Journal of Fiber Bioengineering & Informatics 4:4 (2011) 403411

http://www.jfbi.org | doi:10.3993/jfbi12201110

Hydrophilic Properties of PP/CHA Nonwoven Fabrics

Lingling Fan, Deshan Cheng, Xiangyu Jin
Engineering Research Center of Technical Textiles, Ministry of Education
Donghua University, Shanghai 201620, China

Abstract
This paper presents the preparation of PP/CHA melt-blown nonwoven fabric and the studies on its
hydrophilic property. The property of polymer materials was investigated at the first place by differential
thermal analysis (DSC) and rheology analysis. SEM was used to study the web structure affected
by the hot air temperature. Wide-angle X-ray Diffraction (WAXD) was used to study the degree of
crystallization of PP/CHA melt-blown nonwovens produced at different hot air temperatures. The
hydrophilic property of PP/CHA melt-blown nonwoven fabrics was studied by testing the static water
contact angle, the liquid wicking rate and the multiple liquid strikethrough time. The static contact angle
test proves that hydrophilic properties were obtained by means of using the Commercial Hydrophilic
Additive (CHA), while the addition of the Traditional Hydrophilic Additive (THA) did not. The liquid
wicking rate test shows that PP/CHA nonwoven fabric has the highest liquid wicking rate due to
its hydrophilic groups transferred to the surface and forming a hydrophilic film. The multiple liquid
strikethrough time indicates that the nonwoven fabric treated by THA loses its wettability after 3
insults, while nonwovens containing 5.5% CHA remained hydrophilic even after 12 insults. It can be
concluded that PP/CHA melt-blown nonwoven fabrics have durable hydrophilic property.
Keywords: PP/CHA Melt-blown Nonwoven; Preparation; Additive; Hydrophilicity; Static Contact
Angle

Introduction

Nonwovens have become one of the fast growing industries in the textile world. Nonwoven fabrics
are processed by web forming and web consolidation, which are different from the processes of
conventional textile fabrics. Melt-blown nonwovens possess a 3-dimentional network structure
fabricated by ultrafine fibers, which gives them small pore size, high porosity, good filtration and
absorption properties [1].
With nonwoven products moving into more technical end-uses, Polypropylene (PP) fibres have
grown to be one of the dominant materials in the nonwovens industry. It is estimated that over
90% of all Melt-blown (MB) nonwovens are made from Polypropylene (PP), because of its low

Corresponding author.
Email address: jinxy@dhu.edu.cn (Xiangyu Jin).

19408676 / Copyright 2011 Binary Information Press & Textile Bioengineering and Informatics Society
December 2011

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cost, ease of processing, favorable chemical and physical properties, such as lack of heat shrinkage,
impact strength, tensile strength, and its ability to be drawn into very fine fibers [2].
However, PP is a typical hydrophobic polymer, so its melt-blown nonwovens have poor hydrophilicity, which limits their use in some areas. To improve wettability and increase the surface
energy of PP nonwoven fabrics, many techniques have been studied to introduce polar groups
to the surface and enrich surface functionality. Chemical treatments have been used to create
hydroxyl and carboxylic acid groups on PP nonwoven fabrics [3-7]. Surface coatings with a solution containing hydrophilic substances have also been used to improve the hydrophilic properties
[8, 9].
Besides these modification techniques, the use of migratory additives, i.e., materials added to
the melt that exhibit controlled migration to the surface of the PP nonwoven fabrics, have been
recognized as low cost materials and reliable method to generate desirable surface properties
without altering the bulk properties [10]. Migratory additives have been of great interest for
several reasons. They are efficient, as only a small quantity of additive is needed to significantly
change the polymer surface property [11]. Furthermore, compared with other techniques such as
plasma treatment [12-14], surface grafting [15-18], and solution coating [8, 9], migratory additives
do not require post processing and solvent handling.
Many nonionic surfactants have been used as migratory additives to render PP nonwovens
surface hydrophilic. Examples include lauric acid diethanol amide [11], and polyethylene glycol
(PEG) lauryl ether [19]. An ionic surfactant, sodium alkenesulfonate with 15 carbons, was used
to hydrophilize PP fabric as well [20]. Although a lot of surfactants are reported to be able to
change the surface properties of PP films, there has been a little work reported to systematically
study the effects of hydrophilic additives on the surface hydrophilicity of PP melt-blown nonwoven
fabrics.
In this article, we investigate the properties of PP melt-blown nonwoven fabrics modified by
blending with a Novel Hydrophilic Additive (CHA) in different melt-blown process conditions.

2
2.1

Experiments
Materials

Polypropylene was obtained from Shanghai Expert Company as the base polymer for this study.
The Novel Hydrophilic Additive (CHA) was a pre blended mixture of 40% PP and 60% active
ingredients, which structure as CH3 CH2 (CH2 CH2 )a CH2 CH2 (OCH2 CH2 )b OH, in which a=9-25
and b=1-10. A Traditional Hydrophilic Additive (THA), which probably contains a substance
structured as HO (CH2 CH2 O)n H.

2.2
2.2.1

Polymer Characterization
Thermal Analysis

Thermal analysis was carried out using the Differential Scanning Calorimeter (DSC). Polymer
materials were heated from room temperature to 200 at a heating rate of 10 /min in the N2

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405

atmosphere, held at that temperature for 10 mins to ensure complete melting of all the crystals,
and then cooled to room temperature at the rate of 65 /min.
2.2.2

Rheological Property

The rheological behavior of polymer materials was performed by an ARES-RFS rheometer. The
samples were cylinders of 8 mm in diameter and 2mm thick and were placed on the rheometer
plates. The measurements were done at 180 - 220 . The rheometer was interfaced with a
computer so that the viscosity and stress signals could be directly recorded and analyzed.

2.3

Preparation of Melt-blown Nonwoven Fabrics

The experiments were carried out using the melt-blowing nonwoven equipment at Donghua University. PP was extruded through the extruder with CHA and THA respectively. The concentration of CHA and THA in the melt-blown nonwoven fabrics was formulated at from 2.5wt% to
6.5wt%. The dual-slot-die parameters were as follows: slot width=0.2 mm, die length=200 mm,
head extended width=0.5 mm, and the spinneret diameter=0.18 mm. The polymer throughput
was 0.28g/hole/min, the die temperature was 240 , hot air temperature was 275 -295 ,
the hot air pressure was 0.10 Mpa - 0.40 Mpa, and the Die-to-collector Distance (DCD) was
8 cm-14 cm.

2.4

Nonwoven Fabric Characterization

2.4.1

Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM) Analysis

The morphologies of PP/CHA melt-blown nonwoven fabrics produced in different hot air temperature were examined using a JSM-5600 scanning electron microscopy. The specimens were
coated with gold using a sputter coater and their morphology was observed under the SEM at an
acceleration voltage of 10 kV.
2.4.2

Wide-angle x-ray Diffraction

Wide-angle x-ray diffraction (WAXD) of the nonwoven samples was carried out using a D/max2550 PC X-ray diffractometer in continuous scan mode to evaluate the degree of crystallization.
Equatorial scans were obtained from 2=2 to 30 in steps of 0.02 and a dwell time of 0.12 s,
whilst operating at 40 kV and 200 mA.
2.4.3
2.4.3.1

Hydrophilic Properties Analysis

Static Water Contact Angle

The static contact angle of the original and the modified nonwovens were measured to quantify
the change in hydrophilicity, using a contact angle goniometer (OCA15EC, dataphysics, Germany). A Sessile Drop method, which was preferred for explanate surfaces, was chosen. An
ultra-pure water drop (3l) was added to a dry sample in ambient atmosphere, and the sample was observed through a traveling microscope fitted with a goniometer eyepiece. The data

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shown represented an average over five measurements performed on five different areas of the
same specimen.
2.4.3.2

The Liquid Wicking Rate

The capillarity method measures the rate of vertical capillary rise in a specimen strip suspended
in the test liquid. The liquid wicking rate was investigated according to ISO 9073-6 Textiles
Testing standard.
2.4.3.3

Multiple Liquid Strikethrough Time

This test measures the strikethrough time, i.e. the time taken for a known volume of liquid
(simulated urine) applied to the surface of the test piece of nonwoven cover stock, which is in
contact with an underlying standard absorbent pad, to pass through the nonwoven. In this test,
the liquid strikethrough time of the fabrics has been examined for 12 times. Liquid strikethrough
time was investigated according to ISO 9073-8 Textiles Testing standard.

3
3.1
3.1.1

Results and Discussion

Raw Materials Analysis
DSC Analysis

Since the web structure can be significantly affected by the heating during melt-blown process, it
is very important to investigate the thermal properties of the three raw materials. Fig. 1 shows
the DSC curves for the raw materials, where the melt temperature of PP is 160 , while THA
and CHA show more complicated on DSC curve which have multi-melting points performance,
indicating that they are both intermixture, therefore, the condition of the melt blowing process
of the mixture may be different from pure PP.
0.8

H (mv)

0.6
0.4

RZ

0.2

CHA

0.0
0.2

PP

0.4
0.6
0.8
0

50

100
150
Tempreture

200

250

Fig. 1: DSC curves of raw materials

3.1.2

Rheological Property Analysis

As shown in Fig. 2, the rheological behaviour of the materials was obtained by shear stress-shear
rate and shear viscosity -shear rate measurements within a range of shear rates (0.1-100 s1 ).
Via rheological analysis, the fluid viscosity decreases and the sheer stress increases of the polymer

2000
30

1500

20

1000

10

500
0
0

20 40 60 80 100
Sheer rate (1/s)

180 deg
200 deg
220 deg

180 deg
200 deg
220 deg

300
250
200
150
100
50
0

250
200
150

50

20 40 60 80 100
Sheer rate (1/s)

(a) PP

180 deg
200 deg
220 deg

100

0
0

(b) CHA

407
350
300
250
200

180 deg
200 deg 150
220 deg 100
50
0
20 40 60 80 100 120
Sheer rate (1/s)

Sheer stress (Pa)

2500

40

10
9
8
7
6
5
4
3
2
1

Degree of viscosity (Pa*s)

3000

Sheer stress (Pa)

180 deg
200 deg
220 deg

Degree of viscosity (Pa*s)

180 deg
200 deg
220 deg

50

Sheer stress (Pa)

Degree of viscosity (Pa*s)

L. Fan et al. / Journal of Fiber Bioengineering & Informatics 4:4 (2011) 403411

(c) THA

Fig. 2: Rheology curves of raw materials

materials with the rise of hot air temperature, so they are typical non-Newtonian fluids. Combined
with the thermal result, the die temperature was set at 240 in this experiment.

3.2
3.2.1

Nonwoven Fabric Analysis

SEM Observation

The representative SEM images of the samples processed at different temperature are shown in
Fig. 3. Comparing the three samples, we can see that the morphology is apparently different. In
addition, the fiber diameters were measured from the SEM image using Image-Pro Plus software.
Both the diameters and the pore space decreases with the hot air temperature rising, which
indicates that the web structure is significantly affected by the heating during melt-blown process.
Since the thermal and fluid properties of the polymer materials are infected by hot air temperature,
it is not surprising that the heat notably affects the web structure of the nonwoven fabrics.
3.2.2

Crystallization Property Analysis

The WAXD scans of different melt-blown web samples are shown in Fig. 4. Results of crystallinity
measured by WAXD are as follows: 33.98% (Fig. 4 (a)), 42.52% (Fig. 4 (b)) and 37.53% (Fig. 4
(c)), respectively. The results illustrate that the degree of crystallization increases at first and then
decreases with hot air temperature rising. This is probably because when the temperature is lower,

(a) 275C

(b) 285C

Fig. 3: SEM images of PP/CHA nonwoven fabrics

(c) 295C

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a
b
c

10

20
30
40
Two-Theta (C)

50

60

Fig. 4: Wide-angle x-ray diffraction of PP/CHA nonwoven ((a) 275 , (b) 285 , (c) 295 )
the crystal nucleus in the system will lead to heteropical nucleation, resulting in a higher speed
of crystallization, therefore, a higher degree of crystallization. However, when the temperature
is come up to 285 , the crystal nucleus is mainly generated by homogeneous nucleation, and
because nucleation takes time (induction period), the speed of crystallization is lower, resulting
in a lower crystallization. The increase of the hot air temperature is beneficial to the activity of
macromolecules and renders it easier to enter into the crystal lattice. Besides, it is also conducive
to the elimination of internal stress, leading to a more sufficient crystallization.
3.2.3
3.2.3.1

Hydrophilic Properties Analysis

Static Water Contact Angle

Fig. 5 indicates that unmodified PP nonwoven (a) is hydrophobic, PP nonwoven fabric containing 5.5%THA (b) has little hydrophilic property, and while PP nonwoven fabric containing
5.5%CHA (c) exhibits excellent hydrophilic property. Furthermore, the water contact angles
were measured and the results were as follows: the static water contact angle value of pristine
polypropylene nonwoven fabrics is 136.4 , while the contact angle value of PP nonwoven fabrics
containing 5.5% CHA is 38.3 . The value for the modified nonwoven fabrics was much smaller
than the PP nonwoven fabrics containing 5.5% THA (129.2 ) indicating that the PP nonwoven
fabrics containing CHA have much better hydrophilic property. For THA, because the C-O has
weak dissociation in water, it can only contribute limitative hydrophilic effect to PP melt-blown
fabrics. However, for CHA, due to its special structure, the hydrophilic groups can transfer to

(a)

(b)

(c)

Fig. 5: Contact angle of nonwoven fabrics: pristine sample (a), the modified sample with 5.5% THA (b)
and 5.5% CHA (c)

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the surface and in the meantime, the hydrophobic groups can prevent molecules breaking from
the surface, therefore endows PP nonwovens with durable hydrophilicity.
3.2.3.2

Liquid Wicking Rate (Capillarity)

The liquid conveying property of melt-blown nonwoven fabric is mainly in connection with
the liquid infiltration into the fibres, the structures and surface characteristics of the fibres and
nonwovens.
From Fig. 6, we can see that PP nonwoven fabric containing CHA have the highest liquid
wicking rate due to its hydrophilic groups transferred to the surface and forming a hydrophilic
film, which is beneficial to the liquid transferring.
3.2.3.4

Multiple Liquid Strikethrough Time

Arerage liquid wicking rate (cm/30 min)

It can be seen from Fig. 7 that PP/CHA melt-blown nonwoven samples are repeatedly subjected
to saline solution for multiple strike-through time measurements show values below 3s. The
nonwoven fabric treated by THA lost its wettability after 3 insults, while nonwovens containing
4.5% and 5.5% CHA remain hydrophilic even after 12 insults. We can conclude that CHA provides
a durable hydrophilic surface effect to PP melt-blown nonwoven fabrics.
1.4
1.2

MD
CD

1.0
0.8
0.6
0.4
0.2
0

PP

PP/THA

PP/CHA

Liquid strike-through time (s)

Fig. 6: Liquid wicking rate of nonwovens

20
18
16
14
12
10
8
6
4
2
0

>15
>15
12.8
10.3

5.5%THA
4.5%CHA
5.5%CHA

5 6 7 8 9
Number of insults

10 11 12

Fig. 7: The multiple liquid strikethrough time of nonwoven fabrics

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Conclusion

PP melt-blown nonwovens containing hydrophilic additives were prepared and their hydrophilicity was investigated. The THA didnt give necessary hydrophilic properties to PP melt-blown
nonwoven fabrics, while CHA was effective in rendering PP melt-blown nonwoven fabric surfaces
hydrophilic. CHA is a hydrophilic internal additive for PP melt-blown nonwovens and allows
PP melt-blown nonwoven fabrics to absorb liquid quickly. PP/CHA melt-blown nonwoven fabric represents a breakthrough for wipes and similar applications since it continues to be highly
absorbent after repeated use. Whats more, it has a short strikethrough time, even after dozens
of insults, which is an innovative feature for hygiene products. Due to its specific advantages,
PP/CHA melt-blown nonwoven fabric will be used more and more widely in many applications.

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