surface of the fiber assembly and peeled off, and the amount of the attached fiber was visually evaluated. The evaluation was performed in three grades: small amount of adhered fiber (◯), large amount of adhered fiber (Δ), and large amount of adhered fiber (X).

[Testing method for shape retention] A sample was placed in a weighing bottle with a lid, and was vibrated for 5 minutes using an oscillating machine that reciprocates left and right 120 times per minute, and the degree of shape change was visually observed. evaluated. The evaluation was performed in three grades: small amount of change in shape (◯), large amount of change in shape (Δ), and large amount of change in shape (X).

[0026]

[Table 1]

Example 2 100% cotton fiber alone, 100% rayon fiber alone, 100% silk fiber alone, and a mixture of 50% cotton fiber and 50% rayon fiber, 70% cotton fiber and 3 silk fiber
Fiber mixed with 0%, cotton fiber 30% and rayon fiber 2
A cotton swab body was manufactured by using 0% and 50% silk fiber as a raw material. Then, on the one hand, these cotton swabs were reciprocated while being slowly rotated in a dipping tank filled with a fibrillated cellulose dispersion having a concentration of 5 g / l (immersion method), while on the other hand, the cotton swabs were horizontally clamped and rotated. While doing so, the fibrillated cellulose dispersion liquid was sprayed from above the cotton part (spraying method) to adhere the fibrillated cellulose to the surface of the cotton swab. Then, the product was dried to produce a product of the present invention. A cotton swab to which fibrillated cellulose was not adhered was similarly prepared as a comparative product, and the fiber scattering degree and shape retention of the product of the present invention and the comparative product were tested in the same manner as in Example 1. The test results are shown in Table 2.

[0028]

[Table 2]

Example 3 100% cotton fiber alone, 100% rayon fiber alone, 100% silk fiber alone, and a mixture of 50% cotton fiber and 50% rayon fiber, 70% cotton fiber and 3 silk fiber
Fiber mixed with 0%, cotton fiber 30% and rayon fiber 2
A cotton ball was produced by using 0% and 50% silk fiber as a raw material. Then, these cotton balls are added at 5 g /
It is put into a dipping tank filled with a fibrillated cellulose dispersion liquid having a concentration of 1 and slowly stirred and rotated (the dipping method). The fibrillated cellulose dispersion was sprayed from above the sphere (spraying method) to adhere the fibrillated cellulose to the surface of the cotton ball. Then, the product was dried to produce a product of the present invention. A cotton ball to which fibrillated cellulose had not been attached was similarly prepared as a comparative product, and the fiber scattering and shape retention of the product of the present invention and the comparative product were tested in the same manner as in Example 1. The test results are shown in Table 3.

[0030]

[Table 3]

[0031]

INDUSTRIAL APPLICABILITY The fiber assembly of the present invention does not generate scattered fibers even though it does not contain any adhesive agent such as petroleum-based resin. There wasn't. Further, any of the fiber aggregates of the present invention had excellent shape retention.

Further, the present invention provides a composite material composed of natural polysaccharides such as fibrillated cellulose and chitosan, and any of the fiber aggregates of the present invention can be decomposed by microorganisms in soil. there were.

As described above, the present invention has high shape retention,
In addition, it has succeeded in preventing scattering of fibers from the fiber assembly, and further providing an innocuous and excellent fiber assembly which does not cause environmental pollution, and is useful in meeting the needs of industry and consumers. It is an invention.

[0034]

Claims (9)

[Claims] 1. A fiber assembly comprising fibrillated cellulose adhered to part or all of the surface of a main body of a fiber assembly composed of natural fibers and / or regenerated fibers. 2. A sheet-shaped fiber assembly, wherein fibrillated cellulose is attached to a part or all of the front surface and / or the back surface of a sheet-shaped fiber assembly main body composed of natural fibers and / or regenerated fibers. 3. A cosmetic puff in which fibrillated cellulose is attached to a part or all of the surface of the main body of the cosmetic puff made of one or more kinds of cotton fiber, silk fiber and rayon fiber. 4. A cotton swab having fibrillated cellulose adhered to the surface of a cotton swab body made of one or more of cotton fiber, silk fiber and rayon fiber. 5. A cotton ball having fibrillated cellulose adhered to the surface of a cotton ball body made of at least one of cotton fiber, silk fiber and rayon fiber. 6. The fibrillated cellulose dispersion liquid is sprayed onto the surface of a fiber assembly main body composed of natural fibers and / or regenerated fibers, and then dried.
Method for producing the described fiber assembly 7. The fiber assembly according to claim 1, wherein a chitosan solution in which fibrillated cellulose is dispersed is sprayed on the surface of the main body of the fiber assembly composed of natural fibers and / or regenerated fibers, and then dried. Body manufacturing method 8. A fibrillated cellulose dispersion liquid is sprayed on the surface of a sheet-like fiber assembly main body made of one or more of cotton fiber, silk fiber and rayon fiber, then dried, and then cut into a predetermined size. The method for producing a cosmetic puff according to claim 3, 9. A chitosan solution in which fibrillated cellulose is dispersed is sprayed onto the surface of a sheet-like fiber assembly body composed of one or more of cotton fibers, silk fibers and rayon fibers,
4. A method for producing a cosmetic puff according to claim 3, characterized in that it is dried and then cut into a predetermined size.