A Study on the Manufacture and Properties of High Strength and High Modulus Nonwoven Geotextile from Staple Fibers

단섬유를 이용한 고강도$\cdot$고강성 부직포형 지오텍스타일의 제조와 그 물성연구

The production method for light-weight high strength and high modulus(HSHM) nonwovens is generally a spunbond process which consists of needling of bicomponent filament webs followed by thermobonding or binding of filament webs by means of foamed acrylic binder. In this study, the production of HSHM nonwovens from staple fibers and the influence of processing parameters on their mechanical and hydraulic properties were evaluated. Low melting bicomponent staple fibers(LMPET/PET) were used as binder fibers and blended with polypropylene staple fibers, 65/35, 75/25, 85/15 by weight. The random-laid carding web was then treated by a needle punching process and thermobonding process, thereby producing HSHM nonwovens. The optimum conditions for processing were determined by considering the mechanical property, hydraulic property, dimensional stability, and yellowing of HSHM nonwovens. To manufacture HSHM nonwovens, the content of binder fibers must preferably be 65% or above, and the temperature of heat calender, 95~11$0^{\circ}C$. Tensile strength of both HSHM nonwovens from staple fibers and spunbonded fabrics indicated that the latter is a little greater than the former, however, the HSHM nonwovens from staple fibers can be used as a replacement for the spunbond fabrics.