MXPA00012994A

MXPA00012994A - Liquid transport member for high flux rates between two port regions

Info

Publication number: MXPA00012994A
Application number: MXPA/A/2000/012994A
Authority: MX
Inventors: Donald Carroll Roe; Bruno Johannes Ehrnsperger; Mattias Schmidt; Karl Michael Schumann; Fred Naval Desai; Gary Dean Lavon; Gerry Alfred Young
Original assignee: Desai Fred; Bruno Johannes Ehrnsperger; Gary Dean Lavon; Donald Carroll Roe; Mattias Schmidt; Karl Michael Schumann; The Procter & Gamble Company; Gerry Alfred Young
Priority date: 1998-06-29
Filing date: 2000-12-20
Publication date: 2002-02-26

Abstract

The present invention is a liquid transport member with significantly improved liquid handlingcapability, which has at least one bulk region and a wall region that completely circumscribes said bulk region, and which comprises a port region, whereby the bulk region has an average fluid permeability kb which is higher than the average fluid permeability kp of the port regions.

Description

MEMBERS OF TRANSPORT OF LIQUID FOR HIGH FLOW SPEEDS BETWEEN TWO PORT REGIONS FIELD OF THE INVENTION The present invention relates to liquid transport members useful for a wide range of applications that require a high flow rate and / or hyperflow, wherein the liquid can be transported through said member, and / or be transported in or out of said member. Such members are suitable for many applications, - without being limited to - disposable hygiene articles, water irrigation systems, spill absorbers, oil / water separators and the like. The invention also relates to liquid transport systems comprising said liquid transport members and articles using them.

BACKGROUND The need to transport liquids from one location to another is a well-known problem. Generally, transport will occur from a liquid source through a liquid transport member to a liquid landfill, for example from a liquid container through a pipe to another container. There may be differences in the potential energy between the containers (such as the hydrostatic head) and there may be frictional energy losses within the transport system, such as within the transport member, in particular if the transport member is of a length significant in relation to its diameter. For this general problem of liquid transport, there are many approaches to creating a pressure differential to overcome energy differences or losses or to cause liquids to flow. A widely used principle is the use of mechanical energy such as pumps. However, it will often be desirable to overcome such losses or energy differences without the use of pumps, such as in the differential operation of hydrostatic head (gravity driven flow) or by means of capillary effects (often referred to as packing). In many such applications, it is desirable to transport the liquids at high speeds, ie at high flow velocity (volume per time), or at a hyperflow rate (volume per time per unit cross-sectional area). Examples of applications of liquid transport members for liquid transport members can be found in fields such as water irrigation as described in EP-A-0,439,890 or in the field of hygiene, such as for absorbent articles such as diapers for babies of the training type or with fastening elements such as tapes, training shorts, incontinence products for adults and female protection devices. A well-known and widely used embodiment of such liquid transport members are the capillary flow members, such as fibrous materials similar to staining paper, wherein the liquid can be packaged against gravity. Typically such materials are limited in their flow rates and / or hyperflow, especially when the packing height is added as an additional requirement. A particularly improvement towards the hyperflow speeds at packing heights particularly useful for the example of the application in absorbent articles is described in EP-A-0,810,078. Other capillary flow members may be non-fibrous, although they may be porous structures, such as open cell foams. In particular for the handling of aqueous liquids, hydrophilic polymeric foams have been described and especially hydrophilic open cell foams made by the so-called High Internal Phase Emulsion Polymerization Process (HIPE) described in US-A-5,563. 179 and US-A-5,387,207. However, although several improvements have been made on such executions, there is still a need to obtain a significant increase in the liquid transport properties of the liquid transport members. In particular, it would be desirable to obtain liquid transport members that can transport liquids against gravity at very high rates of hyperflow. In situations where the liquid is not homogeneous in the composition (such as a salt solution in water), or in its phases (such as a liquid / solid suspension), it may be desired to transport the liquid in its entirety, or only in parts thereof. Many approaches are known for its selective transport mechanism, such as filter technology. For example, filtration technology exploits the highest and lowest permeability of a limb for a material or phase compared to another material or phase. There is a lot of knowledge of the technique in this field, in particular also related to the so-called micro, ultra or nano filtration. Some of the most recent publications are: US-A-5,733,581 is related to the fibrous filter blown under fusion; US-A-5,728,292 relates to a non-woven fuel filter; W0-A-97/47375 refers to membrane filter systems; WO-A-97/35656 relates to membrane filter systems; EP-A-0,780,058 relates to monolithic membrane structures; EP-A-0.773.058 relates to oleophilic filter structures. Such membranes are also described for use in absorbent systems. In US-A-4,820,293 (Kamme) absorbent bodies are described, for use in compresses or bandages, having a fluid absorbing substance enclosed in a packing made of an essentially homogeneous material. Fluid can enter the body through any part of the packing and no means is provided for fluid to leave the body. In said document, the fluid-absorbing materials can have osmotic effects or can be gel-forming absorbent substances enclosed in semi-permeable membranes, such as cellulose, regenerated cellulose, cellulose nitrate, cellulose acetate, cellulose acetate butyrate, polycarbonate, polyamide , glass fiber, polytetrafluoroethylene polysulfone, having pore sizes between 0.001 μm and 20 μm, preferably between 0.005 μm and 8 μm, especially around 0.01 μm. In such a system, the permeability of the membrane is intended to be such that the absorbed liquid can penetrate, although in such a way that the absorbent material is retained. It is therefore desired to use members having a high permeability K and a low thickness d, to achieve a high liquid conductivity k / d of the layer as described hereinafter. This can be achieved by the incorporation of promoters with higher molecular weight (for example, polyvinyl pyrrolidone with a molecular weight of 40,000), so that the membranes can have larger pores which leads to greater permeability of the membrane k. The maximum pore size set forth herein to be useful for this application is less than 0.5 μm, with pore sizes of approximately 0.01 μm or less that are preferred. The illustrated materials allow the calculation of the k / d values in the scale from 3 to 7 * 10-14 m. Since this system is very slow, the absorbent body may further comprise, for a rapid discharge of fluid liquid acquisition means, such as conventional acquisition means to provide intermediate storage of the fluids before they are slowly absorbed. An additional application in the membranes in the absorbent packs is described in US-A-5,082,723, EP-A-0365,565 or US-A-5,108,383 (White; Allied-Singnal). In these, an osmotic promoter, namely the high ionic strength material such as NaCl, or other high osmorality material such as glucose or sucrose is placed inside a membrane such as that made of cellulose films. As with the previous description, the fluid can enter the body through any part of the packing and no means are provided for the liquid to leave the body. When these packages are brought into contact with aqueous liquids, such as urine, the promoter materials provide an osmotic driving force to push the liquid through the membranes. The membranes are characterized by having a low permeability for the promoter, and the packages achieve typical speeds of 0.001 ml / cm2 / min. When calculating the conductivity values of the membrane k / d for the membrane described herein, values of approximately 1 to 2 * 10-15 m may be the result. An essential property of the membranes useful for such applications is their "salt retention", that is to say insofar as the membranes must be easily penetrable by the liquid, they must retain a substantial amount of the promoter material within the packages. These salt retention requirements provide a limitation in the pore size which will limit the flow of liquid. US-A-5,082,723 (Gross et al) discloses an osmotic material such as NaCl which is enclosed by superabsorbenle material, such as a copolymer of acrylic acid and sodium acrylate, thereby pretending an improvement in absorbency, such as improved absorbent capacity on a "gram per gram" basis and absorption rate. Above all, such fluid handling members are used for improved absorbency of liquids, although they have only very limited fluid transport capacity. Therefore, there still remains a need to improve the liquid transport properties, in particular to increase the flow and / or the flow rates in the liquid transport systems. It is therefore an object of the present invention to provide a liquid transport member composed of at least two regions that exhibit a difference in permeability. It is a further object to provide liquid transport members that exhibit improved liquid transport, as expressed in liquid flow rates j) significantly increased and especially liquid flow rates, ie the amount of liquid flowing in a unit of time through a certain cross section of the liquid transport member. It is a further object of the present invention to allow the transport of liquid against gravity. It is a further object of the present invention to provide such an improved liquid transport member for fluids with a wide range of physical properties, such as aqueous (hydrophilic) or non-aqueous, oily or lipophilic liquids. It is a further object of this invention to provide liquid transport systems which in addition to the liquid transport member comprise a liquid spillway and / or liquid source. It is a further object of the present invention to provide any of the above objects for use in absorbent structures, such as may be useful in hygienic absorbent products, such as baby diapers, adult incontinence products, and feminine protection products. It is even an object of the present invention to provide any of the above objects for use as water irrigation systems, water absorber, oil absorber, and water / oil separators.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION The present invention is a liquid transport member having at least one volume region and one wall region that completely circumscribes the volume region, and whereby the wall region further comprises at least one port region. inlet and at least one outlet port region, whereby the volume region has an average fluid permeability Kb which is greater than the average fluid permeability Kp of the port regions. Preferably, the volume region has a fluid permeability of at least 10"11 m2, or at least 10" 8 m2, more preferably at least 10"7 m2, more preferably at least 10". "5 m2, and the region of volume of the port regions have a fluid permeability of at least 10" 11 m2, preferably of at least 10"8 m2, more preferably of at least 10" 7 m2 , very preferably at least 10"5 m2. The liquid transport member may have port regions having fluid to thickness permeability ratios in the fluid transport direction kp / dp of at least 3 * 10"15 m, preferably at least 7 * 10" 14, more preferably of at least 3 * 10"10, still more preferably of at least 8 * 10" 8, or even of at least 5 * 10"7, and most preferably of at least 10 ~ 5. In the preferred embodiments, the present invention is a liquid transport member, wherein a first member region comprises materials that are in contact with an additional element that extend into a second, nearby region without extending the functionality of the first region. A particular embodiment comprises a further element extending from the wall region in the outer region, preferably having a capillary pressure to absorb the liquid that is less than the pressure of the bubble point of the member. can comprise a layer of softness. In a preferred additional embodiment, the ratio of permeability of the volume region to the permeability of the port region gone is at least 10, preferably at least 100, more preferably at least 1000, and even so more preferable of at least 100,000. In still a preferred additional embodiment, the operating member has a bubble point pressure when measured with water as the test liquid having a surface tension of 72 mN / m of at least 1 kPa, preferably at least at least 2 kPa, more preferably at least 4.5 kPa, even more preferably at 8 kPa, more preferably at 50. In a preferred additional mode, the port region has a bubble point pressure when measured with water as the test liquid having a surface tension of 72 mN / m of at least 1 kPa, preferably of at least 2 kPa, more preferably of at least 4.5 kPa, even more preferably of 8 kPa, more preferably 50 kPa, or when measured with an aqueous test solution having a surface tension of 33 mN / m of at least 0.67 kPa, preferably of at least 1 3 kPa, more preferably of at least 3.0 kPa, even more preferably 5.3 kPa, and still more preferably of 33 kPa. In a particular embodiment, the liquid transport member according to the present invention can lose more than 3% of the initial liquid when subjected to the closed system test, as described hereinafter. In a further preferred embodiment, the volume region has a larger average pore size than the port regions, so that the average pore size ratio of the volume region and the average pore size of the port region is preferably of at least 10, more preferably of at least 50, still more preferably of at least 100, or even at least 500, and most preferably at least 1000. In another preferred embodiment, the volume region has a average pore size of at least 200 μm, preferably of at least 500 μm, more preferably of at least 1000 μm, and even more preferably of at least 5000 μm. In another preferred embodiment, the volume region has a porosity of at least 50%, preferably at least 80%, more preferably at least 90%, even more preferably at least 98%, and most preferable way of at least 99%. In another preferred embodiment, the port region has a porosity of at least 10%, preferably at least 20%, more preferably at least 30% and more preferably at least 50%. In another preferred embodiment, the port regions have an average pore size of no more than 100μm, preferably no more than 50μm, more preferably no more than 10μm, and most preferably no more than 5μm. it is also preferred that the port regions have a pore size of at least 1μm, preferably at least 3μm. In another preferred embodiment, the port regions have an average thickness of no more than 100μm, preferably no more than 50μm, more preferably no greater than 10μm, and most preferably no more than 5μm. In another preferred embodiment, the volume regions and the wall regions have a volume ratio (volume region to wall region) of at least 10, preferably of at least 100, more preferably of at least 1000 and even more preferably at least 10,000. In another specific embodiment in particular for transporting aqueous fluids, the port region is hydrophilic, and is preferably made of materials having a recess contact angle for the liquid to be transported of less than 70 degrees, preferably less than 50 degrees, more preferably less than 20 degrees and even more preferably less than 10 degrees. Preferably, the port regions do not substantially decrease the surface tension of the liquid of the liquid to be transported. In another specific embodiment in particular for transporting oily liquids, the port region is oleophilic, and is preferably made of materials having a recess contact angle for the liquid to be transported of less than 70 degrees, preferably less than 50. degrees, more preferably less than 20 degrees and even more preferably less than 10 degrees. In another specific embodiment, the liquid transport member may be capable of expanding upon contact with the liquid and collapsible upon removal of the liquid. In other specific modalities, the member may have a sheet-like or cylindrical shape, optionally the cross section of the member along the liquid transport direction is not constant. In addition, the port regions may have an area greater than the average cross section of the member along the direction of liquid transport, preferably the port regions have an area that is greater than the average cross section along the length of the port. liquid transport direction of at least a factor of 2, preferably a factor of 10, more preferably a factor of 100. In another specific embodiment, the member comprises bulk material or port which can expand and re-collapse during the transport of the liquid, and preferably has a volume expansion factor of at least 5 between the original state and when it is activated, that is, completely submerged in liquid. In another specific embodiment, the volume region comprises a material selected from the groups of fibers, particles, foams, coils, films, corrugated sheets or tubes. In another specific embodiment, the wall region may comprise the material selected from the groups of fibers, particles, foams, spirals, films, corrugated sheets, tubes, woven webs, woven fiber meshes, films with openings or monolithic films. In another specific embodiment, the volume or wall region may be an open-cell cross-linked foam, preferably selected from the group of cellulose sponge, polyurethane foam, HIPE foams. In another specific embodiment, the liquid transport member comprises fibers, which are made of polyolefins, polyesters, polyamides, polyethers, polyacrylates, polyurethanes, metal, glass, cellulose and cellulose derivatives. In yet another embodiment, the liquid transport member is formed by a region of porous volume that is packaged by a separate wall region. In a special embodiment, the member may comprise water soluble materials, for example to increase the permeability or pore size upon contacting the liquid in the volume or port regions. In additional specific embodiments, the liquid transport member is initially wet or essentially filled with liquid, or is under vacuum. A liquid transport member may be particularly suitable for the transport of liquids based on water or viscoelastic liquids, of body discharge fluids such as urine, menstrual discharges, sweat or feces. A liquid transport member may also be suitable for the transport of oil, grease or other liquids that are not water based, and may be particularly suitable for the selective transport of oil or grease, although not for liquids based on Water. In a special application, the port regions can be hydrophobic. In yet another specific embodiment, the properties or the parameter of any of the member's or member's own regions need not be maintained during the member's transport from its production to the intended use, but are established just prior to, or at the time of liquid handling This can be achieved by having an activation of the member, such as by contact with the transported liquid, pH, temperature, enzymes, chemical reaction, salt concentration or mechanical activation. The port region may further comprise a membrane material capable of activating by stimulus, such as a membrane that changes its hydrophilic capacity upon a temperature change.

Another aspect of the present invention is concerned with the combination of a liquid transport member with a liquid source and / or a liquid spillway, with at least one of these located outside the member. In a specific embodiment, a liquid transport system, comprising a liquid transport member according to the present invention, wherein the system has an absorbent capacity of at least 5 g / g, preferably of at least 10 g / g, more preferably at least 20 g / g based on the weight of the pouring material, when subjected to the Demand Absorbency Test. In still another specific embodiment, the liquid transport system contains a material in the landfill, which has an absorption capacity of at least 10 g / g, preferably at least 20 g / g, and more preferably by at least 50 g / g based on the weight of the pouring material, when subjected to the Tea Bag Centrifugal Capacity Test. In a further embodiment, the pouring material having an absorption capacity of at least 5 g / g, preferably of at least 10 g / g, more preferably of at least 50 g / g based on the weight of the poured material , when measured in the Capillary Absorption Test at a pressure on the bubble point pressure of the port region and having an absorbent capacity of at least 5 g / g, preferably at least 2 g / g, more preferably at least 1 g / g and more preferably less than 0.2 g / g when measured in the Capillary Absorption Test at a pressure exceeding the bubble point pressure of the port region. In certain specific embodiments, the liquid transport member also contains superabsorbent material or open cell foam of the Internal Elevated Phase Emulsion type. In a still further aspect, the present invention relates to an article comprising a liquid transport member or a liquid transport system according to the present invention, such as an absorbent article or a disposable absorbent article comprising a member of liquid transport. One application, which can particularly benefit from the use of the members according to the invention, is a disposable absorbent hygiene article, such as a baby diaper or adult incontinence, a feminine protection pad, a pantyhose, or a brief underpants. of training. Other suitable applications can be found for a bandage, or other absorbent health care systems. In another aspect, the article may be a water transport system or member, optionally combining transport functionality with filtration functionality, for example, by purifying water that is transported. Also the member can be useful in the cleaning operation, to remove liquids or as releasing fluids in a controlled manner. A liquid transport member according to the present invention can also be a grease or oil absorber, or it can be used for the separation of oily and aqueous liquids. Yet another aspect of the present invention relates to the method of making a liquid transport member, wherein the method comprises the steps of: a) providing a bulk or internal material; b) providing a wall material comprising a port region; c) completely enclosing the volume region material by said wall material; d) provide means that enable selected transport, from d 1) to vacuum; d2) fill the liquid; d3) expandable elastics / springs. Optionally, the method may further comprise the step of: e) applying means of activating e1) a liquid that dissolves the port region; e2) a liquid that dissolves the elastification / expandable springs; e3) a removable removable element; e4) a removable seal package. In another embodiment, the method can comprise the steps of: a) packaging a highly porous volume material with a wall material containing at least one permeable port region, b) completely sealing the wall region and c) evacuating the member essentially of air. In a further specific embodiment, the method further comprises the step of wetting the member, or partially or essentially completely filling the member with liquid. In a further specific embodiment, the method further comprises the step of sealing the member with a layer capable of dissolving with liquid at least in the port regions.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS Figure 1: Schematic diagram of conventional open siphon. Figure 2: Schematic diagram of a liquid transport member according to the present invention. Figure 3A, B: Conventional siphon system and liquid transport member according to the present invention. Figure 4: Schematic cross-sectional view through a liquid transport member. Figures 5A, B, C: Schematic representation for the determination of the thickness of the port region. Figure 6: Permeability correlation and bubble point pressure. Figures 7 to 12: Schematic diagrams of various embodiments of the liquid transport member according to the present invention. Figures 13A, B, C: Liquid Transport Systems according to the present invention. Figure 14: Schematic diagram of an absorbent article. Figures 15 to 16A, B: Absorbent article comprising a liquid transport member. Figures 17A, B to 18A, B, C, D: Specific modalities of the liquid transport member. Figures 19 to 20 A, B: Liquid permeability test. Figures 21A, B, C, D: Capillary absorption test.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION General Definitions As used herein, a "liquid transport member" refers to a material or compound of material, which are capable of transporting liquids. This member contains at least two regions, an "internal" region for which it can be used in a "volume" region interchangeably and a wall region comprising at least one "port" region. The terms "internal" and "external" refer to the relative placement of the regions, ie they represent that the external region generally circumscribes the internal region, such as a wall region circumscribes a region of volume. As used herein, the term "Z dimension" refers to the dimension orthogonal to the length and width of the liquid or article transport member. The dimension Z usually corresponds to the thickness of the liquid transport member or the article. As used herein, the term "X-Y dimension" refers to the plane orthogonal to the thickness of the member or article. The X-Y dimension usually corresponds to the length and width, respectively, of the liquid or article transport member. The term layer can also apply to a member, which - when described in its spherical or cylindrical coordinates - extends in the radial direction much less than in others. For example, the cover of a balloon could be considered a layer in this context, so the skin would define the wall region, and the central part filling the inner region with air. As used herein, the term "layer" refers to a region whose primary dimension is X-Y, that is, along its length and width. It should be understood that the term "layer" is not necessarily limited to individual layers or sheets of material. Therefore the layer may comprise laminates or combinations of various sheets or webs of the types of requisite materials. Accordingly, the term "layer" includes the terms "layers" and "layers". For purposes of this invention, it should also be understood that the term "upper" refers to members, articles such as layers, that are placed upward (ie oriented against the gravity vector) during the intended use. For example, a liquid transport member is intended J to transport liquid from a "lower" to an "upper" container, which means that it is transported against gravity. All percentages, ratios and ratios used herein were calculated by weight unless otherwise specified. As used herein, the term "absorbent articles" refers to devices that absorb and contain body exudates and, more specifically, refer to devices that are placed against or in proximity to the user's body to absorb and contain the different exudates discharged from the body. As used in this, the term "body fluids" includes, but is not limited to, urine, menstrual discharges and vaginal discharges, sweat and feces. The term "disposable" is used herein to describe absorbent articles that are not intended to be washed or otherwise restored or reused as an absorbent article (i.e. they are intended to be discarded after use and preferably to be recycled). , formed in compost or otherwise disposed of in an environmentally compatible manner). As used herein, the term "absorbent core" refers to the component of the absorbent article that is primarily responsible for the fluid handling properties of the article, including the acquisition, transportation and distribution and storage of body fluids. As such, the absorbent core typically does not include the top cover or the back cover of the absorbent article.

A member or material can be described as having a certain structure, such as a porosity, which is defined by the ratio of the volume of the solid material of the member or material to the total volume of the member or material. For example, for a fibrous structure made of polypropylene fibers, the porosity can be calculated from the specific gravity (density) of the structure, the gauge and the specific weight (density) of the polypropylene fiber: "Vtota 'vacuum" - (• ~ Pvolume 'Pmaterial) The term "activable" refers to the situation, where a certain skill is restricted by certain means, such as the release of these means by a reaction as occurs with a mechanical response. If a spring is held in place by a clamp (and therefore would be activatable), releasing the clamp results in the activation of the spring expansion, for such springs or other members, materials or systems that have an elastic behavior, the expansion it can be defined by the elastic modulus, as is known in the art.

Basic principles and definitions Liquid transport mechanism in conventional capillary flow systems. Without wishing to be bound by any of the following explanations, the basic operating mechanism of the present invention can be better explained by comparison of conventional materials.

In the materials, for which the transport of liquids is based on the capillary pressure as the driving force, the liquid is extracted in the pores that were initially dry by the interaction of liquid with the surface of the pores. The filling of the pores with liquid replaces the air in those pores. If said material is at least partially saturated and if in addition a hydrostatic, capillary or osmotic suction force is applied to at least one region of that liquid material it will be desorbed from this material if the suction pressure is greater than the capillary pressure that it retains the liquid in the pores of the materials (refer for example to "Dynamics of fluids in porous media" by J. Bear, Haifa, publ Dover Publications Inc., NY 1988). Upon desorption, air will enter the pores of such conventional capillary flow materials. If additional liquid is available, this liquid can be extracted into the pores against capillary pressure. If therefore a conventional capillary flow material is connected to one end of a liquid source (eg a container) and the other end to a liquid spout (eg, a hydrostatic suction), the liquid transport through This material is based on the cycle of absorption and reabsorption of the individual pores with the capillary force at the liquid / air interface that provides the internal driving force for the liquid through the material. This contrasts with the transport mechanism for liquids through the transport members according to the present invention.

Siphon Analogy A simplified explanation for the operation of the present invention can begin with the comparison with a siphon (reference to Figure 1), well known from drainage systems such as pipe in the form of an S-layer (101). ). The principle thereof is that - once the pipe (102) is filled with liquid (103) - upon receipt of additional liquid (as indicated by 106), it enters the siphon at one end, almost immediately the liquid comes out from the siphon at the other end (as indicated by 107) because - because the siphon is filled with non-compressible liquid - the liquid that enters is immediately displaced from the liquid in the siphon that forces the liquid at the other end to exit of the siphon, if there is a pressure difference for the liquid between the entry point and the exit point of said siphon. In such a siphon, the liquid is entering and leaving the system through an open surface inlet and outlet port regions (104 and 105 respectively). The driving pressure to move the liquid along the siphon can be obtained by a variety of mechanisms. For exampleIf the entrance is in a position higher than the exit, the gravity will generate a difference of hydrostatic pressure generating the flow of the liquid through the system. Alternatively, if the outlet port is higher than the inlet port, and the liquid has to be transported against gravity, the liquid will flow through this siphon only if an external pressure difference greater than the hydrostatic pressure difference is applied. . For example, a pump could generate enough suction or pressure to move the liquid through this siphon. Therefore, the flow of liquid through a siphon or pipe is caused by a general pressure difference between its inlet and its outlet port region. This can be described through well-known models, such as are expressed in the Bernoulli equation. The analogy of the present invention to this principle is illustrated schematically in Figure 2 as a specific embodiment. In it, the liquid transport member (201) need not be in the form of an s, but may be a straight tube (202). The liquid transport member may be filled with liquid (203), if the emtrand and outlet of the transport member are covered by input port materials (204) and output port materials (205). Upon receipt of the additional liquid (indicated by 206) that easily penetrates through the inlet port material (204), the liquid (207) will immediately exit the member through the outlet region (205), by means of the material of exit port. Therefore, a key difference in the principle is that, the ports of enlrada and / or exit are not open surfaces, although they have special permeability requirements as explained in more detail below, which prevents the air or gas from penetrating inside. of the transport member, so that the transport member remains filled with liquid.

A liquid transport member according to the present invention can be combined with one or more sources and / or landfills to form a liquid transport system. Such sources or liquid dumps may be attached to the transport member as in the inlet and / or outlet regions or the dump or source may be integral with the member. A liquid weir can be, for example integral with the transport member, when the transport member can expand its volume so that it receives the transported liquid. An analogy of further simplification to a siphon system as compared to a Liquid Transport System can be seen in Figure 3A (siphon) and 3B (the present invention). When a liquid container (source) (301) is connected to a lower liquid container (in the direction of gravity (landfill) (302) by a conventional pipe or tube with open ends (303) in the form of a " U "(or" J ") inverted, the liquid can flow from the upper container to the lower one only if the tube is kept filled with liquid by keeping the upper end submerged in the liquid.If air can enter the pipeline so that the upper end 305 of the liquid is removed, the transport is interrupted and the tube must be refilled to be in operation again A liquid transport member according to the present invention would resemble very similarly to a similar arrangement, except that the ends of the transport member, the entrance (305) and the exit port (306), which comprise the input and output port materials with special permeability requirements as explained with may or detail below instead of the open areas. The inlet and outlet materials prevent air or gas from penetrating into the transport member and therefore maintain the liquid transport capacity even if the inlet is not submerged within the liquid source vessel. If the transport member is not submerged within the liquid source, the liquid transport will obviously stop although it can obviously start with re-immersion. In broader terms, the present invention relates to the transport of liquid which is based on direct suction instead of capillary action. In the present, the liquid is transported through a region through which substantially no air should enter this member (or other gas) or at least river in a significant amount. The driving force for fluid to flow through said member can be created by a liquid spout and a liquid source in liquid communication with the member, either externally or internally. There are a variety of embodiments of the present invention, some of which will be described in greater detail hereinafter. For example, there may be members where the input and / or output port materials are different from the internal region or volume, or they may be members with gradual change in properties, or they may be member executions where the source or landfill it is integral with the transport member or where the liquid that enters is different from the type or properties i of the liquid leaving the member. In addition, all embodiments rely on the region of inlet or outlet port having a different permeability for the liquid transported as well as for the surrounding gas such as air different from the internal / volume region. Within the context of the present invention, the term "liquid" refers to fluids consisting of a continuous liquid phase, optionally comprising a discontinuous phase such as the immiscible liquid phase, or solids or gases, to form slurries, emulsions or the like . The liquid can be homogeneous in its composition, it can be a mixture of miscible liquids, it can be a mixture of solids or gases in a liquid and the like. Non-limiting examples for liquid that can be transported through the members according to the present invention include water, pure or with contaminating additives, saline solutions, urine, blood, menstrual fluids, fecal matter of a wide variety of consistencies and viscosities, oil, food fat, lotions, cream and the like. The term "transporter liquid" or "transport liquid" refers to the liquid that is actually transported by the transport member, ie this can be the total of a homogeneous phase or can it be the solvent e? a phase comprising the dissolved matter, for example, the water of an aqueous saline solution or it can be a phase in a multi-phase liquid, or it can be the total of the liquid with multiple components or phases. Therefore, it will become readily apparent to any liquid that the respective liquid properties, e.g. surface energy, viscosity, density, are relevant to various embodiments. While the liquid that frequently enters the liquid transport member will be the same or different in kind from the liquid that leaves the member or is stored therein, this does not necessarily need to be the case. For example, when the liquid transport member is filled with an aqueous liquid, and - under the appropriate design - an oily liquid is received by the member, the aqueous phase can leave the member first. In this case, the aqueous phase could be considered "replaceable liquid".

Description geometry of the Transport Member Regions A liquid transport member in the sense of the present invention has to comprise at least two regions, a "volume region" and a "wall region" comprising at least one "port of entry" region permeable to liquid and a "port of exit region". The geometry and especially the requirement of the wall region that completely circumscribes the volume region is defined by the following description (reference to Figure 4), which considers a transport member at a point of time. The volume / internal regions (403) and the wall region (404) are different regions of non-overlapping geometry with respect to each other as well as with respect to the external region (ie "the rest of the universe") . Therefore, any point can only belong to one of the regions. The volume region 403 is connected, for example, to either of the two points A 'and A "within the volume region (403), there is at least one continuous line (curved or straight) connecting the two points without leave the volume region (403). For any point A within the volume region (403), all straight rod-like rays having a circular thickness of at least 2 mm in diameter intersect the wall region (404 A straight beam has the geometrical meaning of a cylinder of infinite length to the point that it is a light source and the rays that are rays of light, although these rays need to have a minimum geometric "thickness" (since otherwise a line can pass through the pore opening of the port regions 405.) This thickness is set at 2 mm, which of course has to be considered in an approximation to the closeness of point A (it does not have a three-dimensional extension to be coupled with said beam in f bar structure.) The wall region (404) completely circumscribes the volume region (403). Therefore, for which any points A "- belonging to the region of volume (403) - and C - belonging to the external region -, any curved bar continues (in analogy to a continuous curved line but having circular thickness 2mm in diameter), intersects the wall region (404) A port region (405) connects a region of volume (403) with the external region, and there exists at least one continuous curved connection bar to connect in any point a from the volume regions with any point C from the outer region that has a circular thickness of 2mm, which intersects the port region (405) .The term "region" refers to three-dimensional regions, which can be Often, though not necessarily, the thickness of the region may be thin, so that the region appears similar to a flat structure, such as a thin film, for example, the membranes may be used in a to a film form, which-depending on the porosity-can have a thickness of 100 μm or much smaller, being in this way smaller than the extension of the membrane perpendicular thereto (ie length and width dimension). A wall region may be placed around a volume region for example in an overlapping arrangement, ie certain portions of the wall region material contact each other and are connected to each other by sealing. Then, this seal should not have openings that are large enough to interrupt the functionality of the member, i.e. the sealing line may be considered to belong either to a wall region (impermeable) or to another wall region. While a region can be described as having at least one property to remain within certain limits to define the common functionality of the subregions of this region, other properties may change within these subregions. Within the current description, the term "regions" should be read to also cover the term "region", ie if a member comprises certain "regions", the possibility of understanding only one region should be included in this term, unless explicitly mentioned otherwise . The "port" and "volume / internal" regions can be easily distinguished from each other, so that a gap for one region and a membrane for another or those regions can have a gradual transition with respect to certain relevant parameters such as describe below. It is therefore essential that a transport member according to the present invention has at least one region that satisfies the requirements for the "inner region" and a region that satisfies the requirements for the "wall region", (which in fact it can have a very small thickness in relation to its extension in the other two dimensions and therefore appear more as a surface than as a volume). The wall region comprises at least one input region and one output region. Therefore, for a liquid transport member, the transport path can be defined as the path of a liquid that enwraps in the port region and the liquid leaves a port region, whereby the liquid transport path is Scrolls through the volume region. The transport path can also be defined by the path of a liquid entering a port region and then entering a fluid storage region that is integral within the internal region of the transport member, or alternatively defined as the path of a liquid from a liquid release source region within the inner region of the transport member to an exit port region. The transport path of a liquid transport member can be of substantial length, a length of 100 m or even more can be contemplated, alternatively, the liquid transport member can also be of a very short length, such as a few millimeters or even less. While it is a particular benefit of the present invention to provide high transport speeds and also allow large quantities of liquid to be transported, the latter is not a requirement. It can also be contemplated that only small amounts of liquid are transported for relatively short times, for example when the system is used to transmit signals in the form of liquids in order to activate a certain signal response at an alternate point along the member of transport. In this case, the liquid transport member can function as a real-time signaling device. Alternatively, the transported liquid can perform a function at the output port, such as activating a gap to release the mechanical energy and create a three-dimensional structure. For example, the liquid transport member can provide an activation signal to a response device comprising a comprised material that is retained in vacuum compression within a bag, at least a portion of which is soluble (for example in water). When a threshold level of the signaling liquid (eg water) provided by the liquid transport member dissolves a portion of the water-soluble region and discontinuously releases the vacuum, the compressed material expands to form a three-dimensional structure. The compressed material, for example, can be an elastic plastic having a void formed of sufficient volume to trap body waste. Alternatively, the compressed material may be an absorbent material that functions as a pump by withdrawing fluid within its body as it expands (e.g., it may function as a liquid spillway as described below). The transport of liquid can take place along an individual transport path or along multiple paths, which can be divided or recombined through the transport member. Generally, the transport path will define a transport direction, allowing the definition of the transverse cross section plane that is perpendicular to said path. The internal region / volume configuration will then define the transport cross-sectional area, combining the different trajectories.

For irregularly shaped transport members and respective regions thereof, it may be necessary to average the transport cross section over the length of one or more transport paths either through the use of incremental approaches or differential approaches as known from the geometric calculations. It is conceivable that there are members of transport where the internal region and port regions are easily separable and distinguishable. In other cases, it may take more effort to distinguish and / or separate the different regions. Therefore, when the requirements for certain regions are described, this should be read to apply to certain materials within those regions. Therefore, a certain region may consist of a homogeneous material, or a region may comprise such a homogeneous material.

Also, such material may have variable properties and / or parameters and therefore comprise more than one region. The following description will focus on the description of properties and parameters for functionally defined regions.

General functional description of the transport member As briefly mentioned in the foregoing, the present invention relates to a liquid transport member, which is based on direct suction instead of capillary action. In it, the liquid is transported through a region within which substantially no air (or other gas) enters (at all or at least not in a significant amount). The driving force for the liquid to flow through such a member can be created by a liquid spout and / or liquid source, in communication of the liquid with the transport member either externally or internally. Direct suction is maintained by ensuring that substantially no air or gas enters the liquid transport member during transportation. This means, that the wall regions of include the port regions must be substantially impermeable to air up to a certain pressure, i.e. the bubble point pressure as will be described in greater detail. Therefore, a liquid transport member must have a certain permeability of the liquid (as will be described later herein). Higher liquid permeability provides less resistance to flow and is therefore preferred from this point of view. In addition, the liquid transport member must be substantially impermeable to air or gas during the transportation of the liquid. However, for conventional porous liquid transport materials, and in particular those materials that function on the basis of capillarity transport mechanisms, liquid transport is generally controlled by the interaction of pore size and permeability, such as those highly open permeable structures which will generally comprise relatively large pores. These large pores provide highly permeable structures, although these structures have very limited packing heights for a given set of respective surface energy, ie a certain combination of the type of material and liquids. The pore size can also affect fluid retention under conditions of normal use. In contrast to the conventional capillary governed mechanisms, in the present invention, those conventional limitations have been overcome, since it has been surprisingly found that materials exhibiting relative lower permeability can be combined with materials exhibiting a relative higher permeability and the combination provides significant synergistic effects. In particular, it has been found that when a material highly permeable to liquid having large pores is surrounded by material having essentially no air permeability up to a certain pressure, the aforementioned bubble point pressure, but which also has a low pressure. liquid permeability, the combined liquid transport member will have high liquid permeability and high bubble point pressure at the same time, allowing very fast liquid transport even against external pressure. Accordingly, the liquid transport member has an internal region with a liquid permeability that is relatively high to provide maximum liquid transport velocity. The permeability of a port region, which may be a part of the wall region circumscribing the volume region, is substantially smaller. This is achieved through port regions that have a membrane functionality, designed for the intended conditions of use. The membrane is permeable to liquids, but not to gases or vapors. Such property is generally expressed by the bubble point pressure parameter, which is in summary, defined by the pressure to which the gas or air does not penetrate through a damp membrane. As will be described in more detail, the property requirements have to be met at the same time as liquid transport is carried out. However, they may be created or adjusted by activating a transport member, for example, before use, which, without or before such activation, would not satisfy the requirements but would do so after activation. For example, a member may be compressed or elastically collapsed and expanded by wetting to then create a structure with the required properties. Generally, to consider how fast and how much liquid can be transported over a certain height (ie against a certain hydrostatic pressure) the capillary flow transport is dominated by the surface energy that affects the mechanisms and structure of the pore, the which is determined by the number of pores, as well as the size, shape and pore size distribution. If, for example, in conventional capillary flow systems or membranes based on capillary pressure as the driving force, the liquid is removed at one end of a capillary system by means of suction, this fluid is desorbed out of the capillaries closer to this suction device, which are at least partially filled by air, and which are then filled through capillary pressure by liquid from the adjacent capillaries, which are filled by liquid from the following adjacent capillaries and so on This, the transport of liquid through a conventional capillary flow structure is based on the absorption-desorption and reabsorption cycle of the individual pores. The flow with respect to the hyperflow is determined for the average permeability along the trajectory and for the suction at the end of the transport path. Such local suction will usually also depend on the local saturation of the material, ie if the suction device is able to reduce the saturation of the region near it, the flow / hyperflow will be greater. However, even if said suction at the end of the transport path is greater than the capillary pressure within the capillary structure, the internal driving force for the liquid is provided by the capillary pressure thus limiting the liquid transport speeds . In addition, such capillary flow structures can not transport liquid against gravity to heights greater than capillary pressure, independent of external suction. A specific idealized embodiment of such porous liquid transport members are the so-called "capillary tubes", which can be described as parallel tubes such as internal tube diameters and wall thicknesses that define the general opening (or porosity) of the system. Such systems will have a high relative flow against a certain height if they are "monoporous", that is, if the pores have the same optimum pore size. Then the flow is determined by the pore structure, the surface energy ratio and the cross-sectional area of the porous system and can be estimated through well-known approximations. Realistic porous structures, such as fibrous or foam structures, will not transport ideal capillary tube structures. Real porous structures have pores that are not aligned, that is, they are not straight, since capillary tubes and pore sizes are not uniform either. These effects often reduce the efficiency of transport of capillary systems. For one aspect of the present invention, however, there are at least two regions within the transport member with different pore sizes, namely one or more port regions that have smaller pore sizes (which in conventional systems would result in very low flow rates) and the internal region that has a relatively large pore size (which in conventional systems would result in very low transport heights achievable). For the present invention, the general flow and transport height through the transport member are synergistically improved by the high permeability of the inner region (which may therefore be relatively greater) while having smaller areas of cross section) and through the relatively high bubble point pressure of the port regions (which may have sufficiently large surfaces, and / or small thicknesses). In this aspect of the invention, the high bubble point pressure of the port regions is obtained by capillary pressure of small pores in the port region, which, once moistened, will prevent air or gas from entering. to the transport member. Therefore, very high fluid transport speeds can be achieved through relatively small cross-sectional areas of the transport member. In another aspect, the present invention relates to liquid transport members, which once activated and / or moistened, are selective with respect to the fluids they transport. Port regions of the transport member are - up to a certain limit as can be expressed by the bubble pressure point - closed for natural gas (such as air) but relatively open for transport liquid (such as water). The port regions do not require a specific directionality of their properties, that is, the materials used in them can be used in any orientation of the liquid flow through them. It is also not a requirement for membranes having different properties (such as permeability) with respect to certain parts or component of the liquid. This is a contrast with the membranes as described for osmotic absorbent packs in the document US-A-5,108,383 (White et al.), Wherein the membranes should have a low permeability for the promoter material, such as a salt, and the respective salt ions.

Region of volume In the next section, the requirements as well as the specific executions for the "internal region" or "volume region" will be described. A key requirement for the volume region is that it has a low average flow resistance, as expressed by having a permeability k of at least preferably 10"11 m2, preferably greater than 10" 8 m2, and more preferably more 10-5 m2. An important means to achieve high permeabilities for internal regions can be achieved by using the material that provides relatively high porosity. Said porosity, which is commonly defined as the ratio of the volume of materials that make up the porous materials to the total volume of the porous materials, and as determined by commonly known density measurements, must be at least 50% , preferably of at least 80%, more preferably of at least 90%, or even exceeding 98% or 99%. At the end of the inner region consisting essentially of an individual pore, hollow space, the porosity approaches or even reaches 100%. Another important means to obtain these high permeabilities for the internal regions is by using materials with large pores. The inner region may have pores, which are greater than about 200 μm, 500 μm, 1mm or even 9mm in diameter or more. For certain applications, such as irrigation or oil separation, the internal region may have pores as large as 10 cm, for example, when the internal region is a hollow tube. Such pores may be smaller before the transport of fluid, so that the inner region may have a smaller volume, and expand only just before or in contact with the liquid. Preferably, if such pores are compressed or collapsed, they should be able to expand by the volumetric expansion factor of at least 5, preferably greater than 10. Such expansion can be achieved through materials having an elastic modulus of more than the pressure external, which, however, must be less than the bubble point pressure. High porosities can be achieved through a number of materials, well known in the art as such. For example, the fibrous members can easily achieve such porosity values. Non-limiting examples of such fibrous materials that can be compressed in the volume region are high-fluff non-woven materials, for example, from polyolefin or polyester fibers as used in the field of sanitary articles, or the automotive industry , or for upholstery or for the HVAC industry. Other examples comprise fiber webs made from cellulosic fiber. Such porosities can be further achieved through porous open cell foam structures, such as, without intending to be limited, for example cross-linked polyurethane foams, cellulose sponges or open cell foams such as those made by the Phase Emulsion Polymerization process. Internal Elevation (HIPE foams), as is well known from a variety of industrial applications such as filtration ecology, upholstery, hygiene and others. Such porosities can be achieved by wall regions (as explained in more detail below) circumscribing gaps defining the internal region, such as those exemplified by pipe. Alternatively, several smaller pipes can be grouped. Such porosities can be further achieved by "space supports", such as springs, spacers, particulate material, corrugated structures and the like. The gold sizes of internal region or waves permeabilities can be homogeneous through the internal region or can be heterogeneous. It is not necessary that the high porosity of the inner region be maintained through all stages between the manufacture and use of the liquid transport member, although the gaps within the internal region may be created shortly before or during its intended use. For example, bellows-like structures held together by suitable means can be activated by a user and during their expansion, the liquid penetrates through a port region within the expanding internal region, thereby filling the limb member. transport completely or at least sufficiently so as not to impede the flow of liquid. Alternatively, open cell foam materials, such as those described in (US-A-5,563,179 or US-A-5,387,207) have the tendency to collapse under water removal, and the ability to re-expand. by re-moistening. Therefore, such foams can be transported from the manufacturing site to the user in relatively dry and therefore thin (or lower volume) form, and only upon contact with the source liquid they increase their volume to meet the permeability requirements of the hole. The internal regions can have various shapes or contours. The inner region may be cylindrical, ellipsoidal, leaf-like, band-like, or may have any irregular shape. The internal regions may have a constant cross-sectional area, with the constant or variable transverse shape, such as rectangular, triangular, circular, elliptical or irregular. A cross-sectional area is defined for use herein as a cross section of the inner region, before the addition of the source liquid, when measured in the plane perpendicular to the transport liquid flow path and this definition will be used to determine the average internal region transverse area by averaging the individual transverse areas of all the flow paths. The absolute size of the internal region must be selected to adequately match the geometrical requirements of the intended use. Generally, it would be desirable to have a minimum dimension for the intended use. A benefit of the designs according to the present invention is to allow areas of cross section much smaller than conventional materials. The dimensions of the internal region are determined by the permeability of said internal region, which can be very high, due to the large possible pores, since the internal region does not have to be designed under contradictory requirements of hyperflow (ie large pores). ) and elevated vertical liquid transport (ie, small pores). Such large permeabilities allow much smaller cross sections and therefore different designs. Also, the length of the inner region can be significantly greater than for conventional systems, as well as with respect to this parameter of the novel transport member that can link larger distances and also higher vertical liquid transport heights. The internal region can be essentially non-deformable, ie it maintains its shape, contour, volume under normal conditions of the intended use. However, in many uses, it would be desirable, that the inner region allow the full member to remain soft and foldable. The internal region can change its shape, through deformation forces or pressures during use or under the influence of the fluid itself. The deformability or absence thereof can be achieved by the selection of one or more materials in the internal region (such as a fibrous member) or can be determined essentially by the circumscribed regions, such as the wall regions of the transport member. One such approach is to use elastomeric materials as the wall material. The gaps in the inner region may be confined by wall regions only or the internal region may comprise internal gaps therein. If, for example, the internal region is made up of parallel pipes, with waterproof cylindrical walls, these would be considered to form such internal separations, possibly creating in this way pores that are unitary with the hollow internal opening of the pipes and possibly other pores created by the interstitial spaces between the pipes. If, as a further example, the internal region comprises a fibrous structure, the fiber material can be considered to form the internal separations. The internal separations of the internal region may have surface energies adapted to the liquid transported. For example, in order to facilitate the wetting and / or transport of aqueous liquids, the separations or parts thereof can be hydrophilic. Therefore, in certain embodiments that relate to the transport of aqueous liquids, it is preferred to have the separations of the internal regions to be wettable by such liquids, even more preferably to have adhesion tensions of more than 65 nN / m, more preferably from 70 nN / m. In the case that the liquid transported is based on oil, the separations or parts thereof can be oil or lipophilic. The confinement separations of the inner region may further comprise materials that significantly change their wetting properties, or which may even dissolve upon wetting. Thus, the inner region may comprise an open cell foam material having a relatively small pore at least partially formed of soluble material, such as polyvinyl alcohol or the like. The small porosity can extract the liquid in the initial phase of transport d liquid and then quickly dissolve and then leave large voids, filled with liquid. Alternatively, such materials can fill pores larger, fully and partially. For example, the inner region may comprise soluble materials such as polyvinyl alcohol or polyvinyl acetate. Such materials can fill the voids or withstand a collapsed state of the voids before the member comes into contact with the liquid. In contact with fluid, such as water, those materials can dissolve and thus create empty or expanded voids. In one embodiment, the gaps in the inner region (which can essentially make up the entire inner region) are essentially completely filled with an essentially non-compressible fluid. The term "essentially completely" refers to the situation, where the sufficient void volume of the internal region is filled with the liquid so that a continuous flow path can be established. Preferably, the majority of the void volume, preferably more than 90%, more preferably more than 95%, and even more preferably more than 99%, including 100%, is filled with liquid. The internal region may be designed to improve the accumulation of gas or other liquid in parts of the region where it is less harmful. The remaining voids can then be filled with another fluid, such as residual gas or vapors, or liquid immiscible as oil in an inner region filled with aqueous liquids or they can be solids such as particles, fibers, films. The liquid comprised in the inner region may be of the same type as the liquid that is designated to be transported. For example, when water-based liquids are intended for the transported medium, the internal region of the transport medium can be filled with water, or if the oil is the intended transport liquid, the inner region can be filled with oil. The liquid of the internal region can also be different, so these differences can be relatively small in nature (just as when the intended transport liquid is water, the liquid in the internal region can be an aqueous solution and vice versa). Alternatively, the intended transport liquid may be very different in its properties, when comparing the liquid with which the inner region has been pre-filled, such as when the source liquid is oil, which is transported through a pipe initially filled with water and closed through suitable inlet and outlet ports, whereby water leaves the membrane through a suitable outlet port region, and the oil enters the member through a suitable port entry region. In this specific embodiment, the total amount of liquid transported is limited by the amount that can be received within the member respectively to the amount of liquid exchanged, unless for example there were output port regions comprising material with properties compatible with the liquids to allow functionality with one or both liquids. The liquid of the internal region and the liquid to be transported can be mutually soluble, such as saline solutions in water, for example, the liquid transport member is intended for the transport of blood or menstrual fluids., the inner region may be filled with water. In another embodiment, the internal region comprises a vacuum, or a gas or vapor below the corresponding equilibrium and the ambient or external pressure at the respective temperatures and the volumetric conditions. Upon contact with the transported liquid, the liquid can enter the inner region through the permeable port regions (as described below), and then fill the gaps in the inner region to the required degree. Subsequently, the internal region now filled works as a "pre-filled" region as described above.

The functional requirements and the previous structural modalities of the internal region can be satisfied by a number of suitable structures. Without being limited to the creation of structures that satisfy the appropriate internal regions, a range of preferred modalities are described below. A simple and very descriptive example for an internal region is an empty tube defined by impermeable or semipermeable walls, as already described and illustrated in Figure 2. The diameter of such tubes can be relatively large compared to the diameters commonly used for transport in capillary systems. The diameter of the course depends to a large extent on the specific system and the intended use. For example, for hygiene applications such as diapers, pore sizes of 2-9 mm or more have been found to work satisfactorily. Also suitable is the combination of parallel tubes of a suitable diameter from about 0.2 mm to several centimeters for a group of tubes, such as (in principle) known from other principles of engineering design such as heat exchanger systems. For certain applications, pieces of glass tubes can provide straight functionality, although, for certain applications such structures may have certain restrictions of mechanical strength. Suitable tubes can also be made of silicon, PVC rubber, etc. for example, Masterflex 6404-17 from Norton, distributed by Barnat Company, Barrington, Illinois 60010 U.S. Another embodiment can be seen in the combination of mechanically expanding elements, such as springs or which can open the hollow space in the structure if the direction of expansion is oriented so that the appropriate pore size is also oriented along of the flow path direction. Such materials are well known in the art and for example described in US-A-5,563,179, US-A-5,387,207, US-A-5,632,737 all relating to HIPE foam materials, or in US-A No. 5,674,917 which refers to absorbent foams, or in EP-A-0,340,763, which refers to highly porous fibrous structures or sheets, such as those made from PET fibers. Other materials may be suitable even when they do not satisfy all the above requirements at the same time, if this deficiency can be compensated with other design elements. Other materials that have relatively large pore sizes are high-flux non-woven filter materials such as open cell foams from Recticel in Brussels, Belgium such as Bulpren, Filtren (Filtren TM10 blue, Filtren TM20 blue, Filtren TM30 blue, Filtren Firend 10 black, Filtren Firend 30 black, Filtren HC 20 gray, Filgren Firend HC 30 grex, Bulpren S10 black, Bulpren S20 black, Bulpren S30 black). Another material that has relatively large pores - although the porosity is not particularly high - is sand with particles larger than 1mm, specifically sand with particles larger than 5mm. Such fibrous or other materials may, for example, become very useful when corrugated, although excessive compression must be avoided. Excessive compression may result in an inhomogeneous pore size distribution with small pores within the inner material and insufficiently open pores between the corrugated ones. A further embodiment for exemplifying a material with two pore size regions can be seen in PCT application US97 / 208 0, which relates to a woven cycle structure. The inner region may comprise absorbent materials, such as super absorbent gelling materials or other materials as described to be suitable as a liquid pouring material hereunder. In addition, the Osmotic Membrane Pack (MOP) promoter materials as described in US-A-5,082,723 (White, Allied Signáis) may be suitable for use in the inner region. The internal region can also be constructed from various materials, that is, for example, from combinations of the previous ones. The inner region may also contain strips, particles, or other non-homogeneous structures that generate hollow bulks between them and act as space separators. As will be described in more detail in the port regions, the fluids in the inner region should not prevent the port regions from filling with the transport liquid.

Therefore, the degree of vacuum, for example, or the degree of miscibility or immiscibility should be such that the liquids of the puerlo region are not extracted in the internal region without the region or regions of port being filled again with the transport liquid.

Wall Region The liquid transport member according to the present invention comprises in addition to the internal regions a wall region that circumscribes this internal region in the geometric definition as described above. This wall region must comprise at least one input port region and one output port region, as described below. The wall region may also contain materials that are essentially impermeable to liquids and / or gases, although they do not interfere with the liquid handling functionality of the port regions and also prevent gases or environmental values from entering the transport member of the port. liquid. Such walls may be of any structure or shape and may be present in the key structural element of the liquid transport member. Such walls may be in the form of a straight or flexed pipe, a flexible pipe or a cubic shape and so on. The walls can be thin flexible films that circumscribe the inner region. Such walls may be expandable, either permanently by means of deformation or elastically through an elastomeric film or by activation. While the wall regions are an essential element for the present invention, this is particularly true for the port region comprised in the wall regions and described below. The properties of the remaining parts of the wall regions can be important for the general structure, for elasticity and for other structural effects.

Port regions Port regions can generally be described to comprise materials having different permeabilities for different fluids, ie they must be permeable to the transport liquid, but not to the ambient gas (such as air), under otherwise identical conditions (identical temperature or pressure, ...) and once they are moistened / filled with transport liquid or similar operating liquid. Frequently, such materials are described as membranes with respective characteristic parameters. In the context of this invention a membrane is generally defined as a region that is permeable to liquid, gas or a suspension of particles in a liquid or gas. The membrane may for example comprise a microporous region to provide the liquid in a permeable manner through the capillaries. In an alternative embodiment, the membrane may comprise a monolithic region comprising a block copolymer through which the liquid is transported by diffusion.

For a set of predetermined conditions, the membranes will often have selective transport properties for liquids, gases or suspensions that depend on the type of medium to be transported. They are therefore widely used in the filtration of fine particles outside the suspensions (for example, in liquid filtration, air filtration). Another type of membrane shows the selective transport for different types of ions or molecules and are therefore found in biological systems, (for example cell membranes, molecular sieves) or in chemical energy applications (for example reverse osmosis). Microporous hydrophobic membranes will typically allow the gas to permeate, while water-based liquids will not be transported through the membrane if the driving pressure is below a threshold pressure commonly referred to as "separation" or "bond" pressure. " In contrast, hydrophilic microporous membranes transport liquids based on water. Nevertheless, once the gases are moistened, (for example air) they will essentially not pass through the membrane if the driving pressure is below a threshold pressure commonly referred to as "bubble point pressure". Hydrophilic monolithic films will typically allow water vapor to permeate while gas will not be transported rapidly through the membrane. Similarly, the membranes can be used for liquids that are not based on water such as oils. For example, most hydrophobic materials will be in a hydrophobic to oleophilic microporous membrane that will therefore be permeable to oil but not to water and can be used to transport oil, or to separate oil and water. Membranes are often produced as thin sheets and can be used alone or in combination with a support layer (for example a non-woven layer) or a support element (spiral support). Other forms of membrane include, but are not limited to, thin polymer layers coated directly on another material, beads, corrugated sheets. The additional known membranes are "activatable" or "switchable" which can change their properties after activation or in response to a stimulus. This change in properties may be permanently reversible depending on the specific use. For example, a hydrophobic microporous layer can be coated by a thin, dissolvable layer, for example made of polyvinyl alcohol. Such a double layer system is rendered impermeable to gas. However, once moistened the polyvinyl alcohol film has dissolved, the system will be permeable for the gas although impermeable for aqueous liquids. Conversely, if a hydrophilic membrane is coated by such a soluble layer, it will be activated upon contact with the liquid to allow the liquid to pass through it but not from the air. In another example, a hydrophilic microporous membrane is normally dry, in this state the membrane is permeable to air. Once moistened with water, the membrane is no longer permeable to air. Another example of a reversible switching of a membrane in response to a stimulus is a microporous membrane coated with a surfactant that changes its hydrophilicity depending on the temperature. For example, the membrane will be hydrophilic for the hot and hydrophobic liquid for the cold liquid. As a result, the hot liquid will pass through the membrane while the cold liquid will not pass. Other examples include but are not limited to microporous membranes made from an activated gel by stimulus that changes its dimensions in response to pH, temperature, electric fields, radiation or the like.

Properties of port regions Port regions can be described by a number of properties and parameters. The permeability is a key aspect of the port region. The transport properties of the membranes can generally be described by a permeability function using the Darcy I / O which is applicable to all porous systems: Q = 1 / A * dV / dt = k /? *? P / L Therefore, a volumetric flow dV / dt through the membrane is caused by an external pressure difference ? p (driving pressure) and the permeability function k may depend on the type of medium to be transported (liquid or gas), a threshold pressure, and an activation stimulus. Additional relevant parameters that impact on the liquid transport are the cross section A, the volume V respectively the change during the time thereof and the length L of the transport regions and the viscosity del of the liquid transported. For porous membranes, the macroscopic transport properties mainly depend on the pore size distribution, porosity, tortuosity and surface properties such as hydrophilicity. If taken alone, the permeability of the regions must be high to allow high flow rates through them. However, since permeability is intrinsically connected to other properties and parameters, typical permeability values for port regions or port region materials will vary from approximately 6 * 10"20m2 to 7 * 10-18m2, or 3 * 10"14m2, up to 1.2 * 10-10m2 or more. A further relevant parameter for the port regions and respectively materials at the bubble point pressure can be measured according to the method as described below. The appropriate boiling point pressure values depend on the type of application in mind. In the table below, the bubble point pressure ranges of the appropriate port region (pbb) are listed for some applications, as determined for the respective typical fluids: Application bpp (kPa) Typical wide range range Diapers 4.5 to 35 4.5 to 8 Products for menstruation 1 to 35 1 to 5 Irrigation < 2 a > 50 8 to 50 Absorption of fat 1 to 20 1 to 5 Separation of oil < 1 to approx. fifty In a more general approach, it has been found useful to determine the pbb for a material using a standardized test fluid as described in the test methods below.

Thickness and size of the port region The port region of a liquid transport member is defined as a part of the wall that has the highest permeability. The port region is also defined as having the lowest relative permeability when closed along a path from the volume region to a point outside the transport region. The port region can be constructed of easily recognizable materials and then both thickness and size can be easily determined. The port region may, however, have a gradual transition from its properties to one another, the impermeable regions of the wall region or the volume region.

Then the determination of thickness and size can be done as described below. When a segment of the wall region is closed, as illustrated in Figure 5A, it will have a surface defined by the corners ABCD, which are oriented towards the internal or volume region and an EFGH surface facing the outside of the member. Therefore, the thickness dimension is oriented along the lines AE, BF, and so on, ie using Cartesian coordinates, along the z-direction. Analogously, the wall region will have a greater extension along two perpendicular directions, that is to say the direction x and y. Then, the thickness of the port region can be determined as follows: a) In case of essentially homogeneous port region properties at least in the direction through the thickness of the region, it is the thickness of the material that has a homogeneous permeability (such as a membrane film); b) It is the thickness of the membrane if it is combining with a carrier (by spraying this carrier inside or outside the membrane), ie this refers to a non-continuous stage change function of the properties along this path. c) For a material having a continuous gradient permeability (determinable) through any segment as in Figure 5A, the following steps can be performed to reach a determinable thickness (refer to Figure 5B): cO) First, a permeability profile is determined along the z-axis and the curve k [iocai] vrs is plotted; for certain members the porosity or pore size curve can also be taken for this determination with appropriate changes of the subsequent procedure. d) Then the point of least permeability (kmin is determined and the corresponding length reading is taken (r [mjn]) c2) As the third stage, "the permeability of the upper port region" is determined being ten times the value of kmin c3) Since the curve has a minimum of kmin there are two levels and rextern, corresponding to those that define the internal and external boundary of the port region respectively. C4) The distance between the two limits define the thickness, and the average average will be determined through it. If this approach fails due to indeterminable gradient permeability, porosity or pore size, the thickness of the port region will be set to 1 micrometer. As indicated above, it will often be desirable to minimize the thickness of the port region, respectively the membrane materials comprised therein. Typical thickness values are in the range of less than 100μm, often less than 50μm, 10μm or even less than 5μm. Analogously, the x-y extension of the port region can be determined. In certain liquid transport member designs it will be readily apparent, that part of the wall region are port regions. In other designs, with gradually changing properties across the wall region, the local permeability curves along the x and y direction of the wall region can be determined and plotted analogously to Figure 5B as shown in the Figure 5C. However, in this case, the maximum permeability of the wall region defines the port regions, so the maximum will be determined and the region that has permeabilities not less than one tenth of the maximum permeability surrounding this maximum are defined as the port region. Another useful parameter to describe the aspects of the port regions useful in the present invention is the thickness permeability ratio, which in the context of the present invention is also referred to as "membrane conductivity". This reflects the fact that - for a given driving force - the amount of liquid that penetrates through a material such as a membrane is on one side proportional to the loss of material, ie, the greater the permeability, the greater the amount of liquid will penetrate. and on the other side inversely proportional to the thickness of the material. In the following, a material having a low permeability compared to the same material having a decrease is thickness, shows that this thickness can compensate for the permeability deficiency (when high speeds are desirable). Therefore, this parameter can be very useful to design the materials of the port region to be used. The adequate conductivity k / d depends on the type of application you have in mind. The table below lists typical ranges of k / d for some illustrative applications: Application bpp (kPa) Typical wide range range Diapers 10"6 to 1000 150 to 300 Female protection 100 to 500 Irrigation 1 to 300 Absorption of fat 100 to 500 Separation of oil 1 to 500 The port regions must be wettable by the transport fluid and the hydrophilicity or I iity should be designed appropriately, such as by the use of hydrophilic membranes in the case of transport of aqueous liquids, or hydrophobic membranes. in the case of I ipofies or oceans. The surface properties in the port region can be permanent, or they can change with time or conditions of use. It is preferred that the recoil contact angle for the liquid being conveyed be less than 70 °, more preferably less than 50 °, even more preferred less than 20 ° or less than 10 °. Furthermore, it is often preferred that the material has no negative impact on the surface tension of the liquid transported. For example, a lipophilic membrane can be made from lipid polymers such as polyethylene or polypropylene and such membranes will remain ionophilic during use. Another example is a hydrophilic material that allows aqueous liquids to be transported. If a polymer such as polyethylene or polypropylene is used, it has to be hydrophilized, by surfactants added to the surface of the material or added to the polymer by volume, adding a hydrophilic polymer before forming the port material. In both cases, the hydrophilicity imparted can be permanent or non-permanent, for example removal by washing with the transport liquid passing through the material. However, since it is an important aspect of the present invention, those port regions remain in a humid state to prevent gas from passing through them, the lack of hydrophilizer will not be significant once the port regions are wetted .

Maintaining the membrane's membrane filling In order for a porous membrane to be functional once it has been moistened (permeable to liquid, not permeable to air), at least one continuous layer of pores in the membrane must always be filled with liquid and not with gas or air. Therefore, it may be desirable for particular applications to minimize the evaporation of liquid from the membrane pores, either by decreasing the vapor pressure in the liquid or by increasing the vapor pressure in the air . Possible ways to do this, include without any limitations: Seal the membrane with a waterproof wrap to prevent evaporation between promotion and use. The use of strong desiccants (for example CaCI2) in the pores, or the use of a liquid with a low vapor pressure in the pores that mix with the transported fluid, such as glycerin. Alternatively, the port region can be sealed with soluble polymers, such as polyvinyl alcohol or polyvinyl acetate, which dissolve on contact with liquids and thus activate the functionality of the transport member. In addition, of the liquid handling requirements, the port regions must meet certain mechanical requirements. First, the port regions should not have a negative effect on the intended conditions of use. For example, when such members are intended for hygienic absorbent articles, comfort and safety should not be negatively impacted. Therefore it will often be desirable for port regions to be soft and flexible, although this is not always the case. However, the port region must be strong enough to withstand the stresses of practical use, such as tear strain or drilling tension or the like. In certain designs, it may be desirable for the port region materials to be extensible or collapsible or flexable. Even a single hole in the membrane (for example, caused by perforation during use), a failure in the sealing membrane (for example, due to production), or tearing of the membrane (for example, due to pressure exerted during use) can under various conditions lead to a failure of the liquid transport mechanism. While this should be used as a destructive testing method to determine whether the materials or functions of the membrane according to the present invention and as described so far, this is undesirable during its intended use. If air or other gas penetrates within the inner region, it can block the liquid flow path within the region, or it can also interrupt the liquid connection between the volume and port regions. One possibility to be a stronger individual member is to provide in certain parts the internal region remote from the main liquid flow path, a bag where the air entering the system is allowed to accumulate without making this system non-functional. An additional way to solve this issue is to have several liquid transport members in a parallel arrangement (functionality or geometry) instead of a single liquid transport member. If one of the members fails, the others will maintain the functionality of "the liquid transport member battery". The functional requirements of the above regions of the port regions can be satisfied by a wide range of materials or structures described by the following properties or structural parameters. The pore structure of the region, respectively of the materials in it, is an important parameter that impacts on properties such as permeability and bubble point pressure. Two key aspects of the pore structure are the pore size and the pore size distribution. A suitable method to characterize these parameters at least on the surface of the region is by optical analysis. Another suitable method for characterizing their properties and parameters is the use of a Capillary Flow Porosimeter, as described hereinafter. As mentioned above in the context of permeability, the permeability is influenced by the pore size and the thickness of the regions, respectively the part of the thickness that is predominantly determining the permeability. In the following, it has been found that, for example for aqueous systems, typical average pore size values for the port region are in the range of 0.5 μm to 500 μm. Thus, the pores preferably have an average size of less than 100 μm, preferably less than 50 μm, more preferably less than 10 μm or even less than 5 μm. Typically, those pores are not less than 1 μm. It is an important characteristic for example of bubble point pressure, which will depend on the largest pores in the region, which are in a connected arrangement in it. For example, having a larger pore embedded in a smaller one will not necessarily hurt performance, while a "grouping" of larger pores together will do quite well. In the following, it will be desirable to have narrower pore distribution ranges. Another aspect relates to pore walls, such as pore wall thicknesses, which must be a balance of opening and resistance requirements. Also, the pores must be connected together along the direction of flow, to allow the liquid to pass through them easily. Since some of the preferred port region materials may be thin membrane materials, these by themselves may have relatively poor mechanical properties. Hereinafter, such membranes can be combined with a support structure, such as a coarser mesh, threads or filaments, a non-woven material, films with openings or the like. Such support structure can be combined with the membrane so that it will be placed towards the internal / volume region or towards the outside of the member.

Size / surface area of the port regions. The size of the port regions is essential for the overall performance of the transport member, and needs to be determined in combination with the "thickness permeability" (k / d) radius of the port region. The size has to be adapted to the intended use, so that it meets the liquid handling requirements. Generally, it will be desirable to have the liquid handling capability of the inner / bulk region and the port regions to be compatible, so that none is a major limiting factor for the transport of liquid compared to the other. As far as a given driving force is concerned, the flow (ie, the flow velocity through a unit area) of the membrane region of the membrane will generally be less than the flow through the inner region, may it is preferred to design the membrane port region of relatively thin and / or larger thickness (surface) than the cross section of the inner region. Therefore, the exact design and shape of the port regions can vary in a wide range. For example, if the function of the transport members is intended to provide an activation or signal from one port region to another, the port regions may be relatively small, such as the approximate size of the cross section of the internal region, so that a substantially smaller transport member results. Or, when the liquids are quickly trapped and transported, distributed, or stored, the member can be formed for example in the form of, a bone with relatively large port regions at each end of the transport member or alternatively, the port regions. They can be spoon-shaped to increase the reception area. Alternatively, the port regions may be non-planar, such as for example corrugated or folded, or have other shapes to create relatively large surface area for volume ratios, as is well known in the technology of the filters. While the port region and the exit region are designed to meet the same basic requirements and therefore may be one and the same material, this is not necessarily the case. The input and output port regions may be different with respect to one or more materials or performance parameters. The different port regions can be easily differentiated, such as by being represented by different materials and / or by being separated from other materials, or the port regions can differ by a property or parameter gradient, which can be continuous or alternate. Another essentially continuous material can have a property gradient along the surface of the material, in the thickness dimension or both to be able to represent various parts of the wall or the port regions of entry or exit. The properties of the port region may be constant over time or may change over time such as being different before and during use. For example, port regions may have properties not suitable for operation on members according to the present invention to the point of use. The port regions can be activated, for example by manual activation, intervention of the person using the member, or through automatic activation means such as the moistening of the transport member. Other alternative mechanisms for the activation of the port regions may include changes in temperature, for example from an ambient temperature to a user's body temperature or pH, for example from the transport liquid or an electrical or mechanical stimulus. As described in the context of the osmotic package materials above, the membranes useful for the present invention do not have a specific requirement of a certain saline impermeability. While port regions and suitable materials have been described with respect to their properties or descriptive parameters, then some of the materials that satisfy the different requirements will be described, focusing therefore on the transport of aqueous liquids. Suitable materials can be open cell foams, such as high internal phase emulsion foams can be cellulose nitrate membranes, cellulose acetate membranes, polyvinyl difluride films, nonwoven materials, woven materials such as meshes made from metal or polymers from polyamide or polyester. Other suitable materials may be films, openings, such as those formed by vacuum, with hydro-openings, with mechanical openings or laser beam or films treated with electronic, ionic or heavy ion beams. The specific materials are cellulose acetate membranes, as described in US 5,108,383 (White, Allied-Signal Inc.). Nitrocellulose membranes are available from, for example, Advanced Microdevices (PCT) LTD, Ambala Cantt. INDIA calls CNJ-10 (Lot # F 030328) and CNJ-20 (Lot # F 024248). Cellulose acetate membranes, cellulose nitrate membranes, PTFE membranes, polyamide membranes, polyester membranes as available for example from Sartorius in Gottingen, Germany and Millipore in Bedford USA, which may be very suitable. Also the microporous films, such as the F'E / PP filled with CaCO3 particles, or the filler containing PET films as described in EP-A-0,451,797. Other embodiments for the harbor region materials may be polymer films with openings through ion beam, such as those made from PE as described in "ion Tracks and Microtechnology - Basic Principles and Applications" edited by R. Spohr and K. Bethge, published by Vieweg, Wiesbaden, Germany 1990. Other suitable materials are woven polymer meshes, such as polyamide or polyethylene meshes as available from Verseidag in Geldernm-Waldbeck, Germany, or SEFAR in Rüschlikon, Switzerland. Other materials that may be suitable for current applications are hydrophilized woven materials, such as are known under the designation DRYLOFT® from Goretex in Newark, DE 19711, USA. In addition, certain non-woven materials are suitable, such as those available under the designation CoroGard® from BBA Corovin, Peine, Germany, ie if such wefts are specially designed for the relatively narrow pore size distribution, such as those comprising the wefts "blown by fusion" suitable. For applications with low limb flexibility requirements, or when a certain stiffness is desirable, metal mesh screens of the appropriate pore size may be appropriate, such as HIGHFLOW by Haver &; Bócker, in Oelde, Germany.

Additional elements While the definition of volume, wall, and external region has been made previously in relation to the function of each of these regions, there may optionally be elements added to the materials that form those regions, which may extend within a nearby region without extending liquid handling functionality, but improving other properties, such as mechanical strength or tactile or visual aspects of the materials that make up the region or the entire structure. For example, a support structure can be added to the exterior of the port wall or region, which can be so open that it does not impact the fluid handling properties and as such would be functionally considered to belong to the external region. When such an open support element extends from the wall region within the internal region or volume, it will functionally belong to the volume region. If there is a gradual transition between these materials and / or elements, the definitions made for the respective functional regions will allow a clear distinction between the materials that make up the region and the additional elements. In addition, there are elements attached to or integral with the liquid transport member to assist in its implementation within an absorbent system, or an article comprising a liquid transport member.

Functionality of the transport member During absorption, both liquid transport members according to the present invention as well as certain conventional materials do not extract air within their respective structures, from conventional materials, fibrous materials or conventional forms, the liquid extracted within of the structure displaces the air inside the structure. However, conventional porous materials such as fibrous structures typically do not draw air into themselves during absorption, and air enters as the liquid is removed from the structure. The liquid transport member according to the present invention does not extract air into the structure under normal conditions of use. The property that determines the point at which air will enter the system is referred to herein as the bubble point operation. The air will not enter the transport member until the bubble point pressure (BPP) is reached, due to the functionality of the membrane of the material of the region or port regions. Therefore, once the liquid has entered the member, it will not be replaced by air until the bpp of the member is reached.

Permeability An additional property of the liquid transport member is the permeability k (liquid transport member) as the average permeability along the flow path of the transported liquid. The liquid transport member according to the present invention has a permeability that is greater than the permeability of a capillary system with identical liquid transport capacity. This property is referred to as a "critical permeability" k (crit). The critical permeability of the transport member of the present invention is preferably at least twice as high as a capillary system with identical vertical liquid transport capacity more preferably at least four times as high and more preferably so less than ten times greater than a capillary system with an identical vertical liquid transport capacity. For capillary tubes, permeability k. { crit} it can be determined by means of adhesion tension as derived from Darcy's law as follows: K { crit} (e. {liquid transport member.}. / 2) * (s * cos (T)) ** 2 / (bpp. {liquid transport member}. ** 2) where k. { crit} is the critical permeability in units of [m2] e. { member of liquid transport} is the average porosity of the liquid transport member [-]; s. { liqu} is the liquid surface energy in [cP] s * cos (T) defines the adhesion tension in [cP] with the backward contact angle T. Bpp. { member of liquid transport} is the bubble point pressure of the liquid transport member, expressed in [kPa] as described above. The maximum value that can be reached for such a system can be approximated by assuming the maximum value for the term cos (T), that is, 1: K { crit, max} = (e. {liquid transportation member.}. / 2 *) s. { liquid} ** 2 / (bpp. {Member of liquid transport.}.) ** 2 Another way of expressing the k. { crit} by means of the ability of the member to transport the liquid vertically at least against a hydrostatic pressure corresponding to a certain height h and a gravity constant g: K { crit, max} = e. { member of liquid transport} / 2) * s. { liqu} ** 2 / (p. {Liqu.}. * G * h) ** 2. The permeability of a material or transport member can be determined through various methods, such as by the use of the Liquid Transport Test or the Permeability, which are described below and are then compared with the critical permeability as calculated from the previous equations. As long as the bpp property is already described in the context of the port regions, so the full transport member can thus be described. Accordingly, the bpp suitable for the member depends on the intended use, and the appropriate values as well as the common and ranges are essentially equal for the member and for the port region as described above. A transport liquid member according to the present invention can also be described as being substantially air impermeable to a certain bpp, whereby the liquid transport member of the present invention has a general permeability that is greater than the permeability for a given material that has a homogeneous powder size distribution and an equivalent bpp. Yet another way to describe the functionality of a liquid transport member is by using the average fluid permeability k of the volume / internal region and the bubble point pressure of the member. The liquid transport member according to the present invention should have a relatively high bpp. { member of liquid transport} and a high k. { member of liquid transport} at the same time. This can be represented graphically when graphing k. { member of liquid transport} on bbp in a double logarithmic diagram (as in Figure 6 where the bbp is expressed in "height in cm of the water column", which can be easily converted into a pressure). In the present, for a combination of determined surface energy of the liquid and the member materials generally a correlation from left to top to bottom right can be observed. The members according to the present invention have properties in the upper right region (I) on the separation line (L), while the properties of conventional materials are much more in the lower left corner in the region (II), and it has the limitations of the pure capillary transport mechanism, as schematically indicated by the straight line in the logarithmic diagram. Another way to describe the functionality of the liquid transport member is to consider the effect of liquid transport as a function of the driving force. In contrast, for liquid transport members according to the present invention, the flow resistance is independent of the driving force while the pressure differential is less than the bpp of the transport member. Therefore, the flow is proportional to the impulse pressure (up to bpp). A liquid transport member according to the present invention can be further described as having high flow rates as calculated in the cross-sectional area of the inner region. Therefore, the member must have an average flow velocity at 0.9kPa of the additional suction pressure differential for height H0 when tested in the Liquid Transport Test at a height H0, as described hereinafter, of at least 0.1 g / s / cm2, preferably at least 1 g / cm2 / sec, more preferably at least 5 g / cm2 / sec, even more preferably at least 10 g / cm2 / sec, or even at least 20 g / cm 2 / sec and more preferably at least 50 g / cm 2 / sec. In addition to the above requirements, the liquid transport member must have a certain mechanical strength against pressure or external forces. For certain embodiments, the mechanical strength at internal pressures and forces can be relatively high to avoid pressure extraction of liquid out of the transport member, which, for example can be achieved using rigid / non-deformable material in the inner region. For other certain modalities, this resistance can be in a mid range, thus allowing the exploitation of the pressure by external forces by the transport member to create a "pumping effect". In order to further explain the structures suitable for a liquid transport member, the aforementioned simple example of a hollow tube having an inlet and an outlet, the covered, ie closed, inlet and outlet by membranes is also considered . This type of structure may alternatively include an additional support structure such as an open mesh attached to the membrane of the port region towards the inner region. In the present, the permeability requirement can be satisfied by the membrane itself, ie not by considering the effect of the support structure, if the support structure is sufficiently open to not have a negative impact on the general permeability or on the properties of handling of it. Therefore, the thickness of the port region refers to the thickness of the membrane only, that is, it does not include the thickness of the support structure. It will be evident in the specific context, if for example such support structure should be seen as an element of the port region that has no significant impact on the puerlo region properties, or for example, if the support structure has a significant thickness and therefore impacts on the permeability of the liquid after the port region penetrates, whether or not the support structure should be considered as part of the internal region. If, for example, the support structure extends further in its thickness, remaining still connected to the membrane, it can be considered to belong functionally to the internal region, such as when the permeability of the "support / internal gap" composite is significantly impacted by the permeability of the support structure. Consequently, this principle must be considered for each of the respective aspects, as when observed in the regions! port, volume regions or the full transport member. The following describes how various members can be combined to create suitable structures as liquid transport members. It should be noted that due to the multiple design options, one or the other structure may not be entirely different from the properties described above, although it may be readily apparent to the experienced person to even design additional options that follow the additional teachings in combination with the more specific modalities.

Relative Permeability If the permeability of the inner / volume region and the port regions can be determined independently, it is preferred that one or both of the port regions have a lower liquid permeability than the inner region. Therefore, a liquid transport member must have a permeability ratio of the volume region to the port region of preferably at least 10: 1, more preferably at least 100: 1, even more preferably at least less 1000: 1 and even 100,000: 1 ratios are adequate.

Relative disposition of the regions Depending on the specific modalities, there may be several combinations of the inner region and the wall with the port regions. At least a portion of the port regions must be in liquid communication with the inner region, to allow the fluid to be transferred thereto. The internal / volume region must comprise pores larger than the wall region. The pore size ratio of the internal pores to the pores of the port region are preferably at least 3: 1, more preferably at least 10: 1, still more preferably at least 30: 1, even more preferably of at least 100: 1 and most preferably of at least 350: 1. The area of the port regions will typically be larger than the cross section of the internal regions, thereby considering the respective regions together, i.e., if present, the input regions or the output regions respectively. In most cases, the port regions will be twice as large as the cross section of the inner region, often four times as large or even 10 times as large as that region.

Structural relationship of regions Different regions may have similar or different structural properties, possibly complementing structural properties such as strength, flexibility and the like. For example, all regions may comprise flexible material designed to deform in a cooperative manner, whereby the inner region comprises a thin material until wet which expands upon contact with the transported liquid, and the port region comprises flexible membranes and The walls can be made of flexible film impervious to liquid. The transport member can be made of several materials, whereby each region can comprise one or more materials. For example, the inner region may comprise porous materials, the walls may comprise film material and the ports may comprise a membrane material. Alternatively, the transport member can consist essentially of a material with different properties in several regions, such as a foam with very large pores to provide the functionality of the inner region and smaller pores surrounding these with membrane functionality as the materials of port. One way to observe a liquid transport member is to see the inner region that is enclosed by at least one wall and / or port region. A very simple example for this is the aforementioned tube filled with liquid and closed by membranes at both ends, as indicated in Figure 7. Such members can be considered to be a "Closed Distribution Member", according to the internal region (703 ) is "enclosed" by the wall region (702) comprising the port regions (706,707). It is characteristic for such systems, that-once the transport member is activated or balanced-a puncture on the outer wall region can interrupt the transport mechanism. The transport mechanism can be maintained if only a small amount of air enters the system. This small amount of air can accumulate in an area of the inner region where it is not harmful to the liquid transport mechanism. For the example of the hollow tube with at least one open body, puncture of the walls will result in immediate intervention of fluid transport and fluid loss. This mechanism can be exploited to define the "Closed System Test", as described below, which is a sufficient but not necessary condition "for the liquid transport member according to the present invention (ie all the members transport that satisfy that test can be considered to function within the principles of the present invention, although not all transport members that fail in this test are out of the beginning.) In an additional embodiment as described in Figure 8, the liquid transport member may comprise several internal and / or several external port regions, for example as can be achieved by connecting a number of tubes (802) and closing several extreme openings with input ports 806 and an output port 807, circumscribing in this way the inner region 803 or a "divided" system where the fluid is transported simultaneously to more than one location (more from an exit port). Alternatively, transport for different locations can be selective (for example, gaps in a transport material on the route to a port can be filled with water-soluble material, and gaps in transport material on the route to a second port). they can be filled with an oil-soluble material Also, the transport member can be hydrophilic and / or oleophilic to further improve the screening ability). In a further embodiment as indicated in Figure 9 the region (903) can be segmented over more than one region, as visualized by an observation of a group of parallel tubes, held in position through suitable fixing means, (909) ) circumscribed by a wall region (902), comprising the port regions (906, 907) and the internal separation means (908). It can also be seen that at least part of the membrane material is placed within the internal / volume regions, and the membrane material can even form the walls of the tubes. In a further embodiment (Figure 10), the outer wall region essentially consists of the permeable port region (1006), i.e., the inner region (1003) is not circumscribed by the impermeable region at all. The port region may have the same permeability or may have a different degree of permeability, as indicated by regions (1006) and (1007). Therefore, the inner region may be surrounded by a membrane material, whereby the respective input and output port regions as part of the general gate region (1006 and 1007) may then be determined by connection to the sources / landfills, as described further for liquid transport systems. Also, the port region and the inner region may be connected by a gradual transition region, such as the transport member that appears to be a unitary material with variable properties. In further embodiments (Fig. 11), the liquid transport member has an input port region (1106) or an output port region (1107). In addition to the transport functionality, this member can receive and / or release the liquid by having deformable portions of the wall region (1102), so that the total member can increase the volume of the inner region (1103) to accommodate the volume additionally received from liquid or to accommodate the initially contained liquid which can be released through the port regions. Therefore, in those members, a landfill or liquid source can be integrally combined with the liquid transport member. The liquid transport member may have a spillway or liquid source integrally incorporated therein, as illustrated by the elements (1111) in Figure 11. For example, structures made in accordance with the teachings of the US- description. A-5,108,383 (White) may be considered as a liquid transport member according to the present invention if and only if they are modified in accordance with the requirements for the volume region and the port region as defined. before in the present. Due to the specific operating mechanism, those structures otherwise lose the wide application of the present invention -which is due to the additional requirements for port regions and internal regions- not restricted to the osmotic driving forces, (ie, the presence of promoters) nor do they cause the membranes of the present invention to satisfy the salt rejection properties required by the MOP structures according to US-A-5,108,383. A further embodiment may comprise highly absorbent materials such as superabsorbent materials or other highly absorbent materials as described in greater detail in U.S. Patent Application Serial No. 09/042429, filed March 13, 1998, in the name of T. DesMarais et al., Which is incorporated herein by reference, combined with the port region made of a suitable membrane, and flexible expandable walls to allow an increase in the volume of the storage member. An additional embodiment of such a system with an integral liquid spillway with the liquid transport member is a "thin until wet" material in combination with a suitable membrane. Such materials are well known such as from US-A-5,108,383, which are open cell porous hydrophilic foam materials.;, as produced by the high internal phase emulsion process. Pore size, polymer strength, Vitrea Tg) and hydrophilic properties are designed so that pores collapse when dehydrated and at least partially dried and expand to wetting. A specific modality is a layer of foam, which can expand its caliber to the absorption of liquid and re-collapse to the additional removal of the liquid. In a further embodiment, the internal region may be devoid of liquid at the beginning of the liquid transport process, (ie it contains a gas at a pressure less than the ambient pressure surrounding the liquid transport member). In such cases, the liquid supplied by a source of the liquid can penetrate through the region of the inlet port to first fill the voids of the membrane and then the inner region. The wetting then initiates the transport mechanisms according to the present invention thus wetting and penetrating the outlet port region. In such a case, the internal regions may not be completely filled with the transport fluid, although a certain amount of gas or vapor may be retained. If the vapor or gas is soluble in the transported liquid, it is possible that after some liquid passes through the member, this substantially all of the gas or vapor initially present is removed and the internal regions are substantially free of voids. Of course, in cases with steam or waste gas that is present in the inner region, this can reduce the effective available cross section of the fluid member, unless specific measures such as those indicated in Figure 12 are taken, with the wall region (1202) comprising the port regions (1206 and 1207) circumscribing the inner region (1203) and the region (1210) to allow the gas to accumulate. Yet another embodiment may use different types of fluid, for example, the member may be filled by a water-based liquid, and the transport mechanism is such that a possibly immiscible non-aqueous liquid (such as oil) enters the transport member. of liquid through the port of entry while the liquid leaves the member through the outlet. In additional embodiments of the present invention, one or more of the above-described embodiments may be combined.

Liquefied Transport System The following describes the suitable arrangement for a liquid transport member in order to create a suitable Liquid Transport System (LTS) in accordance with the present invention. A Liquid Transport System within the scope of the present invention comprises the combination of at least one liquid transport member with at least one additional liquid source or weir in liquid communication with the member. A system may further comprise multiple landfills or fountains, and may also comprise multiple liquid transport members, such as a parallel arrangement. The latter can create a redundancy, to ensure the functionality of the system even if a transport member fails. The source can be any form of free liquid or loose bound liquid to be readily available to be received by the transport member. For example, a liquid reservoir, or a free liquid flow volume, or an open porous structure filled with liquid. The landfill can be any shape of a liquid receiving region. In certain embodiments, it is preferred to have the liquid attached more hermetically than the liquid in the source thereof. The weir can also be an element or region containing free liquid, such as liquid that would be able to flow freely or by gravity driven away from the member. Alternatively, the landfill may contain absorbent or superabsorbent material, absorbent foams, expandable foams, alternatively it may be of a spring activated failure system or may contain osmotically functional material or combinations thereof. Liquid communication in this context refers to the ability of liquids to transfer or be transferred from the landfill or source to the member, such as can easily be achieved by contacting the elements or bringing the elements as close to one another as possible. liquid can bind the remaining space. Such a liquid transport system comprises a liquid transport member according to the above description plus at least one spillway or liquid source. The term applies at least to systems, where the liquid transport member itself can store or release liquids, such as a liquid transport system comprising: a spillway and a liquid release liquid transport member; or a source and a fluid receiving liquid transport member; or a landfill and a source and a liquid transport member. In each of these options, the liquid transport member can have the liquid release or reception properties in addition to a source or dump outside the member. A system may further comprise landfills or multiple sources, and may also comprise multiple liquid transport members, such as in a parallel arrangement. The latter can create a distribution to ensure system functionality, even if an individual transport member fails. At least a portion of the port region must be in liquid communication with the source liquid and when the landfill material is applicable. One approach is to have the port region material that forms the outer surface of the liquid transport member, in part or as the entire outer surface, to allow liquids such as liquids from the liquid waste source to come in contact easily with the port regions. The effective port region size can be determined by the size of the liquid communication with the landfill or the source respectively. For example, the total of the port regions may be in contact with the landfill or source, or only a part of it. Alternatively, for example, when there is a homogeneous port region, this can be distinguished in effective separate port of entry regions and effective port of exit regions where the port region is in contact with the liquid source and / or the landfill respectively. It will be evident, that a landfill must be able to receive liquids from the member (and when applicable from the respective port regions) and a source must be able to release the liquid towards the member (and when applicable towards the port regions). respective). In the following, a liquid source for a liquid transport member according to the present invention can be a free flowing liquid, such as urine released by a user, or an open water container. A liquid source region 1303 may also be an intermediate container, such as a liquid acquisition member in absorbent articles. Similarly, a zinc weir can be a free-flowing channel, or an expansion vessel, for example, a bellows element is combined with mechanical expansion by spacer means, such as springs. A liquid landfill region may also be a final liquid storage element of the absorbent members, such as is useful in absorbent articles and the like. Two or more liquid transport systems according to the present invention can also be placed in a "cascade design" (Fig. 13A, B, C) with the wall regions (1302), port regions (1306) and materials of landfill of liquid (1311). In the present, the general fluid flow path will go through one liquid transport system after the next. Therefore, the inlet port region of a subsequent liquid transport system can be charged with the landfill functionality of a previous system, just as when the inlet and outlet port regions are in fluid communication with one another. other. Such fluid communication can be direct contact, or it can be through an intermediate material. A specific modality of such "cascade" may be in connection with two or more "osmotic membrane packets" comprising membranes of suitable properties, whereby osmotic suction energy is increased with subsequent packets. Each of the packages can be considered as a liquid transport member and the connection of the packages will define the port and entry and exit regions of each packet or member. Therefore, the packages can be enclosed by a material (such as the flexible membrane type), or even several packages can have a unitary membrane element. In a preferred embodiment, a liquid transport system has an absorbent capacity of at least 5 g / g, preferably at least 10 g / g, more preferably at least 50 g / g, and in the most efficient manner. preferable of at least 75 g / g based on the weight of the liquid transport system, when measured in the demand absorbance test as described below.In another preferred embodiment, the liquid transport system contains a weir comprising an absorbent material having an absorption capacity of at least 10 g / g, preferably at least 20 g / g, and more preferably at least less 50 g / g, based on the weight of the absorbent material, when measured in the Centrifugal Capacity Test in tea bag, as described below. In a further preferred embodiment, the liquid transport system comprises an absorbent material that provides an absorbent capacity of at least 5 g / g, preferably of at least 10 g / g, more preferably of at least 50 g / g. , or most preferably at least 75 g / g up to a capillary suction corresponding to the capillary suction of the bubble point of the member, especially of at least 4 kPa, preferably of at least 10 kPa, when It undergoes the capillary absorption test as described here. Such materials further preferably exhibit a low capacity in the Absorption Test over bubble point pressure, such as 4kPa or even 10kPa, of less than 5 g / g, preferably less than 2 g / g, more preferably less than 1 g / g and most preferably less than 0.2 g / g. In certain specific embodiments, the liquid transport member may contain foam superabsorbent materials or made with high internal phase emulsion polymerization, such as described in PCT application US98 / 05044, which is incorporated herein by reference.

Applications Exceeds a broad field of application for the liquid transport members or liquid transport system according to the present invention. The following should not be considered as limiting in any way, but as example areas, where such members or systems are useful. Suitable applications can be found for a bandage, or other absorbent health care systems. In another aspect, the article may be a water transport system or member, which optionally combines transport functionality with filtration functionality, for example, by purifying the water that is transported. Also, the member may be useful in the cleaning operation to remove liquids or by releasing fluids in a controlled manner. A liquid transport member according to the present invention can also be a fat or oil absorber. A specific application can be seen in self-regulation irrigation systems for plants. Therefore the inlet port may be immersed in a container, and the transport member may be in the form of an elongated tube. In contrast to known irrigation systems (such as those known under BLUMAT as available from Jade @ National Guild, PO Box 5370, Mt Crested Butte, CO 81225), the system according to the present invention will not lose its functionality upon drying the container, but remains in operation until and after the container is replenished. An additional application can be seen in air conditioning systems, with a similar advantage as described for irrigation systems. Also, due to the small pore sizes of the port regions, this system would be easier to clean than conventional wetting aids, such as porous clay structures, or stained paper type elements. Even an additional application is the replacement of miniature pumps, as can be seen in biological systems or even in the field of medicine. An additional application can be observed in the selective transport of liquids such as when it is intended to transport the oil away from the oil / water mixture. For example, in oil spills on a water, a liquid transport member can be used to transfer the oil into an additional container. Alternatively, the oil can be transported in a liquid transport member which comprises, herein, a dump functionality for oil. An additional application uses the liquid transport member according to the present invention as a transmitter as a signal. In such an application, the total amount of liquid transported must not be very large, but transportation must be reduced. This can be achieved by having a transport member filled with liquid, which upon receipt of a small amount of liquid at the port of entry virtually immediately releases the liquid at the outlet port. This liquid can be used to stimulate the additional reaction, such as a signal or activate a response, for example, dissolving a seal to release mechanical energy, stored to create a three-dimensional change in shape or structure. One more application exploits the very short response times of the liquid transport and the almost immediate response time. A particularly useful application for such liquid transport members can be observed in the field of absorbent articles, such as disposable hygiene articles, such as baby diapers or the like for disposable absorbent article.

Absorbent articles - general description An absorbent article generally comprises: an absorbent core or core structure (which may comprise the improved fluid transport members according to the present invention, and which may consist of additional substructures); - an upper cover permeable to the fluid; - a back cover substantially impervious to the fluid; optionally additional features such as closing or elasticizing elements.

Figure 14 is a plan view of an illustrative embodiment of an absorbent article of the invention which is a diaper. The diaper 1420 is shown in Figure 4 in its non-contracted planar state (i.e. with elastic induced contraction placement except on the side panels where the elastic is left in its relaxed condition) with portions of the structure that are cut out for show more clearly the construction of the diaper 1420 and with the portion of the diaper 1420 confronting the external surface 1452 facing away from the user, confronting the user. As shown in Figure 14, the diaper 1420 comprises a containment assembly 1422 which preferably comprises a liquid-permeable top cover 1424, a liquid-impermeable back cover 1426 bonded to the top cover 1424, and an absorbent core 1428 positioned therebetween. upper cover 1424 and upper cover 1426; the elasticized side panels 1430; Elastic leg folds 1432; an elastic waist feature 1434; and a closure system comprising a dual tension clamping system that generally multiplies that designed as 1436. The dual tension clamping system 1436 preferably comprises a primary clamping system 1438 and a waist closure system 1440. The primary clamping system 1438 preferably comprises a pair of securing members 1442 and a discharge member 1444. The belt closure system 1440 is shown in Figure 14 to preferably comprise a pair of first; securing components 1446 and a second securing component 1448. The diaper 1420 preferably also comprises a positioning patch 1450 located underlying each first securing component 1446. The diaper 1420 is shown in Figure 14 to have an outer surface 1452 (which confronts the observer in the Figure 14), an inner surface 1454 opposite the outer surface 1452, a first waist region 1456, a second waist region 1458, opposite the first waist region 1456 and a periphery 1460, which is defined by the outer edges of the waist. diaper 1420 in which the longitudinal edges are designated 1462 and the end edges are designated 1464. The inner surface 1454 of the diaper 1420 comprises that portion of the diaper. 1420 which is located adjacent to the body of the user during use (i.e., the inner surface 1454 is generally formed by at least a portion of the top cover 1424 and the other components attached to the top cover 1424). The outer surface 1452 comprises that portion of the diaper 1420 that is placed in the user's body housing (i.e., the outer surface 1452 is generally formed by at least a portion of the back cover 1426 and other components attached to the back cover 1426 ). The first waist region 1456 and the second waist region 1458 extend, respectively, from the end edges 1464 of the periphery 1460 to the lateral centerline 1466 of the diaper 1420. The waist regions comprise each central region 1468 and a pair of side panels typically comprising the outer side portions of the waist regions. The side panels placed in the first waist region 1456 are designated 1470, while the side panels in the second waist region 1458 are designated 1472. While it is not necessary for the pairs of side panels or each side panel to be identical, these are preferably mirror images of one another. The side panels 1472 placed in the second waist region 1458 may be elastically stretchable in the lateral direction (ie, elasticized side panels 1430. (The lateral direction (direction x or width) is defined as the direction parallel to the lateral centerline 1466 of diaper 1420; the longitudinal direction (direction y or length) which is defined as the direction parallel to the lateral center line 1467; and the axial direction (Z direction or thickness) which is defined as the direction extending through the thickness of the diaper 1420). Figure 14 shows a specific shape of the diaper 1420 in which the upper cover 1424 and the rear cover 1426 have length and width dimensions generally greater than those of the absorbent core 1428. The upper cover 1424 and the rear cover 1426 extend beyond of the edges of the absorbent core 1428 to thereby form the periphery 1460 of the diaper 1420. The periphery 1460 defines the outer perimeter or, in other words the edges of the diaper 1420. The periphery 1460 comprises the longitudinal edges 1462 and the end edges 1464.

While each elastic leg cuff 1432 may be configured to be similar to any of the leg bands, side flaps, barrier cuffs or elastic doublets described above, it is preferred that each elastic leg cuff 1432 comprises at least one internal barrier fold 1484 comprising a barrier flap 1485 and a resilient separation member 1486 as described in the US Pat.

United States of America mentioned above 4,909,803. In a preferred embodiment, the elastic leg cuff 1432 further comprises an elastic hinge fold 14104 with one or more bands 14105 placed outside the barrier fold 1484 as described in the United States Patent of North America previously referred to 4,695,278. The diaper 1420 may further comprise an elastic waist feature 1434 that provides improved fit and containment. The elastic waist feature 1434 extends at least longitudinally outwardly from at least one of the waist edges 1483 of the absorbent core 1428 in at least the central region 1468 and generally forms at least a portion of the end edge 1464 of the diaper 1420. Thus, the elastic waist feature 1434 comprises that portion of the diaper extending at least from the waist edge 1483 of the absorbent core 1428 toward the extreme edge 1464 of the diaper 1420 and is intended to be placed adjacent to the wearer's waist. Disposable diapers are generally constructed to have two elastic waist features, one placed in the first waist region and one positioned in the second waist region. The elasticized waistband 1435 of the elastic waist feature 1434 may comprise a portion of the upper cover 1424, a portion of the back cover 1426, which has preferably been mechanically extended and a bilaminar material comprising an elastomeric member 1479 placed between the upper cover 1424 and the rear cover 1426 and an elastic member 1477 positioned between the rear cover 1426 and the elastomeric member 1476. This as other components of the diaper are given as more detail in WO 93/1669 which is incorporated to the present by reference.

Absorbent core The absorbent core should generally be compressible, conformable, non-irritating to the wearer's skin and capable of absorbing and retaining liquids such as urine and other body exudates. As shown in Figure 14, the absorbent core has a garment surface, a body surface, side edges and waist edges. The absorbent core can, in addition to the liquid transport member according to the present invention, comprise a wide variety of liquid absorbent or liquid handling materials commonly used in disposable diapers and other absorbent articles such as, but not limited to, pulp of crushed wood, which is generally referred to as air felt; meltblown polymers including co-form; chemically stiffened, modified or interlaced cellulose fibers; tissue paper including tissue paper wrappers and tissue paper laminates. General examples for absorbent structures are described in U.S. Patent 4,610,678 entitled "High-Density Absorbent Structures" issued to Weisman et al. on September 9, 1986; U.S. Patent 4,673,402, entitled "Absorbent Articles With Dual-Layered Cores", issued to Weisman et al on June 16, 1987; U.S. Patent 4,888,231 entitled "Absorbent Core Having A Dusting Layer" issued to Angstadt on December 19, 1989; EP-A-0 640 330 to Bewick-Sonntag et al .; US 5 180 622 (Berg et al.); US 5 102 597 (Roe et al.); US 5 387 207 (Dyer et al.). Such similar structures may be adapted to be compatible with the requirements set forth below to be used as the absorbent core 28. The absorbent core may be a unitary core structure, or it may be a combination of several absorbent structures, which in turn may be consist of one or more substructures. Each of the structures or sub-structures may have an essentially two-dimensional extension (i.e., be a layer) or a three-dimensional shape. The liquid transport member according to the present invention may comprise at least one region of internal port, which must be located in the loading area of the article. This port region can be made of the flexible membrane material that meets the requirements as described herein, which can be connected to a high-elastic open fibrous structure that forms the inner region, which can be wrapped in flexible impermeable films , to form the wall regions that can be closed in adhesive form on all edges except for the port region. In order to allow a good general seal, the waterproof film can overlap the port region in some way to allow the adhesive to also bond between them. Figure 15 shows a specific embodiment of an article as shown in Figure 14, with analogous numbers, and Figure 16 shows a simplified, partially exploded cross-sectional view along the line A-A of Figure 15, of new with analogous numeration. In the present, an absorbent core (1528/1628) is made of a suitable liquid handling member that is constructed from a wall region (1502, 1602) port regions (1506, 1507, 1606), and the internal region (1503, 1603). The member may be connected to a liquid spillway (1511, 1611) and optionally to an upper cover (1524, 1624) that is attached. The landfill (1511, 1611) may comprise the final storage material, such as the superabsorbent material or porous high-absorbency material. The internal regions can be filled with liquid, such as water, to be ready for the transport of liquid therethrough immediately after reception of the liquid at the port of entry. Alternatively, the inner region can be under vacuum, which can suck the liquid through the inlet port by activating a barrier film such as a polyvinyl alcohol film which can be dissolved upon wetting. Once the inner region is filled with liquid, and therefore also the outer port region is wetted by the liquid, the transport mechanism for a pre-filled system takes place. The absorbent core may be designed so as not to require any additional fluid handling element. For example, the area of the inlet port region may be adjusted to its permeability and caliber to allow the port region to immediately acquire the liquid at the rate of spillage and the inner region can be adjusted by its section area permeability cross section to transmit the liquid immediately to the final storage region. Alternatively, the absorbent core may comprise other fluid handling elements, such as acquisition regions, or intermediate storage regions or the like. Likewise, the "liquid cascade transport member" or "MOP" may be suitable elements within the construction of the core.METHOD OF MAKING LIGID TRANSPORT MEMBERS The liquid transport members according to the present invention can be produced by several methods, which have in common the essential steps of combining a volume or internal region with a wall region. which comprises regions of port with appropriate selection of the respective properties as described above. This can be achieved by starting from a homogeneous material and imparting different properties therein. For example, if a member is a polymeric foam material, it can be produced from a monomer with variable pore sizes, which will be polymerized to form a suitable member. This can also be achieved by starting from several essentially homogeneous materials and combining these in the member. In this embodiment a wall material can be provided, which can have homogeneous or variable properties, and volume material that can be provided, which can be an open porous material or a hollow space can be defined to represent the volume region. The two materials that can be combined through suitable techniques such as packing or wrapping as is known in the art, so that the wall material completely circumscribes the volume region or the volume region material. In order to allow the transport of liquid, the region of volume can be filled with liquid or can be held in vacuum, or it can be equipped with other auxiliaries for the created vacuum or the filling of the liquid. Optionally, the method of forming a member according to the present invention may comprise the step of applying activation means, which may be of the mechanical type, such as those which provide a removable release element, as is well known for examples as a release paper to cover adhesives, or by providing a packaging design, which allows sealing of the member until use, so that at the time of use such a packing seal is opened or removed. These activation means may also comprise materials that react to the transport liquid, such as in solution. Such materials can be applied in the port regions, for example, to open the port regions in use, or such materials can be applied to the regions of volume, to allow the expansion of those regions to wetting. The fabrication of members according to the present invention can be done in an essentially continuous manner, having several materials provided in the form of a roll, which are unrolled and processed or any of the materials can be provided discretely, such as pieces of foam or particles.

EXAMPLES The following section provides suitable examples for liquid transport members and systems according to the present invention, thereby starting with the description of several samples, suitable for use in certain regions of those members or systems.

S-1 Samples suitable for port regions: S-1.1: HIFLO® woven filter mesh, type 20, as available from Haver & Boecker, Oelde, Germany, made from stainless steel, which has a porosity of 61% and a caliber of 0.09 mm, designed for filtering up to 19 μ at 20 μm a. S-1.2a: Monodur polyamide mesh type MON PA 20 N as available from Verseidag in Geldern-Waidbeck, Germany. S-1.2b: Monodur polyamide mesh Type MON PA 42.5 N as available from Verseidag in Geldern-Waidbeck, Germany. S-1.3b: Polyester mesh 03-15 / 10 from SEFAR in Rüschlikon, Switzerland. S-1.3c: Polyester mesh 03-20 / 14 from SEFAR in Rüschlikon, Switzerland. S-1.3d: Polyester mesh 03-1 / 1 from SEFAR in Rüschlikon, Switzerland. S-1.3e: Polyester mesh 03-5 / 1 from SEFAR in Rüschlikon, Switzerland. S-1.3f: Polyester mesh 03-10 / 2 from SEFAR in Rüschlikon, Switzerland. S-1.3g: Polyester mesh 03-11 / 6 from SEFAR in Rüschlikon, Switzerland. S-1 4: Cellulose acetate membranes as described in US 5,108,383 (White, Allied-Signal Inc.). S-1.5: HIPE foam produced in accordance with the teachings of the United States Patent Application of North American of Serial No. 09/042429, filed on March 13, 1998 by T. DesMarais et al., Entitled "High Suction polymeric foam", the description of which is incorporated herein by reference. S-1.6: Nylon socks, for example of the 1.5 den type, commercially available in Germany, such as Hudson.

S-2 Suitable samples for wall regions which do not represent port regions S-2.1: Flexible adhesive coated film, as commercially available under the trade name "d-c-fix" from Alkor, Gráfelfing, Germany. S-2.2: Plastic funnel Catalog # 625 617 20 of Fisher Scientific in Nidderau, Germany. S-2.3: Flexible piping (internal diameter approximately 8 mm) such as Masterflex 6404-17 by Nortor, distributed by Barnant Company, Barrington, Illinois, 60010 U.S. A. S-2.4: Conventional polyethylene film such as that used as backsheet material in disposable diapers as available from Clopay Corp., Cincinnati, OH, US, under the code DH-227 S-2.5: Polyethylene film conventional such as that used as the back cover material in disposable diapers, such as is available from Nuova Pansac SpA in Milan, Italy, under the code BS 441118.

S-2.6: Flexible PVC pipe for example Catalog # 620 853 84 from Fisher Scientific in Nidderau, Germany. S-2.7: PTFE tube for example, catalog # 620 456 68 from Fisher Scientific in Nidderau, Germany.

S-3 Suitable samples of inner region S-3: 1: Hollow as created by any rigid wall / port region. S-3.2: Metal springs having an external diameter of 4 mm and a length of approximately 6 cm with any force applied as are available from Federnfabrik Dietz in Neustadt, Germany, under the designation of article "federn" # DD / 100. S-3.3: Recticel open cell foams in Brussels, Belgium such as Filtren TM10 blue, Filtren TM20 blue, Filtren TM30 blue, Filtren Firend 10 black, Filtren Firend 30 black, Filtren HC 20 gray, Filtren Firend HC 30 grex, Bulpren S10 black, Bulpren S20 black, Bulpren S30 black). S-3.4: HIPE foams as they are produced in accordance with the teachings of the United States Patent Application North America of Serial No. 09/042418, filed on March 13, 1998 by T. DesMarais et al. entitled "Absorbent Materials for Distributing Aqueous Liquids", the description of which is incorporated herein by reference. S-3.5: Particle parts of S-3.4 or S-3.3.

S-4 Samples for pressure gradient creation means S-4.1: Osmotic pressure gradient materials according to the teachings of US-A-5,108,383 (White, Allied Signal). S-4.2: Difference of height between the entrance and the exit that generates a difference of pressure generated by hydrostatic height. S-4.3: Several partially saturated pore materials (absorbent foams, superabsorbent materials, particles, sand, stains) that generate a difference in capillary pressure. S-4.4: Difference in the air pressure at the inlet and outlet, generated for example by means of a vacuum pump (sealed air-tight) at the outlet.

Example A for transport member Combination of wall region with port region, inner region filled with liquid: A-1) A tube of 20 cm in length (S-2.6) is connected in an air-tight manner with a funnel of plastic (S-2.2). Sealing can be done with Parafilm M (available from Fischer Scientific in Nidderau, Germany, catalog number 617 800 02). A circular piece of port material (S-1.1), slightly larger than the open area of the funnel is sealed in an airtight manner with the funnel. The seal is made with a suitable adhesive, for example, Pattex ™ from Henkel KGA, Germany. Optionally a port region material (S-1.1) can be connected to the lower end of the tube and sealed in an air-tight manner. The device is filled with a liquid such as water by placing it under the liquid and removing the air inside the device with a vacuum pump tightly connected to the port region. In order to demonstrate the functionality of a member, the lower end does not need to be sealed with a port region, although then the lower end needs to be in contact with the liquid or needs to be in the lower part of the device in order not to allow air to enter the system. A-2) Two circular port region materials (for example of a diameter of approximately 1.2 cm), as in S-1.1 are sealed in an air-tight manner (for example, by heating the areas destined to become the regions of port and pressing the ends of S-2.3 on those areas, so that the plastic material of S-2.3 starts to melt, creating therefore a good connection), at both ends of a tube length of 1 m like that of S-2.3. One end of the tube is lowered into the liquid such as water, the other end is connected to a vacuum pump, creating an air pressure substantially lower than the atmospheric pressure. The vacuum pump extracts the air from the tube until effectively all the air is removed from the tube and replaced by the liquid. Then, the pump is disconnected from the port and therefore the member is created. A-3) A rectangular sheet of 10 X 10 cm of foam material (S-3.3, Filtren TM 10 blue) "interleaved" on one side by a wall material such as S-2.5 with dimensions of 12 cm X 12 cm , on the other side by a port region material of dimensions 12 cm X 12 cm as S-1.3a. The S-2.5 wall material and the S-1.3a port region material are sealed together in the overlap region in a convenient air-tight manner for example by gluing the above commercially available Pattex ™ adhesive from Henkel KGA, Germany. The device is submerged under a liquid such as water, and by removing the device, the air is expelled. The extraction pressure of the device is released as long as it is kept under the liquid, the inner region is filled with liquid. Optionally (if necessary), a vacuum pump can suck the remaining air into the device behind the region port, while the device is under the liquid. A-4) Figures 17, 17A schematically show a dispensing member suitable for example for absorbent articles, such as disposable diapers. The port of entry region (1706) is made of the port region material such as S-1.3b, the port of exit region (1705) is made of the port region material such as S-1.3c. In combination with a waterproof film material (1702), such as S-2.3 or S-2.4, each of the port regions forms a cavity, which can have dimensions of approximately 10 cm by 15 cm for the port of entry region respectively, 20 cm by 15 cm. cm for the exit port region. The cavity port materials overlap in the crotch region (1790) of the article and a tube (1760) is placed therein. The internal regions within the cavities (1740, 1750), can be S-3.3 (Filtren TM10 blue) and the input and output regions respectively internal regions enclosed by them, can be connected by the tubes (1760), such as S -2.6 of an internal diameter of approximately 8 mm. The wall and port material (1702, 1707, 1706) must be sufficiently larger than the inner material to allow air-tight sealing of the wall material for the port material. Sealing is accomplished by overlapping a strip 1.5 cm wide from the wall and the port material and can be made in any convenient air-tight manner using the aforementioned Pattex ™ adhesive. The sealing of the tubes to the internal regions (1740 and 1750) is not required, if the tube (1760) is joined to the wall regions (1702, 1706, 1705) so that the distance between the pipe (1760) and The internal regions is such that a hollow space will remain between them during use. The remainder of the operation to create the operation of a liquid distribution member is also analogous to A-3. Optionally, the device can be filled with other liquids in a similar way. A5) In Figures 18A, 18B a further example of the liquid distribution member (1810) also useful for the construction of disposable absorbent articles, such as diapers, is schematically illustrated by omitting other elements such as adhesives and the like. At present, in the regions of port of entry (1806) and exit (1807) having a dimension of approximately 8 cm by 12 cm are made from sheets of port material S-1.2a, the other wall regions (1802) are made of a S-2.1 wall material. The internal material (1840) are strips of material S-3.3 (Bulpren S10 black) that have dimensions of approximately 0.5 cm by 0.5 cm by 10 cm, placed at a distance of approximately 1 cm from each other, under the input regions and exit (1806, 1807 respectively) and separate springs S-3.2 (1812) in the remaining areas. The individual layers (wall and port material) are sealed and filled with a liquid such as water as described in A-3.

Optionally, the device can be filled with other liquids in a similar way. A6) The separating materials, such as springs according to S-3.2, are placed between a top and a bottom sheet of the S-1.2ba port material, which has a dimension of 10 cm by 50 cm, so that the springs are distributed equally over the area in a region of approximately 7 cm per 47 cm leaving the outer edge approximately 1.5 cm free of springs, with a distance of approximately 2 mm between the individual springs. The upper and lower port material is sealed in an air-tight manner by overlapping 1.5 cm and sealing in a convenient air-tight manner such as by gluing with the aforementioned Pattex ™ adhesive. The device is submerged under test liquid, forcing the device and the air is directed to exit the interior of the device. The release of the extraction pressure while immersing in the member will be filled with liquid. Optionally, (if necessary), a vacuum pump can suck the remaining air from the interior of the member through the port region while the device is under liquid.

Example B for transport system (ie member and (source v / or landfill)) B-1) As a first example for a liquid transport system, a liquid transport member according to A-1) is combined with particulate superabsorbent material as available under the designation W80232 from HÜLS-Stockhausen GmbH, Mari, Germany, with coarse particles that are removed by sieving through a metal sieve of 300 μm. 7.5 g of this material have been sprayed uniformly on the exit port region of A-1, thus creating a liquid spillway. B-2) To exemplify the use of absorbent foam materials, to create an absorbent system, a three-ply sheet of HIPE foam produced for S-1.5, having a thickness of about 2 mm and a corresponding basis weight of about 120 g / m2 are placed on the outlet port of a liquid transport member in accordance with A-1. The leaves were cut circular with a diameter of approximately 6 cm and a segment of approximately 10 ° was cut to provide a better adaptation to the surface of the port region.

Optionally, a weight corresponding to a pressure of approximately 0.2 psi can be applied to improve the liquid contact between the outlet and the landfill material. B-3) The transport member according to A-1 has been combined with a 6 cm diameter circular cut section taken from a commercially available diaper core consisting of an essentially homogeneous combination of superabsorbent material such as ASAP2300 commercially available from CHEMDAL Corp. United Kingdom, and conventional air felt at 60% of the concentration of the superabsorbent by weight and a weight on the basis of the superabsorbent of approximately 400 g / m2). This cut is placed in liquid communication with the region of the exit port of A-1 to create a liquid transport system. B-4) To further exemplify an application of a liquid transport system, the liquid transport member of A-2 has been placed between a liquid source container and a pot, so that a portion of the The inlet port region is submerged in the liquid container and the outlet portion that is placed inside the soil of the pot. The relative humidity of the container and the pot is not relevant to the length of the member, and would not be of a member length of approximately 50 cm. B-5) An additional application of a liquid transport system with an integral liquid spillway that can be constructed by creating a liquid transport member as in A-3, though filling with oil (instead of water). When the member is compressed (to create expansion gaps inside the member), and immediately after putting it in contact with cooking oil (to simulate a kitchen frying pan), the system will quickly absorb the oil in the pan. B-6) When a liquid transport member according to A-4 or A-5 is combined with a liquid spillway such as that used in B-1 or B-2, optionally covering the landfill material by A containment layer, such as a nonwoven web, the structure can function as an absorbent pad, whereby the urine as it is released by the wearer can be seen to provide the source of liquid.

METHODS Activation Since the properties are relevant to the liquid handling ability of a liquid transport member according to the present invention, it is considered at the time of liquid transport and how some materials and designs may have properties that differ from these , for example, to facilitate transportation or other handling between the manufacturing and its intended use, such materials must be activated before they are subjected to a test. The term "activation" means that the member is placed in the condition of use such as by establishing a liquid communication along a flow path or such as by initiating a pulse pressure differential, and this it can be achieved by mechanical activation, which simulates the activation prior to the use of a user (such as the removal of restraint means such as a fastener, or a strip of a release paper such as an adhesive or the removal of a stamp from package, thus allowing the mechanical expansion optionally with the creation of a vacuum within the member). The activation can be further achieved by other stimuli transmitted to the member, such as pH or temperature change, by radiation or the like. Activation can also be achieved by interaction with liquids, such as by having certain solubility properties or changing concentrations, or they are carrier activation ingredients such as enzymes. This can also be achieved through the transport liquid itself, and in those cases, the member must be immersed in the test liquid which must be representative of the transport liquid, optionally removing the air by means of a vacuum pump and allowing Balance for 30 minutes.

Afterwards, the member is removed from the liquid, placed on a coarse mesh (such as a 14 mesh mesh screen) to allow excess liquid to drip.

Closed System Test Principle The test provides an easy-to-implement tool for determining whether a material or transport member satisfies the principles of the present invention. It should be noted, that this test is not useful to exclude materials or members, that is, if a member or members do not pass the Closed System Test, it may or may not be a liquid transport member according to the present invention.

Execution First, the test sample is activated as described above, while the weight is monitored. Then, the test sample is suspended or supported in a position such that a larger extent of the sample is essentially aligned with the gravity vector. For example, the sample can be supported by a support board or mesh placed at an angle of about 90 ° to the horizontal, or the sample can be suspended by bands or strips in a vertical position. As a next stage, the wall region is open in the upper region and the lower parts of the sample ie if the sample has opposite corners, then those corners, if the sample has a curved or rounded periphery, then in the top and bottom of the sample. The size of the opening must be such that it allows the liquid to pass through the lower opening and the air to pass through the upper opening without adding pressure or deformation. Typically, an opening having an inscribed circular diameter of at least 2 mm is suitable.

The opening can be made through any suitable means, such as by the use of a pair of scissors, a holding tab, a needle, a sharp blade or a scalpel and the like. If a groove is applied to the sample, it must be done so that the flanks of the groove can be separated from one another, to create a two-dimensional opening. Alternatively, a cut can remove a part of the wall material creating an opening. Care must be taken not to add additional weight or pressure, or deformation exerted on the sample. Similarly, care must be taken that no liquid is removed by the opening means, unless this can be accurately considered when calculating weight differences. The weight of it is monitored (by entrapping the liquid in a Petri dish, which is placed on a scale.) Alternatively, the weight of the member material can be determined after 10 minutes and compared to the initial weight. , that no evaporation takes place, if this could be the case and this can be determined by monitoring the weight loss of a sample without having to open it during the test time and by correcting the results accordingly. The drip weight is greater than or equal to 3% of the initial weight of the liquid, then the test material or member has passed this test, and is a liquid transport member according to the present invention. drip is less than 3% of the initial total weight, then this test does not allow the determination of whether the material is a liquid transport member according to the present invention or not.

Bubble Point Pressure (Port Region) The following procedure applies when you want to determine the bubble point pressure of a port region or of a material useful for port regions. First, the port region respectively the port region material is connected to a funnel and a tube as described in Example A-1. Therefore, the lower end of the tube is left open that is, not covered with a port region material. The tube must be of sufficient length, that is, up to 10 m in length that may be required. In case the test material is very thin or fragile, it may be appropriate to support it by an open support structure (such as a layer of open pore nonwoven material) before connecting it to the funnel and the tube. In the event that the test sample is not of a sufficient size, the funnel can be replaced by a small one (for example, catalog # 625 616 02 of Fisher Scientific in Nidderau, Germany). If the test sample is too large, a representative piece can be trimmed to fit the funnel. The test liquid can be the liquid transported, although for ease of comparison, the test liquid must be a solution of 0.03% TRITON X 100, as it is available from MERCK KGaA, Darmstadt, Germany, under the catalog number 1. 08603, in distilled or deionized water, thereby resulting in a surface tension of 33 mN / m, when measured according to the surface tension method as described further. The filling device with the test liquid by immersing it in a sufficiently large container filled with the test liquid, and removing the remaining air with a vacuum pump. As long as the lower (open) end of the funnel is maintained within the liquid in the container, the part of the funnel with the port region is removed from the liquid. If appropriate, but not necessarily, the funnel with the port region material should remain aligned horizontally. In lanto, which continues to slowly lift the port material over the vessel, the height is monitored and carefully observed through the funnel or through the port material itself (optionally with the help of adequate lighting) if the air bubbles begin to enter through the material inside the funnel. At this point, the height above the container is recorded to be the height of the bubble point. from this height H the bubble point pressure bpp is calculated as: BPP: pgH with the density of the liquid p, the gravity constant (g «9.81 m / s2) In particular for the bubble point pressures that exceed of about 50 kPa, an alternative determination, as commonly used to determine bubble point pressures for membranes used in filtration systems, can be used. In the present, the wetted membrane is separating two gas filling chambers when one is set under an increased gas pressure (such as an air pressure) and the point is recorded when the first bubbles of air "sprout".

Alternatively, the PMI permeameter or porosity meter, as described in the section of the test method below, can be used for the determination of the bubble point pressure.

Bubble point pressure (liquid transport member) To measure the bubble point pressure of the liquid transport member (instead of a port region or a port region material) the procedure shown below can be followed. First, the member is activated as described above. The test liquid may be the liquid transported, although for ease of comparison, the test liquid must be a solution of 0.03% TRITON X-100, as available from MERCK KGaA, Darmstadt, Germany, under catalog number 1.08603 , in distilled or deionized water, resulting in a surface tension of 33 mN / m, when measured according to the surface tension method as described below. A portion of a port region under evaluation is connected to a vacuum pump connected by a hermetically sealed pipe / tube (such as with Pattex ™ adhesive as described above). Care should be taken that only a part of the port region is connected, and an additional part of the region adjacent to a cover with the pipe is still uncovered and in contact with ambient air. The vacuum pump should allow several Pvac pressures to be set, increasing from the Patm atmospheric pressure to approximately 100 kPa. The installation (often integral with the pump) must allow differential monitoring of ambient air pressure (? P = patm-Pvac) and gas flow. Afterwards, the pump is ripped off to create a slight vacuum, which is increased during the test in a stepped operation. The amount of pressure increase will depend on the desired accuracy, with typical values of 0.1 kPa providing acceptable results. At each level, the flow will be monitored over time and directly after the increase in? P, the flow will increase mainly due to the removal of gas from the pipe between the pump and the membrane. This flow, however, will level out quickly and upon the establishment of an equilibrium, the flow will essentially stop. This is typically achieved after approximately 3 minutes.This increase in stage change is continued until reaching a point, which can be observed by the gas flow that does not decrease after the pressure stage change, but which remains after reaching an essentially constant level of equilibrium with time . The pressure in a stage? P before this situation is the bpp of the liquid transport member. For materials having bubble point pressures exceeding approximately 90 kPa, it will be advisable or necessary to increase the ambient pressure surrounding the test sample by a constant and monitored degree, which is added to as monitored.

Surface Tension Test Method The surface tension measurement is well known to those skilled in the art, such as with a K10T Tensiometer from Krüss GmbH, Hamburg, Germany, using the DuNouy ring method as described in equipment instructions. After cleaning the glass parts with isopropanol and deionized water, they are dried at 105 ° C. The platinum ring is heated on a Bunsen burner until it reaches red hot. A first reference measurement is taken to verify the accuracy of the tensiometer. An adequate number of test replicas are taken to ensure the consistency of the data. The resulting surface tension of that liquid as expressed in units of mN / m can be used to determine the adhesion tension values and the surface energy parameter of the respective liquid / solid / gas systems. Distilled water will generally exhibit a surface tension value of 72 mN / m, a solution 0. 03%, X-100 in water of 33 mN / m.

Liquid Transport Test The following test can be applied to liquid transport members that have defined input and output port regions with a certain transport path length H0 between the input and output port regions. For members, where the respective port regions can not be determined because they are made of a homogeneous material those regions can be defined considering the intended use thereby defining the respective port regions. Before running the test, the liquid transport member must be activated if necessary as described above. The test sample is placed in a vertical position on a liquid container so that it is suspended from a support, whereby the inlet port remains completely submerged in the liquid in the container. The outlet port is connected by means of a 6 mm external diameter flexible pipe to a vacuum pump, optionally, with a separating flask connected between the sample and the pump, and sealed in an air-tight manner as described in FIG. the above bubble point pressure method for a liquid transport member. The vacuum suction pressure differential can be monitored and adjusted. The lowest point of the outlet port is adjusted to be at a height H0 above the level of the liquid in the container. The pressure differential is slightly increased at a pressure P0 = 0.9kPa + pg H0 with the density of the liquid p, and the gravitational constant g (g * 9.81 m / s'2). After reaching this pressure differential, the decrease in the weight of the liquid in the container is monitored, preferably by placing the container on a scale that measures the weight of the container, and which connects the scale to a computer equipment. After an initial unstable decrease (typically not taking more than about one minute), the weight decrease in the container will become constant (ie, showing a straight line in a presentation of graphical data). This constant weight decrease over time is the flow velocity (in g / s) of the liquid transport member at a suction of 0.9kPa and at a height of H0. The corresponding flow velocity of the liquid transport member at 0.9 kPa suction and a height H0 is calculated from the flow velocity by dividing the flow velocity between the average section of the liquid transport member along a path of flow, expressed in g / s / cm2. Care should be taken that the container is large enough so that the fluid level in the container does not change by more than 1 mm.

In addition, the effective permeability of the liquid transport member can be calculated by dividing the flow velocity between the average length along the flow path and the pulse pressure difference (0.9kPa).

Liquid Permeability Test Generally, the test must be carried out with a suitable test fluid representing the transport fluid, such as with Jayco SynUrine as available from Jayco Pharmaceuticals Company of Camp Hill, Pennsylvania, and may be operated under controlled laboratory conditions of approximately 23 +/- 2 ° C and approximately 50 +/- 10% relative humidity. However, for the present applications, and in particular when polymeric foam materials are used, such as those described in US-A-5,563,179 or US-A-5,387,207 it has been found useful to operate the test at an elevated temperature. of 31 ° C, and using deionized water as test fluid. The present Permeability Test provides a measure for the permeability of two special conditions: Either the permeability that can be measured for a wide range of porous materials (such as non-woven materials made of synthetic fibers, or cellulose structures) to 100% of saturation, or for materials, which reach different degrees of saturation with a proportional change in the gauge without being filled with air (respectively the external vapor phase), such as collapsible polymer foams, for which the permeability in varying degrees Saturation can easily be measured in various thicknesses. In principle, these tests are based on Darcy's law, according to which the velocity of the volumetric flow of a liquid through any porous medium is proportional to the pressure gradient, with the constant of proportionality related to permeability. Q / A = (k /?) * (? P / L) where: Q = Volume Flow Rate [cm3 / s]; A = Cross Section Area [cm2]; k = Permeability (cm2) (with 1 Darcy corresponding to 9,869 * 10-13 m2); ? = Viscosity (Poise) [Pa * s]; ? P / L = Pressure Gradient [Pa / m]; L = sample size [cm]; Therefore, the permeability can be calculated, for a fixed or determined cross-sectional area, and the viscosity of the test liquid, through the measurement of the pressure drop and the volumetric flow rate through the sample: k = ( /TO P) * ? The test can be executed in two modifications, the first one referring to the transplanar permeability (ie the direction of the flow that is essentially along the thickness dimension of the material), the second being the permeability in the plane ( that is, the direction in the flow that is in the x direction of the material). The test facility for the transplanar permeability test can be seen in Figure 19 which is a schematic diagram of the general equipment and, like an inserted diagram, a partially exploded cross section, not a scale view of the sample cell. The test facility comprises a generally circular or cylindrical sample cell (19120), having an upper part (19121) and a lower part (19122). The distance of those parts • 'can be measured and therefore fit through each of the three circumferentially placed flat gauges (19145) and adjustment screws (19140). In addition, the equipment comprises several fluid containers (19150, 19154, 19156), which include an adjustment height (19170) for the inlet vessel (19150) as well as pipes (19180), quick release settings (19189) to connect the sample cell with the rest of the equipment, additional valves (19182, 19184, 19186, 19188 ). The differential pressure transducer (19197) is connected by means of the pipe (19180) to the point of pressure detection (19194) and the lower pressure detection point (19196). A computer device (19190) for controlling the valves is connected by means of the connections (19199) to the differential pressure transducer (19197), the temperature probe (19192), and the load cell of the weight scale (19198). The circular sample (19110) having a diameter of (approximately 2.54 cm) is placed between the two porous screens (19135) inside the sample cell (19120), which is made of two 2.54 cm cylindrical pieces (19121). , 19122) joined by means of the internal connection (19132) to the inlet vessel (19150) and by means of the external connection (19133) to the outlet vessel (19154) via the flexible pipe (19180), such as tygon pipe. Closed cell foam gaskets (19115) provide protection against spillage around the sides of the sample. The test sample (19110) is compressed from the caliper corresponding to the desired wet compression, which is set at 0.2 psi (approximately 1.4 kPa) unless otherwise stated. The liquid is allowed to flow through the sample (19110) to achieve a steady state flow. Once the steady state flow through the sample (19110) has been established, the volumetric flow rate and pressure drop are recorded as a function of time using a load cell (19198) and the transducer differential pressure (19197). The experiment can run at any hydrostatic head up to 80 cm of water (approximately 7.8 kPa), which can be adjusted by the height adjustment device (19170). From these measurements, the flow velocity at different pressures for the sample can be determined. The equipment is commercially available as a permeameter as supplied by Porous Materials, Inc., Ithaca, New York, US under the designation of liquid permeameter PMI, as described in the respective user manual of / 97, and modified accordingly. with the present description. This equipment includes two Stainless Steel Frits as porous sieves (19135), as specified in such manual. The equipment consists of the sample cell (19120), the input container (19150), the outlet container (19154), and the waste container (19156) and the respective fill and drain valves and connections, a balance electronics and a valve control and computer monitoring unit (19190). The gasket material (19115) is a closed cell neoprene sponge SNC-1 (Soft), such as that provided by Netherland Rubber Company, Cincinnati, Ohio, U.S. A., the set of materials with variable thickness in the steps of approximately 0.159 cm should be available to cover the range from approximately 0.159 cm to approximately 1.27 cm in thickness. In addition, a supply of pressurized air of at least 4.1 bar) is required to operate the respective valves. The test is then executed through the following stages: 1) Preparation of the test samples: In a preparatory test, it is determined, if one or more layers of the test sample are required, where the test as determined below is operated at the lowest and highest pressures. The number of layers is then adjusted to maintain the flow rate during the test between 0.5 cm3 / seconds at the lowest pressure drop and 15 cm3 / seconds at the highest pressure drop. The flow speed for the! sample must be less than the flow velocity for the model at the same pressure drop. If the sample flow rate exceeds that of the model for a given pressure drop, more layers must be added to decrease the flow velocity. Sample size: Samples are cut to approximately 2.54 cm in diameter, using an arc punch, as supplied by McMaster-Carr Supply Company, Cleveland, OH, US. If the samples have very little internal strength or integrity to maintain their structure during the required handling, conventional low weight base support means, such as a PET net or thin canvas, may be added. Therefore, at least two samples (made of the number of layers required each, if necessary), are pre-cut. Then, one of these is saturated in deionized water at the temperature of the experiment to be executed (31 ° C) unless noted otherwise). The caliber of the wet sample is measured, (if necessary after a stabilization time of 30 seconds) under the desired compression pressure for which the experiment will be operated by using a conventional flat gauge (such as that supplied by AMES, Waltham, MASS, US) having a pressure diameter of about 2.86 cm, exerting a pressure of about 1.4 kPa on the sample (19110) unless otherwise desired.

An appropriate combination of joint materials is selected, so that the total thickness of the bonded foam (19115) is between 150 and 200% of the thickness of the wet sample (note that a combination of varying thicknesses of the joint material may be necessary to achieve the general desired thickness). The gasket material (19115) is cut to a circular size of 7.62 cm in diameter and 2.54 cm of the hole is cut in the center by using the arc punch. In case the sample dimensions change with wetting, the sample must be cut so that the required diameter is obtained in the wet stage. This can also be determined in your preparatory test, with the monitoring of the respective dimensions. If this changes so that any space is formed, or the sample forms folds that would prevent uniform contact of the porous screens or the frits, the cut diameter should be adjusted accordingly. The test sample (19110) is placed inside the hole in the joint foam (19115) and the composite is placed on top of the lower half of the sample cell, ensuring that the sample is in uniform and flat contact with the screen (19135) and no spaces are formed on the sides. The upper part of the test cell (19121) is placed flat on the laboratory table (or other horizontal plane) and the three flat calibres (19145) mounted on it are set to zero. The upper part of the test cell (19121) is then placed on the lower part (19122) so that the joining material (19115) with the test sample (19110) is located between the two parts. The upper and lower part are then adjusted by fixing screws (19140), so that three flat gauges are adjusted to the same value as measured for the wet sample under the respective pressure in the previous one. 2) In order to prepare the experiment, the program on the computerized unit (19190) is started and the sample identification, the respective pressure, etc. are recorded. 3) The test will be operated on a sample (19190) for several pressure cycles with the first pressure that is the lowest pressure. The results of the individual pressure operations are placed in different results files through the computerized unit (19190). The data is taken from each of those files for calculations as described below. (A different sample must be used for any subsequent operations of the material). 4) The inlet liquid container (19150) is set to the required height and the test is started in the computerized unit (19190). 5) Then the sample cell (19120) is placed in the permeameter unit with Quick Disconnect devices (19189). 6) The sample cell (19120) is filled through the opening of the vent valve (19188) and the lower fill valves (19184, 19186). During this stage, care must be taken to remove air bubbles from the system, which can be achieved by placing the sample cell vertically, forcing the air bubbles, if present, to exit the permeameter through the drain. Once the sample cell is filled until the tygon pipe attached to the top of the chamber (19121), air bubbles are removed from this pipe in the waste container (19156). 7) After having carefully removed the air bubbles, the bottom filling valves (19184), 19186) are closed, and the top filling valves (19182) open, to fill the top, also carefully removing all the bubbles of air. 8) The fluid container is filled with the test fluid to the filling line (19152). Then the flow begins through the sample initiating the computerized unit (19190). After the temperature in the sample chamber has reached the required value the experiment is ready to start. At the start of the experiment by means of the computerized unit (19190), the liquid outflow is automatically derived from the waste container (19156) to the outlet vessel (19154), and the pressure drop and temperature are monitored as a function of time for several minutes. Once the program has finished, the computerized unit provides the recorded data (in numerical and / or graphic form). If desired, the same test sample can be used to measure the permeability in various hydrostatic loads, thereby increasing the pressure from one operation to another. The equipment must be cleaned every two weeks and calibrated at least once a week, especially the frits, the load cell, the thermocouple and the pressure transducer, thus following the instructions of the equipment supplier. The differential pressure is recorded by means of the differential pressure transducer connected to the pressure probes at the measurement points (19194, 19196) at the top and bottom of the sample cell. Since there may be other resistance to flow within the chamber adding to the pressure that is registered, each experiment must be corrected by a sample operation. A sample operation must be done at 10, 20, 30, 40, 50, 60, 70, 80 cm of pressure required each day. The permeameter will emit a Mean Test Pressure for each experiment and also an average flow rate. For each pressure that the sample has tested, the flow rate is registered as the Model Corrected Pressure through the computerized unit (19190), which is also correcting the Average Test pressure (Real Pressure) in each of the differentials. registered height pressure to result in Corrected Pressure. This Corrected Pressure is the DP that must be used in the following permeability equation.

The permeability can be calculated at each required pressure I and all permeabilities must be averaged to determine the k for the material being tested. More than three measurements should be taken for each sample in each hydrostatic head and the averaged results and the standard deviation calculated. However, the same sample must be used, the permeability measured in each hydrostatic head and then a new sample must be used to make the second and third replicas. The measurement of plane permeability under the same conditions as the transplanar permeability described above, can be achieved by modifying the previous equipment as shown schematically in Figures 20A and 20B showing a view that is not to scale and partially exploded only from the sample cell. Equivalent elements are denoted equivalently, such that the sample cell of Figure 20 is denoted (20210), correlating to the number (19110) of Figure 19, and so on. Therefore, the simplified transplanar sample cell (19120) of Figure 19 is replaced by the plane simplified cell (20220), which is designed so that the liquid can flow only in one direction (either the machine direction or cross direction depending on how the sample is placed in the cell). Care must be taken to minimize the channeling of the liquid along the walls (wall effects), as this can give an erroneously high permeability reading. The test procedure is then executed in a manner analogous to the transplanar test. The sample cell (20220) is designed to be placed in the equipment essentially as described for the sample cell (19120) in the test transplanar above except that the filling tube is directed towards the inlet connection (20232) to the bottom of the cell (20220). Figure 20A shows a partially exploded view of the sample cell and Figure 20B a cross-sectional view through the sample level. The sample cell (20220) is made up of two pieces: a lower part (20225), which is similar to a rectangular box with flanges, and an upper part (20223) that fits inside the lower part (20225) and has eyelashes too. The test sample is cut to a size of 5.1 cm by 5.1 cm and is placed on the bottom piece. The upper part (20223) of the sample chamber is then placed inside the lower part (20225) and sits on the test sample (20210). A non-compressible neoprene rubber seal (20224) is attached to the upper part (20223) to provide a hermetic seal. The test liquid flows from the inlet vessel into the sample space via the Tygon pipe and the inlet connection (20232) through the outlet connection (20233) to the outlet vessel. As in this test run, the temperature control of the fluid passing through the sample cell may be insufficient due to the low flow rates, the sample is maintained at the desired test temperature by the heating device (20226). ), so the water that passes through the thermostat is pumped through the heating chamber (20227). The space in the test cell is set to the gauge corresponding to the desired humidity compression, normally around 1.4 kPa). The deflectors (20216) that vary in size from 0.1 mm to . 0 mm are used to set the correct gauge, optionally using combinations of several deflectors. At the beginning of the experiment, the test cell (20220) is rotated 90 ° (sample is vertical) and the test liquid is allowed to enter slowly from the bottom. This is necessary to ensure that all air is extracted from the sample and the inlet / outlet connections (20232/20233). Next, the test cell (20220) is rotated back to its original position to make the sample (20210) horizontal. The subsequent procedure is the same as that described above for transplanar permeability, that is, the input vessel is placed at the desired height, the flow is allowed to equilibrate and the flow velocity and pressure drop are measured. Permeability is calculated using Darcy's law. This procedure is repeated for higher pressures as well. For samples that have low permeability, it may be necessary to increase the pulse pressure, such as by extending the height or by applying additional air pressure on the vessel in order to obtain a measurable flow velocity. In the flat permeability can be measured independently in the machine and cross directions depending on how the sample is placed in the test cell.

Pore Size Determination Optical pore size determination is used especially for thin layers of the porous system using standard image analysis procedures known to those skilled in the art. The principle of the method consists of the following stages: 1) A thin layer of the sample material is prepared by slicing a simple sample into thinner sheets or if the sample itself is thin using it directly. The term "thin" refers to achieving a sample size sufficiently low to allow a cross-sectional image under the microscope. Typical sample sizes are below 200 μm. 2) A microscopic image is obtained by means of the video microscope using the appropriate amplification. Optimum results are obtained if approximately 10 to 100 pores are visible to such an image. The image is then scanned by a standard image analysis package such as OPTIMAS from BioScan Corp. which operates under Windows 95 on an IBM compatible PC. The structure recorder of sufficient pixel resolution (preferred at least 1024 x 1024 pixels) should be used to obtain good results. 3) The image is converted to a binary image, using an appropriate threshold level, so that the pores visible in the image are marked as blank object areas and the rest remains in black. Automatic setting, thresholding procedures such as those available under OPTIMAL can be used. 4) The areas of individual pores (objects) are determined. OPTIMAS offers a fully automatic determination of the areas. 5) The equivalent radius of each pore is determined by a circle that would have the same area as the pore. If A is the area of the pore, then the equivalent radius is given by r = (A / p) 1/2. The average pore size can be determined from the pore size distribution using standard statistical rules. For materials that do not have a very uniform pore size, it is recommended to use at least 3 samples for the determination. Useful alternative equipment for determining pore sizes are commercially available Permeater Porosimeter or Tester, such as a perimeter supplied by Porous Materials, Inc., Ithaca, New York, USA, under the designation PMI Liquid Permeameter Model No. CFP-1200AEXI , as described further in the respective 2/97 user manual.

Demand Absorbency Test The demand absorbency test is intended to measure the liquid capacity of the liquid handling member and to measure the absorption rate of the liquid handling member against the hydrostatic pressure to zero. The test can also be carried out for devices that handle body fluids containing a liquid handling member.

The apparatus used to conduct this test consists of a square basket of a size sufficient to retain the liquid handling member suspended in a structure. At least the lower part of the square basket consists of an open mesh which allows the liquid to penetrate inside the basket without substantial flow resistance for the liquid toa. For example, an open wire mesh made of stainless steel, which has an open area of at least 70 percent and which has a wire diameter of 1 mm, and an open mesh size of at least about 6 mm, is suitable for the installation of the current test. In addition, the open mesh must exhibit sufficient stability so that it substantially does not deform under the load of the test sample when the test sample is filled to its full capacity. A container of liquid is provided under the basket. The height of the basket can be adjusted so that a test sample that is placed inside the basket can be brought into contact with the surface of the liquid in the liquid container. The liquid container is placed on the electronic balance connected to a computer to read the weight of the liquid, approximately every 0.01 seconds during the measurement. The dimensions of the apparatus are selected so that the handling of the liquid to be tested fits within the basket and so that the designated liquid acquisition zone of the liquid handling member is in contact with the bottom plane of the basket. The dimensions of the liquid container are selected such that the level of the liquid surface in the container does not change substantially during the measurement. A typical container useful for testing the liquid handling members has a size of at least 320mm x 370mm and can hold at least about 4500g of liquid. Before this test, the liquid container is filled with synthetic urine. The amount of synthetic urine and the size of the liquid container must be sufficient so that the level of liquid in the container does not change when the liquid capacity of the liquid handling member is tested and removed from the container. The temperature of the liquid and the environment for the test should reflect the conditions in the member's use. The typical temperature for use in baby diapers is 32 degrees Celsius for the environment and 37 degrees Celsius for synthetic urine. This test can be done at room temperature if the tested member does not have a significant dependence on its absorptive properties on temperature. This test is established by lowering the empty basket to the mesh that is completely immersed in the synthetic urine in the container. The basket is raised again to approximately 0.5 to 1 mm in order to establish a hydrostatic suction close to zero, taking care that the liquid remains in contact with the mesh. If necessary, the mesh needs to be retracted in contact with the liquid and the zero level is readjusted.

This test is initiated by: 1. starting the measurement of the electronic balance; 2. placing the liquid handling member on the mesh so that the member's acquisition zone is in contact with the liquid; 3. immediately add a low weight on the upper part of the member in order to provide a pressure of 165 Pa for better contact of the member with the mesh. During the test, liquid uptake of the liquid handling member is recorded by measuring the decrease in the weight of the liquid in the liquid container. The test is stopped after 30 minutes. At the end of the test, the total fluid uptake of the liquid handling member is recorded. In addition, the time after which the liquid handling member has absorbed 80 percent of its total liquid uptake is also recorded. Zero time is defined as the time where member absorption begins. The initial absorption rate of the liquid handling member is from the initial linear inclination of the weight versus time measurement curve.

Capillary Absorption Purpose The purpose of this test is to measure the absorptive capacity of capillary absorption, as a function of height, of the absorbent storage members of the present i invention. This test can also be used to measure the capillary absorption absorbing capacity of the liquid handling devices according to the present invention. The capillary absorption is a fundamental property of any absorbent that governs how the liquid is absorbed in the absorbent structure. In the capillary absorption experiment, the capillary absorption absorbing capacity is measured as a function of the fluid pressure due to the height of the sample relative to the test fluid reservoir. The method to determine capillary absorption is well recognized. See Burgeni, A. A. and Kapur, C, "Capillary Sorption Equilibria in Fiber Masses," Textile Research Journal, 37. (1967), 356-366; Chatterjee, P.K., Absorbency, Textile Science and Technology 7, Chapter III, p. 29-84 Elsevier Science Publishers B. V, 1985; and U.S. Patent No. 4,610,678, issued September 9, 1986 to Weisman et al., for a discussion of the method for measuring capillary absorption of absorbent structures. This description of each of the references is incorporated herein by reference.

Principle A porous glass frit was connected through an uninterrupted column of fluid to a reservoir of fluid in a dumbbell. The sample was kept under constant confinement weight during the experiment. As the porous structure absorbs the fluid after demand, the weight loss in the weight fluid reservoir was recorded as the fluid consumption, it was adjusted for the consumption of the glass frit as a function of height and evaporation. The consumption or capacity to several capillary suctions (stresses or hydrostatic heights) was measured. The increasing absorption occurred due to the reduction in the increase of the frit (that is, the reduction of capillary suction). The time was also verified during the experiment to allow the calculation of the initial effective consumption rate (g / g / h) at a height of 200 cm.

• 'Reagents Test liquid: synthetic urine was prepared by completely dissolving the following materials in distilled water. 15 Compound F. W. Concentration (fl /) KCI 74.6 2.0 Na2SO4 142 2.0 20 (NH4) H2PO4 115 0.85 (NH4) 2HPO4 132 0.15 CaCl2.2H2O 147 0.25 MgCl2.6H2O 203 0.5 General Description of Device Fixation The capillary absorption equipment, generally represented as 2120 in Figure 21A used for this test, is operated under TAPPI conditions (50% RH, 25 ° C). A test sample was placed on a glass frit shown in Figure 21A at 2102 which is connected through a continuous column of test liquid (synthetic urine) to an equilibrium liquid reservoir, moshed as 2106, containing liquid from proof. This deposit 2106 is placed on a balance 2107 that is interconnected with a computer (not shown). The balance may be able to read at 0.001 grams; said weight is available from Mettler Toledo as PR1203 (Hightstown, NJ). The glass frit 2102 was placed on a vertical slide, shown generally in Figure 21A as 2101, to allow vertical movement of the test sample to expose the test sample to variable suction heights. The vertical slide can be an operator without bars, which is attached to a computer to record the suction heights and corresponding times to measure the liquid consumption by the test sample. A preferred bar-less actuator is available from Industrial Devices (Novato, CA) as article 202X4X34N-1 D4B-84-PCE, which can be driven by a ZETA 6104-83-135 motor, available from CompuMotor (Rohnert, CA) . When the data is measured and sent from the actuator 2101 to the scale 2107, the data of capillary absorption absorber capacity can be easily generated for each test sample. Also, the computer interface to the actuator 2101 may allow controlled vertical movement of the glass frit 2102. For example, the actuator may be directed to move the glass friter 2102 vertically only after reaching "equilibrium" (as shown in FIG. defined later) at each suction height. The bottom of the glass frit 2102 is connected to a Tygon® 2103 pipe that connects the frit 2105 to the three-way drain plug 2109. The drain plug is connected to the liquid tank 2105 through a glass pipe 2104 and plug 2110. (Plug 2109 is open for drainage only during cleaning of the apparatus or removal of air bubbles). The glass tubing 2111 connects the fluid reservoir 2105 with the fluid reservoir 2106, through the plug 2110. The reservoir liquid weighing 2106 consists of a glass plate 2106A with a diameter of 12 cm, light weight , and a cover 2106B. The cover 2106B has a hole through which the glass pipe 2111 connects the liquid in the tank 2106. The glass pipe 2111 should not contact the cover 2106B or there will be an unstable equilibrium reading and the measurement of the sample It can not be used. In this context, it should be understood that the volume of the liquid reservoir needs to be compatible with the absorbent capacity of the liquid handling member or device to be tested. Therefore, it may be necessary to choose a different liquid deposit. The diameter of the glass frit must be sufficient to adapt the piston / cylinder apparatus, discussed below, to support the test sample. The glass frit 2102 has a jacket to allow constant temperature control from a heating bath. The frit is a frit disk funnel of 350 ml specified as having pores of 4 to 5.5 μm, available from Corning Gras Co. (Corning NY) comp # 36060-350F. The pores are thin enough to keep the surface of the frit moistened at the specified capillary suction heights (the glass frit does not allow air to enter the continuous column of test fluid below the glass test). As indicated, the frit 2102 is connected through a pipe to the fluid tank 2105 or to the equilibrium liquid tank 2106, depending on the position of the three-way plug 2110. The glass frit 2102 has a jacket to accept the water from a constant temperature bath. This will ensure that the temperature of the glass frit is maintained at a constant temperature of 31 ° C during the test procedure. As illustrated in FIG. 21A, the glass frit 2102 is equipped with an inlet port 2102A and an outlet port 21021B, which form a closed loop with a circulating heating bath generally shown 2108. (The Glass is not illustrated in Figure 21A, however, the water introduced the glass frit 2102 jacketed from the bath 2108 does not contact the test liquid and the test liquid does not circulate through the constant temperature bath. The water in the constant temperature bath circulates through the jacketed walls of the glass frit 2102). The reservoir 2106 and balance 2107 are enclosed in a box to minimize the evaporation of test liquid from the reservoir and to improve the stability of the weight during operation of the experiment. This box, generally shown at 2112, has an upper part and walls, wherein the upper part has a hole through which the pipe 2111 is inserted. The glass frit 2102 is shown in greater detail in Figure 21B. Figure 21B is a cross-sectional view of the glass frit, shown without the inlet port 2102A and the outlet port 2102B. As indicated, the glass frit is a 350 ml frit disk funnel having specific pores of 4 to 5.5 μm. Referring to Figure 21B, glass frit 2102 comprises a cylindrical jacketed funnel designated at 2120 and a glass frit disk shown at 2160. Glass frit 2102 further comprises a cylinder / piston assembly generally shown at 2165 (the which comprises cylinder 2166 and piston 2168), which defines the test sample, shown as 2170, and provides a small confining pressure to the test sample. To prevent excessive evaporation of test liquid from the glass frit disk 2160, a Teflon ring shown in 2162 is placed on top of the glass frit disk 2160. Teflon® ring 2162 has a thickness of 0.0127 cm (available as a McMasterCarr sheet supply material such as # 8569K16 and cut to size), and used to cover the surface of the frit disk out of cylinder 2166, and thus minimize the evaporation of the frit from glass. The external diameter of the ring and the internal diameter are 7.6 and 6.3 cm, respectively. The internal diameter of the Teflon® ring 2162 is approximately 2 mm smaller than the outer diameter of the cylinder 2166. An O-shaped Viton® ring (available from McMasterCarr as # AS2168A-150 and AS2168A-151) 2164 is placed on the part Top of the 2162 Teflon® ring to seal the space between the inner wall of the cylindrical jacketed funnel 2120 and the Teflon ring 2162 to further assist in the prevention of evaporation. If the outer diameter of the O-shaped ring exceeds the internal diameter of the cylindrical jacketed funnel 2150, the diameter of the O-shaped ring is reduced to fix the funnel as follows: the O-shaped ring is opened by a cut, the The required amount of the material of the O-shaped ring is cut off, and the O-shaped ring is adhered together, so that the O-shaped ring contacts the inner wall of the cylindrical jacketed funnel 2120 around its entire periphery. While the above-described frit represents an example of a suitable frit, it may be necessary to use a frit having different dimensions from the above dimensions in order to better match the dimensions of the liquid handling member or the device to be tested. The surface area of the frit should resemble as closely as possible the surface area of the acquisition zone of the liquid handling member or of the device in order to fully utilize the acquisition zone and in order to minimize evaporation from of the fried.

As indicated, a cylinder / piston assembly shown generally in Figure 21B as 2165 confines to the test sample and provides a small confining pressure to test sample 2ll70. Referring to Figure 21C, assembly 2165 consists of a cylinder 2166, a cup-type Teflon® piston indicated at 2168 and, when a weight or weights (not shown) are required that are fixed within the piston 2168. ( The optional weight can be used when it is necessary to adjust the combined weight of the piston and the optional weight so that a confining pressure of 0.2 PSI is obtained depending on the diameter of the dry test sample, this is discussed below). Cylinder 2166 is a Lexan® bar and has the following dimensions: an external diameter of 7.0 cm, an internal diameter of 6.0 cm and a height of 6.0 cm. The Teflon® piston 2168 has the following dimensions: An external diameter that is 0.02 cm smaller than the internal diameter of the cylinder 2166. As shown in Figure 21D, the end of the piston 2168 that does not contact the test sample is perforated to provide a diameter of 5.0 cm by a chamber with a depth of approximately 1.8 cm, 2190, to receive optional charges (dictated by the actual dry diameter of the test sample) required to obtain a confining pressure of the test sample of 1.4 kPa. In other words, the total weight of the piston 2168 and any of the optional charges (not shown in the Figures) divided by the actual diameter of the test sample (when dry) it must be such that a confining pressure of 0.2 PSI is obtained. Cylinder 2166 and piston 2168 (and optional loads) are equilibrated at 31 ° C for at least 30 minutes before conducting the capillary absorption absorbent capacity measurement. Again, the dimensions described above can be selected to suit the exemplary frit described above. When choosing a different frit it is necessary to adjust the dimensions of the cylinder / piston assembly accordingly. A treated film without surfactant with incorporated openings (14 cm x 14 cm) (not shown) is used to cover the glass frit 2102 during the capillary absorption experiments to minimize the destabilization of the air around the sample. The openings are large enough to prevent condensation on the underside of the film during the experiment.

Preparation of the Test Sample For the present procedure, it is important that the dimensions of the sample and the frit should not be too different. To achieve this, two approaches can be adopted: a) For test samples, which can be easily adjusted to an appropriate size, such as cutting them, both the size of this cut as well as that of the frit are chosen to be a circular structure of 5.4 cm in diameter, as can be done using a conventional arc punch. b) When the test sample can not easily be cut to this dimension, the size and preferably also the shape of the frit have to be adjusted to the size and shape of the test sample. In both cases, the test sample can be an easily separable element of a member or a device, this can be a particular component of any of these, or it can be a combination of its components. It may also be necessary to adjust the size of the liquid reservoir to match variable requirements. The dry weight of the test sample (used later to calculate the capillary absorption absorber capacity) is the weight of the test sample prepared as above under ambient conditions.

Experimental Fixation 1. Place a clean dry glass frit 2102 in a funnel holder attached to the vertical 2101 slide. Move the funnel holder of the vertical slide so that the glass frit is at a height of 0 cm. 2. Set the components of the apparatus as shown in Figure 21A, as discussed above. 3. Place a reservoir of liquid 2106 with a diameter of 12 cm on scale 2107. Place plastic cap 2106B on this reservoir of liquid weight 2106 and a plastic cut on weight box 2112, each with small holes to allow the 2111 glass tubing to fit. Do not allow the glass tubing to touch the lid 2106B of the weighing fluid reservoir or an unstable equilibrium reading will occur and the measurement can not be used. 4. the plug 2110 closes the pipe 2104 and opens the glass pipe 2111. The fluid tank 2105, previously filled with the test fluid, is opened to allow the test fluid to enter the pipe 2111, to fill the tank Weighing fluid 2106. 5. Glass frit 2102 is leveled and secured in place. Also, ensure that the glass frit is dry. 6. Join Tygon® 2103 pipe to plug 2109. (The pipe must be long enough to reach glass frit 2102 at its highest point of 200 cm without any bond). Fill this Tygon® tubing with the test liquid from the 2105 liquid reservoir. 7. Join the Tygon® 2103 tubing to the 2102 level glass frit and then open the plug 2109 and plug 2110 leading from the 2105 fluid reservoir to the glass frit 2102. (the plug 2110 must close the glass pipe 2111). The test liquid fills glass frit 2102 and removes all trapped air during filling of the level glass frit. Continue filling until the fluid level exceeds the top of the glass frit disk 2160. Empty the funnel and remove all air bubbles in the pipe and into the funnel. The air bubbles can be removed by inverting the glass frit 2102 and allowing the air bubbles to rise and escape through the drain of the plug 2109. (Air bubbles are typically collected at the bottom of the glass frit disk 2160) . Re-level the frit using a sufficiently small level to be fixed inside the jacketed funnel 2120 and on the surface of the glass frit disk 2160. 8. Zero the glass frit with the 2106 liquid-weight reservoir. this, take a piece of Tygon® tubing of sufficient length and fill it with the test liquid. Place one end in the weighing liquid reservoir 2106 and use the other end to place the glass frit 2102. The test fluid level indicated by the tubing (which is equivalent to the level of the weighing fluid reservoir) is 10 mm below the top of the glass frit disk 2160. If this is not the case, either adjust the amount of liquid in the reservoir or reset the position to zero on the vertical 2101 slide. 9. Join the ports of outlet and inlet of the temperature bath 2108 through the pipe to the inlet and outlet ports 21021A and 21021B, respectively of the glass frit. Allowing the temperature of the 2160 glass frit disk to reach 31 ° C, this can be measured by partially filling the glass frit with the test liquid and measuring its temperature after it has reached the equilibrium temperature. The bath needs to be fixed at a point greater than 31 ° C to allow heat dissipation during the water bath travel to the glass frit. 10. The glass frit is balanced for 30 minutes.

Parameters of Capillary Absorption The following describes a computer program that will determine how long the glass frit remains at each height. In the capillary absorption software program, a test sample is at a specified height from the fluid reservoir. As indicated above, the fluid reservoir is on a scale, so that a computer can read the weight at the end of a known interval and calculate the flow rate (Delta reading / intervals) between the test sample and the reservoir. For the purposes of this method, the test sample is considered to be in equilibrium when the flow velocity is less than a specified flow velocity for a specified number of consecutive intervals. It is recognized, that for certain materials, the real equilibrium may not be reached when the specified "CONSTANT OF BALANCE" is achieved. The interval between readings is 5 seconds. The number of readings in the delta table is specified in the capillary absorption menu as "BALANCES SAMPLES". The maximum number of deltas is 500. The flow rate constant is specified in the capillary absorption menu as "CONSTANT BALANCE "The Balance Constant is entered in units of grams / second, varying from 0.0001 to 100,000 The following is a simplified example of logic: The table shows the reading of the weight or balance and the delta flow calculated for each interval Balance Samples = 3 Balance Constant = .0015 Delta Table: The equilibrium consumption for the previous simplified example is 0.318 grams. The following is the coding in the C language used to determine the equilibrium consumption: / • takedata.c 10 int take_data < int equil samples, double equil ibriur »_eonstant) < do > uubbllee ddeelltta;; 15 static double deltas 1500]; / * cable to store up to 500 deltas * / double valué. - do ubi e prev_value; clock t next movies int i; 20 for (i = 0; i <eguil_sanfles.- i * +) deltas Ci] - 9999; / * initialize all values in the delt cable co 9999. gms / sec * / delta_table_index - 0; 25 / • initialize where in the table to the next delta * / equilibriun_reached * 0; / * initialize flag to indicate equil has not been reached * / next ^ time «cloc? O; / * initialize when to take the next read? ng • / 30 pre ^ reading * 0.; / * initialize the valué of the previ read? ng from the balance • / while < EquilibriuB_reacbed). { / * start of loop for checking fo equilibrium »/ ~ 35 next time +« S000; / * calculate when to take next r while (clock O <next cinema); / * ait until 5 seconds have elas prev readipg * / value = get_balance_reading (> / read the balance in grans »/ 40 delta = fabs < prev_val é - valué) / 5.0; / * calculate absolute valu of f ast 5 seconds * / prev val é »valué; / * store current value for next * / deleas (delta table index] * delta; / * store current delta value in 45 table of deltas "" * / delta table jndxx ++; / * inerenent pointer to next poe in table • / ~ if (delta_cable_index »» equil_satnples) / «when the number of deltas • th number of * / delta table index» 0; equilibrium saorplßs specified, reset che pointer to the start the cable. This way the cable always contains the xx current samples. * / equilibriun? _reached = 1; set the flag coindicates equilibrium is reached * / 10 for U »0; i < equil_saofles; i ++) check all the values in che of table * / if (deltas (i)> »« quilibríu _constanc > / * if any value is> to the equilibriun constant * / equilibrium_reached »0; / * set the equlibrium flag to 0 ( at equilibrium? / - go back to the start of the > Para meters of Absorption Ca pi la r Description of Ca rga (Confi nase Pres ent): loading 0. 2 PS I. M ore of Eq u i l ibrio (n): 50.

Equilibrium constant: 0.0005 g / second. Fixing Height Value: 100 cm Finishing Height Value: 0 cm Parameters of Hydrostatic Head: 200, 180, 160, 140, 120, 100, 90, The capillary absorption procedure is conducted using all the heights specified above, in the established order, for the measurement of the capillary absorption absorber capacity. Even if one wishes to determine the absorbing capacity of capillary absorption at a particular height (e.g., cm), all series of hydrostatic head parameters must be completed in the specified order. Although these heights are used in the operation of the capillary absorption test to generate capillary absorption isotherms for a test sample, the present disclosure illustrates the absorbent storage members in terms of their absorbent properties at specified heights of 200, 140, 100. , 50, 35 and 0 cm.

Capillary Absorption Procedure 1) Follow the experimental fixation procedure. 2) Make sure that the temperature bath 2108 is turned on and the water is circulating through the glass frit 2102 and that the temperature of the glass frit disk 2160 is 31 ° C. 3) Place the glass frit 2102 at a suction height of 200 cm. Open the plugs 2109 and 2110 to connect the glass frit 2102 with the liquid liquid container 2106. (The plug 2110 closes the liquid container 2105). The glass frit 2102 is balanced for 30 minutes. 4) Enter the previous capillary absorption parameters in the computer. 5) Close plugs 2109 and 2110. 6) Move the glass frit 2102 to the fixing height, 100 cm. 7) Place the 2162 Teflon® ring on the surface of the frit disk 2160. Place the O-ring 2164 on the Teflon® ring. Place the cylinder 2166 preheated concentrically on the Teflon® ring. Place the test sample 2170 concentrically on the cylinder 2166 on the glass frit disk 2160. Place the piston 2168 on the cylinder 2166. Place additional confining loads in the piston chamber 2190, if required. 8) Cover the glass frit 2102 with a film with openings. 9) Reading the balance or weighing at this point sets the reading to zero. 10) Move the glass frit 2102 to 200 cm. 11) Open the plugs 2109 and 2110 (plug 2110 closes the fluid reservoir 2105) and start the equilibrium and time readings.

Glass Chip Correction (correct template consumption) Since the glass frit disk 2160 is a porous structure, the capillary desorption absorbent consumption of glass frit 2102 (correct template consumption) must be determined and subtracted to obtain the true absorbing consumption of capillary absorption of the test sample. The glass frit correction is carried out for each new glass frit used. Recover the capillary absorption procedure as described above, except with the test sample to obtain the template consumption (g). The elapsed time at each specified height is equal to the template time (s).

Evaporation Loss Correction 1) Move glass frit 2102 2 cm above zero and let it equilibrate at this height for 30 minutes with open plugs 2109 and 2110 (to close reservoir 2105). 2) Close the. plugs 2109 and 2110. 3) Place the Teflon® ring 2162 on the surface of the glass frit disk 2160. Place the O-ring 2164 on the Teflon® ring. Place the preheated cylinder 2166 concentrically on the Teflon® ring. Place the piston 2168 on the cylinder 2166. Place the film with opening on the glass frit 2102. 4) Open the plugs 2109 and 2110 (which close the tank 2105) and record the equilibrium reading and time for 3.5 hours. Calculate the evaporation of the sample (g / hour) as follows: [equilibrium reading at 1 hour-equilibrium reading at 3.5 hours] /2.5 hours. Even after taking all the above precautions, some evaporative losses may occur, typically around 0.10 g / hour for both the test sample and frit correction. Ideally, evaporation of the sample is measured for each freshly installed 2102 glass frit.

Equipment Cleaning The new 2102 Tygon® pipe was used when a 2102 glass frit is newly installed. The glass tubing 2104 and 2111, the fluid reservoir 2105 and the equilibrium liquid reservoir 2106 are cleaned with 50% Bleach® Chlorine in distilled water, followed by a rinsing with distilled water, if any microbial contamination is visible. to. Cleaning after each experiment At the end of each experiment (after the test sample has been removed), the glass frit is washed (that is, the test liquid is introduced into the bottom of the glass frit) with 250 ml of liquid from test tank 2105 liquid to remove the residual test sample from the pores of the glass frit disk. With the plugs 2109 and 2110 open towards the liquid reservoir 2105 and closed towards the equilibrium liquid reservoir 2106 the glass frit is removed from its support, turned down and rinsed first with the test liquid, followed by rinses with acetone and the test liquid (synthetic urine). During rinsing, the glass frit should be tilted down and the rinsing fluid placed on the test sample making contact with the glass frit disk surface.

After rinsing, the glass frit is washed a second time with 250 ml of test liquid (synthetic urine). Finally, the glass frit is reinstalled in its support and the frit surface is leveled. b. Verification of the operation of the glass frit The operation of the glass frit must be verified after each cleaning procedure and for each glass frit recently installed, with the fixation of the glass frit to a position of 0 cm. 50 ml of test liquid was drained onto the surface of the level glass frit disk (without the Teflon® ring, the O-ring and the cylinder / piston components). The time for the fluid level to Test drop 5 mm above the disc surface of glass frit is recorded. Periodic cleaning should be performed if this time exceeds 4.5 minutes. c. Periodic cleaning periodically (see verification of operation of frit, previous) the glass frits are thoroughly cleaned to avoid clogging. Rinsing fluids are distilled water, acetone, 50% Bleach® Chlorines in distilled water (to remove bacterial growth) and test liquid. Cleaning involves removing the glass frit from the support and disconnecting the entire pipe. The glass frit is washed (that is, the rinse liquid is introduced into the bottom of the glass frit) with the frit down with the appropriate fluids and quantities in the following order: 1. 250 ml of distilled water. 2. 100 ml of acetone. 3. 250 ml of distilled water. 4. 100 ml of 50:50 of Cloros® / distilled water solution. 5. 250 ml of distilled water. 6. 250 ml test fluid. The cleaning procedure is satisfactory when the operation of the glass frit is within the set criteria of the fluid flow (see above) and when no residue can be observed on the surface of the glass frit disk. If the cleaning can not be carried out successfully, the frit must be replaced.

Calculations The computer is set to provide a report consisting of capillary suction height in centimeters, time and consumption in grams at each specific height. From these data, the capillary suction absorbing capillary, which is corrected for both the consumption of frits and the loss of evaporation, can be calculated. Also, based on the capillary suction absorbing capacity at 0 cm, the capillary absorption efficiency can be calculated at the specified heights. In addition, the initial effective consumption speed at 200 cm is calculated.

Correction of Template Template Correction Consumption (g) = Template Consumption (g) - Template Time (s) * Sample Evacuation (g / hr) 3600 (s) / hr) Absorbent Capillary Suction Capacity ("CSAC") Sample time (s) * Evap.de Sample (g / hr) CSAC (g / g) Sample Consumption (g) - 3600s / hr - Correct Template Consumption (g) - Dry Weight of the Sample (g) Initial Effective Consumption Speed at 200 cm ("IEUR") IEUR (g / g / hr) = CSAC at 200 cm (a / a) Sample Time at 200 cm (s) Report A minimum of 2 measurements should be taken for each sample and the average consumption at each height to calculate the capillary absorption absorbent capacity (CSAC) for a given absorbent member or a given high surface area material. With these data, the respective values can be calculated: The capillary absorption desorption height at which the material has released x% percentage of its capacity at 0 cm (ie from CSAC 0), (CSDH x) expressed in cm; The absorbing height of capillary absorption to which the material has been absorbed and% of its capacity at 0 cm (ie from CSAC 0), (CSAH y) expressed in centimeters; The absorbent capacity of capillary absorption at a certain height z (CSAC z) expressed in units of g. { of fluid} / g. { of material}; especially at the height of zero (CSAC 0), and at heights of 35, 40 cm, etc .; The absorbing efficiency of capillary absorption has a certain height z (CSAE z) expressed in%, which is the relation of the values for CSAC 0 and CSAC z. If two materials are combined (so that the first is used as acquisition / distribution material, and the second is used as a liquid storage material), the CSAC value (and therefore the respective CSAE value) of the second material can be determined for the x value of CSDH of the first material.

Tepan Bag Centrifugal Capacity Test (TCC test) While the TCC test has been developed specifically for superabsorbent materials, it can be easily applied to other absorbent materials. The Tea Bag Centrifugal Capacity test measures the Tea Bag Centrifugal Capacity values that are a measure of the retention of liquids in the absorbent materials.

The absorbent material is placed inside a "tea bag" immersed in a 0.9% by weight sodium chloride solution for 20 minutes and then centrifuged for 3 minutes.

The ratio of the weight of the retained liquid to the initial weight of the dry material is the absorbent capacity of the absorbent material. Two liters of sodium chloride at 0.9% by weight in distilled water are poured into a tray having dimensions of 24 cm x 30 cm x 5 cm. The liquid filling height should be approximately 3 cm. The tea bag cavity has dimensions of 6.5 cm x 6. 5 cm and is available from Teekanne in Dusseldorf, Germany. The cavity is heat sealable with a standard kitchen plastic bag sealing device (for example, VACUPACK2 PLUS Krups, Germany). The tea bag is opened by carefully cutting, partially cutting it and then weighing it. Approximately 0.200 g of the sample of the absorbent material, weighed precisely to +/- 0.005 g, is placed in the tea bag. The tea bag is then closed with a thermal sealant. This is called the sample tea bag. A sample tea bag is sealed and used as a model. The sample tea bag and model tea bag are placed on the surface of the saline solution and immersed for approximately 5 seconds using a spatula to allow complete wetting (tea bags will float on the surface of the saline solution although they are completely moistened). The stopwatch is started immediately. After 20 minutes of moistening time, the sample tea bag and model tea bag are removed from the saline solution and placed in Bauknecht WS130, Bosch 772 NZK096 or an equivalent centrifugal machine (230 mm diameter) so that each bag adheres to the outer wall of the centrifugal basket. The centrifugal cover is closed, the spin starts and the speed increases rapidly up to 1,400 rpm. Once the centrifugal machine has stabilized at 1,400 rpm, the timer is started.

After 3 minutes, the centrifugal machine stops. The sample tea bag and model tea bag are removed and weighed separately. The Tea Bag Centrifugal Capacity (TCC) for the sample of the absorbent material is calculated as follows: TCC = [(weight of sample tea bag after centrifugation) - (weight of model tea bag after centrifugation) - (weight of dry absorbent material)] + (weight of dry absorbent material).

Claims

1. The liquid transport member comprising at least one volume region and one wall region that completely circumscribes the volume region, the wall region further comprising at least one input port region and one port region of outlet, characterized in that the volume region has an average fluid permeability kb which is higher than the average fluid permeability kp of the door regions.

The liquid transport member according to claim 1, wherein the volume region has a fluid permeability of at least 10"11 m2, preferably at least 10" 8 m2, more preferably at least 10"7 m2, and more preferably at least 10" 5 m2.

3. The liquid transport member according to claim 1, wherein the port regions have a fluid permeability of at least 6 * 10"20 m2, preferably at least 7k10" 18 m2, more preferably by at least 3 * 10"14 m2, even more preferably at least 1.2 * 10" 11 m2, or even at least 7 * 10"11 m2, more preferably at least 10" 9 m2.

4. The liquid transport member according to claim 1, wherein the port regions have a ratio of fluid permeability to thickness in the direction of fluid transport of kp / dp of at least 3 * 10". m, preferably of at least 7 * 10"14 m, more preferably at least 3 * 10" 10 m, still more preferred at least 8 * 10"8 m, and even preferred of at least 5 * 10" 7 m, and very preferred of at least 10"5 m.

A liquid transport member according to any of the preceding claims, wherein a first region of the member comprises first materials and wherein the member further comprises an additional element in contact with the first materials of the first regions extending within a second region close to said liquid transport member.

A liquid transport member according to claim 5, wherein the additional element is in contact with the wall region and extends into the second nearby region and has a capillary pressure to absorb the liquid that is less than the Bubble point pressure of such member.

7. A liquid transport member according to claim 5, wherein the additional element comprises a layer of softness.

The liquid transport member according to any of the preceding claims, wherein the ratio of permeability of the volume region to the permeability of the port region is at least 10, preferably at least 100, more preferably of at least 1000, and even more preferably of at least 100,000.

The liquid transport member according to any of the preceding claims, wherein the member has a bubble point pressure when measured with water having a surface tension of 72 mN / m of at least 1 kPa , preferably of at least 2 kPa, more preferably at least 4.5 kPa, even more preferably 8 kPa, more preferably 50 kPa.

The liquid transport member according to any of the preceding claims, wherein the port region has a bubble point pressure when measured with water having a surface tension of 72 mN / m at least 1 kPa, preferably at least 2 kPa, more preferably at least 4.5 kPa, even more preferably 8 kPa, and more preferably 50 kPa.

The liquid transport member according to any of the preceding claims, wherein the port region has a bubble point pressure when measured with an aqueous test solution having a surface tension of 33 mN / m of at least 0.67 kPa, preferably at least 1.3 kPa, more preferably at least 3.0 kPa, even more preferably 5.3 kPa, more preferably 33 kPa.

12. The liquid transport member according to any of the preceding claims, wherein the member loses more than 3% of the initial liquid in the closed system test.

The liquid transport member according to any of the preceding claims, wherein the volume region has an average pore size greater than said port regions, preferably such that the average pore size ratio of the region of volume and the average pore size of the port region is at least 3, preferably at least 10, preferably at least 50, more preferably at least 350, and more preferably at least 1000.

14. The liquid transport member according to any of the preceding claims, wherein the volume region has an average pore size of at least 200 μm, preferably of at least 500 μm, more preferably at least 1000 μm, and more preferably at least 5000 μm.

15. The liquid transport member according to any of the preceding claims, wherein the volume region has a porosity of at least 50%, preferably at least 80%, more preferably at least 90%, even more preferably at least 98%, and more preferably at least 99%.

The liquid transport member according to any of the preceding claims, wherein the port region has a porosity of at least 10%, preferably at least 20%, more preferably at least 30%, and more preferably at least 50%.

17. The liquid transport member according to any of the preceding claims, wherein the port regions have an average pore size of no more than 100 μm, preferably no more than 50 μm, more preferably no more than 10 μm, and more preferably no more than 5 μm.

18. The liquid transport member according to any of the preceding claims, wherein the port regions have a pore size of at least 1 μm, preferably at least 3 μm.

The liquid transport member according to any of the preceding claims, wherein the port regions have an average thickness of not more than 100 μm, preferably not more than 50 μm, more preferably not more than 10 μm , and most preferably no more than 5 μm.

The liquid transport member according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the volume region and the wall region have a volume ratio of at least 10, preferably of at least 100, more preferably of at least 1000, and even in the most preferable way of at least 100,000.

The liquid transport member according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the port region is hydrophilic, preferably having a recoil contact angle for the liquid that is transported less than 70 degrees, preferably less than of 50 degrees, more preferably of less than 20 degrees, and even more preferably of less than 10 degrees.

22. The liquid transport member according to claim 21, wherein the port regions do not substantially decrease the surface tension of liquid to be transported.

23. The liquid transport member according to any of the preceding claims, wherein the port region is oleophilic, preferably because it has a recoil contact angle for the liquid that is transported less than 70 degrees, preferably from less than 50 degrees, more preferably less than 20 degrees, and even more preferably less than 10 degrees.

24. The liquid transport member according to any of the preceding claims, comprising a material that is expandable in contact with the liquid and collapsible upon removal of the liquid.

25. A liquid transport member according to claim 24, wherein the material has a volume expansion factor of at least 5 between the original state and when it is completely immersed in the liquid.

26. The liquid transport member according to any of the preceding claims, wherein the volume region is deformable and expandable during liquid transport.

27. The liquid transport member according to any of the preceding claims, wherein the member is expandable to contact and collapsible to the liquid region of the volume region.

28. The liquid transport member according to any of the preceding claims, which has a sheet-like shape, or has a cylindrical-like shape.

29. The liquid transport member according to any of the preceding claims, wherein the cross-sectional area of the member along the direction of liquid transport is not constant.

30. The liquid transport member according to claim 29, wherein the port regions have an area greater than the average cross section of the member along the direction of liquid transport, preferably by a factor of 2, preferably a factor of 10, more preferably a factor of 100.

31. The liquid transport member according to any of the preceding claims, wherein the volume region comprises a material selected from the groups of fibers, particles, foams, spirals, f, corrugated sheets or tubes.

32. The liquid transport member according to any of the preceding claims, wherein the wall region comprises a material selected from the groups of fibers, particles, foams, coils, f, corrugated sheets, tubes, woven wefts , woven fiber meshes, f with openings or monolithic f.

33. The liquid transport member according to claim 31 or 32, wherein the foam is a foam I cross-linked open cell, preferably selected from the cellulose sponge group, polyurethane foam and HIPE foams.

34. The liquid transport member according to claim 31 or 32, wherein the fibers are made of polyolefins, polyesters, polyamides, polyethers, polyacrylics, polyurethanes, metal, glass, cellulose, cellulose derivatives.

35. The liquid transport member according to any of the preceding claims, wherein the member is made by a region of porous volume that is wrapped with a separate wall region.

36. The liquid transport member according to any of the preceding claims, comprising water-soluble materials.

37. The liquid transport member according to claim 36, wherein at least one of the port regions comprises a water soluble material.

38. The liquid transport member according to any of the preceding claims, wherein the port region comprises a membrane material activatable by stimulus.

39. The liquid transport member according to claim 38, wherein the stimulus-activated membrane changes its hydrophilicity to the temperature change.

40. The liquid transport member according to any of the preceding claims, wherein the member is initially filled with liquid.

41. The liquid transport member according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the member is initially under vacuum.

42. The liquid transport member according to any of the preceding claims, for the transport of liquids based on water or viscoelastic liquids.

43. The liquid transport member according to claim 42, for the transport of body discharge fluids, such as urine, menstrual discharges, sweat or feces.

44. The liquid transport member according to any of the preceding claims, for the transport of oil, grease, or other liquids that are not based on water.

45. The liquid transport member according to claim 44, for the selective transport of oil or fat, but not of liquids based on water.

46. The liquid transport member according to any of the preceding claims, wherein any of the properties of the member or parameter are established prior to or in the handling of the liquid, preferably by activation by contact with the liquid, the pH, temperature, enzymes, chemical reaction, saline concentration or mechanical activation.

47. A liquid transport system comprising a liquid transport member according to any of the preceding claims, and a source of liquid that is outside the liquid transport member, or a liquid spill that is outside the member of liquid transport, or both a liquid source and a liquid weir that are outside the liquid transport member.

48. A liquid absorbing system according to claim 47, having an absorbent capacity of at least 5 g / g, preferably of at least 10 g / g, more preferably of at least 50 g / g in base to the weight of said system, when it is submitted to the Absorbance on Demand Test.

49. The liquid absorbing system according to any of claims 47 or 48, comprising a landfill material having an absorption capacity of at least 10 g / g, preferably at least 20 g / g and more preferably at least 50 g / g based on the weight of the landfill material, when subjected to the Tea Bag Centrifugal Capacity Test.

50. The liquid absorbent system according to any of claims 47 to 49, comprising the landfill material having an absorbent capacity of at least 5 g / g., preferably at least 10 g / g, more preferably at least 50 g / g based on the weight of the landfill material, when measured in the Capillary Absorption Test at a pressure up to the bubble point pressure of the port region and having an absorbent capacity of at least 5 g / g, preferably less than 2 g / g, more preferably less than 1 g / g, and more preferably less than 0.2 g / g, when is measured in the Absorption Test of Capillarity, at a pressure that exceeds the pressure of the bubble point of the port region.

51. The liquid absorbent system according to any of claims 45 to 48, which comprises the superabsorbent material or open cell foam of the Internal Elevated Phase Emulsion (HIPE) type.

52. An article comprising a liquid transport member according to any of claims 1 to 46, or a liquid transport system according to any of claims 47 to 51.

53. An article in accordance with the claim 52, which is a diaper for infant or adult incontinence, a feminine protection pad, a pantiprotector or a training underpants.

54. An article according to claim 52, which is a fat absorber.

55. An article according to claim 52, which is a water transport member.

56. A method for making a liquid transport member comprising the steps of: a) providing a volume region material; b) providing a wall material comprising an input port region and an exit port region; c) completely enclose the volume region material by the wall material; d) providing transport enable means selected from d1) vacuum; d2) liquid filling; d3) expandable elastics / springs;

57. The method according to claim 56, further comprising the step of e) applying activation means e1) liquid solution port region; e2) elastification / springs expandable to liquid solution; e3) removable release element; e4) Removable seal packing.

58. The method for making a liquid transport member comprising the steps of a) wrapping a highly porous volume material with a separate wall material comprising an inlet port region and an outlet, b) completely sealing the region of wall and c) evacuate the member essentially of air.

59. The method according to claim 58, characterized in that the member is filled with liquid.

60. The method according to claim 56 or 58, wherein the member is sealed with a layer that dissolves in liquid at least in the port regions.