Ultrasonic Fabric & film processing is the bonding, slitting, or sealing of fabrics and films containing thermoplastic material(s). Typical thermoplastic materials found in fabrics and films include acrylics, nylon, polyester, polyethylene, polypropylene, polyvinylchloride, and urethane. Products from the textile, apparel, nonwovens, packaging, medical and automotive industries all benefit from the fast, clean, and economical fabric & film processing techniques.
Material Consideration
The fabrics and films best suited to ultrasonic processing contain thermoplastic materials with similar melting temperatures and compatible molecular structure. These materials have many of the following characteristics:
- A broad melting range
- Uniform thickness
- A high coefficient of friction
- 65% min. thermoplastic content
- Sufficient rigidity and thickness to accept energy at the material interface
(0.0005 inch/0.0127mm minimum)
Polyester is considered to be a good material for ultrasonic applications. However, ultrasonics can produce strong, neat stitches in both Nylon 6 and Nylon 6/6. Most polyolefins (Polypropylene and Polyethylene) also have good ultrasonic welding characteristics and are one of the lightest weight materials. Characteristics of the most common thermoplastics and their typical fabric and film uses are listed below in order of preference.