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AssigneeNational Nonwovens Inc.
InventorsMark Gregory Lawrence, Conrad Anthony D'Elia, Anthony Joseph Centofanti, Paul Anthony Viveiros
Estimating the term…
The present invention generally relates to composites and articles made from nonwoven structures. One aspect of the invention is generally directed to nonwoven structures which are heated and/or pressed to form a substantially rigid article. In some cases, the nonwoven structure may be heated to temperatures greater than the glass transition temperature but less than the melting temperature of a polymer within the nonwoven structure. Such articles may exhibit creep of the polymer around other fibers in the nonwoven structure, but without any evidence of melting and/or flow. In addition, in some embodiments, such articles may have relatively large void volumes, or exhibit properties such as low flammability, smoke resistance, or acoustic insulation. Other aspects of the present invention are generally directed to systems and methods for making such articles, methods of use of such articles, kits comprising such articles, etc.
An article, comprising polyetherimide and fibers comprising poly(paraphenylene terephthalamide), wherein the article has an average void volume of at least about 50% and a density of at least about 0.1 g/cm3, and wherein the polyetherimide is disposed on at least some of the fibers and does not show evidence of flow or melting of polyetherimide.
A unitary article, comprising fibers comprising a poly(paraphenylene terephthalamide) and a polyetherimide disposed on at least some of the fibers, wherein the polyetherimide does not show evidence of flow or melting of polyetherimide, and wherein the article has a void volume of at least about 50%.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.