Modelling of the Through-air Bonding Process

A computational fluid dynamics (CFD) modelling ofthe through-air bonding process of nonwoven fabricproduction is reported in this article. In the throughairprocess, hot air is passed through the fibrous webto heat and melt polymer fibers. Molten polymersubsequently flows to the point of contact betweenany two fibers to produce a bond. Two differentmodelling strategies are adapted to produce acomprehensive understanding of the through-airbonding process. In macroscale modelling, a CFDmodel is developed treating the whole web as aporous media in order to investigate the effect ofprocess parameters. Results reveal that the timerequired to heat and melt the fibers decreases with theincreasing porosity of the web and the velocity of hotair. The CFD modelling technique is then used toanalyze the bonding process at a more fundamentallevel by considering the bonding of individual fibersat microscale. The effects of the fiber diameter,bonding temperature and contact angle between twofibers on the bonding time are investigated. Resultsshow that the time required to bond fibers is weaklyrelated to bonding temperature and fiber diameter.Fiber orientation angle, on the other hand, hassignificant effect on the progression of bondformation.