Synthetic fibers, development

The Japanese solution to chemical fiber overcapacities naturally involved MITI which pushed through a 17% cut in existing polyester, Nylon filament, and acrylic fiber capacities between 1978 and 1982. These were linear cuts, however, and did not restrict the range of synthetic fibers developed by each producer, contrary to the specializations that marked the second stage of Europe s approach. 

L. H. Smith, Synthetic Fiber Developments in Germany, Textile Research Institute, New York, 1946, pp. 534—541. 

A detailed description of plastics manufacture in Germany was prepared under the auspices of the Quartermaster Corps ( 5). Synthetic fiber developments in Germany are covered in a review which also includes information on plastics and synthetic organic chemicals (29). A review of German dyestuffs and dye intermediates was published as a FIAT final report (28). The BIOS survey report series includes many review reports of this type a list of these BIOS reports published and planned is available (24)-... 

The movie The Man in the White Suit (released in 1951) is fictional but based on the real story of nylon. It is about the fear of change brought on by research and it is about the drive that scientists have to carry out their research despite obstacles. In this story, the mill owners unite with the mill workers to oppose the use of a new synthetic fiber developed by Sydney Stratton (Alec Guinness). The new fiber doesn t stain, dye, or tear. The owners and workers worry that no one will need to buy more than one set of clothes, thereby putting them out of business. 

H. Hupff, Synthetic Fiber Development in Germany, Part II, H. M. Stationery Office, London, 1945, p. 101. 

Both polymers with the trademark Kevlar indeed caused a revolution in the industrial production of the synthetic fibers. Developed by DuPont in 1965, this high-strength material was first commercially used in the early 1970s as a replacement for steel in tires. ... 

The use of 2-aminothiazole derivatives as dyeing compounds is direct related to the development of synthetic fibers. Some typical examples are given in Table VI-14. The importance of these dyes lies in their performance on acetate fibers. They have excellent fastness to gas fumes, produce a bright blue shade, and have a high tinctorial strength. Their only disadvantage is their relatively low light fastness, which does limit their application. 

Asahi Chemical Industries (ACl, Japan) are now the leading producers of cuprammonium rayon. In 1990 they made 28,000 t/yr of filament and spunbond nonwoven from cotton ceUulose (65). Their continuing success with a process which has suffered intense competition from the cheaper viscose and synthetic fibers owes much to their developments of high speed spinning technology and of efficient copper recovery systems. Bemberg SpA in Italy, the only other producer of cuprammonium textile fibers, was making about 2000 t of filament yam in 1990. 

Considerable effort is being made (ca 1993) to develop satisfactory flame retardants for blended fabrics. It has been feasible for a number of years to produce flame-resistant blended fabrics provided that they contain about 65% or more ceUulosic fibers. It appears probable that blends of even greater synthetic fiber content can be effectively made flame resistant. An alternative approach may be to first produce flame-resistant thermoplastic fibers by altering the chemical stmcture of the polymers. These flame-resistant fibers could then be blended with cotton or rayon and the blend treated with an appropriate flame retardant for the ceUulose, thereby producing a flame-resistant fabric. Several noteworthy finishes have been reported since the early 1970s. 

A further development in the coumarin series is the use of derivatives of 3-phenyl-7-aminocoumarin ((13) where R, R = Cl or substituted amines) as building blocks for a series of light-stable brighteners for various plastics and synthetic fibers, and, as the quatemi2ed compounds, for brightening polyacrylonitrile (62). 

Dry-Laid Pulp. A principal objective of using air to form webs from natural and synthetic fiber pulps is to produce relatively lofty, porous stmctures from short fibers, without using water. Early technical developments in air-laid pulp processing were made by Kroyer in Denmark. 

Dyestuffs. The use of thiophene-based dyestuffs has been largely the result of the access of 2-amino-3-substituted thiophenes via new cycHzation chemistry techniques (61). Intermediates of type (8) are available from development of this work. Such intermediates act as the azo-component and, when coupled with pyrazolones, aminopyrazoles, phenols, 2,6-dihydropyridines, etc, have produced numerous monoazo disperse dyes. These dyes impart yeUow—green, red—green, or violet—green colorations to synthetic fibers, with exceUent fastness to light as weU as to wet- and dry-heat treatments (62-64). 

The appearance of synthetic fibers in the 1920s accelerated the further development of anthraquinone dyes. Soon after British Celanese succeeded in commerciali2ing cellulose acetate fiber in 1921, anthraquinone disperse dyes for this fiber were invented by Stepherdson (British Dyestuffs Corp.) and Celatenes (Scottish Dyes) independendy. Anthraquinone disperse dyes for polyester fiber were developed after the introduction of this fiber by ICI and Du Pont in 1952. These dyes were improved products of the disperse dyes that had been developed for cellulose acetate fiber 30 years before. 

Because of their inherently high efficiency on dusts in all particle-size ranges, fabric filters have been used for collection of fine dusts and fumes for over 100 years. The greatest limitation on filter application has been imposed by the temperature limits of available fabric materials. The upper limit for natural fibers is about 90°C (200°F). The major new developments in filter technology that have been made since 1945 have followed the development of fabrics made from glass and synthetic fibers, which has extended the temperature limits to about 230 to 260°C (450 to 500°F). The capabihties of available fibers to resist high temperatures are still among the most severe limitations on the possible applications of fabric filters. 

Acetate rayon dyes developed for cellulose acetate and some synthetic fibers. 

Polyamides are the second largest group of synthetic fibers after polyesters. However, they were the first synthetic fibers that appeared in the market in 1940. This was the result of the work of W. H. Carothers in USA who developed nylon 66. At about the same time nylon 6 was also developed in Germany by I. G. Farben. Both of these nylons still dominate the market for polyamides. However, due to patent restrictions and raw materials considerations, nylon 66 is most extensively produced in USA and nylon 6 is most extensively produced in Europe. 

Acrylic fibers are a major synthetic fiber class developed about the same time as polyesters. Modacrylic fibers are copolymers containing between 35-85% acrylonitrile. Acrylic fibers contain at least 85% acrylonitrile. Orion is an acrylic fiber developed by DuPont in 1949 Dynel is a modacrylic fiber developed by Union Carbide in 1951. 

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