Non-woven fabric, also known as spunbond, is not actually fabric in the true sense, but only resembles fabric in appearance and some properties. The global pandemic in 2020 led to masks and protective clothing becoming important fast-moving consumer goods, bringing non-woven fabrics into the public eye. Non-woven fabric production has seen rapid development in the last ten years, with manufacturing processes becoming increasingly mature and market demand steadily increasing. It can be said that both the supply and demand market situation is very good. Ultrafine calcium carbonate, as a widely used inorganic powder filler, can also be used in the production of non-woven fabrics, significantly reducing costs and increasing efficiency.

Non-woven fabric, also called spunbond, is not truly fabric in the strictest sense, but its appearance and some properties are similar to fabric. The global pandemic of 2020 led to a surge in demand for masks and protective clothing, bringing non-woven fabrics into the spotlight. Non-woven fabric production has seen rapid development in the last decade, with increasingly mature manufacturing processes and growing market demand. The market situation, in terms of both supply and demand, is very positive. Ultrafine calcium carbonate, a widely used inorganic powder filler, can also be used in the production of non-woven fabrics, significantly reducing costs and improving efficiency.

　I. What are the advantages of non-woven fabrics?

　As a new generation of environmentally friendly materials, non-woven fabrics break away from traditional textile principles. They feature short processing flows, fast production speeds, high output, low cost, and properties such as moisture resistance, breathability, flexibility, light weight, non-combustibility, easy decomposition, non-toxicity, non-irritancy, rich colors, and recyclability. Non-woven fabrics are internationally recognized as environmentally friendly products that protect the Earth's ecosystem.

　II. What are the application areas of non-woven fabrics?

　Non-woven fabrics are very common in daily life. According to their application areas, they can be roughly divided into the following categories: (1) Medical and hygiene uses: surgical gowns, protective clothing, sterilization wraps, masks, diapers, wipes, wet wipes, sanitary napkins, sanitary pads, and disposable hygiene products; (2) Home decoration: wall coverings, tablecloths, bed sheets, bedspreads, etc.; (3) Clothing: linings, interlinings, wadding, shaping cotton, various synthetic leather base fabrics, etc.; (4) Industrial uses: filter materials, insulation materials, cement packaging bags, geotextiles, wrapping cloths, etc.; (5) Agricultural uses: crop protection cloths, seedling cloths, irrigation cloths, thermal insulation curtains, etc.; (6) Others: space cotton, thermal insulation and sound insulation materials, oil-absorbing felt, cigarette filter tips, tea bags, etc.

　III. What are the classifications of non-woven fabrics?

　IV. How is the market for non-woven fabrics?

　According to relevant statistics, the global consumption of eco-friendly non-woven fabrics in 2017 was 3.7 million tons, or 94.8 billion square meters, with a value of US$14.1 billion. The average annual market growth from 2017 to 2022 is projected to be 6.4% (tons), 7.0% (square meters), and 7.1% (US dollar value). Although China's non-woven fabric industry started late, its development has been rapid. It has become the largest producer and consumer of non-woven fabrics in Asia and even the world. Non-woven fabric production increased from 199,000 tons in 2004 to 6,213,000 tons in 2019, a rapid increase. Furthermore, with rising living standards and the impact of the global pandemic, the demand for non-woven fabrics will further expand.

　V. Analysis of the Development Trend of China's Non-Woven Fabric Industry

　1. Huge Future Market Space for Non-Woven Fabrics

　With China's rapid economic development and rising incomes, the demand for the non-woven fabric industry has not yet been fully unleashed. For example, the sanitary napkin and baby diaper market is vast, with an annual demand of hundreds of thousands of tons, and the two-child policy has further increased demand. With the development of the medical industry and China's serious aging population, the use of non-woven fabrics in medical and hygiene applications is also showing rapid growth. The markets for hot-rolled fabrics, SMS fabrics, air-laid fabrics, filter materials, insulation fabrics, geotextiles, and medical fabrics used in industry and engineering are all large and will continue to grow.

　In addition, the trend of consumption upgrades is very obvious in the two areas of disposable hygiene absorbent materials and wiping products. With economic development, people's demands for the functionality, comfort, and convenience of hygiene care products are increasing, and non-woven fabrics with specific properties are being used more widely in related fields. The sales growth rate of disposable non-woven fabrics continues to be higher than the overall growth rate of non-woven fabrics. In the future, in terms of disposable absorbent materials and wiping products, technological upgrades of non-woven fabrics (performance improvement, unit grammage reduction, etc.) will remain a major trend.

　2. Industry Transformation Towards Greater Depth and Breadth

　Non-woven technology involves multiple theoretical and applied disciplines, including fluid mechanics, textile engineering, textile materials science, mechanical manufacturing, and water treatment technology. The interpenetration and integrated innovation of these disciplines have driven the rapid development of international non-woven fabric technology. China is still in the stage of introducing and catching up with international advanced technology levels in non-woven fabric technology. This allows domestic non-woven fabric technology and equipment to continuously improve at a higher speed, using international advanced technology and equipment as a reference. Currently, domestic non-woven fabric research and development mainly focuses on the development of new raw materials, new production equipment, functional finishing technology, and online composite technology. The improvement of non-woven fabric technology has led to improvements in product performance, enabling it to meet the needs of more and more fields in terms of both quality and functionality, thereby further expanding downstream markets and driving the upgrading of the entire industry.

　VI. What is the role of calcium carbonate in non-woven fabrics?

　Calcium carbonate has abundant raw material sources, low prices, and simple processing technology, making it an important inorganic chemical filler. Nowadays, energy saving and emission reduction have become a trend in industrial development, and non-woven fabrics are no exception. In the main process of spunbond non-woven fabric production, adding a certain amount of calcium carbonate can reduce the amount of polypropylene and carbon dioxide emissions without affecting the performance of the non-woven fabric, which is in line with the requirements of energy saving and emission reduction.

　VII. What kind of calcium carbonate is suitable?

　Calcium carbonate powder generally selects calcite with good fluidity, low oil absorption, high whiteness, and few impurities as the raw material. The calcium carbonate powder generally has d97≤3um~d97≤6um. Non-woven fabrics with grammage ≥100g/m2 can use calcium carbonate powder with d97≥10um. The preferred particle size of calcium carbonate particles is 4-8um; the moisture content generally requires ≤0.5%; the addition amount must be strictly controlled and cannot be too much, otherwise it will affect the tensile strength, generally 20-60%; the dispersibility should be good; the higher the whiteness, the better, generally ≥90%; low oil absorption, reference value ≤20-23g/100g; in some special products, the purity of calcium carbonate should be high, the content of silicon and iron should be low, and the content of harmful heavy metal elements should be strictly controlled; generally modified with titanium ester coupling agent, aluminum ester coupling agent and low molecular weight toughening coupling dispersant.

　The future market demand for non-woven fabrics will continue to increase, and the market is wide. Based on the requirements of energy saving and emission reduction, the amount of ultrafine calcium carbonate will also increase.