Process for point-bonding organic fibers

A process for making point-bonded nonwoven fabrics, said process being characterized by simultaneously heating and compressing spaced, discrete areas of a nonwoven web of thermally bondable organic fibers said web containing an attenuating liquid, said attenuating liquid being a liquid whose presence in the web does not, under the bonding conditions employed, provide a fabric having higher strip tenacity than would be obtained in the absence of such liquid under otherwise equivalent conditions, and the quantity of attenuating liquid, the temperature, the compressive force, and the time of exposure of the web thereto being correlated to effect bonding of web fibers in the heated and compressed areas and to provide a point-bonded nonwoven fabric having a bending modulus at least 20% lower than that of a fabric prepared without the use of said attenuating liquid under otherwise equivalent conditions.