Nylon 11 fiber developed by Unitika Fibers

Unitika Fibers has held its 2009 autumn and winter sports material exhibition in Osaka and introduced newly developed plant-derived nylon 11 and “PROOFACE®-3A,” a material with superior water pressure resistance and moisture permeability, which can be used unlined.

Nylon 11 is produced through melt-spinning with recinoleic acid extracted from the castor-oil plant as a base.It has the same dyability as nylon 6 and 66 with stronger resistance to abrasion, flexure fatigue, chemicals and low-temperature impact and the company will be working on applications for garments and industrial materials.

“PROOFACE®-3A” is a polyurethane-coated membane containing fine ceramic particles with superior water pressure resistance and moisture permeability, and has the following characteristics.

• Because a polyamino acid compound with a scale-like structure is combined on the surface coating, it has a smoother surface and higher abrasion quality than conventional moisture permeable water proof materials.
• Because the surface coating forms 3D structure, it reduces stickiness caused by perspiration during exercise.Therefore, it can be used without backing fabric, which enables a reduction in the thickness and weight of finished products.
• Because the 3D structure is formed through implanting microscopic spheres between the coated membrane and fabric, it has excellent resistance to abrasion and can prevent fall-off caused by abrasion during use.
• It has water proof properties, moisture permeability and water repellency required for outdoor usage.It has excellent design potential because of the surface coating.

The shape and performance test results of “PROOFACE®-3A” are as follows.

PROOFACE®-3A