Fibrous structures that contain hydroxyl polymer filaments and solid additives and methods for making same are provided.

Processes for making high-performance polyethylene multi-filament yarn are disclosed which include the steps of a) making a solution of ultra-high molar mass polyethylene in a solvent; b) spinning of the solution through a spinplate containing at least 5 spinholes into an air-gap to form fluid filaments, while applying a draw ratio DR.sub.fluid; c) cooling the fluid filaments to form solvent-containing gel filaments; d) removing at least partly the solvent from the filaments; and e) drawing the filaments in at least one step before, during and/or after said solvent removing, while applying a draw ratio DR.sub.solid of at least 4, wherein in step b) each spinhole comprises a contraction zone of specific dimension and a downstream zone of diameter Dn and length Dn with Ln/Dn of from 0 to at most 25, to result in a draw ratio DR.sub.fluid=DR.sub.sp*DR.sub.ag of at least 150, wherein DR.sub.sp is the draw ratio in the spinholes and DR.sub.ag is the draw ratio in the air-gap, with DR.sub.sp being greater than 1 and DR.sub.ag at least 1. High-performance polyethylene multifilament yarn, and semi-finished or end-use products containing said yarn, especially to ropes and ballistic-resistant composites, are also disclosed.

Fibers sized with a coating of amorphous polyetherketoneketone are useful in the preparation of reinforced polymers having improved properties, wherein the amorphous polyetherketoneketone can improve the compatibility of the fibers with the polymeric matrix.

Methods of treating fibers comprising a polymer including at least one of a vinyl acetate moiety or a vinyl alcohol moiety, and resulting fibers or the products comprising the resulting fibers are disclosed. In an example embodiment, a fiber having a surface region and an interior region, includes a polymer comprising at least one of a vinyl acetate moiety or a vinyl alcohol moiety chemically modified with a modification agent. The fiber has a transverse cross-section including the interior region comprising the polymer having a first degree of modification and the surface region comprising the polymer having a second degree of modification greater than the first degree of modification.

Methods of treating fibers comprising a polymer including at least one of a vinyl acetate moiety or a vinyl alcohol moiety, and resulting fibers or the products comprising the resulting fibers are disclosed. In an example embodiment, a method of treating fibers includes contacting a surface of a fiber comprising the polymer with a modification agent to chemically modify at least a portion of the polymer with the modification agent in a region of the fiber comprising at least the surface of the fiber to form a modified fiber.

The present invention provides a highly functional polyethylene fiber exhibiting reduction of change in their physical properties in a wide range of temperatures for processing for products and in a wide range of temperatures for usage as products, thereby enabling improvement of dimensional stability. In addition, the present invention provides a highly functional polyethylene fiber exhibiting a high degree of dye exhaustion to be obtained in a simple dyeing operation, and excellent color fastness. The highly functional polyethylene fiber of the present invention is characterized in that an intrinsic viscosity [η] is higher than or equal to 0.8 dL/g, and not higher than 4.9 dL/g, ethylene is substantially contained as a repeating unit thereof, and a maximum thermal shrinkage stress is less than or equal to 0.4 cN/dtex in TMA (thermo-mechanical analysis), and a thermal shrinking percentage at 100° C. is less than or equal to 2.5%.

Methods of producing silicon carbide, and other metal carbide materials. The method comprises reacting a carbon material (e.g., fibers, or nanoparticles, such as powder, platelet, foam, nanofiber, nanorod, nanotube, whisker, graphene (e.g., graphite), fullerene, or hydrocarbon) and a metal or metal oxide source material (e.g., in gaseous form) in a reaction chamber at an elevated temperature ranging up to approximately 2400° C. or more, depending on the particular metal or metal oxide, and the desired metal carbide being produced. A partial pressure of oxygen in the reaction chamber is maintained at less than approximately 1.01×10.sup.2 Pascal, and overall pressure is maintained at approximately 1 atm.

Disclosed are improved polymer materials. Also disclosed are fine fiber materials that can be made from the improved polymeric materials in the form of microfiber and nanofiber structures. The microfiber and nanofiber structures can be used in a variety of useful applications including the formation of filter materials.

Conductive polymer fibers 10, in which a conductor 12 containing a conductive polymer impregnates and/or adheres to base fibers 11, and the aforementioned conductive polymer is PEDOT-PSS.

Processes for making high-performance polyethylene multi-filament yarn are disclosed which include the steps of a) making a solution of ultra-high molar mass polyethylene in a solvent; b) spinning of the solution through a spinplate containing at least 5 spinholes into an air-gap to form fluid filaments, while applying a draw ratio DR.sub.fluid; c) cooling the fluid filaments to form solvent-containing gel filaments; d) removing at least partly the solvent from the filaments; and e) drawing the filaments in at least one step before, during and/or after said solvent removing, while applying a draw ratio DR.sub.solid of at least 4, wherein in step b) each spinhole comprises a contraction zone of specific dimension and a downstream zone of diameter Dn and length Dn with Ln/Dn of from 0 to at most 25, to result in a draw ratio DR.sub.fluid=DR.sub.sp*DR.sub.ag of at least 150, wherein DR.sub.sp is the draw ratio in the spinholes and DR.sub.ag is the draw ratio in the air-gap, with DR.sub.sp being greater than 1 and DR.sub.ag at least 1. High-performance polyethylene multifilament yarn, and semi-finished or end-use products containing said yarn, especially to ropes and ballistic-resistant composites, are also disclosed.