Method of making a fabric-creped absorbent cellulosic sheet

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-8980052-B2
Application number	US-201414220244-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Mar 20, 2014
Priority date	Oct 7, 2002
Publication date	Mar 17, 2015
Grant date	Mar 17, 2015

Abstract

A method of making a fabric-creped absorbent cellulosic sheet. A papermaking furnish is compactively dewatered to form a nascent web having an apparently random distribution of papermaking fiber. The dewatered web is applied to a translating transfer surface that is moving at a transfer surface speed. The web is fabric creped from the transfer surface utilizing a patterned creping fabric. The fabric creping step occurs under pressure in a fabric creping nip defined between the transfer surface and the creping fabric. The creping fabric travels at a fabric speed that is slower than the transfer surface speed. The creping fabric contacts the transfer surface and applies pressure to the web against the transfer surface such that the fibers of the web are redistributed on the creping fabric to form a web with a drawable reticulum having a plurality of interconnected regions of different local basis weights.

First claim

We claim:

1. A method of making a fabric-creped absorbent cellulosic sheet, the method comprising:
(a) compactively dewatering a papermaking furnish to form a nascent web having an apparently random distribution of papermaking fiber;
(b) applying the dewatered web having the apparently random fiber distribution to a translating transfer surface that is moving at a transfer surface speed; and
(c) fabric creping the web from the transfer surface at a consistency of from about 30 percent to about 60 percent utilizing a patterned creping fabric, the fabric creping step occurring under pressure in a fabric creping nip defined between the transfer surface and the creping fabric, the creping fabric traveling at a fabric speed that is slower than the transfer surface speed, wherein the creping fabric is adapted to contact the transfer surface and applies pressure to the web against the transfer surface such that the fibers of the web are redistributed on the creping fabric to form a web with a drawable reticulum comprising a cohesive fiber matrix capable of increasing in void volume, the drawable reticulum having a plurality of interconnected regions of different local basis weights including at least:
(i) a plurality of fiber-enriched regions having fibers oriented in a cross machine direction (CD) of the sheet, and
(ii) a plurality of linking regions that link corresponding ones of the fiber-enriched regions together in linking directions, the linking regions having fibers oriented in the linking directions.

2. The method according to claim 1 , further comprising drying the web to form a dried web, and drawing the dried web in order to increase the bulk of the web.

3. The method according to claim 1 , further comprising drying the web to form a dried web, and drawing the dried web in order to decrease the sidedness of the web.

4. The method according to claim 1 , further comprising drying the web to form a dried web, and drawing the dried web in order to attenuate the fiber-enriched regions of the web.

5. The method according to claim 1 , wherein the plurality of fiber-enriched regions have a high local basis weight, and the plurality of linking regions have a local basis weight that is lower than the local basis weight of the plurality of fiber-enriched regions.

6. The method according to claim 5 , further comprising controlling the fabric creping and processing parameters such that the orientation of fibers in the fiber-enriched regions is biased in the cross machine direction.

7. The method according to claim 5 , wherein the fiber-enriched regions have a plurality of microfolds with fold lines extending transverse to the machine direction, and further comprising drying the web to form a dried web, and drawing the dried web in the machine direction to expand the microfolds.

8. The method according to claim 1 , the method being operated at a fabric crepe of from about 10% to about 300%.

9. The method according to claim 1 , the method being operated at a fabric crepe of at least about 40%.

10. The method according to claim 1 , the method being operated at a fabric crepe of at least about 60%.

11. The method according to claim 1 , the method being operated at a fabric crepe of at least about 80%.

12. The method according to claim 1 , the method being operated at a fabric crepe of 100% or more.

13. The method according to claim 1 , the method being operated at a fabric crepe of at least about 125%.

14. The method according to claim 1 , wherein the creping fabric is adapted to contact a creping roll over a nip width of at least about ⅛″.

15. The method according to claim 1 , wherein the creping fabric is adapted to contact a creping roll over a nip width of at least about ½″.

16. The method according to claim 1 , wherein the creping fabric is adapted to contact a creping roll over a nip width of from about ⅛″ to about 2″.

17. The method according to claim 1 , wherein the creping fabric is adapted to contact a creping roll over a nip width of from about ½″ to about 2″.

18. The method according to claim 1 , wherein the creping step takes place under a pressure of at least 20 pounds per linear inch.

19. The method according to claim 1 , wherein the creping step takes place under a pressure from 20 pounds per linear inch to about 200 pounds per linear inch.

20. The method according to claim 1 , wherein the creping step takes place under a pressure of from 40 pounds per linear inch to 70 pounds per linear inch.

21. The method according to claim 1 , further comprising drying the web to form a dried web, and drawing the dried web in order to increase the void volume of the web.

22. A method of making a fabric-creped absorbent cellulosic sheet, the method comprising:
(a) compactively dewatering a papermaking furnish to form a nascent web having an apparently random distribution of papermaking fiber;
(b) applying the dewatered web having the apparently random fiber distribution to a translating transfer surface that is moving at a transfer surface speed;
(c) fabric creping the web from the transfer surface at a consistency of from about 30 percent to about 60 percent utilizing a patterned creping fabric, the fabric creping step occurring under pressure in a fabric creping nip defined between the transfer surface and the creping fabric, the fabric traveling at a fabric speed that is slower than the transfer surface speed, wherein the creping fabric is adapted to contact the transfer surface and applies pressure to the web against the transfer surface such that the fibers of the web are redistributed on the creping fabric to form a web with a drawable fiber reticulum comprising a cohesive fiber matrix capable of increasing in void volume, the drawable reticulum having a plurality of interconnected regions of different local basis weights including at least:
(i) a plurality of fiber-enriched regions having fibers oriented in a cross machine direction (CD) of the sheet, and
(ii) a plurality of linking regions that link corresponding ones of the fiber-enriched regions together in linking directions, the linking regions having fibers oriented in the linking directions;

(d) applying the web to a drying cylinder;
(e) drying the web on the drying cylinder to form a dried web; and
(f) removing the dried web from the drying cylinder,
wherein steps (d), (e), and (f) are performed so as to substantially preserve the drawable fiber reticulum.

23. The method according to claim 22 , wherein the drying cylinder is a Yankee dryer.

24. The method according to claim 23 , further comprising removing the web from the Yankee drying without substantially creping the web.

25. The method according to claim 23 , wherein, subsequent to startup, further comprising removing the web from the Yankee dryer without a creping blade.

26. The method according to claim 22 , the method being operated at a fabric crepe of from about 10% to about 100% and a crepe recovery of from about 10% to about 100%.

27. The method according to claim 22 , the method being operated at a crepe recovery of at least about 20%.

28. The method according to claim 22 , the method being operated at a crepe recovery of at least about 30%.

29. The method according to claim 22 , the method being operated at a crepe recovery of at least about 40%.

30. The method according to claim 22 , the

Assignees

• Georgia Pacific Consumer Prod

Inventors

• Super Guy H
• Edwards Steven L
• Mccullough Stephen J
• Murray Frank C

Classifications

• D21F11/006

  Making patterned paper · CPC title

• D21H27/007

  relating to absorbency, e.g. amount or rate of water absorption, optionally in combination with other parameters relating to physical or mechanical properties · CPC title

• D21H27/005

  relating to physical or mechanical properties, e.g. tensile strength, stretch, softness · CPC title

• A47K10/02

  Towels (paper towels A47K10/16) · CPC title

• D21H21/20

  Wet strength agents · CPC title