Zhao Bo Experimental and Numerical Simulation

Study of an Air drawing Model

College of Textiles,
of Polyethylene Terephthalate (PET) Polymer
Zhongyuan University of Technology,
N0. 41 Zhongyuan Road, Zhengzhou, Henan 450007, and Model of Air Jet Flow Field
in the Spunbonding Nonwoven Process
People’s Republic of China
E-mail: zhaobohenan@sina.com
or zhaobohenan@163.com

Abstract
An air drawing model of polyethylene terephthalate (PET) polymer and one of the air jet
flow field in the spunbonding process are established. The air jet flow field model is solved
and simulated by means of the finite difference method. Numerical simulation computation
results of the distributions of air velocity match quite well with the experimental data. The
air drawing model of the polymer is solved with the help of distributions of air velocity
measured by Particle Image Velocimetry. The model’s predictions of filament fiber diam-
eters, crystallinities and birefringences coincide well with the experimental data. There-
fore it can be concluded that a higher initial air temperature can yield finer filament fiber
diameter, and a higher initial air velocity can produce a finer fiber diameter as well. The
experimental results show that the agreement between the results and experimental data is
much better, which verifies the reliability of these models. Also they reveal great prospects
for this work in the field of the computer assisted design (CAD) of the spunbonding process.

Key words: spunbonding, polyethylene terephthalate, air drawing model, air jet flow field,
polymer, fiber diameter, crystallinity, birefringence, drawing, numerical computation.

n Introduction model of the air jet flow field, which

Spunbonding technology is an important
single-step process in which high veloc-
ity cool air blows a molten thermoplastic
polymer from an extruder die tip, which
is then rapidly attenuated into filament
fibre and finally polymer resin is con-
verted into a nonwoven web [1 - 4].
The spunbonding web is ideally suited
for medical, roof and hygienic materi-
als [5 - 7], and so on. The fibre diameter
is strongly affected by the air jet flow
field developed by the spunbonding at-
tenuator. To achieve the best web perfor-
mance, therefore, most researches on the
Nomenclature spunbonding process are focused on the
effect of process parameters on the fibre
Q = polymer mass flow rate, kg/s diameter and structures of spunbonding
D = filament fibre diameter, mm equipment. These studies can help better
V = filament fibre velocity, m/s understand technology of the spunbond-
u = air velocity, m/s ing process. However, research is sel-
g = gravitational acceleration, g/s2 dom conducted on an air drawing model
Cpf = specific heat capacity of melt, of polymer and model of the air jet flow
J/(kg .K) field in the spunbonding process, which
h = convective heat transfer coeffi-
is of great importance. At the same time,
cient, W/(m2.K)
as far as the author knows, there are
T = polymer temperature, °C,
some reports in open literature regard-
Ta = air temperature, °C ing an air drawing model of spunbond-
j = sign carrier of the air drag force, ing polymer. However, these reports are
when j is -1 for u > V, and 1 for only simple introductions. In fact, the
u < V. fibre diameter is strongly affected by the
air drawing model of polyethylene tere-
Greek Symbols phthalate (PET) polymer and the model
rf = polymer density, kg/m3 of the air jet flow field. Moreover there
r = air density, kg/m3 is not any literature regarding the study
h = shear viscosity of air, Pa.s. of an air drawing model of polymer nor
strongly affects the fibre diameter and
web performance of spunbond nonwo-
ven. In this paper, an air drawing model
of polymer will be established, based on
the numerical computational method,
comparing numerical results with ex-
perimental data obtained with our uni-
versity equipment.
We established an air drawing model
of polymer in the spunbonding process
based on numerical simulation com-
putation results of the air jet flow field.
The finite difference method was ap-
plied to simulate the air jet flow field.
Meanwhile we also consider the effects
of variation in polymer processes and
further study the effects of spunbonding
process parameters on the fibre diameter.
The final fibre diameters, crystallinities
and birefringences predicted show good
agreement with experimental data. We
also investigated the effects of process
parameters such as the initial air velocity
on fibre diameter and verify the model’s
reliability for these relationships.
It is found that the model developed can
be applied to predict the drawing effects
successfully. The results obtained pre-
sent great prospects for this research in
the field of computer assisted design of
the spunbonding process, technology and
equipment.

Bo Z. Experimental and Numerical Simulation Study of an Air drawing Model of Polyethylene Terephthalate (PET) Polymer and Model of Air Jet Flow Field 89
in the Spunbonding Nonwoven Process. FIBRES & TEXTILES in Eastern Europe 2014; 22, 1(103): 89-96.
 Air drawing theoretical model 0.37 and 0.61, respectively, as far as the C pf= (0.3 + 6 ×10−4 T ) × 4.182 ×107 (10)
of spunbonding polyethylene spunbonding process is concerned).
terephthalate polymer Constitutive equation
The empirical relationship expression of
The air drawing model of spunbonding Reynolds number is as follows: As is commonly known, the polymer
polymer consists of continuity, momen- melt used in the spunbonding process
ρ D (Va − V )
tum, energy, and constitutive equations Red = (5) is a kind of non-Newtonian fluid. How-
[7 - 16]. The surrounding air conditions υa ever, the simplest constitutive equation
(velocity and temperature) are consid- i.e., the Newtonian fluid relationship is
where: r - density of the air, (Va - V ) -
ered as given functions of axial position used in this work because research has
relative velocity between the moving
[17 - 19] and obtained by numerical sim- shown that the temperature dependence
filament fibre and air, and ua - kinematic
ulation. Almost all experimental data are on viscosity is the most dominant effect,
viscosity coefficient of the air.
well fitted by drag force correlation of the while the type of constitutive equation is
following forms: secondary [25, 26]. Therefore for com-
The force on the filament fibre parallel to
the air stream can then be found from the putational simplicity the Newtonian fluid
Continuity equation following relation: constitutive equation was introduced in
π (1) our model:
Q= D 2V ρf 1
4 Fdrag
= ρ (Va -V) 2C f π DL1 (6)
2 π dV
where: Q - polymer mass flow rate, D - Frheo = D 2η (11)
where: Fdrag - air drag force on the fila- 4 dx
filament fibre diameter, V - filament fibre ment fibre, r - air density, D - filament
mean velocity in the spinning direction, Frheo
fibre diameter, L1 - filament fibre length. s= (12)
and rf - specific density of the polymer, (π D 2 / 4 )
(this quantity depends on temperature). Energy equation
= η 48.71exp[2650 /(T + 273)]exp[4( X / X ∞ ) 2
π Dh(T − Ta ) ∆H η (13)
As the polymer density varies with poly- dT f dX 48.71exp[2650 /(T + 273)]exp[4( X / X ) 2 ]
= − = + (7) ∞
mer temperature, the following correla- dx QC pf C pf dx
tion [20 - 22] is also introduced: where: η - shear viscosity of the air.
where: T - filament fibre temperature,
ρ=
f 1.356 − (5 ×10−4 T ) (2) Ta - air temperature, h - heat transfer co- Crystallisation kinetics equation:
efficient, which will vary with the axial Variation in the degree of crystallinity
where: T - polymer temperature. position, Cpf - specific heat capacity of along the spinline is given by the follow-
the polymer (it varies with temperature ing equation:
Momentum equation at constant pressure), DHf - heat of fu-
dFrheo π dV sionπ of2 the polymer [17], and Red - de- d X n1k X    X
= j ρ C f (Va − V ) D + Q
2
− ρgree D g ( )= (1 − ) ln  1 1 −
dx 2 dx
f
4 of crystallinity. The first right - hand dx X ∞ V X ∞    X ∞
side term of Equation 7 describes the
π dV π n1 −1
j ρ C f (Va − V ) D + Q
2
o
− ρ f D2 g (3) decrease in temperature due to heat loss
2 dx 4 d X n1k X    X    n1 (14)
by the fibre to the cooling medium and ( )= (1 − ) ln  1 1 −  
where: Frheo - rheological force, x - the second term represents the opposite dx X ∞ V X ∞    X ∞   
spinning axial direction position, r - air effect that crystallisation has on the tem- where: X - maximum crystallinity [17],
∞
density, j - sign carrier of air drag force, perature due to the release of the latent X/X - relative crystallinity, (ratio of the
∞
when j is -1 for Va > V, and +1 for Va < V, heat of fusion. The value for the heat
absolute crystallinity over the ultimate
ρf - polymer density, V - filament fibre transfer coefficient can be calculated
crystallinity of the material), n1 - the
velocity, Va - x-component of air veloc- from the following relation between Nu
avrami index [17], - k -the crystallisation
ity, drag results from friction between and Red.
rate [17].
the filament fibre and air when the two Nu== γ (Red ) m
Nu (8)
are moving with different velocities be-
Nu.K a Birefringence equation
cause the high air suction in the cham- h= (9)
ber results in high axial air velocities, D ∆nam = Cops (15)
therefore the relative velocity is used in Where the Nusselt number Nu [24], Ka X X
the term instead of the actual velocity of ∆n = (1 − )∆nam + f c ∆ 0c (16)
the air heat conduction coefficient, and γ X∞ X∞
the filament fibre, g is the gravitational and m are empirical constants of the cor-
acceleration, and Cf - air drawing coeffi- ∆nam / ∆ 0a
fa =
relation. (17)
cient of filament fibre as a function of the
Reynolds number, Cf - in Equation 3 was where: Cop - stress optical coefficient
The values of γ and m are 0.42 and 0.334,
given by Matsui [23, 24] with the follow- [17, 27, 28], ∆ 0c - intrinsic amorphous
respectively.
ing correlation: value [17, 27, 28], ∆ 0c - crystalline bire-
Like the polymer density, the specific fringence value [17, 27, 28].
Cf = b . (Red)-n (4)
heat capacity at constant pressure of the
where: Red - Reynolds number based on polymer also changes with the polymer Boundary conditions
the filament fibre diameter, β, n - fitted temperature. The correlation [20 - 22] is V(0) = V0, F(0) = F0, D(0) = D0,
(18)
constants (values of β and n should be given as follows: X(0) = 0, T(0) = T0, Frheo(L) = 0

90 FIBRES & TEXTILES in Eastern Europe 2014, Vol. 22, No. 1(103)
where: L - chamber length, F0 - initial assembly spinning occurs in a very short the air velocity, x - axial position, and y -
rheological force of the polymer melt, time, a two-dimensional, steady, viscous transversal position.
V0 - initial velocity of the polymer melt, turbulent flow of a perfect gas in the
D0 - initial diameter of the polymer melt, absence of body forces is considered. Momentum equation in x direction
T0 - initial temperature of the polymer Equation 20, the governing equation, is
melt. expressed as follows: ∂ ( ρ uu ) ∂ ( ρ uv) ∂ ∂u ∂
+ = 2 ( µ + µt ) + ( µ
∂x ∂y ∂x ∂x ∂y
div( ρ uφ − Γφ gradφ ) = Sφ (20)
The “freezing-point” is defined as the ∂ ( ρ uu ) ∂ ( ρ uv) ∂ ∂u ∂  ∂u ∂v 
boundary condition. The method used where + = 2 ( µ + µt ) + ( µ(23)
+ µt )  +  −
∂x ∂y ∂x ∂x ∂y  ∂y ∂x 
for determining the initial rheological 1  0  0 
∂ ( ρuu )  ∂ ( ρ uv) ∂ ∂u ∂  ∂u ∂v  ∂P
force F0 is the searching “freezing-point” φ = u  Γφ = ∂x
µ + S∂φ y= = 2 ( µ + µt ) + ( µ + µt )  +  −
 −∇p∂+x S  ∂x ∂y
+ Su
method, which requires checking wheth-  ∂y ∂x  ∂x
T   k / c   ST 
er the fibre diameters before and beyond k2
some “point” along the filament are equal where: r - air density, u - velocity vector, with, µt = ρ Cu
f - the conserved property, Γf - diffusion ε
to each other when F0 is considered to be
the sum of the cumulative gravitational coefficient, Sf - source term for the vari- where: P - air pressure, m - kinematic vis-
and air drawing force acting upon the fro- able f, T - temperature, m - dynamic vis- cosity of the air, m - turbulent viscosity of
t
zen part of the filament fibre. If the fibre cosity, k - heat conductivity, c - specific the air, C - constant of k-ε model, ε - tur-
u
diameters are found to be the same, the heat of the fluid, p - pressure, S - source bulent dissipation rate of air, k - dissipa-
“point” is the so-called “freezing-point” term, and ST - represents the viscosity tion rate of turbulent kinetic energy of air.
and is used in this iteration as the appro- disssipation rate.
priate initial rheological force. Momentum equation in y direction
Considering the compressibility of the
By means of numerical simulations of the air, the ideal gas equation is used to close ∂ ( ρ vu ) ∂ ( ρ vv) ∂  ∂u ∂v 
the equation system: + = ( µ + µt )  +  +
air jet flow field, we can determine the ∂x ∂y ∂x  ∂y ∂x 
distributions of the x-component of air p = raRT (21)
velocity Va and air temperature Ta along ∂ ( ρ vu ) ∂ ( ρ vv) ∂  ∂u ∂v  ∂ ∂v ∂P
where: R - gas constant. + = ( µ + µt )  +  + 2 (24)
( µ + µt ) −
the axial position x. It allows to solve the ∂x ∂y ∂x  ∂y ∂x  ∂y ∂y ∂y
air drawing model of the polymer using Theoretical∂ ( ρmodel
vu ) ∂of( ρthe
vv) air ∂jet flow  ∂u ∂v  ∂ ∂v ∂P
the fourth-order Runge-Kutta method. +
field in the spunbonding =process ( µ + µt )  +  + 2 ( µ + µt ) − + Sv
∂x ∂y ∂x  ∂y ∂x  ∂y ∂y ∂y
The air jet flow field of the spunbonding Here, m = uar, mt = utr
Dynamics balance equation
process is considered as a steady and vis- where: P - pressure of the air, r density
F = Fasp + Fgrav - Fdrag - Finter (19) cous flow. The flow field is assumed to of the air, ua kinematic viscosity coeffi-
where: F - force on the filament fibre, be two-dimensional. A k-ε model is the cient of the air, ut turbulent viscosity co-
Fasp - tension exerted by the aerodynam- most widely used turbulence model in efficient of the air, m kinematic viscosity
ic drawing device, Fgrav - gravitational engineering computations and it yields of the air, and mt the turbulent viscosity
force, Fdrag - air drag on the filament fi- very accurate results in the case of high of the air.
bre, Finter - inertial force. Reynolds numbers; it is defined as the
preferred turbulence model. The air flow Energy equation
field of model consists of the following
∂ ( ρ uT ) ∂ ( ρ vT ) ∂  µ  ∂T  ∂
Numerical simulation equations: continuity, momentum, en- + = (25) µ+ t  +
of the mathematical model ergy, turbulent kinetic energy and tur- ∂ x ∂y ∂ x  s t  ∂x  ∂y
of the air jet flow field bulent dissipation rate [29 ∂ ( ρ- uT
31].
) In∂ (this
ρ vT ) ∂  µt  ∂T  ∂  µt  ∂T 
in the spunbonding process paper, we adopted the k-ε standard+model =
∂x details are
∂y
 µ +   +  µ +  
∂x  s t  ∂x  ∂y  s t  ∂y 
for computation. Below some
The fibre diameter of spunbonding non- given.
woven is intensely affected by the air jet where s - Prandtl number of turbulence.
t
flow field of the spunbonding drafting as- Values of the constants of the standard Turbulent kinetic energy equation
sembly (attenuator), shown in Figure 1. k-ε model are C1e = 1.44, C2e = 1.92 and
In this paper, we established a model of Cu = 0.09 [32]. The turbulent Prandtl ∂ ( ρ ku ) ∂ ( ρ kv) ∂  µ  ∂k  ∂
the air jet flow field to simulate the flow numbers are as follows: sk = 1.0, se = 1.3, + =  µ + t   +
field and we solved it numerically via the ∂x ∂y ∂x  s k  ∂x  ∂y
Prt = 1.0 and st = 0.9 [32], where σt, σk
finite difference method. Distributions of and σε are Prandtl numbers of turbulence,
∂ ( ρ ku ) ∂ ( ρ kv) ∂  µ  ∂k  ∂  µ  ∂k 
the centreline x-component of air veloc- turbulent kinetic energy and turbulent + =  µ + t   +  µ + t   + Gk
ity along the x-axis are demonstrated. ∂x ∂y ∂x  s k  ∂x  ∂y  s k  ∂y 
dissipation rate, respectively.
∂ ( ρ ku ) ∂ ( ρ kv) ∂  µ  ∂k  ∂  µ  ∂k 
Governing equations + =  µ + t   +  µ + t   + Gk − ρε
Continuity equation
∂x ∂y ∂x  s k  ∂x  ∂y  s k  ∂y 
By ignoring the influence of polymer fi-
∂ ( ρ u ) ∂ ( ρ v)
bres or strands, air jet flow in the drafting + 0
= (22) with,
assembly (attenuator) will be a classical ∂x ∂y
µ  ∂v  
2 2 2
  ∂u  ∂v   ∂u
fluid flow problem. Since the spunbond- where: r - air density, u - x-component =
Gk t
2 + 2   +  +   (26)
ρ   ∂x   ∂y   ∂y ∂x  
ing air drawing process in the drafting of the air velocity, v - y-component of

FIBRES & TEXTILES in Eastern Europe 2014, Vol. 22, No. 1(103) 91
 b) the staggered grid is presented to
avoid tooth-like distributions of ve-
Polymer locity and pressure;
h1 h2 f c) the preferred difference scheme for
melt
Air space independent variables is the sec-
y
ond-order upwind difference scheme;
a d e
d) the TDMA method is used to solve the
b c
difference equations.
x

The computational domain is rectangu-

Figure 1. Flat narrow slot passage of drafting assembly in spunbonding process. lar when the coordinate origin is in the
centre of the flat narrow slot passage of
the drafting assembly. The x-direction
is along the spinneret axis. The length
Polymer Wall (x-direction) and width (y-direction)
melt
Inlet Outlet of the computational domain are 3600
Air
Centerline mm and 220 mm, respectively. There
y
are 2700  grids in the x-direction and
Wall
600 grids in the y-direction.
x
Comparison of theoretical results with
experimental data
Figure 2. Computational domain and boundary conditions. Experiments were carried out on the air
jet flow field of the spunbonding attenua-
where: sk - Prandtl number of turbulent 1) The conditions of upstream sections tor, shown in Figure 1. In order to verify
kinetic energy, st - Prandtl number of with the inlet are the air jet flow field model, we measured
turbulence, e - turbulent dissipation rate u = u0, v = v0, T = T0, and predicted the effects of spunbonding
of air, k - turbulent kinetic energy of air. 3 process parameters on the fibre diameter.
3
3 k2
Equation of dissipation rate k = (uavg I ) , ε = Cu
2 4
, (28) Particle Image Velocimetry (PIV-2100),
2 l produced by Denmark Dantec Inc., was
of turbulent kinetic energy
l = 0.07L utilized to measure the air velocity. In
∂ ( ρε u ) ∂ ( ρε v) ∂  µt  ∂ε  ∂  µt  ∂ε  C1ε ε ε 2the application of PIV-2100, the air was
+ =  µ +  where:  + uµ is + the x-component
+ Gk of 2ε ρ
− Cthe
∂x ∂y ∂x  s ε  ∂x  ∂y  0 s ε  ∂y  k k seeded with oil soot (lampblack) aerosol
initial air velocity, v0 the y-component particles in order for the laser light to
∂ ( ρε u ) ∂ ( ρε v) ∂  µ  ∂ε  ∂  µ  ∂ofε theCinitial
ε air velocity,ε 2 T0 the initial be scattered and measured. Experiments
+ =  µ + t   + (27) µ + t  air temperature,
+ 1ε Gk − CC 2εuρ= 0.09, uavg aver-
∂x ∂y ∂x  s ε  ∂x  ∂y  s ε  ∂y  k k were carried out on the flow field of the
age velocity of inlet, I turbulent in- spunbonding drafting assembly.
µ  ∂ε  ∂  µ  ∂ε  C ε ε2 tensity of the air, and L characteristic
µ + t   +  µ + t   + 1ε Gk − C2ε ρ
s ε  ∂x  ∂y  s ε  ∂y  k k dimension of the inlet. The flat narrow slot passage of the draft-
ing assembly is shown in Figure 1.
where: se is the Prandtl number of the 2) The conditions of the wall sections are The drafting assembly parameters are
dissipation rate of turbulent kinetic en- u = 0, v = 0, T = TW (29) as follows: the steady flow segment
ergy, C1e, and C2e - constants of the tur- length a = 40 cm, the jet orifice length
bulent model, respectively. 3) The centerline conditions (x direction) b = 10 cm, the drafting segment length
are c = 27.5 cm, the outlet orifice length
Boundary conditions of the air jet flow ∂u ∂T d = 10 cm, the drafting segment width
=0, = 0 , v = 0 (30)
field model ∂y ∂y e = 30 cm, the jet orifice height f = 6 cm,
Figure 2 shows the computational do- 4) The conditions of the outer boundaries and the drafting segment hight
main and boundary conditions. As the air h1/h2 = 3.333/2.333 cm. The initial air
(y direction) are
jet flow field of the spunbonding attenu- velocity is 15 m/s. The initial air temper-
ator is symmetrical along the system’s ∂ u ∂ v ∂k ∂ε ∂ T ature, 10.2 °C is unaltered in the meas-
= = = = = 0 (31)
centerline, the plane is chosen as the com- ∂x ∂x ∂x ∂x ∂x urements.
putation area. The upstream boundary is Numerical methods for solving the air
at the inlet of the spunbonding attenuator. The distribution of the centreline x-com-
jet flow field model
The downstream boundary is considered ponent of air velocity along the x-axis
to be far enough from the inlet of the The air jet flow field model is solved nu- is demonstrated in Figure 3, where the
spunbonding attenuator. The boundaries merically by means of the finite differ- experiment data are represented by dots.
far enough from the system’s centerline ence method. Below are some details: It was found that the theoretical (numeri-
are taken as the outer boundaries in the y a) the SIMPLE algorithm is utilised to cal) results obtained with the model con-
direction. The following boundary condi- solve the problem of the velocity pres- sidered match well with the experimental
tion correlation is introduced: sure couple; data.

92 FIBRES & TEXTILES in Eastern Europe 2014, Vol. 22, No. 1(103)
 Numerical simulation of the air Figure 3. Distribu-
tions of centreline 32
drawing model of polymer in x-component of the
the spunbonding process air velocity along 30
Experimental
the x-axis. 28 Numerical
Experiments were performed on the
spunbonding process at our university. 26

Air velocity, m/s

A spunbonding attenuator was used for 24
numerical simulation in this study. The
22
parameters of the spunbonding attenua-
tor are as follows: steady flow segment 20

length a = 14.271 cm, the jet orifice 18

length b = 13.229 cm, the drafting seg- 16
ment length c = 203.0 cm, the outlet
14
orifice length d = 129.5 cm, drafting
segment width e = 320 cm, jet orifice
0 20 40 60 80 100
height f = 22 cm, drafting segment height Drawing length, cm
h1/h2 = 5.666/3.866 cm, and the spin-
neret hole diameter is 0.045 cm.
performed at a temperature of 270  °C, ene terephthalate (PET). In this work,
The spunbonding process parameters load capacity 2.160 kg, aperture of the the effects of the initial air temperature
here are the polymer throughput rate, capillary tube 2.095 mm and length and initial air velocity are investigated.
initial (primary) temperature of polymer thereof 8 mm on the RL-11B melt flow The same spunbonding attenuator is
melt, primary air temperature, primary indexer at ambient room temperature used for numerical simulation in this
air velocity, air suction speed, web ba- conditions. study. To condense the discussions and
sis weight, quench pressure, and the
comparisons, a group of fundamental
venturi gap. The variation ranges of the
As we can see from Tables 1 and 2, the parameters is assumed for computations,
parameters are 0.15 - 0.55 g/min/hole,
values measured coincide well with the in which the polymer throughput rate is
270 - 340 °C, 12.4 - 28.4 °C, 65 - 105 m/s,
numerical computation results, which 0.20 g/min/hole, the initial polymer melt
2200 - 2600 r.p.m, 18.5 - 33.5 g/m2,
190 - 290 Pa, and 10 - 30 mm, respective- proves the reliability and accuracy of temperature 295 °C, initial air tempera-
ly. The polymer used in the experimental the air drawing model of polymer in the ture 15.6 °C, and initial air speed 85 m/s.
runs was L1482 polyethylene terephtha- spunbonding process established in our
late (PET) pellet with a melt flow index study. Relationship between the initial air
(MFI) of 78. To condense the discussions temperature and fibre diameter
and comparisons, a group of fundamen- Effects of spunbonding Figure 4.a (see page 94) shows the effect
tal parameters is set up during computa- processing parameters on of the initial air temperature on the fibre
tions, which includes a polymer through- diameter for the variations changing with
put rate of 0.20 g/min/hole, initial tem-
filament fibre diameter
distance from the spinneret. The initial
perature of the polymer melt of 295 °C, Effects of the drawing parameters on the air temperature was 12.8 °C, 15.6 °C and
initial air temperature of 15.6 °C, initial fibre diameter can be investigated based 18.4 °C, in turn, from top to bottom. As
air speed of 85 m/s, air suction speed on the air drawing model of polyethyl- can be seen, the higher the initial air tem-
of 2400 r.p.m, web basis weight of
27.5 g/m2, quench pressure of 240 Pa, Table 1. Effects of polymer combined parameters (polymer throughput rate and initial poly-
and venturi gap of 20 mm. When one mer melt temperature) on fibre diameter.
processing parameter was varied, the oth-
Polymer Initial polymer Initial air Initial air Diameter Diameter Predic-
er fundamental values were kept fixed. In No. throughput rate, melt tempera- tempera- speed, measured, predicted, tion
the measurement of the fibre diameter, the g/min/hole ture, °C ture, °C m/s mm mm error, %
image analysis method was employed. 1 0.30 22.78 21.99 3.48
Images of nonwoven samples were ac- 2 0.20 295 20.11 19.35 3.78
quired with a Questar three-dimensional 3 0.45 18.4 75.0 24.17 23.20 4.00
video frequency microscope with an 4 275 25.67 23.20 4.00
0.30
enlargement factor of 600 and depth of 5 315 23.52 22.12 5.96
focus of 1 mm and then processed with
Image-Pro Plus image analysis software Table 2. Effects of combined air parameters (initial air temperature and initial air speed)
to measure the fibre diameter. The mean on fibre diameter.
value of the diameters of 200 randomly
chosen fibres was considered as the fibre Initial air
Polymer Initial polymer Initial air Diameter Diameter Predic-
tempera-
diameter of a polyethylene terephthalate No. throughput rate, melt tempera-
ture,
speed, measured, predicted, tion
g/min/hole ture, °C m/s mm mm error, %
(PET) nonwoven sample. All the samples °C
tested were conditioned for 24 hours at 1 15.6 22.38 21.70 3.06
65% RH and 20 ± 5 °C before evaluation. 2 12.8 95.0 24.38 23.14 5.09
3 0.20 315 18.4 21.10 20.09 4.80

The melt flow index (MFI) experiments 4 85.0 25.8 24.40 5.42
15.6
5 75.0 22.08 21.11 4.39
of polyethylene terephthalate (PET) were

FIBRES & TEXTILES in Eastern Europe 2014, Vol. 22, No. 1(103) 93
 30
28
Fibre diameter, mm
26
24
22
20
18
10 20
a)
Distance from spinneret, cm
Figure 4. Showing relationship between fibre diameter and distance from spinneret with initial air: a) temperature, °C and b) speed, m/s.
perature, the finer the fibre diameter ob-
tained, which is primarily due to the fact
that the initial air temperature increased,
and both the air drawing force and degree
of drawing increased, which yield a finer
fibre diameter. Secondly when the initial
air temperature increased, the filament fi-
bre cooled more slowly along the spinline,
with the drawing (tensile) time of poly-
mer being extended (lengthened), which
resulted in a finer fibre diameter. Thirdly
when the initial air temperature increased,
the viscosity and stress decreased, which
produced a finer fibre diameter.
Relationship between the initial air
velocity and fibre diameter
Figure 4.b gives the effect of the initial
air velocity on fibre diameter, which
changes with variations in the distance
from the spinneret. Initial air veloci-
ties of 75.0 m/s, 85.0 m/s, and 95.0 m/s
were considered. As Figure 4.b shows,
the higher the initial air velocities, the
finer the fibre diameters obtained, which
is mainly attributed to the fact that with
an increase in the initial air velocity, air
drawing force and degree of drawing, a
finer fibre diameter was produced.
Effects of spunbonding nonwoven
processing parameters on fibre
performance
The subfigures of Figure 5 show the rela-
tionship between fibre diameter, polymer
melt temperature, fibre crystallinity, fibre
birefringence, polymer melt velocity and
distance from the spinneret with the pol-
ymer throughput rate, as presented by the
air drawing model, shown in Figure 5.
Figure 5.a shows the relationship be-
tween the fibre diameter and distance
from the spinneret with the polymer
throughput rate. This figure shows that
the fibre diameter decreases more slowly
94
30
Initial air temperature, °C
from top to botton
28
Fibre diameter, mm
12.8
15.6
26
18.4
24
22
20
18
30 40 50 60 70
b)
with an increase in the polymer through-
put rate. Higher polymer throughput rates
also lead to higher fibre diameters, which
is primarily due to each polymer through-
put rate having its own air speed, with the
axial air flow controlling the drag over
the entire spinline, which also affects heat
loss from the fibre.
Figure 5.b shows the polymer melt
temperature profiles for different poly-
mer throughput rates. This figure shows
that the cooling rate is lower for higher
polymer throughput rates, which is also
observed in conventional melt spinning.
This is attributed to the fact that the in-
crease in stress is at least partly due to
the variations in air flow conditions with
a changing polymer throughput rate.
Figure 5.c shows the relationship be-
tween fibre crystallinity and the distance
from the spinneret with the polymer
throughput.
Figure 5.d shows the relationship be-
tween fibre birefringence and the dis-
tance from the spinneret with the poly-
mer throughput rate. Predictions of fibre
birefringence are shown in Figure 5.d,
where it is clear that the birefringence is
decreasing with an increasing polymer
throughput rate. However, at high poly-
mer throughput rates, the curves tend to
approach each other down the spinline.
Figure 5.e shows the relationship be-
tween the polymer melt velocity and dis-
tance from the spinneret with the polymer
throughput rate. The polymer melt veloc-
ity profiles in Figure 5.e indicate that the
final velocity increases with an increase
in the polymer throughput rate, with the
velocity tending to stabilise at a higher
Initial air speed, m/s
from top to botton
75
85
95
10 20 30 40 50 60 70
Distance from spinneret, cm
distance from the spinneret, which is in
agreement with the diameter profiles.
n Conclusion
An air drawing model of polyethylene
terephthalate (PET) polymer and a model
of the air jet flow field in the spunbonding
process were developed. We numerically
simulated the air jet flow field model by
means of the finite difference method.
Computation results of the distributions
of x-components of the air velocity along
the spinline during the spunbonding pro-
cess are in accordance with experimental
data as well. The newly developed formu-
las are introduced into the spunbonding
air drawing model to predict the fibre di-
ameter. The distributions of air speed are
also introduced into the air drawing mod-
el of polyethylene terephthalate (PET)
polymer. We can predict the drawing ef-
fects by means of the air drawing model,
and model predictions of fibre diameters,
crystallinities and birefringences are in
conformity with experiment data. It was
found that a higher initial air speed and a
higher initial air temperature can all yield
finer fibres. The results predicted coincide
well with the actual data measured, which
reveal that these models are accurate. It
also shows that this area of research has
great potential in the field of computer as-
sisted design in the spunbonding nonwo-
ven process and technology.
Acknowledgements
The authors would like to thank Professors
Zhen-hua Lu and Ying-zheng Liu of the Tur-
bo machinery Institute at Shanghai Jiaotong
University for assistance in the design and
construction of the experimental apparatus.
The permission by Phoenics Inc. to use their
software with an educational license is gra-
tefully acknowledged.
FIBRES & TEXTILES in Eastern Europe 2014, Vol. 22, No. 1(103)
 28 300
Polymer throughput rate, Polymer throughput rate,

Polymer melt temperature, °C

26 g/min/hole 250 g/min/hole
from top to botton
Fibre diameter, mm

from top to botton

24 0.48 200 0.48
0.32 0.32
22 0.16 0.16
150

20 100

18 50

0 60 120 180 240 300 360 0 60 120 180 240 300 360
a) b)
Distance from spinneret, cm Distance from spinneret, cm

60 0.022

50 0.020

Fibre birefringgence
Fibre crystallity, %

40 0.018

30 Polymer throughput rate, 0.016 Polymer throughput rate,

g/min/hole g/min/hole
20 from top to botton 0.014 from top to botton
0.16 0.16
10 0.32 0.012 0.32
0.48 0.48

0 60 120 180 240 300 360 0 60 120 180 240 300 360
c) d)
Distance from spinneret, cm Distance from spinneret, cm

30
Polymer melt velocity, m/min

25

20

15 Polymer throughput rate,

g/min/hole
10 from top to botton
0.48
0.32
5
0.16
Figure 5. Relationship between the fibre diameter (a), poly-
mer melt temperature (b), fibre crystallinity (c), fibre bire-
0 60 120 180 240 300 360 fringence (d), polymer melt velocity (e) and distance from the
e) spinneret with the polymer throughput rate.
Distance from spinneret, cm

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Received 23.07.2012 Reviewed 11.03.2013
96
INSTITUTE OF BIOPOLYMERS
AND CHEMICAL FIBRES
LABORATORY OF METROLOGY
The Laboratory is active in testing fibres, yarns, textiles and medical
products. The usability and physico-mechanical properties of textiles and
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Tests within the accreditation procedure:
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products
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medical products
AB 388
Other tests:
n for fibres
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n for yarn
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n for textiles
n mass per unit area using small samples
n thickness
n tenacity
n for films
n thickness-mechanical scanning method
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n for medical products
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The Laboratory of Metrology carries out analyses for:
n research and development work
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Main equipment:
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n Electrical Capacitance Tester for the determination of linear density un-
evenness - Uster Type C
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Contact:
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