Embossed Stretchable Elastic Laminate and Method of Production

1 . An embossed stretchable elastic laminate comprising:

at least one nonwoven fabric that is stretchable in at least one direction; and

an elastic material applied as a melt onto a major surface of said nonwoven fabric;

wherein the melt forms an elastic layer bonded to said surface of said nonwoven fabric; and

wherein said nonwoven fabric has an embossing pattern applied to a major surface of said nonwoven fabric opposite the major surface receiving the elastic material, said embossing pattern comprising discontinuous discrete shapes having a depth of at least about 0.008 inches.

2 . The embossed stretchable elastic laminate of claim 1 , wherein the nonwoven fabric comprises a material selected from the group consisting of polyethylene terephthalate, polybutylene terephthalate, polypropylene terephthalate, polyamides, polyacrylates, polyacrylonitrile, viscose, aramide, polyvinylalcohol and rayon.

3 . The embossed stretchable elastic laminate of claim 1 , wherein the elastic material comprises a styrene block copolymer.

4 . The embossed stretchable elastic laminate of claim 3 , wherein the styrene block copolymer comprises SEBS.

5 . The embossed stretchable elastic laminate of claim 1 , wherein the elastic layer is comprised of a plurality of layers formed by co-extruding the elastic material and at least one other material.

6 . The embossed stretchable elastic laminate of claim 5 , wherein the at least one other material is a second elastic material.

7 . The embossed stretchable elastic laminate of claim 5 , wherein the at least one other material is a tie layer material.

8 . The embossed stretchable elastic laminate of claim 1 , wherein said laminate comprises a second nonwoven fabric and said elastic material is applied to a major surface of said second nonwoven fabric so that the elastic layer is sandwiched between and bonded to said major surfaces of the nonwoven fabric and the second nonwoven fabric.

9 . The embossed stretchable laminate of claim 1 , wherein the at least one nonwoven fabric is a spunlace nonwoven fabric.

10 . The embossed stretchable laminate of claim 8 , wherein the second nonwoven fabric is a spunlace nonwoven fabric.

11 . The embossed stretchable laminate of claim 1 , wherein the embossing pattern comprises a series of discrete dots having a depth in the range of about 0.010 to about 0.060 inches.

12 . The embossed stretchable laminate of claim 1 , wherein the embossing pattern comprises a series of discrete perpendicular rectangles having a depth in the range of about 0.008 to about 0.060 inches.

13 . The embossed stretchable laminate of claim 1 , wherein the embossing pattern is imparted by a roll having embossing pattern depth of about 0.008 inches to about 0.5 inches.

14 . The embossed stretchable elastic laminate of claim 1 , wherein the at least one nonwoven fabric comprises natural fibers selected from the group consisting of cellulose, cotton, hemp, wool and flax.

15 . The embossed stretchable elastic laminate of claim 5 , wherein the elastic layer comprises first and second outer layers and at least one core layer.

16 . The embossed stretchable elastic laminate of claim 15 , wherein the first and second outer layers are tie layers.

17 . A method of forming an embossed stretchable elastic laminate comprising the steps of:

(a) providing a nonwoven fabric that is stretchable in at least one direction;

(b) heating an elastic material to form an elastic melt;

(c) applying said elastic melt to a major surface of said nonwoven fabric;

(d) applying a compressive force to at least one of said elastic melt and said nonwoven fabric to form an elastic layer bonded to said surface of said nonwoven fabric; and

(e) during the step of applying a compressive force with a roller having a deep embossing pattern to form a deep embossing pattern on a major surface of said nonwoven fabric opposite the major surface receiving the elastic melt.

18 . The method of claim 17 , wherein a single elastic material is applied to the surface of said nonwoven to form a single elastic layer.

19 . The method of claim 17 , wherein the applying step comprises co-extruding at least two materials, at least one of which is an elastic material, onto the surface of the nonwoven fabric.

20 . The method of claim 17 , wherein the elastic melt and the nonwoven fabric are conveyed through a nip formed by a layon roll and an embossing roll to form the elastic layer bonded to the surface of the nonwoven fabric.

21 . The method of claim 17 , wherein the compressive force is generated by using at least one of an air knife, a vacuum box, nonwoven web tension, or a static bar.

22 . The method of claim 17 , wherein the deep embossing pattern comprises a series of discrete dots having a depth in the range of about 0.010 to about 0.060 inches.

23 . The method of claim 17 , wherein the deep embossing pattern comprises a series of discrete perpendicular rectangles having a depth in the range of about 0.008 to about 0.060 inches.

24 . A component for an absorbent article comprising;

at least one nonwoven fabric that is stretchable in at least one direction; and

an elastic material applied as a melt onto a major surface of said nonwoven fabric, wherein the melt forms an elastic layer bonded to said surface of said nonwoven fabric;

wherein said nonwoven fabric has an embossing pattern applied to a major surface of said nonwoven fabric opposite the major surface receiving the elastic material via a roller having a deep embossing pattern, said embossing pattern comprising discontinuous, discrete shapes having a depth of at least about 0.008 inches.

25 . An absorbent article comprising the component of claim 24.