A new fiber-making process developed at the North Carolina State University (NCSU) College of
Textiles, Raleigh, N.C., enables production of what researchers believe are the strongest polyester
fibers ever made using a process considered industrially acceptable. According to Dr. John A.
Cuculo and Dr. Richard Kotek, leaders of the NCSU research team, the process is based on two
established processes, taking them a step further with respect to controlling thread line dynamics,
and modifying the molecular architecture to offer “exceptionally high-performance fiber
properties.”
The horizontal liquid isothermal bath (hLIB) process technology is a modified version of LIB
technology developed in the 1990s at NCSU for laboratory-scale production of high-tenacity
polyethylene terephthalate and polyethylene naphthalate fibers. The hLIB process is intended to
enable industrial-scale production of these fibers from conventional melt polymerized polymer,
using melt-spinning to form the fibers but allowing additional controllable variables to be used,
as in wet-spinning. As such, it hopefully could replace the traditional melt spin-draw process.
Compared with the currently used fiber-making processes, the new system is more
environmentally friendly and energy-efficient, is simpler to use, and requires less capital
equipment. For example, the multi-stage draw unit used in the traditional spin-draw process could
be eliminated, and the drawing or heat-setting could be part of a relatively simple one-step
continuous spin-draw process.
“We have shown some very marked property enhancement by this process on a single filament,”
Cuculo said. “The next step is to reproduce it in multifilament.”
Cuculo and Kotek have proposed a patent for their work and are seeking funding to help them
continue their research. Among their needs is a traversing high-speed winder that has processing
speeds of about 5,000 meters per minute.
January 13, 2009
