Water-decomposable absorbent article

• US 20010008964A1
• Filed: 12/22/2000
• Published: 07/19/2001
• Est. Priority Date: 01/06/2000
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Unicharm Corporation
• Original Assignee: Unicharm Corporation
• Inventors: Wada, Mitsuhiro, Miyazaki, Yuka, Kurata, Nobuhiro
• Granted Patent: US 6,593,510 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 604/364
• CPC Class Codes: A61F 13/15211 soluble or disintegratable in liquid

Abstract

Provided is a water-decomposable absorbent article including a water-decomposable back layer, a water-decomposable and liquid-pervious surface layer, and a water-decomposable absorbent layer sandwiched between the back layer and the surface layer. The absorbent article includes an outer peripheral region being formed in a predetermined width spaced from a peripheral edge of the absorbent article, and an inner region located inside the outer peripheral region. The absorbent layer and the back layer, and/or the absorbent layer and the surface layer are bonded to each other with a water-soluble or water-swellable adhesive therebetween in the inner region, and the interlayer bonding strength of the layers bonded with the adhesive in the inner region is higher than the interlayer bonding strength of the layers in the outer peripheral region, both in wet and in dry.

Claims

1. A water-decomposable absorbent article comprising a water-decomposable back layer, a water-decomposable and liquid-pervious surface layer, and a water-decomposable absorbent layer sandwiched between the back layer and the surface layer, wherein;

the absorbent article including an outer peripheral region being formed in a predetermined width spaced from a peripheral edge of the absorbent article, and an inner region located inside the outer peripheral region,

the absorbent layer and the back layer, and/or the absorbent layer and the surface layer are bonded to each other with a water-soluble or water-swellable adhesive therebetween in the inner region, and the interlayer bonding strength of the layers bonded with the adhesive in the inner region is higher than the interlayer bonding strength of the layers in the outer peripheral region, both in wet and in dry.

2. The water-decomposable absorbent article as set forth in

claim 1

, wherein the interlayer peeling rate of the constituent layers in wet is higher in the outer peripheral region than in the inner region.

3. The water-decomposable absorbent article as set forth in

claim 1

, wherein the outer peripheral region has a width of from 2 to 25 mm inwardly from a peripheral edge of the absorbent article.

4. The water-decomposable absorbent article as set forth in

claim 1

, wherein the constituent layers in the outer peripheral region are bonded to each other with a water-soluble adhesive therebetween, and the solubility in water of the adhesive in the inner region is lower than that of the adhesive in the outer peripheral region.

5. The water-decomposable absorbent article as set forth in

claim 1

, wherein the constituent layers in the outer peripheral region are bonded to each other with a water-soluble adhesive therebetween, and the amount of the water-soluble adhesive applied to the unit area of the inner region is larger than that of the adhesive applied to the unit area of the outer peripheral region.

6. The water-decomposable absorbent article as set forth in

claim 5

, wherein the adhesives applied in the inner region and in the outer peripheral region are each made of polyvinyl alcohol, the applied amount falls between 10 and 30 g/m² in the outer peripheral region, and the applied amount falls between 30 and 200 g/m² in the inner region.

7. The water-decomposable absorbent article as set forth in

claim 1

, wherein the constituent layers in the outer peripheral region are bonded to each other under pressure without interposing the adhesive.

8. The water-decomposable absorbent article as set forth in

claim 7

, wherein the constituent layers in the outer peripheral region are bonded to each other via hydrogen bonding.