How can fibers be mechanically produced? This is a product of scientific and technological development in recent decades. Using cellulose fibers or natural gas and acetylene gas as raw materials, artificial fibers or synthetic fibers are produced through chemical synthesis, mechanical spinning, and drawing, collectively known as chemical fibers. These fibers are produced through chemical and physical changes using machinery. The production of chemical fibers has developed side by side with natural fiber production, benefiting humanity.
With technological advancements, the production of raw materials for the textile industry has extended beyond the field of fiber production. Can the mechanical equipment used to produce artificial fibers, synthetic fibers, and the raw materials for these fibers be called fiber production machinery?
The raw materials for artificial fiber production are cotton pulp or wood pulp, which are processed into pulp. This involves a complete set of host and auxiliary machines. The pulp is then processed through crushing, aging, xanthation, dissolution, filtration, spinning, and post-treatment to form artificial filaments or staple fibers. The entire production line consists of dozens of types of host machines and hundreds of types of auxiliary machines, as well as complete sets of equipment for the recovery and utilization of waste solutions. Different spinning processes, product specifications, and complete sets of equipment are selected accordingly. The annual production capacity of a full staple fiber production line can range from 10,000 tons, 30,000 tons, to 45,000 tons. Artificial filaments can be produced through semi-continuous or continuous spinning processes, with different equipment selected based on the process.
The raw materials for synthetic fibers are primarily natural gas or acetylene gas, produced through polymerization, decomposition, and synthesis, belonging to the field of polymer chemistry.
Different raw materials for synthetic fibers result in different processes and equipment for their production. Traditional vinylon and its raw material, polyvinyl alcohol, use natural gas or acetylene gas processed through polymerization, alcoholysis, washing, dissolution, filtration, spinning, and drawing to form filaments or staple fibers. The complete set of equipment includes dozens of host machines and hundreds of auxiliary machines.
Traditional, widely used synthetic fibers such as polyester, nylon, polypropylene, spandex, and acrylic fibers mostly derive their raw materials from downstream petroleum processing. With technological advancements, changes in processes, and the integration of upstream and downstream processes, connections have been established between spinning and polyester production, and between polyester production and the production of its upstream products, purified terephthalic acid (PTA) and ethylene glycol (EG), forming a synthetic fiber industry chain.
Currently, the polymerization units for PTA and EG have been fully localized in China, with different process lines and single-line annual production capacities of 200,000 tons, 300,000 tons, and even larger scales.
Different raw materials for polyester and different product applications require different technical equipment. Some processes involve esterification and polymerization to produce fiber-grade products, while others require solid-state polycondensation after polymerization to produce bottle-grade or film-grade products. The production of these products requires complete sets of technical equipment.
Different raw materials for synthetic fibers and different spinning processes result in varying single-line production capacities. For example, polyester staple fiber production lines can have annual capacities of 10,000 tons, 30,000 tons, 50,000 tons, or 60,000 tons, with Germany even achieving 75,000 tons. The increase in spinning and winding speeds for polyester filaments has rapidly boosted production capacity. The single-line capacities for nylon industrial yarn, civilian yarn, polypropylene civilian yarn, and carpet yarn can be determined based on construction needs. Each product requires complete processes and engineering, supported by dozens of host machines and auxiliary machines.
After spinning, synthetic filaments require post-treatment and deep processing, including drawing, texturing, and the splitting of multifilament yarns, to become market-ready primary products.
With technological advancements, non-woven technologies such as melt-blown spinning and spunbond spinning have matured and developed rapidly. Additionally, the recycling and reuse of waste polyester are processed using domestically produced equipment. Advances in polymer chemistry have led to the emergence of high-tech fibers for aerospace, water conservancy, environmental protection, construction, medicine, tourism, high-end apparel, and decoration. These include meta-aramid 1313, para-aramid 1414, various grades of carbon fibers, as well as many high-strength, high-wear-resistant, high-temperature-resistant, corrosion-resistant, and flame-retardant high-performance fibers, and multi-component, composite, and ultra-fine differential fibers.
