The 4th conference on Nonwovens for High-performance Applications (NHPA2018) was held in Cannes, France, on October 11 and 12, 2018.The forum gave the participants the opportunity to discuss emerging high-performance areas of the nonwovens industry. The symposium also addressed the issues of entering and expanding in the nonwovens market.

Speakers demonstrated how technology is creating new markets with new processes, materials, and machinery and how the search for new high-performance applications are shaping these developments, alongside increasingly important sustainability requirements, according to a press release on the conference.

The conference started with a talk on disruptive technologies, including biodegradable polymers, nanofibers, and e-mobility. The programme was then divided into four sessions, the first of which examined fibres and raw materials, including nanofibres, superabsorbents, and engineering polymers, and discussed the misconception that natural fibres are better than synthetics for the environment.

Session two highlighted pioneering fabrics and finishing, concluding, for example, that there is a strong future for flax in the automotive industry, that dry powder impregnation provides product advantages, and there is further potential for functionalising nonwovens with active particles, and much more.

Sessions three and four on the second day of the conference examined new process technologies such as foam forming, printable nonwovens, elastanes for stretch, ultrasonic welding, and inline measurement.

The event concluded with talks highlighting the winning combination of wetlaid and spunlacing, pneumatic fibre transport and filtration systems, and how to protect innovation. However, underpinning most of the presentations was the issue of the environment and sustainability.

Organised by International Newsletters, NHPA2018 was sponsored by Technical Absorbents (Gold Sponsors) as well as Sicam, Hammer IMS, Herrmann Ultraschall, and Cerex. (GK)