Hydrogel fibers and fibrous structures

1. A plurality of fibers, comprising:

at least 30 wt. % of first fibers made of a first raw fiber material consisting of an unsubstituted polyvinyl alcohol, a partially substituted polyvinyl alcohol, or a mixture thereof; and

optionally, 1 wt % to 70 wt % of second fibers consisting of a polyolefin, polyamide, polyester, polyacrylonitrile, polyvinyl chloride, polyester amide, polyvinyl amine, polyvinyl acetate, polyethylene glycol, polyvinylpyrrolidone, polyurethane, gelatine, collagen, or a mixture of two or more of any of these,

wherein the polyvinyl alcohol is directly cross-linked by tempering at a temperature of 100 to 200° C., such that cross-linked polyvinyl alcohol is present,

wherein the first fibers have a fiber titer of 1.5 to 5 dtex,

wherein the first and second fibers comprise no polyacrylate,

wherein the plurality has an absorption capacity for 0.9% sodium chloride solution of from 300 to 3500% by weight as measured by DIN 53923, and

wherein the plurality is configured to be gelling or hydrogelling and has a structural shrinkage of at most 60%.

2. The plurality of claim 1 , comprising, as the fibers, at least 90 wt. % of the first fibers.

3. The plurality of claim 1 , comprising, as the fibers, at least 95 wt. % of the first fibers.

4. The plurality of claim 1 , wherein the absorption capacity for 0.9% sodium chloride solution is at least 500% by weight.

5. The plurality of claim 1 , wherein the first fiber is polyvinyl alcohol and the second fiber is polyester.

6. The plurality of claim 1 , wherein the polyvinyl alcohol is directly cross-linked by tempering for a period of time from 4 to 7 hours.

7. The plurality of claim 1 , further comprising:

an additive comprising a pharmacologically active substance, a drug, an antibiotic, an analgesic, an anti-infective, an anti-inflammatory, a haemostatic, a wound healing promoting, an antimicrobial, an antibacterial, an antiviral, an enzyme, an amino acid, an antioxidant, a peptide, a peptide sequence, a polysaccharide, a chitosan, a growth factor, a purine, a pyrimidine, a live cell, β-tricalciumphosphate, hydroxyapatite, a odor-adsorber, a cyclodextrin, a metal, a carbon compound, a processing agent, or a mixture thereof.

8. The plurality of claim 7 , wherein the additive comprises silver, gold, copper, zinc, or graphite.

9. A medical application material, wound dressing, bandage, suture material, implant, tissue engineering scaffold, drug, carrier material, insulating material, filter material, technical absorber product, foodstuff sector product, hygiene product, cosmetic product, or household product, comprising:

the plurality of claim 1 .

10. A method for producing the plurality of claim 1 , the method comprising:

tempering the first fibers at a predetermined tempering temperature in a range of from 100 to 200° C. for a predetermined tempering time.

11. The method of claim 10 , wherein the predetermined tempering temperature is

greater than a glass transition temperature of the first raw fiber material,

less than a fusion temperature of the first raw fiber material, or

greater than a glass transition temperature of the first raw fiber material and less than a fusion temperature of the first raw fiber material.

12. The method of claim 10 , wherein the predetermined tempering time is from 10 minutes to 14 hours.

13. The method of claim 10 , further comprising:

bonding the fibers to thereby produce a one-dimensional, two-dimensional, or three-dimensional fibrous structure.

14. The method of claim 10 , further comprising:

adding second fibers made of at least one second raw fiber material.