The latest buzzword in the fiber industry today is nanofibers. Specific applications discussed for fibers this small are artifical leathers, polishing cloths and filtration. The fabric construction techniques are generally nonwovens. Denier has traditionally been the most common term used to define fiber size. However, this term becomes awkward when the fiber size is less than one denier. Therefore, in melt-blowing, where the fiber sizes are generally less than one denier, the fiber diameter is measured in microns. When fiber diameter gets below 0.5 microns, the term nanometer (nm)--a measurement of 10~(-9) meters--has come into use (Table 1). Today, meltblowing is the primary source for small diameter fibers. Considerable research has gone into production of smaller diameter melt-blown fibers, but the smallest routine commercial fibers are generally in the 2 micron size range. Fibers of such size can today be produced at ～0.5 grams/hole/min.
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