The Manufacture of

Rhodia Filter Tow

Technical Bulletin 1-01
The manufacture of
Rhodia Filter Tow
Technical Bulletin 1-01
PUBLISHED BY
CUSTOMER SUPPORT
RHODIA FILTER TOW
IN JANUARY 1999
 The entire process is based on wood
as a raw material. To put it quite sim-
ply, wood consists primarily of cellulose
Production of and lignin. We all know the firm and fi-
brous structure of wood. If we compare
cellulose 2 1/2 acetate wood with reinforced concrete, the
cellulose corresponds to the steel rein-
forcement which creates elasticity and
the lignin to the concrete.
To permit subsequent treatment in
order to produce synthetic fibres it is
necessary for the cellulose to be avail-
able in the form of wood pulp. This is
obtained after the extraction of lignin
from the wood. Wood pulp is a poly-
mer, i. e. a chain molecule of grape
sugar (dextro-glucose), which is syn-
thesized from CO2 and water with the
aid of sunlight by the plant. A pulp
molecule consists of about 1200 grape
sugar components (monomers).
The treatment process at Rhodia Acetow
begins with the pulp. There are almost
no solvents in which it can be
dissolved. In order to put the pulp into
a soluble form it must be converted
chemically. This is done by means of
acetic anhydride together with a cata-
lyst for acetylation.
The three main components, pulp, ace-
tic anhydride and catalyst, are allowed
to react together in the acetylation
drum and, by means of an exothermic
process, this produces cellulose triace-
tate. Cellulose triacetate includes the
term “tri” in its name because all three
OH groups of the cellulose molecule
component are esterified with acetic
acid. The proportion of weight of chem-
ically bound acetic acid in the triacetate
is 62,5 %.
The characteristic feature of cellulose
triacetate is that it can be dissolved
only in such unpleasant solvents as
acetic acid and chloroform.
Part of the bound acetic acid is there-
fore again separated in a subsequent
process. This occurs during so-called
“saponification”. The process of sapo-
nification is controlled in such a man-
2
ner that with each second monomer an
acetic acid ester is again substituted by
an OH group, that is to say, in the sta-
tistical mean 2 1/2 of three possible OH
groups are replaced by acetic acid es-
ter. Consequently, the proportion of
bound acetic acid in 2 1/2 acetate
amounts to 55 % of weight.
Cellulose 2 1/2 acetate represents a
chemically converted cellulose which,
among other things, is soluble in ace-
tone. Acetone as a solvent has proper-
ties which predestine it to be utilised
for the making of a spinning solution,
i. e.:
• Acetone is non-toxic; this is impor-
tant for its use in the food industry.
• Acetone boils with a comparatively
low heat of evaporation at 56 °C; this
is important for ease of expulsion of
the solvent during the spinning pro-
cess.
• Acetone dissolves eagerly in any
mixing proportion in water; this is of
importance for recovery of the sol-
vent which has been expelled in the
spinning process.
Let us now return to the saponifier in
which, at the end of the process, we
have cellulose 2 1/2 acetate dissolved
in acetic acid. From this solution, by
means of an intensive admixture of wa-
ter or diluted acetic acid, the 2 1/2 ace-
tate is precipitated in flocculent form.
The flakes are porous and sucked full
with acetic acid. In the subsequent
washing process this capillarybound
acid is washed out intensively with
fresh water and the adhering water is
then squeezed out with the help of a
roller press. The required flakes are
obtained in the subsequent thermal
drying process.
This concludes the chemical produc-
tion process of the cellulose 2 1/2 ac-
etate. The flakes are ensilaged.
3
 Herstellung von

Acetow
Production of
Production du
Producción de
èpoËÁ‚o‰cÚ‚o
RHODIA F
Frischwasser
Spülen Fresh water Pres
Rinsing Eau douce Pres
Rinçage Agua fresca Pres
Lavado c‚eÊafl ‚o‰a Pren
ÔpoÏ˚‚aÌËe Ôpec

Acetylieren Zellstoff Essigsäureanhydrid Katalysator

Acetylation Woodpulp Acetic acid anhydrid Catalyst Verdünnte Essigsäure (Rückgewinnung)
Acétylation
Acetilación
Pâte à bois
Pulpa de madera + Acide acétique
Ácido acético/Anhídrido acético + Catalyseur
Catalizador
Diluted acetic acid (recovery)
Acide acétique dilué (récupération)
aˆeÚËÎËpo‚aÌËe ˆeÎβÎoÁa yÍcycÌ˚È āˉpˉ ÍaÚaÎËÁaÚop Ácido acético diluido (recuperación)
paÁ·a‚ÎeÌÌafl yÍcycÌafl ÍËcÎoÚa (pe„eÌepaˆËfl)

Verdünnte Essigsäure
Diluted acetic acid
Acide acétique dilué
Ácido acético diluido
Verseifen Fällen paÁ·a‚ÎeÌÌafl yÍcycÌafl ÍËcÎoÚa
Saponification Precipitation
Saponificación Precipitación
oÏ˚ÎeÌËe ocaʉeÌËe

Spinnen
Spinning
Filage
Extrusión
Ôpfl‰eÌËe

Luft Trocknen
Air Drying
Aire Séchage
‚oÁ‰yx Secado
Kräuselung cy¯Ía
Crimping
Aceton (Rückgewinnung)
Crêpage
Acetone (recovery)
Rizado
Acétone (récupération)
„oÙpËpo‚aÌËe
Acetona (recuperación)
aˆeÚoÌ (peÍÚËÙËÍaˆËfl)
FILTER TOW
ssen
ssing
ssage Trocknen
nsado Drying
cco‚aÌËe Séchage
Secado
cy¯Ía Acetatflocken
Acetateflakes Spinnlösung
Flocons d’ acétate Spinning dope
Copos de acetato Solution à titer
de celulosa Solucion de hilar
xÎoÔ¸fl aˆeÚaÚa Ôpfl‰ËθÌ˚È
pacÚ‚op

Dekantieren
Decanting
Décantation
Decantación
‰eÍaÌÚËpo‚aÌËe
TiO2

Aceton Filtration
Acetone Filtración
Acétone ÙËθÚpo‚aÌËe
Acetona
aˆÂÚoÌ

Mischen
Mixing
Mélange
Mezclador
ÔepeÏe¯Ë‚aÌËe

Einlegen
Laying
Mise en caisson
Depósito de mecha
Áa„pyÁÍa

Ballen
Pressen Bales
Pressing Balles
Pressage Paca/fardo
Prensado ÍËÔa
Ôpecco‚aÌËe
 The cellulose 2 1/2 acetate flakes re-
present chemically absolute the same
product as RHODIA FILTER TOW.
Spinning of The entire process, which is described
as follows, serves only to produce the
RHODIA FILTER TOW physical change from flakes to threads
or filaments. In this connection, a long
detour via the spinning solution must
take place.
The spinning solution (dope) is pro-
duced in a mixing autoclave by mixing
together the acetate, the solvent ace-
tone and the delustrant TiO2. During
the spinning process it must be pres-
sed through spinnerets similar to those
of hand sprinklers with a large number
of holes. These holes have cross sec-
tions in the shape of an equilateral tri-
angle (actual standard), rectangle,
square or circle.
The edge lengths or diamenters of
these holes come between 40 and
100 µm (= micrometres). To enable the
dope to flow freely through such small
sectional areas ( up to 30.000 of such
holes are in operation for one tow), the
dope must be absolutely homogene-
ous and free from impurities down to
magnitudes of only a few micrometres.
In order to achieve such a condition a
considerable effort is necessary. After
mixing, the spinning solution is decant-
ed in large containers, i. e. insufflated
air bubbles rise up and “coarse” impu-
rities are precipitated. This is followed
by precise filtration through plate filter
presses in several stages. During this
process further decantation is carried
out before the dope is pumped into the
individual spinning machines from a
buffer container through a network of
pipes.
The actual conversion of the spinning
solution into thread is effected in the
spinning machine. The spinning ma-
chine consists of a large number of
spinning cells or cabinets set up next to
one another. Each spinning cell com-
prises a tube, i. e. a spinning shaft into
which the spinneret at the top injects
its filaments. The spinning solution is
fed into the spinneret with a dosing
6
pump following a precise temperature-
controlled preheating operation. The lo-
wer end of the spinning shaft is closed
except for a small opening to permit
the exit of the thread. Just before the
end air is drawn off, this air having en-
tered at the top end of the shaft .
The spinning shaft is heated. The air
which has been drawn through the spin-
ning shaft is heated and it absorbs the
acetone solvent which is being diffused
out of the spinning solution. The ace-
tone is nearly completely recuperated.
As a result, the solution is solidified into
filaments with a considerable shrinkage
of volume. (For this reason, filaments
are produced with Y-shaped sectional
areas from triangular holes, with I-shaped
areas from rectangular holes, x-shaped
areas from square holes and with “daisy-
shaped” areas from round holes).
The thread comprises the total of all
the individual filaments from a spin-
neret, and when this thread leaves the
spinning shaft the filaments are lying
close to each other but without stick-
ing together. The thread is conveyed
and moistened with “spinning oil” to get
its finish. The spin finish protects the
thread from damage during its further
treatment and prevents an excessive
electrostatic charge.
The threads from all the spinning cells
are conveyed together in front of the
spinning machine to a flat belt and
drawn off from the crimping machine.
The crimping machine operates on the
stuffer box principle. It represents the
heart of filter tow production. Its design
and the precision of its construction will
determine most conclusively the quality
of the tow in respect of uniformity of
the characteristic values and intactness
of filaments.
The tow, which is crimped but still wet,
is then dried down in a drier to its final
humidity of 5 to 6 % depending on the
specification. At the same time, with
the water in the drier, the remaining
acetone is evaporated down to values
of less than 0,5 %.
 spinneret holes/
hole cross section figure symbol filament cross sections

circle

triangle

rectangle

square

7
 Subsequently, the tow which is now fin-
ished is placed loosely into large trans-
portable filling boxes via a longitudinal
Packing of and lateral traversing unit. It is then
conveyed in these boxes underneath a
RHODIA FILTER TOW press, where it is compressed and
packed under pressure.
The packing consists of a foil made of
a polypropylen laminated web of small
8
ribbons, and a glued pasteboard which
doesn’t require straps or of a strapless
reusable packaging con sisting of a
polypropylen web closed with velcros
(TOWPACK®).
This assures the protection of the tow
against odours and the ex-change of
moisture.
9
Rhodia Acetow GmbH
Postfach 10 04 44, D-79123 Freiburg
Engesserstraße 8, D-79108 Freiburg
Tel.: +49 (0) 7 61-511- 35 61
Fax: +49 (0) 7 61-511-35 54
e-mail: info@rhodia-acetow.com
www.rhodia-acetow.com