Non-woven materials are essential to daily life. A Fraunhofer Institute has established a software application that makes the production of non-woven items far more effective and versatile. With the tool FIDYST, it has been possible for the very first time to replicate the motion of fibers in rough air currents. A true innovation– and the advancement in a theory that is over a century old.
Non-woven products are typically well concealed and are for that reason not noticeable. But if you look for it, you can find them everywhere: in the lining of winter season coats, in the cushioning of couches, as a soundproofing mat for automobiles, as insulation in laminated timber home walls, as a filter in kitchen exhaust hoods, as a cosmetic pad in restrooms or as a separating layer in electrical cable televisions. Extremely absorbent non-woven fabrics can even be discovered in the diapers of our kids. It is a very flexible and high-performance product that is important in our daily lives. Appropriately, fabric makers and mechanical engineers have an interest in keeping its production as effective and versatile as possible.
The Fraunhofer Institute for Industrial Mathematics ITWM in Kaiserslautern developed the unique software application called the FIDYST tool (Fiber Characteristics Simulation Tool). It mimics the motion of fibers in rough air circulations. In the production of non-woven products, the fibers or threads are each extended with the help of air and transferred onto a conveyor belt. Depending upon the speed and temperature level of the jet stream, a non-woven item can be created with the preferred structure, density and strength outcomes. One extensively used application is ‘random web’, where the individual fibers show a varied orientation, consequently forming a random web which is concurrently abundant and firm.
How exactly the fibers relocate the air flow and what orientation they arrive at on the conveyor belt is calculated by the simulation software tester application FIDYST the scientists developed. After imitating the air flow, the user just needs to go into the product homes of the fibers in the software application. The software application then mimics the vibrant habits of countless fibers. Even fiber mixes can be simulated with the software application. The outcome can be pictured in a three-dimensional representation.
Geared up with this information, the producer can then, for instance, enhance the air circulation in a targeted way. This leads to a non-woven material with the preferred requirements while at the same time decreasing energy and basic material intake. The software application simulation can undergo software testing and compute that by altering the setup of the machine, less fibers are had to produce a non-woven material with the wanted structure and strength.
The Fraunhofer tool not just benefits the fabric producers who wish to exactly configure their devices for every single wanted non-woven item. “Mechanical engineers can likewise use it to develop devices that are as effective and versatile as possible,” describes Dr. Simone Gramsch, FIDYST Job Supervisor at ITWM. In spite of the intricate computing operations, FIDYST does not depend on pricey, high-performance computer systems or information centers; the tool is content with basic PCs of the upper efficiency class and works on both Windows and Linux.
