Nonwoven fabric for oral pouched product, and methods of manufacturing a nonwoven fabric

Abstract

A nonwoven fabric for use as packaging in an oral pouched product, where the nonwoven fabric comprises a web of chemically bonded staple fibres in which a relative proportion of staple fibres and a binder is selected in conjunction with a density of the fabric to strike an optimal balance in achieving a fabric that provides a soft (e.g. low friction) mouthfeel, a wet strength capable of withstanding manipulation in a user's mouth (e.g. chewing, sucking or the like), and a resistance to unwanted leaching or leaking of flavouring or other fine particle substances used in modern oral products.

1 . A nonwoven fabric for forming an oral pouched product, the nonwoven fabric comprising a chemically bonded web of staple fibres and a binder,
 wherein the binder is present in the nonwoven fabric in an amount greater than or equal to 30 wt % based on a dry weight of the nonwoven fabric, and   wherein the nonwoven fabric has a fabric density greater than 140 g/mm and a basis weight greater than 25 g/m 2 .   
     
     
         2 . The nonwoven fabric of  claim 1 , wherein the fabric density is less than or equal to 170 g/mm. 
     
     
         3 . The nonwoven fabric of  claim 1 , wherein the basis weight is less than or equal to 40 g/m 2 . 
     
     
         4 . The nonwoven fabric of  claim 1 , wherein the binder is present in the nonwoven fabric in an amount less than or equal to 50 wt % based on a dry weight of the nonwoven fabric. 
     
     
         5 . The nonwoven fabric of  claim 1 , wherein the web is composed of a plurality of carded layers of the staple fibres. 
     
     
         6 . The nonwoven fabric of  claim 1 , wherein the web comprises non-viscose staple fibres. 
     
     
         7 . The nonwoven fabric of  claim 6 , wherein the staple fibres are 100% lyocell. 
     
     
         8 . The nonwoven fabric of  claim 1 , wherein the binder comprising any one or more of a synthetic acrylic binder, polylactic acid (PLA), polybutylene succinate (PBS), polyhydroxyalkanoate (PHA), a vinyl acetate copolymer, a vinyl acrylic copolymer and a styrene-butadiene copolymer. 
     
     
         9 . The nonwoven fabric of  claim 1 , wherein the staple fibres and the binder are biodegradable or biotransformable. 
     
     
         10 . An oral pouched product comprising a pouch formed from a nonwoven fabric,
 wherein the pouch encloses a substance comprising a carrier medium for nicotine, flavourings and cannabidiol (CBD),   wherein the nonwoven fabric comprises a chemically bonded web of staple fibres and a binder,   wherein the binder is present in the nonwoven fabric in an amount greater than or equal to 30 wt % based on a dry weight of the nonwoven fabric, and   wherein the nonwoven fabric has a fabric density greater than 140 g/mm and a basis weight greater than 25 g/m 2 .   
     
     
         11 . A method for manufacturing a nonwoven fabric suitable for forming an oral pouched product, the method comprising:
 forming a consolidated web by combining a plurality of layers of staple fibres;   applying a binder to the consolidated web to bond the staple fibres together in a nonwoven fabric, wherein the nonwoven fabric has a basis weight greater than 25 g/m 2 , and wherein the binder is present in the nonwoven fabric in an amount greater than or equal to 30 wt % based on a dry weight of the nonwoven fabric; and   controlling the thickness of the consolidated web to provide the nonwoven fabric with a fabric density greater than 140 g/mm.   
     
     
         12 . The method of  claim 11 , wherein the step of forming a consolidated web comprises:
 discharging a dry loose fibre web of the staple fibres; and   carding the loose fibre webs to form the each of the plurality of layers of staple fibres.   
     
     
         13 . The method of  claim 11 , wherein the step of applying the binder comprises:
 impregnating the consolidated web with a binder solution; and   drying the impregnated consolidated web to form the nonwoven fabric.   
     
     
         14 . The method of  claim 11 , wherein the web comprises non-viscose staple fibres. 
     
     
         15 . The method of  claim 14 , wherein the staple fibres are 100% lyocell. 
     
     
         16 . The method of  claim 11 , wherein the binder comprises any one or more of a synthetic acrylic binder, polylactic acid (PLA), polybutylene succinate (PBS), polyhydroxyalkanoate (PHA), a vinyl acetate copolymer, a vinyl acrylic copolymer and a styrene-butadiene copolymer. 
     
     
         17 . The method of  claim 11 , wherein the staple fibres and the binder the binder are biodegradable or biotransformable.