Water soluble fibers with post process modifications and articles containing same

A method of treating a nonwoven web comprising a plurality of fibers, each fiber of the plurality of fibers comprising a polymer comprising at least one of a vinyl acetate moiety or a vinyl alcohol moiety, the method comprising:

• contacting at least a portion of the nonwoven web with a modification agent to chemically modify the polymer in a first region of each fiber with the modification agent so as to provide a modified nonwoven web.

The method according to 52, wherein the fiber further comprises an additional polymer.

The method according to 52, wherein the modification agent comprises an anhydride, a carboxylic acid, an alcohol, an ester, an ether, a sulfonic acid, a sulfonate, a click chemistry reagent, an amide, an amine, a lactam, a nitrile, a ketone, an allyl containing compound, an acetyl containing compound, a halogen, an alkyl containing compound, an imide, an acetal containing compound, an enolate, a nitro containing compound, a silane, or any combination thereof.