Nanofiber spinning apparatuses and methods for making core-sheath materials using touch spinning are provided. The apparatus includes at least one rotating plate with an aperture through which a core yarn passes and at least one post contacting the rotating plate. A speed control device can be configured to control rotation of the rotating plate, and a dispensing device can be configured to dispense a nanofiber-forming material onto the post. To make a core-sheath yarn a core yarn is passed through an aperture in a rotating plate having at least one post. The post is contacted with a nanofiber-forming material the rotating plate is rotated to draw a fiber of nanofiber-forming material from the post to wrap the fiber around the core yarn.

A multi-end monofilament production apparatus includes the following sequential process units along monofilaments flow direction: a vertical spinning machine comprising a spinneret and a distribution plate below the spinneret; a water bath for quenching spun monofilaments; a vacuum jet device for transferring monofilaments from the water bath; a steam jet able to provide superheated steam at a temperature within the range between 300° C. and 380° C. and at a pressure within the range between 4 bars and 5 bars; a drawing unit; and a monofilament winder for winding monofilaments at a speed exceeding 500 m/min. The present invention further proposes a method for multi-end monofilament yarn production.

A multi-end monofilament production apparatus includes the following sequential process units along monofilaments flow direction: a vertical spinning machine comprising a spinneret and a distribution plate below the spinneret; a water bath for quenching spun monofilaments; a vacuum jet device for transferring monofilaments from the water bath; a steam jet able to provide superheated steam at a temperature within the range between 300° C. and 380° C. and at a pressure within the range between 4 bars and 5 bars; a drawing unit; and a monofilament winder for winding monofilaments at a speed exceeding 500 m/min. The present invention further proposes a method for multi-end monofilament yarn production.

Additives such as colourants may be incorporated into polymeric materials such as polyesters, such as in polyester fibre production, by use of a liquid formulation comprising colourant and a vehicle. The vehicle may comprise a functionalised pentaerythritol, trimethylolpropane or trimellitate. The liquid formulation is suitably contacted with the polymeric material in a melt processing apparatus.

Additives such as colourants may be incorporated into polymeric materials such as polyesters, such as in polyester fibre production, by use of a liquid formulation comprising colourant and a vehicle. The vehicle may comprise a functionalised pentaerythritol, trimethylolpropane or trimellitate. The liquid formulation is suitably contacted with the polymeric material in a melt processing apparatus.

Techniques are directed to melt spinning, drawing, crimping and winding multiple threads. The threads are spun from a plurality of spinnerets of a spinning device and are drawn as a thread group by a drawing device and are subsequently fed for crimping next to one another to a plurality of texturing units. In order to obtain identical treatment of all threads within the thread group, the threads are guided individually with a plurality of wraps next to one another on a godet unit and, after running off from the godet unit, are guided in a straight thread run parallel next to one another into the texturing units. To this end, adjacent texturing units of the crimping device form a treatment spacing between themselves which is such that, in the case of being guided individually with a plurality of wraps on the godet unit, the threads can be guided in parallel in a straight thread run.

Techniques are directed to melt spinning, drawing, crimping and winding multiple threads. The threads are spun from a plurality of spinnerets of a spinning device and are drawn as a thread group by a drawing device and are subsequently fed for crimping next to one another to a plurality of texturing units. In order to obtain identical treatment of all threads within the thread group, the threads are guided individually with a plurality of wraps next to one another on a godet unit and, after running off from the godet unit, are guided in a straight thread run parallel next to one another into the texturing units. To this end, adjacent texturing units of the crimping device form a treatment spacing between themselves which is such that, in the case of being guided individually with a plurality of wraps on the godet unit, the threads can be guided in parallel in a straight thread run.

In one embodiment, a fiber manufacturing apparatus has a discharge head which discharges a raw material liquid in which a polymer is dissolved in a solvent toward a collector, and a power source which generates a potential difference between the discharge head and the collector. The fiber manufacturing apparatus further has a recovery device, a cleaning device, and a moving device. The recovery device recovers the raw material liquid to be discharged by the discharge head. The cleaning device cleans the discharge head. The moving device moves the discharge head to any position out of a spinning position where the discharge head and the collector are opposite to each other, a recovery position where the discharge head and the recovery device are opposite to each other, and a cleaning position where the discharge head and the cleaning device are opposite to each other.

In one embodiment, a fiber manufacturing apparatus has a discharge head which discharges a raw material liquid in which a polymer is dissolved in a solvent toward a collector, and a power source which generates a potential difference between the discharge head and the collector. The fiber manufacturing apparatus further has a recovery device, a cleaning device, and a moving device. The recovery device recovers the raw material liquid to be discharged by the discharge head. The cleaning device cleans the discharge head. The moving device moves the discharge head to any position out of a spinning position where the discharge head and the collector are opposite to each other, a recovery position where the discharge head and the recovery device are opposite to each other, and a cleaning position where the discharge head and the cleaning device are opposite to each other.

A continuous wire drive system for a needleless electrospinning apparatus, the electrospinning apparatus including an electrospinning enclosure and within which a nanoscale or submicron scale polymer fiber web is formed onto a substrate from a liquid polymer layer coated onto a plurality of continuous electrode wires passing through the electrospinning enclosure. The continuous wire drive system includes a master wire drive drum and a slave wire drive drum, each of the master wire drive drum and slave wire drive drum including a plurality of wire guides, each of the wire guides including a channel or groove for receiving one of the plurality of continuous electrode wires. The continuous wire drive system is external to the electrospinning apparatus, and the continuous wire drive system drives the plurality of continuous electrode wires through the electrospinning enclosure.