Process of making hollow fibers and treating fibers
AssigneeKuraray Co., Ltd.
InventorsKazuhiko Tanaka, Hitoshi Nakatsuka, Nobuhiro Koga, Masao Kawamoto, Akihiro Hokimoto, Tateki Yamakawa, Ichirou Inoue, Kiyoshi Hirakawa
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Abstract
The present invention provides a hollow fiber, which includes: at least one thermoplastic polymer with an equilibrium water content of 2% or less; wherein the number of hollow portions (α1) and a hollow ratio (α2) in said fiber satisfy the following equations: α1≧7 2≦α2≦65 0.14≦(α1×α2)/100≦250. Other embodiments of the present invention include articles containing the hollow fiber, methods of making and of using, and a sea-island conjugate fiber
Claims11
A method for making hollow fibers, comprising:
- treating with water at least one sea-island conjugate fiber comprising:
- a sea component comprising at least one thermoplastic polymer with an equilibrium water content of 2% or less;
- and
- an island component comprising at least one water soluble thermoplastic polyvinyl alcohol polymer;
- wherein
- the number of island components (αn) and the island component ratio (αs) in the conjugate fiber satisfy the following equations:
- αn≧7
- 2≦αs≦65
- 0.14≦(αn×αs)/100≦250;
- and dissolving to remove the water soluble thermoplastic polyvinyl alcohol polymer from the conjugate fiber;
- to prepare a hollow fiber.
A method of treating a fiber structure, comprising:
- treating with water a fiber structure comprising at least one sea-island conjugate fiber, wherein said sea-island conjugate fiber comprises:
- a sea component comprising at least one thermoplastic polymer with an equilibrium water content of 2% or less;
- and
- an island component comprising at least one water soluble thermoplastic polyvinyl alcohol polymer;
- wherein
- the number of island components (αn) and the island component ratio (αs) in the conjugate fiber satisfy the following equations:
- αn≧7
- 2≦αs≦65
- 0.14≦(αn×αs)/100≦250;
- and dissolving to remove the water soluble thermoplastic polyvinyl alcohol polymer from the conjugate fiber.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.