Dr Ingo Bernt from the Bavarian viscose speciality fibres manufacturer Kelheim Fibres will present the company’s transparent viscose speciality fibre Leonardo at this month’s Global Fiber Congress at Dornbirn. For further discussions and with a broad range of other speciality fibres, he and his colleagues will be available at Kelheim Fibres’ info point at the conference.

The viscose fibre Leonardo from Kelheim Fibres is a smooth and flat viscose fibre with a width to thickness ratio of up to 1:40. “This geometry with parallel sides gives the fibre its unique characteristics: In wet laid nonwovens, Leonardo scores with skin friendliness and high liquid storage capacity, typical properties of viscose fibres, which are further improved in Leonardo,” the company explains.

“In contrast to other viscose fibres, however, Leonardo also offers high transparency – a property that is much sought after in cosmetic facial sheet masks in the Asian market. Here, transparency not only suggests a high load of moisture, but it also enables a discreet use of the mask even in everyday situations.”

“But transparency also offers benefits for other nonwovens products, for example, for tea bags where the contents can be clearly seen,” the manufacturer continues. “The possible applications of Leonardo are not limited to nonwovens either: processed into effect yarns, the transparent Leonardo fibre can provide a special look in textiles.”

Kelheim Fibres is a leading producer of viscose speciality fibres and the important supplier of viscose fibres for the tampon industry. Around 90,000 tons of viscose fibres are produced and tested every year at Kelheim in South Germany. These are used in most diverse applications – from fashion, hygiene and medical products to nonwovens and speciality papers.

Leonardo – as all viscose specialities from Kelheim Fibres – is made of 100% renewable cellulose and is therefore fully biodegradable.

www.kelheim-fibres.com