Abstract: A process for producing high grade polyethylene paper on conventional continuous wet-lay papermaking equipment. In particular, the process comprises preparing a furnish of 75-99 wt. % oriented polyethylene pulp, 0.5-15 wt. % fibrous stabilizing agent and 0.5-10 wt. % strengthening agent and depositing the furnish on the forming screen of a conventional wet-lay papermaking machine. The resulting waterleaf sheet is dried on heated drying cans and then thermally bonded to provide a high grade polyethylene paper having high dry strength and toughness, exceptional dimensional stability and superior uniformity (i.e., no holes). The high grade polyethylene paper made by the inventive process is particularly useful in microfiltration end-uses such as vacuum cleaner bags.

Abstract: A process is disclosed for producing high grade synthetic paper containing at least 97 wt. % polyethylene on conventional continuous wet-lay paper-making equipment. In particular, the process comprises preparing a pulp furnish of 97-99.5 wt. % oriented polyethylene fibers and 0.5-3.0 wt. % polyvinyl alcohol fibers and depositing the fibers on the forming screen of a conventional wet-lay paper machine. The resulting waterleaf sheet is then dried on heated PTFE-coated drying cans, using a particular drying profile to reduce sticking and elongation, and then thermally bonded to provide a polyethylene paper having high strength, low defects and excellent uniformity. A process for producing the pulp fibers used in the paper-making process is also disclosed.