Is cotton a non-woven fabric?

Is cotton a non-woven fabric?

1,Cotton and nonwoven fabrics: similarities and differences.

      ①Cotton cloth is a woven fabric made of cotton yarn, and is a general term for all kinds of cotton textiles. Its production includes three processes: spinning, weaving and dyeing and finishing. Among them, spinning is the processing of textile fibers into yarns, weaving is the weaving of yarns into fabrics, and dyeing and finishing is the reprocessing of fiber products to improve their wearing performance and appearance.
Cotton cloth has many advantages, such as easy warmth, soft and close-fitting, excellent moisture absorption and breathability. Its disadvantages are that it is easy to shrink and wrinkle, and its appearance is not very crisp and beautiful, and it needs to be ironed frequently when worn. According to the thickness of the warp and weft yarns used, cotton cloth can be divided into different types such as coarse plain cloth, medium plain cloth and fine plain cloth.
       ②Non-woven fabric is a non-woven fabric, which is made by directional or random arrangement of textile staple fibers or filaments to form a fiber mesh structure, and then reinforced by mechanical, thermal bonding or chemical methods. Non-woven fabrics are moisture-proof, breathable, flexible, lightweight, flame-retardant, non-toxic and tasteless, low-priced, and recyclable.
There are many production processes for non-woven fabrics, including dry web, wet web, spinning web, melt-blown web and other fiber web forming methods, as well as chemical bonding, thermal bonding, mechanical reinforcement and other fiber web reinforcement methods.
For example, spinning web is a process in which the spinning solution or melt is ejected from the spinneret, cooled and stretched to form filaments of a certain fineness, and a fiber web is formed on the receiving device; hot rolling bonding reinforcement method is to heat the fiber web with a pair of heated steel rollers and apply a certain pressure to the fiber web so that the fiber web is bonded and reinforced.
There are obvious differences between cotton cloth and non-woven fabrics in terms of raw materials, production processes and performance characteristics.

2,Differences in characteristics

(1) Comparison of features
Cotton has the advantages of being easily warm, soft and close to the body, and has excellent hygroscopicity and breathability. However, it also has the disadvantages of being easy to shrink and wrinkle, not very crisp and beautiful in appearance, and must be ironed frequently when wearing. Non-woven fabrics are moisture-proof, breathable, flexible, lightweight, flame-retardant, non-toxic and odorless, low-priced, and recyclable. For example, if non-woven fabrics are naturally decomposed outdoors, their maximum lifespan is only 90 days. If they are placed indoors, they will decompose within 8 years. They are non-toxic and harmless when burned, and thus do not pollute the environment. In comparison, cotton is relatively weak in terms of environmental protection and is not washable, while non-woven fabrics cannot be washed like other fabrics, but they can be reused more than 10 times, and their environmental pollution after disposal is only as high as that of plastic bags. 10%.
(2) Differences in raw materials
Cotton cloth is a woven fabric made of cotton yarn, usually spun from cotton. Non-woven fabrics are mainly produced from chemical fiber materials, such as polypropylene, polyester fiber and other materials, and are made through acupuncture technology. For example, common non-woven products are produced with FDA-compliant food-grade raw materials, do not contain other chemical ingredients, have stable performance, are non-toxic, odorless, and do not irritate the skin.
(3) Different production techniques
The production and manufacturing of cotton cloth includes three processes: spinning, weaving and dyeing and finishing. First, the textile fibers are processed into yarn, then the yarn is woven into fabric, and finally the fiber products are reprocessed to improve their wearing properties and appearance. In contrast, non-woven fabrics are made by orienting or randomly arranging short textile fibers or filaments to form a fiber mesh structure, which is then reinforced by mechanical, thermal bonding or chemical methods. For example, spinning solution or melt is sprayed from the spinneret, then cooled and stretched to form filaments of a certain fineness, and a fiber web is formed on the receiving device; the hot-rolling bonding reinforcement method uses a The heated steel roller heats the fiber web and applies a certain amount of pressure to bond and strengthen the fiber web. Cotton cloth, on the other hand, requires complex spinning and weaving processes to form the final product.

3. Different uses

As a necessity of life, cotton cloth has a wide range of uses in people's daily lives. In terms of clothing, it is mostly used to make fashion, casual wear, underwear and shirts. Its characteristics of easy warmth, soft and close-fitting, excellent moisture absorption and breathability make people feel comfortable when wearing it. In terms of bedding, the soft texture and good warmth retention of cotton cloth make it an ideal material for quilts, sheets, pillowcases, etc. In addition, cotton cloth can also be used for interior decoration, such as curtains, sofa covers, etc., to add a warm atmosphere to the home environment.
The uses of non-woven fabrics are even more extensive. In the medical field, the market size of non-woven fabrics for medical and health care in my country reached about 64.3 billion yuan in 2020. Non-woven fabrics in the medical and health field are mainly divided into direct contact, indirect contact, and in vivo. Direct contact medical and health textiles must have properties such as non-toxicity, sterility, indestructibility, and non-sensitization. For example, the demand for disposable protective non-woven fabrics increased significantly during the epidemic, driving the rapid development of medical non-woven fabric material manufacturers.
In the industrial field, non-woven fabrics can be used as roofing waterproof materials, geotextiles, filter materials, insulation materials, covering fabrics, etc. For example, as a new type of filter material, non-woven filter materials are gradually replacing traditional textile filter materials as filter media products with their unique three-dimensional mesh structure, uniform pore distribution, and good filtering performance.
In the agricultural field, non-woven fabrics have the characteristics of long service life, good effect, and low investment. They are mainly used for matting, insulation, heat preservation, wind barriers, fruit protection, pest control, seedling cultivation, sowing, covering, etc. For example, agricultural non-woven fabrics are conducive to promoting agricultural modernization and providing a good environment for the growth of crops.
Cotton cloth and non-woven fabrics have obvious differences in use, and each plays an important role in different fields.

Cotton cloth, with its natural material and good moisture absorption and breathability, brings people a comfortable wearing experience and a warm home atmosphere. However, the shortcomings of easy shrinkage and wrinkling require people to maintain it more carefully during use. At the same time, cotton cloth is relatively weak in environmental protection, but its degradability also makes it have less impact on the environment to a certain extent.
     Non-woven fabrics play an important role in modern society with their diverse characteristics and wide range of uses. Its moisture-proof, breathable, flexible, and light weight make it perform well in medical, industrial, agricultural and other fields. Especially in the medical field, the sterility and filtration performance of non-woven fabrics provide a strong guarantee for medical and health care. In terms of environmental protection, the recyclability and short natural decomposition time of non-woven fabrics make it a more environmentally friendly material.
Cotton cloth and non-woven fabrics have irreplaceable positions in different fields. We can choose suitable materials according to different needs and usage scenarios. Whether it is cotton cloth that pursues natural comfort or non-woven fabrics that focus on functionality and environmental protection, they can bring convenience and beauty to our lives.