Role of Quench Air Profiles in Multifilament Melt Spinning of PET Fibers

Abstract

A modeling approach for multifilament melt spinning of poly(ethylene terephthalate) fibers is outlined. The complex interactions between the filament bundle geometry and the quench conditions are likely to play a critical role in controlling spun fiber properties and their variability. Numerical results for typical commercial spinning conditions illustrate the nature of this effect. Unless these interactions are accounted for while designing the quench hardware and the spinneret, the actual quench con ditions (and hence the spun fiber quality) may be far from the desired values.