Teijin begins production of Nanofront polyester fiber

12 Aug '08

4 min read

Teijin Fibers Limited announced they will begin the commercial production of a high-strength polyester fiber called Nanofront, developed in-house using original nano-technology.

Nanofront is an ultra-fine fiber that is resistant to slippage, yet delicate and comfortable, while ensuring high absorbency and opaqueness. It is expected to be used for a wide range of applications, ranging from clothing to industrial materials.

The commercial production of Nanofront is aimed to ensure a more stable supply of the product, enabling its use in a wide array of applications for future products.

The production of fine but strong fibers has always been the goal of synthetic fiber manufacturers throughout history. Many technologies were developed and during the 1990s, a micro-gauge fiber called "micro-fiber" was produced.

Increased expectations for nano-sized materials have spurred many firms to actively develop new types of nano-fibers. Minimizing the gauge of a fiber will enable new types of functionality in keeping with the "nano-size effect."

Characteristics such as absorbency, separation, dispersal functioning and large surface area are common to nano-gauge materials.

However, when mass-production is attempted, nano-fibers tend to lose strength or have irregular fiber length. The successful commercialization of such long-fiber filaments has been elusive.

Teijin has developed the innovative "Sea/Island Cross-sectional Conjugate Fiber Forming Technology," successfully creating a commercially producible high-strength long polyester fiber called Nanofront.

The technology involves the use of two distinct types of two polymers, one represented by the "sea" components and the other by the "island" components.

A special type of alkaline processing is employed to melt the "sea" component away, leaving only the "island" portion, which remains as the fiber.

In a process of "sea/island conjugate fiber forming," commonly used microfiber only forms a few dozen island components in a single fiber.

But Nanofront, on the other hand, forms some forms 1,000 island components in a single fiber by adopting the innovative "New Sea/Island Separatable Fiber Technology" based on a cap channel design technology and polymer technology that can create many island components in a sea/island cross section.

Moreover, through the use of a high-performance polymer, it is easy to add various functions to Nanofront to enable the development of new product variations.

Product Features:
- Ultra-fine long fiber with an unprecedented thickness of just 700 nanometers
- Has strength comparable to regular long micro-fiber and long polyester fiber used for ordinary clothing
- The surface is flat and even with almost no irregularity in fiber length
- May be handled in the same way as regular polyester, and requires no restrictions in processing
- Has a cooling function due to great absorbency, diffusion and water retention is made possible by the capillary "wicking" effect and moisture absorption properties.

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