US-12618648-B2 - Ballistic materials incorporating hydroentangled nonwovens

Abstract

A ballistic material is made from spunlace nonwoven fibers mechanically entangled into a woven ballistic fabric. The spunlace nonwoven may comprise low denier fibers providing for a highly dense ballistic product.

Inventors

• Allen L. Price
• David Brahms
• Scott JANCO
• Courtney Musciano
• Robert Gravel
• Eric A. Barter
• Matt Langley
• James Stahl
• Vincent Gallacher

Assignees

• DUPONT SAFETY & CONSTRUCTION, INC.

Dates

Publication Date

20260505

Application Date

20220307

Claims (6)

1. 1 . A ballistic material, comprising: a first woven co-polymer ballistic fabric having a fiber denier in a range of 50 d to 5000 d; and a hydroentangled nonwoven fiber component consisting essentially of ballistic grade para-aramid fibers having a denier in a range of about 0.5 d to about 2.5 d and a density of about 10 gsm to about 200 gsm; wherein the hydroentangled nonwoven fiber component is needlepunched with the first woven co-polymer ballistic fabric to form a consolidated material.
2. 2 . The ballistic material according to claim 1 , wherein the hydroentangled nonwoven fiber component consists essentially of fibers having a denier in a range of about 0.5 d to about 2.0 d.
3. 3 . The ballistic material according to claim 1 , wherein the ballistic material has a finished areal weight of about 0.1 to about 2.0 pounds per square foot.
4. 4 . The ballistic material according to claim 1 , wherein the fibers of the hydroentangled nonwoven fiber component are coated with a water repellant coating.
5. 5 . The ballistic material according to claim 1 , comprising a plurality of woven ballistic fabric layers integrated with the hydroentangled nonwoven fiber component.
6. 6 . The ballistic material according to claim 1 , having an areal weight in a range of 0.1 to about 2.0 pounds per square foot and a V50 in a range of about 750 to about 3000 feet per second.

Description

CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS This application is a divisional of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 14/985,897, filed on Dec. 31, 2015. FIELD OF THE INVENTION The invention is in the field of ballistic materials. Specifically, the invention is directed to a ballistic material made from ballistic grade woven fabric layer(s) and hydro-entangled nonwoven fibers entangled with the woven layer(s) to form improved core matrix component layers for ballistic vests, vehicular armor, structural armor and the like. BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION U.S. Pat. Nos. 7,101,818 and 7,631,405, which are incorporated by reference in their entirety, describe ballistic materials and methods in which woven ballistic layer(s) are reinforced with fibers mechanically entangled in the interstices of the woven layer(s) to form a consolidated material. The “z-directional reinforcement” improves ballistic performance compared to multiple plies of the woven ballistic fabric stitched, thermally bonded, or mechanically bonded together by other means. The component parts of a ballistic construction made according to this method are referred to as “Core Matrix®” materials. Conventionally, nonwoven fibers used to make Core Matrix® materials are prepared by carding prior to processing in a needlepunch loom. Using this technique to obtain the nonwoven component subjects the fibers to damage, and limits the fineness of denier that can be employed. Moreover, the nonwoven web/batting according to the existing methods cannot be pre-treated for water, oil, or chemical repellency. There continues to be a need for Core-Matrix®-type ballistic materials with improved properties, particularly as relates to the properties of the nonwoven component, increased “push through” or entanglement of the nonwoven into the woven fabric, higher density and better ballistic performance. SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION In one aspect, the invention is a ballistic material, comprising: a first woven ballistic fabric having a fiber denier in a range of 50 d to 5000 d; and a hydroentangled nonwoven fiber component having a denier lower than the fiber denier of the first woven ballistic fabric; wherein the hydroentangled nonwoven component is mechanically entangled with the woven ballistic fabric to form a consolidated monolithic material. In embodiments, the hydroentangled nonwoven is hydroentangled prior to mechanical entanglement with the woven layer. In embodiments, the denier of the hydroentangled nonwoven is 0.5 d to 2.5 d, and in other embodiments, 0.5 d to 2.0 d. In another aspect, the invention is a method of making a ballistic material which allows lower denier nonwoven fiber to be incorporated into a Core Matrix® ballistic fabric, resulting, in some cases, in improved performance; and in other cases allowing for alternative ballistic material solutions. In this aspect, the invention comprises positioning a first woven ballistic fabric layer having a fiber denier in a range of 50 d to 5000 d next to a hydroentangled nonwoven fiber layer, said nonwoven fiber layer having a denier lower than the fiber denier of the first woven ballistic fabric, and mechanically entangling the hydroentangled nonwoven fiber layer into the woven ballistic fabric layer to form a consolidated ballistic material. In embodiments, the hydroentangled layer is a material having a denier lower than 3.5 denier, for example (and not by way of limitation) a denier of 0.5 to 2.5 d, or 0.5 to 2.0 d, referred to as “spunlace”. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS The subject matter regarded as the invention is particularly pointed out and distinctly claimed in the concluding portion of the specification. The invention, however, both as to organization and method of operation, together with objects, features, and advantages thereof, may best be understood by reference to the following detailed description when read with the accompanying drawings in which: FIG. 1 shows plotted V-50 performance data of sample ballistic fabrics according to embodiments of the invention compared to the prior art. FIG. 2 shows normalized V-50 performance data for Core Matrix® ballistic fabrics in which the conventional polyester web of the Core Matrix® is substituted with other fibers. FIGS. 3A and 3B depict a ballistic material according to the prior art and according to the invention, respectively, showing improved integration of hydroentangled nonwoven in a finished material according to the invention. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION “Denier” and the abbreviation “d” refers to a measure of linear density of yarn, specifically the weight in grams of 9000 meters of yarn. “V-50” is a standard test of ballistic performance and refers to the velocity at which 50 percent of rounds fired at a ballistic target pass through the target. Thus, higher V-50 indicates better ballistic performance. V-50 data provided herein were obtained according to Standard NIJ 0101.06 in effect on the filing date of this application. “Normalized