FINISHING OF NONWOVEN FABRICS

                       FINISHING OF NONWOVEN FABRICS

The production of nonwoven fabrics is carried out either as a continuous process, with fiber or resin as the input material and a roll of fabric as output, or as a series of batch processes. Correspondingly, fabric finishing is carried out either in tandem with web formation and consolidation or off-line as a separate operation.

Nonwoven bonded fabrics are, by definition, textiles and they can be finished in exactly the same way as other textiles such as woven or knitted fabrics. There are many examples of particular methods and types of finishing equipment being used for both kinds of fabrics.

Nonwovens may be given one or more of a variety of finishing processes as a means of enhancing fabric performance or aesthetic properties. Performance properties include functional characteristics such as moisture regain and transport, absorbency or repellency, flame retardancy, electrical response, resistance and frictional behavior.

Aesthetic properties include various attributes such as appearance, surface texture, color, and odor.

Finishing of nonwoven bonded fabrics can be classified from different ways. Some people believe that nonwoven finishing processes can be categorized as chemical, mechanical, or thermal-mechanical.

Chemical finishing involves the application of chemical agents as coating to fabric surfaces or the impregnation of fabrics with chemical additives

or fillers.

Mechanical finishing involves altering the texture of fabric surfaces by physically reorienting or shaping fibers on or near the fabric surface. Thermal-mechanical finishing involves altering fabric dimensions or physical properties using of heat and pressure. Generally, finishing of nonwoven bonded fabrics is classified as

Dryfinishing or Wet finishing.