Nonwoven Wipes Material

Wet wipes are small, pre-moistened pieces of paper or fabric that come in a variety of sizes and are used to clean, disinfect and wipe away dust or liquid. They are widely used in households and businesses as a quicker and easier alternative to dispensing a liquid and using cloth or paper towels. Wipes are also commonly used in medical and healthcare settings to sanitize equipment, such as blood pressure cuffs or diabetes testing devices. Other uses include cleaning and disinfecting baby bottles and cups, sanitizing baby toys, washing and disinfecting hands or face and wiping down kitchen appliances, computers and electronics. Industrial wipes are also popular with manufacturing and automotive industries for use in sanitizing machinery and workspaces.

The wet wipes market is worth about $2 billion and the majority of the product available for purchase consists of single-use disposable wipes made from high strength cellulosic or plastic materials. Consumer concerns for environmental sustainability and health are driving the development of products that are both cleaner and greener, such as increased use of natural fibres, improved flushability (compatibility with sewer systems) and ingredient transparency. There are also trends toward more gentle formulations for personal and baby wipes.

Nonwoven materials for wipes are composed of a variety of fibre types and lengths, and are held together by the entanglement of the individual fibres during production, or via binders. Hydroentanglement, a process which uses water jets to tangle together the fibres, is a common method of achieving binding in nonwovens. In flushable wipes, ion- or pH-sensitive cationic polymer binders are typically used to make the fibres dispersible upon contact with a liquid, such as a moistening liquid.

In addition to the fibre type and length, the chemistry and mechanical properties of the nonwovens will have a significant impact on the final performance of a wipe. The cellulose fibres in nonwovens can be manipulated by different chemical processes to achieve specific properties, such as high strength or low moisture absorption. For example, wet strength paper is made from a highly refined cellulose that has been treated with an alkaline solution to increase its water resistance. This type of paper is often used for maps, bank notes and money as it has extremely strong water resistance.

The flushable wipes market is dominated by products that contain wood pulp cellulose and/or regenerated cellulose (RC). RC is a form of cellulosic fibre produced from cellulose sourced from plantation forests and has been chemically modified through a regeneration process. However, many consumers ignore "do not flush" warnings on packaging and flush discarded wipes down the toilet. This can lead to blockages in sewage systems and wastewater treatment plants around the world, as well as releasing microplastics into the natural environment.