Nonwovens fiber-based materials such as paper are widely used for a variety of applications and could be largely developed as a sustainable alternative for fossil-based plastics. The first limitation of their widespread use is their response to moisture and more generally to liquids. Indeed, when wetted or dried, those materials exhibit irreversible deformations, structural changes and failure. The final mechanical properties of paper products strongly depend on the initial fiber suspension and the fabrication process. In particular, water removal from the suspension is a complex and crucial step which permanently affects the network structure and its subsequent interactions with liquids. To better understand the dewatering of fibrous networks, we investigate the drying of a model suspension composed of long, flexible hydrogel fibers. In the first part, I will introduce the Jet Assisted Wet Spinning (JAWS) method used to produce fibers with tunable properties. I will then show how the pattern of the final dried network is influenced by the fibers characteristics: length, diameter and flexibility.
Accès Salle des séminaires FAST-LPTMS (Bât. 530, salle C.120, 1er)