Abstract: Spunlaced nonwoven composites are reinforced by the impact effect of water jets. Water jet energy and spunlace process are the main factors affecting the structure and filtration performance of nonwoven composites. By adjusting the key parameters of spunlace process, the effects of water needle energy and spunlace process on the structure and filtration performance of the nonwovens were studied. Results showed that, the multi-layer fiber webs will be entangled with each other and form a gradient structure under the impact effect of water jet. The thickness and modal aperture of the sample changed with the different arrangement of water needle energy and spunlace pressure. When other conditions remain unchanged,the samples have good interception efficiency for fine particles in the range of 2.5~10 μm, and filtration efficiency and filtration resistance both increase as the water needle energy increases. And the tortuous pores of PPS/PTFE composite nonwovens with “gradient structure” may be the key to effective interception for 2.5~10 μm particles.

Key words: hydroentanglement; nonwoven composites; process; filtration performance