How to choose the right toothbrush filament

 COMPANY NEWS     |      2022-09-06 16:13
Monofilaments for toothbrushes are essentially segmented by the value benefits they deliver to both, the toothbrush manufacturer buying the filaments for tufting the toothbrushes and more importantly the consumer purchasing the toothbrush. The filaments are priced based on the perceived value benefits it delivers to the customer that determines the price point for the specific offering.
The value benefits can be broadly classified under three headings, bend recovery and wear performance which is the heart and soul of the toothbrush, the optimum water absorption and the ease of processing. Going deeper into all three areas.

Bend recovery is the natural ability of the filament to straighten out after bending it. Nylons for which our definition is limited to Nylon 612 and Nylon 610 score slightly less than PBT on bend recovery but other properties make Nylons mentioned here, to be superior as a choice for toothbrush filaments. Nylon 612 is also marginally superior to Nylon 6,10 in bend recovery.

Wear Performance shows that, Nylons are 5 times less abrasive than PBT, causing less damage, to enamel of the teeth and gums and its wear performance superior.
The combination of bend recovery primarily and wear performance to some extent is what determines the durability of the toothbrush.

Water Absorption:Nylons absorb the optimum amount of moisture at 3% to ensure the right balance between feeling conformable in the mouth without the filaments becoming limp. PBT on the other hand does not absorb any moisture and remain hard and stiff in the mouth.

Nylons due to its lower density and viscosity is easier to end round as compared to PBT. The end rounding performance of Nylons is superb and due to its lower wear the end rounding is also retained for a longer period.

The additional criteria that is important for toothbrush manufacturers are:
Superior surface finish to facilitate high speed tufting at > 850 tufts a minute.
Calliper Uniformity to ensure consistency of filaments diameter and maintaing the right packing factor for accurate tufting.
Colour Uniformity through our special colour matching methods to ensure consistency of colours batch to batch with no variations.
Maximum Yield with Nylons that give a >20% higher yield as compared to PBT.

Chemically tapered filaments both single end tapered and both ends tapered are different to level filaments and cannot strictly be compared.