Particle-filled fiber and articles formed from the same

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-10753022-B2
Application number	US-201514705565-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	May 6, 2015
Priority date	Jul 25, 2014
Publication date	Aug 25, 2020
Grant date	Aug 25, 2020

Abstract

A melt-spun polymer fiber is provided having a cross-section and a length. A detectable particulate has a size of less than 31 microns and present in an amount of 2.0 to 50.0 weight percent loadings of metal or 10 to 80 weight percent loadings of radiopaque particles to render the polymer fiber detectable by metal (magnetic) or X-ray detection, alone or in combination with a secondary functional particulate distributed in or on the polymer fiber to render the polymer fiber chemically responsive to a chemical reactant, change in pH or temperature. The detectable particulate and the secondary functional particulate are each independently present in a core, a sheath, or both portions of polymer matrix. A process of detecting a fabric made from such a fiber. The fabric article passes through detector. A signal is collected from the detector indicative of the presence of the fabric article.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. A non-woven fiber article for use in a food production, a medical production, or a pharmaceutical production environment, said article comprising:
a melt-spun thermoplastic polymer fiber having a cross-section and a length; and
a deformed stainless steel detectable particulate distributed in the melt-spun thermoplastic polymer fiber, the stainless steel detectable particle having a size of less than 31 microns to render the thermoplastic polymer fiber detectable, alone or in combination with a secondary functional particulate distributed in or on the polymer fiber to render the thermoplastic polymer fiber chemically responsive to a chemical reactant, change in pH or temperature;
wherein said stainless steel detectable particulate comprises a plurality of spherical particles, and a plurality of flattened and misshaped particles formed from spherical particles, said particulate distributed in said thermoplastic polymer, wherein said particulate is present from 2 to 12 total weight percent of the total weight of the fiber;
wherein said stainless steel detectable particulate is detectable by X-ray detection or magnetic detection; and
wherein said melt-spun thermoplastic polymer fiber combined with said deformed stainless steel detectable particulate and said secondary functional particulate when present has a weight per unit length of 2.0 denier and the article defining a shape of a hair net, a protective suit, a shoe cover, a wipe, packaging, an apron, a beard cover, or a mop head.

2. The article of claim 1 wherein the stainless steel detectable particulate having a shortest linear dimension as measured from among three orthogonal Cartesian coordinate axes X-Y-Z that is less than or equal to one half a cross-sectional average dimension of the polymer fiber along the three orthogonal Cartesian coordinate axes X-Y-Z.

3. The article of claim 1 wherein the thermoplastic polymer fiber is one of polypropylene, polyethylene, polybutene, polyisobutylene, a polyamide, a polyacrylate, a polystyrene, a polyurethane, an acetal resins, a polyethylene vinyl alcohol; a polyester, a polyphenylene sulfide, a thermoplastic elastomers, a polyacrylonitrile; a cellulose, a polyaramid, or a block copolymer containing at least one of the aforementioned.

4. The article of claim 1 wherein the thermoplastic polymer fiber is a single composition with the cross section that is one of circular, multi-lobal or polygonal.

5. The article of claim 1 further comprising a sheath surrounding the thermoplastic polymer fiber.

6. The article of claim 5 further comprising a particulate loaded dusting intermediate between said thermoplastic polymer fiber and said sheath.

7. The article of claim 1 wherein said polymer fiber has a diameter between 0.1 and 500 microns.

8. The article of claim 1 wherein the secondary functional particulate comprises a metallic nanocrystal.

9. The article of claim 1 wherein the secondary functional particulate is present from 0.01 to 5 total weight percent of the melt-spun polymer fiber.

10. The article of claim 1 wherein the secondary functional particulate comprises a gold nanocrystal.

11. The article of claim 10 further comprising a moiety covalently bonded to the gold nanocrystal.

12. A process of detecting a fabric article comprising: forming a thermoplastic polymer fiber having a cross-section and a length and a detectable particulate distributed in the thermoplastic polymer fiber, wherein the detectable particulate is a deformed stainless steel detectable particulate distributed in the thermoplastic polymer fiber, the stainless steel detectable particle having a size of less than 31 microns to render the thermoplastic polymer fiber detectable, alone or in combination with a secondary functional particulate distributed in or on the polymer fiber to render the thermoplastic polymer fiber chemically responsive to a chemical reactant, change in pH or temperature,
wherein said stainless steel detectable particulate comprises a plurality of spherical particles and a plurality of flattened and misshaped particles formed from spherical particles, said detectable particulate distributed in said thermoplastic polymer, wherein said particulate is present from 2 to 12 total weight percent of the total weight of the thermoplastic polymer fiber,
wherein said stainless steel detectable particulate is detectable by X-ray detection or magnetic detection,
and wherein said thermoplastic polymer fiber combined with said deformed stainless steel detectable particulate and said secondary functional particulate when present has a weight per unit length of 2.0 denier;
forming a fabric at least partially from said thermoplastic polymer fiber;
manufacturing the fabric article at least partially from said fabric;
passing the fabric article through an X-ray detector or a magnetic detector; and
collecting a signal from said X-ray detector or magnetic detector indicative of the presence of the fabric article.

13. The process of detecting the fabric article of claim 12 wherein the fabric article is a medical device.

14. The process of detecting the fabric article of claim 12 wherein the fabric article is non-woven.

Assignees

• Illinois Tool Works

Inventors

• Aldridge Emily
• Martin Robert
• Mertins Karen

Classifications

• D01F8/06

  with at least one polyolefin as constituent · CPC title

• D01D5/08

  Melt spinning methods {(D01D5/0023 takes precedence)} · CPC title

• D04H1/4383

  sea-island · CPC title

• D04H1/43828

  sheath-core · CPC title

• D01F6/06

  from polypropylene · CPC title