What Does Wet-laid Nonwoven Mean

The production process of wet nonwovens is similar to the papermaking process, and its core is to build a fiber network through the medium of water. Specifically, the process covers the following key steps:

Fiber slurry preparation: First, short fibers (whether derived from natural or synthetic materials) are evenly dispersed in water to form a stable fiber slurry. This process ensures that the fibers can be fully suspended and evenly distributed in the water, laying the foundation for subsequent steps.
Fiber network construction: Subsequently, the prepared fiber slurry is poured onto a continuously moving screen or conveyor belt. As the water flow gradually penetrates the screen and is discharged, the fibers are intertwined and stacked on the screen, eventually forming a preliminary fiber network structure. This step cleverly utilizes the fluidity of water and the filtering effect of the screen to achieve a network arrangement of fibers from disorder to order.

Reinforcement and bonding: To enhance the stability and integrity of the fiber network, the formed fiber network needs to be bonded next. This can be achieved in a variety of ways, including but not limited to chemical bonding (using adhesives to promote bonding between fibers), thermal bonding (using high temperatures to melt or soften fibers and fuse them), and mechanical reinforcement (such as needle punching, hydroentanglement, etc. to enhance the physical connection between fibers). After this step, the originally loose fiber network is firmly bonded together to form a non-woven fabric with certain strength and durability.
Wet-laid non-woven fabrics have excellent uniformity and smooth surface properties due to their unique production process. These properties make it widely used in many fields, including but not limited to the manufacture of high-efficiency filtration materials, the production of medical supplies (such as surgical gowns, masks, etc.), the manufacture of high-quality rags, and the processing of special-purpose paper.