Coformed dispersible nonwoven fabric bonded with a hybrid system

A flushable article produced by a method, comprising:

• a) providing a primary reinforcing material;
• b) providing a secondary reinforcing material comprising polymer fibers, said secondary reinforcing material polymer fibers having an average fiber length less than or equal to about 15 mm;
• c) providing an absorbent material;
• d) forming a mixture of said secondary reinforcing material and said absorbent material;
• e) forming a fiber stream composed of meltspun primary reinforcing material;
• f) adding an effective amount of the mixture of step d) to said fiber stream;
• g) forming a fibrous nonwoven structure from the fiber steam of step f);
• and,
• h) exposing said nonwoven structure of step g) to a source of energy selected from the group consisting of thermal energy and ultrasonic energy such that only one of said primary and secondary reinforcing materials softens and bonds to the other material, while the other reinforcing material remains substantially unsoftened, wherein said structure is stable in an aqueous environment containing a high ion concentration and disperses in an aqueous environment containing a diluted ion concentration.

A flushable article containing a fibrous nonwoven material, said nonwoven material comprising water-dispersible fibrous nonwoven composite structure, comprising:

• a. a primary reinforcing material comprising polymer fibers;
• b. a secondary reinforcing material comprising polymer fibers, said secondary reinforcing material polymer fibers having an average fiber length less than or equal to about 15 mm;
• and said secondary reinforcing material having a softening point less than the softening point of said primary reinforcing material such that when said structure is heated said secondary material softens and bonds to said primary reinforcing material, and said primary reinforcing material does not appreciably soften;
• and
• c. an absorbent material,
• whereby said flushable article is capable of being flushed down a commode and associated plumbing and piping, entering a sewer system without clogging said plumbing and said piping, and dispersing into pieces no larger than about 25 mm in diameter, and
• whereby said water-dispersible fibrous nonwoven composite structure is stable in an aqueous environment containing a high ion concentration and disperses in an aqueous environment containing a diluted ion concentration .