Zenni Optical Review: Legit or Scam?
Thanks to the internet we can now buy eyeglasses online without burning a hole in your pocket. If you're here, you maybe wondering if Zenni is the real deal or another scam. It's probably why you're reading so many Zenni reviews. Well if you want the truth, read our shocking review below! You've been warned.
Zenni is a website that sells prescription and non-prescription eyeglasses and sunglasses. Zenni Optical, LLC was founded in the San Francisco Bay Area by entrepreneurs Tibor Láczay and Julia Zhen in 2003. They initially started as 19dollareyeglasses.com but they renamed it to Zenni three years later.
What Types Of Glasses Does Zenni Sell?
As mentioned earlier Zenni sells prescription and non-prescription eyeglasses and sunglasses. They claim they have over 3000 different frame styles and options for men, women and kids.
Zennis offers various types of lens and frames. They sell single, bifocal and progressive lenses with the option to choose the shape, color, size and material. Their frames are mostly made of plastic, titanium or steel.
Buying a pair of eyeglasses from Zenni begins with you knowing your PD (pupillary distance). If you're wondering what that is, go here. Once you have your PD measured up they'll ask you to upload a photo of you facing forward and upright to their virtual mirror. The virtual mirror helps you see how the frame would look on you. You can then use the filters to find what you're looking for.
Once you find something you like you can proceed to fill out your prescription and then check out. They also claim that all glasses include free anti-scratch coating, UV protection, single vision lens a hard case and a cleaning cloth.
How Do I Get A Zenni Prescription?
They don't actually have a way you can get your prescription from them unlike what goes on at Warby Parker. So you'll have to get one on your own. But of course you don't need a prescription if you're shopping for sunglasses.
Where Can I Buy Zenni Glasses?
You can get these glasses off their website. If you're not out for prescription glasses, you can buy their sunglasses and non-prescription eyeglasses on Amazon.com for better deals. But if you really want to save money while buying stuff online, you may want to consider a site like EBates.com where you earn cash back and they have tons of coupons you can get. SwagBucks.com is another great place to check out. They allow you to earn free gift cards and cash for things you already do online. You can use the cash or gift cards to save while shopping on Zenni or any store you shop at online or offline.
How Much Do Zenni Glasses Cost?
Zenni eyeglasses go for as little as $6.95 to their hundreds at the time of this review. Most sunglasses go for $15 on average, but you'll probably find the same on Amazon.com at a cheaper price. Lenses cost upwards of $50 depending on what you want and the options you choose to include like polarity and photochromic impact resistance.
In the US, standard shipping costs $4.95 and takes 14-21 business days. Priority shipping costs $8.45 and takes 10-14 business days while express shipping costs $18.95 and takes 7-10 days. Damn! Maybe you're better off buying on Amazon where you get FREE Guaranteed 1-2 Day Amazon Prime Delivery.
If you're in Canada, you'll pay $9.95 for standard shipping and $15.95 for priority. International shipping costs $9.95 and it takes 21-28 days. They ship via either USPS or UPS.
Their return policy says you have 30 days to decide whether you want to return or not. They'll either refund you 50% of what you paid excluding shipping or you can choose to get 100% store credit. But if you want a replacement for an error they are responsible of, they'll do that for free within the 30 days warranty period.
You can read all about shipping, returns and refunds here.
If for any reason you want to talk to customer service, you can call them on (800) 211-2105 5am – 9pm PT every day. You can also email them on service@zennioptical.com and word is they are very active on social media, so you have that option too.
If you've ever felt the pain of losing money, you know better than to shop online without knowing what customers are saying about a company. So here are a few negative things you should know about Zenni.
Some customers say they were promised strong, sturdy and durable frames but they turned out to be anything but.
It seems their customer service can't keep up with customer complaints. Quite a number of customers said it took weeks before they could be attended to. Others were forced to look the other way as getting their issues sorted out took longer than the 30 days warranty period.
If the fact Zenni won't give you a full refund and paying for shipping rubs you the wrong way, you have alternatives. You can check out either Warby Parker or EyeBuyDirect as alternatives.
Should You Buy Zenni Or Not?
If you're shopping for cheap eyeglasses and sunglasses, Zenni is a great place to look. You get anti-scratch coating, UV protection, single vision lens a hard case and a cleaning cloth at no extra cost. They also have a positive BBB rating which may give you peace of mind.
But you can only get back half of what you paid for if you need refund and unlike most online glasses companies, you'll have to pay for shipping with this one. Their customer service isn't the best according to some customers. But they're definitely winning on the pricing end of things.
So if you would like to try out Zenni, you may get better deals on sunglasses and non-prescription eyeglasses on Amazon.com especially if you're a Prime Member. You can also earn free gift cards and coupons on a site like SwagBucks.com that you can use to shop for Zenni online glasses by doing what you already do online like watching videos, reading emails, playing games and more. Sites like EBates.com also give you the chance to earn cash back and coupons while shopping for online glasses.
Hopefully you're now in a better position to know whether Zenni is worth your time and money. We would also like to know what you think about this or any other online glasses company out there. So feel free to chime in on the comments section below. If you still have questions about Zenni, you can check out their FAQs page here.
Zenni says they found a solution to expensive prescription eyeglasses. But if what customers are saying about them is anything to go by, you may want to re-think purchasing from Zenni.


Overdrive LED Shop Light is Energy Star Listed fixture and is perfect for any application where high quality LED lighting is required. The fixture is designed for suspended application and provides uniform light with an elegant appearance.
The Shop light is ideal for suspended applications like workshops, garages and basement. It has an energy-efficient LED technology which provides significant energy saving over fluorescent fixtures. It is easy to install and available with pull chain to switch ON/OFF easily.


text:
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onlinecasinoselite.org › Blog › Surprise Lay-Offs for Casino Employees in New York and Elsewhere
Surprise Lay-Offs for Casino Employees in New York and Elsewhere
CASINO GAME RULES
Choose game 3 Card Poker 7 Stud Card Poker Baccarat Bingo Blackjack Caribbean Hold'em Caribbean Stud Poker Casino expressions Craps Jacks Or Better Joker Poker Keno Let It Ride Loose Deuces Mahjong Pai Gow Poker Poker Roulette Slots Spanish 21 Texas Hold'em Poker Vegas 3 Card Rummy Video Poker
Last October, workers at a New York racino were overjoyed to discover that their labor union had scored them some big pay raises (read the full story). Almost immediately, the salaries of many buffet cooks, kitchen staff, cleaning staff, and customer relations workers at Resorts World in Queens nearly doubled. In all, over 1,300 employees benefited from the union-negotiated wage increase. Now, less than three months later, the joyous tide at Resorts World has taken a turn for the worse: 175 of the buffet workers who received generous raises last fall have been laid off.
The layoffs were prompted by the abrupt closure of the racino's Aqueduct Buffet in early January. President Ed Farrell said the restaurant shut its doors because it "never caught on with our customers" and was losing money. At least one angry buffet worker expressed doubt about this, saying that the buffet was "definitely making money." The same worker conceded that, because of the pay raises last fall, Aqueduct Buffet prices had skyrocketed to up to $38 per person.
No Connection Between Raises and Layoffs
The assumption that the layoffs were a direct a result of the pay increase last fall has been made by many. The initial decision to offer the raise, after all, was not made by casino administrators. Rather, it was made as part of an arbitration process between the casino and the Hotel Trades Council. Casino spokesperson Kerri Lyon has said, however, that no relationship exists between the layoffs and the mandatory raises. Lyon explained that the Aqueduct Buffet had operated at a loss since its grand opening in 2011 and that, if it continued to operate, it would have had a "negative impact" on the facility as a whole.
Months ago, when the negotiated raise went into effect, Lyon told the press that her company respected the arbitrator's decision and would "continue to focus our efforts on improving our facility." In the eyes of casino administrators, the Aqueduct Buffet closure and layoffs will improve business overall.
Severance Packages and the Possibility of Re-Hire
Severance packages for the laid off employees include one to five weeks of pay and four months of continued health insurance coverage, as well as job training and/or job placement assistance. Priority is to be given to the laid off employees if positions elsewhere in the facility become available, according to union representative John Turchiano. Turchiano said that the Hotel Trades Council is doing everything it can to help the ousted workers. At this point, the casino still employs about 1,500 people in other areas. No other pay reductions or layoffs have been reported.
Other Dining Options
Resorts World continues to run a food court with other dining options for patrons. Choices include Southern-fried chicken at Popeye's, Chinese cuisine at Genting Palace, and steak dinners at RW Prime. Drinks and snacks can also be purchased at the facility's Starbucks and Bar360. No plans have been revealed for the space once occupied by the Aqueduct Buffet. State Senator Joe Addabbo told the press he hopes the space will not be used for gambling. Instead, he would like to see new dining options offered there.
Layoffs in Atlantic City
New York is not the only state to see layoffs in its casino industry. Last September, 315 positions were eliminated from three different Atlantic City casinos. Trump Entertainment Resorts cut 200 workers and Revel cut 115 people. The eliminations were blamed on the cyclical end-of-summer slowdown. The company has had problems for a while now; earlier this year, Revel filed for Chapter 11 protection. Last December, rumors surfaced that Hard Rock International was looking to purchase the struggling company.
Hourly workers weren't the only ones to be cut at Revel. Last July, 75 senior management positions were eliminated at the casino. Four months prior to that, 83 employees were cut. Only time will tell what happens to this struggling business in 2014.
Layoffs in West Virginia
Last October, the Hollywood Casino in Charleston laid off several dealers. The exact number was not disclosed, but it was reported to be less than 50. Contrary to popular belief, the layoffs were not due to the struggling U.S. economy. Rather, they were due to Hollywood Casino's stiff competition with neighboring Maryland and its Maryland Live! facility. West Virginia Lottery director John Musgrave said he anticipates competition from neighboring states will continue for the next several years. Specifically, he expects the rivalry to continue between Ohio, West Virginia and Maryland casinos.
Alabama: Laid Off Casino Workers May Have Legal Case
Back in 2010, a greyhound racetrack in Alabama called VictoryLand put workers through three rounds of abrupt layoffs. The first round eliminated 68 people and was thought to be temporary. The second and third rounds, however, saw every single employee at the track out of a job. These elimination were the result of a gambling crackdown in Alabama, where the activity is illegal.
VictoryLand had been attempting to get around state laws by loosely interpreting them. Because some forms of bingo are legal in the state, the casino sported slot machines that closely resembled the game of bingo. State officials caught on, however, and the Alabama Supreme Court ruled in favor of the automatic shut-down of the facility.
Under the Worker Adjustment and Retraining Act, or WARN, employers are required to give a 60-day notice before mass layoffs occur. The former employees sued VictoryLand for violating the WARN Act and won in district court. VictoryLand appealed the ruling, but it is likely that they will have to pay off at least some of the employees who did not receive a 60-day notice. The employees who ultimately receive compensation will get 60 days' wages. These reparations could add up to anywhere between $3 and $5 million for VictoryLand, according to sources.
Any time a business lays off employees in mass, people get hurt and citizens become angry. Today's struggling economy, paired with the fact that more casinos are springing up in the states, sets the stage for additional layoffs in the future. Even with union protection and arbitration, it seems that some casino employees remain vulnerable to this unfortunate circumstance.
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What words can you make with neither?
An unofficial list of all the Scrabble words you can make from the letters in the word neither. Anagrams and words you can make with an additional letter, just using the letters in neither!
85 words can be made from the letters in the word neither.
This page is a list of all the words that can be made from the letters in neither, or by rearranging the word neither. These words should be suitable for use as Scrabble words, or in games like Words with friends.


Spiffy is a unique fighter who uses a lot of unorthodox attacks. Most of his attacks are inspired by minigames featured in Spiffy Party. These are his Yellow and Green attacks. His Red attacks are his standard physical melee attacks. These are his fastest attacks, but they aren't too strong. His minigame-inspired attacks are where his strengths lie.
Spiffy is one of the few opponents who can glide. After a double jump, holding the Blue Button will cause Spiffy to open his wings and glide through the air while slowly descending. This is one of his best mobility options.
Spiffy, along with Color-Robo, Tawnya, and Duke of Zorn, is one of the fastest characters in the game. However, he doesn't deal much damage and he can't really take a beating that well. But his pros more than make up for his cons.
Spiffy Slap (R): Spiffy slaps an opponent with his left hand. This attacks, surprisingly, has no knockback, allowing a player to rapidly mash it. Rapidly mashing it will keep an opponent in place as you deal damage. However, Spiffy can only slap so many times before he must stop.
Spiffy Suplex (<---> + R): Spiffy grabs an opponent in front of him and slams them down onto the ground on the other side of him. This attack forces opponents into a knockdown state, meaning you can't combo off of this attack.
Spiffy Uppercut (Up + R): Spiffy slaps upward with his left hand. This forces opponents into a lift reaction, opening up combo opportunities, such as the Splatapult.
Spiffy Dance (Down + R): Spiffy breakdances on the ground, damaging any opponent near him. Mashing the button will cause Spiffy to dance longer, but spinning for too long with cause Spiffy to become temporarily disoriented.
Snowball Toss (Y): Spiffy throws a snowball forward that momentarily freezes any opponent it hits. This attack is inspired by the "Midnight Snowfight" minigame.
Hoverbumper Charge (<---> + Y): Spiffy hops into a Hoverbumper and charges forward. The edge of the vehicle is electrified, stunning any opponent Spiffy hits. This attack is inspired by the "Hoverbumpers" minigame.
Grapple Gropple (Up + Y): Spiffy takes control of a large mounted grappling hook momentarily and fires upwards at a 55 degree angle. Rather than pull in enemies, it ejects them. This attack is inspired by the "Hook, Climb, and Sinker" minigame.
Sawblade Run (Down + Y): Spiffy sets down a sawblade, which prompty races along the floor in a straight line, damaging any opponent it hits. The sawblade will disappear if it reaches a wall or the edge of a platform. This attack is inspired by the "Sawblade Scramble" and "Sawshank Redemption" minigames.
Toppling Totem (G): Spiffy hits the bottom of a totem pole, which prompty falls over and damages anyone it lands on. The totem pole isn't terribly tall; it only has 3 short sections. Because of this, the range isn't amazing, but it will work for close-to-mid-range. This attack is inspired by the "Totem Topple" minigame.
Orb Deflector (<---> + G): Spiffy creates a small forcefield for one second in front of him. This shield will reflect any projectile back where it came from. It is not a block, and as such, melee attacks will still deal damage to Spiffy. This attack is inspired by the "Orb Deflection" minigame.
Splatapult (Up + G): Spiffy uses a hammer to smash a small catapult, launching a large berry into the air in a high arc. This attack is a decent anti-air move, as the berry has a habit of hitting anyone in a 45 degree angle in front of Spiffy. If it hits an airborne opponent, it will stun them momentarily in mid-air. This attack is inspired by the "Splatapult" minigame.
Bush Bandit (Down + G): Spiffy hides inside a large bush. While inside the bush, projectiles deal no damage to Spiffy. He can also move while inside the bush. Pressing any button while hiding will cause Spiffy to leap out and slap an opponent, causing the bush to disappear. This is mostly used to discourage projectile users. This attack is inspired by the "Bush Bandit" minigame.
Splashtastic! (Right Stick Side): Fishstick appears and blasts the opponent away with his waterhose.
Eruption (Right Stick Up): Hothead appears and launches the opponent upwards with a lava spout.
Anchors Away! (Right Stick Down): Whalor appears and slams his anchor down on the opponent.
Party-Bot: Spiffy takes control of the Party-Bot, giving him a supply of bouncy balls that stun opponents and a devastating stun attack.


When librarian Fabiano Takashi came to Canada from Japan, six years ago, he had no idea that as an international student he was eligible for a tax rebate. Only five years later, a friend, who was also a student, explained to him that all students were eligible and that he should get a tax form at the post office. "I was naive and not well informed [enough] to understand that international students are also eligible for tax rebates. It would have been helpful, if at the time, I'd been admitted into the country and given the student authorization, I'd also have been given some information on how to claim income tax [refunds]," says Takashi.
A few months later, they received their statements from Revenue Canada, with all the corrections that had to be made to the forms. "Although slightly embarrassed, we were all happy that we finally got our money back!" says Takashi.
Gean says he now knows that he could have claimed the rent expense without the receipts because it is possible to use mail such as telephone bills and bank statements to prove he had lived in that apartment. "After all that confusion, I'd lost $850 that I'd been eligible to receive back from the government." A new multimedia campaign to be launched this year for the Canada Revenue Agency could help avoid situations like those experienced by Takashi and Oliveira. This campaign focuses on compliance and targets new Canadians in particular.
The CRA is concerned about non-compliance among recent immigrants. Research conducted by the agency indicates "that a certain percentage of new Canadians surveyed do not realize that they may have had to file a tax return, while some didn't know how." The campaign's ads will be tested on focus groups in Toronto, Montreal and Vancouver, concentrating on Mandarin, Arabic and Punjabi speakers. This research should tell CRA how best to inform newcomers that they are required to file a tax return if they have taxes to pay, and that they must file a tax return to receive benefits to which they are entitled.
But newcomers don't need to wait for the new CRA campaign to be informed about how to deal with taxes. If you are unable to complete your income tax and benefit return by yourself and are unable to pay for assistance, you could try online tax software, or there are many organizations that offer Volunteer Tax Preparation Clinics as well as classes and workshops in preparing your own taxes.When a simple tax return for an individual costs about $50 for a tax preparation company to prepare or $150 for an accountant to do so, these volunteer clinics are a great choice.
The Institute of Chartered Accountants of Ontario (ICAO) has a Tax Clinic program where volunteer chartered accountants assist low-income individuals with their tax returns for free. Clinics operate between February and April of each year in a variety of agencies – food banks, charities, hospitals, senior centres and homes, community centres, social service agencies and libraries.
One interesting observation made by Seto is related to newcomers coming from countries where they face authoritative governments. Frequently, they were afraid to challenge their governments about tax issues. Here in Canada, underlines the CA, "nothing is black and white." In other words, there are different interpretations for the same topic, and we can eventually challenge the government. And if new information comes to light, corrections or amendments can be made to old tax returns long after they are filed and paid.
Valeria Sales, counselling at the Abrigo Centre (a charitable organization that places its emphasis on Portuguese-speaking communities in the Toronto area), gives some tips for newcomers not familiar yet with the Canadian tax system. "It is always good to try getting help in your own language. Go to a community centre close to your area and ask for a free tax clinic." About 900 clients get help from Abrigo each year to fill out tax forms for free. Most of those clients are from the Portuguese community, but there are also many Spanish-speaking clients and others who are able to communicate in English. Valeria explains that the basic tax form is referred to as T1 General. Everyone needs to fill it out. If you do not receive one in the mail, you should pick one up at your nearest Canada Post or Revenue Canada offices. The income guideline for which to qualify for the agency's help is $16,000 maximum total income for individuals without dependents and $26,000 maximum total per-household income for couples without dependents. For each child, you can add $3,000 per year to the maximum income qualifier. Sales says that it is worthwhile to file for income tax even if you were unemployed, since you will still receive the GST Tax Credit.
The free clinics cannot complete income tax and benefit returns for deceased persons, bankrupt individuals, or individuals who have capital gains or losses, employment expenses, or business or rental income and expenses. More information about income tax can be reached at 1-800-959-8281.


Writing Disorder Archives - Pride Learning Co.
Dysgraphia is a type of learning disability in which an individual has difficulties putting thoughts to words when writing and the overall writing ability falls substantially below what is normally expected. Children with this sort of difficulty will find any sort of written activity to be a painstaking process and may have great difficulty constructing sentences and paragraphs in a grammatical or logical format and struggle tremendously with note- taking.
Encourage the correct pencil grip, posture and paper hold while writing. Try to reinforce this often before a habit is formed. Using a rubber band can help keep the correct finger grasp in place.
Use different pens and pencils that are a comfortable fit for your little one. Sometimes-fat markers on the white board work best for little fingers.
Use paper with raised lines to help guide staying within the lines.
1. Have the child first write the letter in the air with two fingers. Then they can trace over a yellow highlighted letter. Finally, they can write the modeled and traced letter independently on a whiteboard or piece of paper.
2. Use the wet-dry-try method. Children write the letter on a chalkboard with a wet sponge using the correct letter formation. Afterwards, they dry the letter with a dry sponge using the correct formation. Then, they rewrite the letter correctly again with a piece of chalk.
Introduce a keyboarding program on the computer or tablet as soon as possible. Typing can make it easier for a child with Dysgraphia to write by alleviating the frustration of forming the letters.
Give the child extra time to complete writing activities.
Have the child proofread the work later in the day. It is easier to see mistakes after taking a break.
Help the child create a checklist of editing their own work. This can include spelling, neatness, grammar, syntax, written expression.
Students can first verbally talk into a recorder to express their ideas and then follow up by writing them afterwards.
Create a well-organized plan that breaks writing assignments into small tasks.
Bounce a Ball – bounce a ball as you spell words. 1 bounce per letter.
Cheerleader Chant – Give me an S, give me a P, give me an E, give me an L, give me a L, give me another L – what's that spell? SPELL!
Jumping Jacks – Instead of writing the words, the student can spell them aloud while doing jumping jacks.
A student with Dysgraphia will benefit from being explicitly taught the steps of the writing process. Just as these students were taught to read in a step-by-step process, they will also need explicit and direct instruction in writing.
Students who struggle with Dysgraphia will need to explicitly be taught different types of writing such as expository and personal essays, short stories, poems, etc. This means that a teacher will need to provide these students with specific ideas and instructions. As part of these writing lessons, students will need to be given "visualization" strategies and mnemonics, which are a fun and easy strategy for remembering essential steps in the writing process.
Children struggling with Dysgraphia will need a structured, sequential, systematic, cumulative and multisensory writing program to help them build lasting memories. This might require more one-on-one sessions with a trained writing teacher, parent or tutor.


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Always Improving: Restoring Central Park in 2019
By Karissa Krenz
Billy Johnson Playground
Margaret L. Kempner Playground
Belvedere Castle
Harlem Meer
About the Conservancy
Keeping Central Park at its most picturesque and inviting is an ongoing process. That's why the Central Park Conservancy's team of professionals work year-round to renovate, rebuild, and refresh every corner of the Park. This year, the Conservancy was playground happy—completing work on three favorites—and also reopened the spectacular, historic Belvedere Castle.
The beloved Safari Playground has existed as a playground since 1936, but was transformed in 1997 into a wonderland of treehouses, water, and hippopotamus sculptures designed by artist Bob Cassilly.
Safari Playground's beloved hippos are accompanied by new play canoes, slides, wood climbing elements, mounds that are evocative of mountains, and a user-activated water feature.
This year's reconstruction maintained everything that made the playground popular, while introducing new and enhanced play features and improving accessibility. The fiberglass hippos were replicated and reinstalled on safety surfacing that transitions from blue (representing the river) to brown, and children fell in love with them all over again: "Kids are loving the playground," says Groundskeeper Corey Schafer. "The hippos are a huge hit. People line up before 8:00 am to get inside."
The hippos are accompanied by new play canoes, slides, wood climbing elements, mounds that evoke mountains, and a user-activated water feature. It's friendlier for all, too, with a regraded entrance, wheelchair-accessible ramp, and accessible play features. Finally, there's now a wider border and lower fence between the playground and the nearby path, which creates a smoother transition between Safari Playground and the Park's landscape.
Billy Johnson Playground net climber
Inspired by the Park's natural landscapes, Billy Johnson Playground was designed by pioneering landscape architect M. Paul Friedberg. Its organic layout uses plantings to create shade and the feeling of smaller play areas, and the generous use of timber posts tips a hat to the nearby Dene Summerhouse. "Almost everything in the playground is a natural material," says Groundskeeper Chris Gendron, "whether it's metal, wood, or plants. To have a playground that's incorporated into the landscape is really cool."
The Central Park Conservancy has introduced a one-of-a-kind rustic net climber to Billy Johnson Playground, the final element of a comprehensive reconstruction.
This year, the Conservancy finished its comprehensive reconstruction by adding a rustic net climber designed in collaboration with Friedberg. Designed for children ages 2 to 5, it has climbable cables and nets on sloped embankments, and features stairs, platforms, slides, and a rope bridge. It's the perfect addition to a play area that beautifully mimics the rest of the Park with natural materials in its features, like the 45-foot granite slide, rustic trails, and miniature stone bridge that's reminiscent of the famous Gapstow Bridge. "There's only really a couple of pieces of play equipment here," says Studio Director Bob Rumsey. "It's really about kids playing in a miniature Central Park."
The reconstruction of the newly renamed Margaret L. Kempner Playground (formerly known as the East 96th Street Playground) is one of the year's most friendly transformations.
One of the Park's largest and most popular playgrounds, it now has two play areas, designed for ages 2 to 5 and 5 to 12, including net climbers, balancers and spinners, a sandbox, and an abundant variety of swings.
Margaret L. Kempner Playground (formerly known as the East 96th Street Playground) has net climbers, balancers and spinners, a sandbox, and an abundant variety of swings.
The updated look, with lower fences and plentiful plantings, helps the playground blend more seamlessly into the Park, too, and the addition of a picnic area undoubtedly means it will quickly become a family favorite. Margaret L. Kempner Playground is more accessible as well, so it's now more inviting and comfortable for all who need a little play time.
"This playground has something for everyone: one-of-a-kind play structures that will excite younger children and challenge older ones, areas for active and contemplative play, and most importantly, all features in this inclusive space are designed for accessibility by users with a wide range of physical abilities," says Project Manager and Landscape Architect Jennifer Wong. "It's a wonderful example of what we strive for when rejuvenating a playground. We hope people enjoy the playground itself, and how we took care to integrate it with the surrounding landscape and the Park in general."
The Conservancy's biggest project completion of the year restored the Belvedere to its original grandeur. Created in 1869 by the Park's co-designers, Calvert Vaux and Frederick Law Olmsted, its name is Italian for "beautiful view"—and, indeed, the area provides stunningly scenic views of the Park and surrounding cityscape. Over the years it has served a variety of purposes, including housing a station for the U.S. Weather Bureau; today it's one of Central Park's five visitor centers.
The Conservancy's biggest project completion of the year restored the Belvedere to its original grandeur.
"Belvedere Castle distinguishes itself with its aura," says Visitor Services Representative Diann DeFebbe. "Visitors young and old drop by in costumes, ask to see the princess, and bring toy dragons and swords."
The renovation not only refreshed existing elements, like cleaning and repointing the Castle's masonry, but also recreated aspects of the historic design that had been lost over the years, like the decorative wood tower that had been part of the pavilion on the northwest corner. The Conservancy also implemented green design to ensure long-term sustainability, such as an energy efficient, zero emissions geothermal cooling and heating system for the Castle.
"A lot of love has been put into this project—from the craftspeople to the electricians to the carpentry workers," remarked Denise Keaveney, Studio Director, Architecture. "We really love this building, and the work we've done here will sustain it for future generations."
Read more about all the improvements—including the wonderful new lighting design that adds a little nighttime drama to the view of the Castle from across the Turtle Pond. Explore for yourself, either on your own or on one of our official tours. The next phase of the project will create an accessible route so that more people can enjoy everything the Belvedere has to offer.
Looking to the future: Harlem Meer
As satisfying as completing this year's projects has been, the Conservancy's work is far from over. This summer, the Conservancy jointly announced with the City of New York another dramatic transformation, which will vastly improve the north end of the Park around the Harlem Meer.
The Central Park Conservancy will be rebuilding the Lasker Rink and Pool to better integrate into the landscape, offer new and enhanced outdoor activities, and increase access for neighboring communities.
Knowing the area is vital to the surrounding neighborhoods, outreach has been a key part of the redesign's evolution. "Engaging the local community in the design development of this project has been incredibly important," says John Reddick, Project Manager, Community Engagement. "We have labored to engage their voices, and designed to better connect surrounding neighborhoods to the Park's nature and recreation."
To that end, the expansive renovation will rebuild the area's recreational facility (which includes the aging Lasker Rink and Pool) so it will be seamlessly integrated into the surrounding landscape, which will also be repaired. The overhaul will also improve the north end's ecology and restore the area's connections to the rest of the Park. The massive undertaking is set to break ground in 2021.
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text:
Justia Patents With Formation Of Lamina By Bulk Deposition Of Discrete Particles To Form Self-supporting ArticleUS Patent for Flash spun plexifilamentary strands and sheets Patent (Patent # 10,329,692)
Flash spun plexifilamentary strands and sheets
Jul 10, 2015 - E I DU PONT DE NEMOURS AND COMPANY
A flash-spun plexifilamentary fiber strand having a BET surface area of less than 12 m2/g, a crush value of at least 0.9 mm/g wherein said fiber strand comprises predominantly fibers formed from polyethylene, said fibers having a total crystallinity index of less than 55%, and sheets made thereof.
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This invention relates to flash-spun plexifilamentary sheets, fabrics, or fiber webs suited for protective apparel, air filtration, and other end use applications.
Protective apparel includes coveralls, gowns, smocks and other garments whose purpose is either to protect a wearer against exposure to something in the wearer's surroundings, or to protect the wearer's surroundings against being contaminated by the wearer. Examples of protective apparel include suits worn in microelectronics manufacturing cleanrooms, medical suits and gowns, dirty job coveralls, and suits worn for protection against liquids or particulates. The particular applications for which a protective garment is suitable depends upon the composition of the fabric or sheet material used to make the garment and the way that the pieces of fabric or sheet material are held together in the garment. For example, one type of fabric or sheet material may be excellent for use in hazardous chemical protection garments, while being too expensive or uncomfortable for use in medical garments. Another material may be lightweight and breathable enough for use in clean room suits, but not be durable enough for dirty job applications.
The physical properties of a fabric or sheet material determine the protective apparel applications for which the material is suited. It has been found desirable for a wide variety of protective garment applications that the material used in making the protective garment provide good barrier protection against liquids such as body fluids, paints or sprays. It is also desirable that the material used in making protective apparel block the passage of fine dirt, dust and fiber particles. Another group of desirable properties for fabrics or sheet materials used in protective apparel is that the material have enough strength and tear resistance that apparel made using the sheet material not lose its integrity under anticipated working conditions. It is also important that fabrics and sheet materials used in protective garments transmit and dissipate both moisture and heat so as to permit a wearer to perform physical work while dressed in the garment without becoming excessively hot and sweaty. Finally, most protective garment materials must have a resilience that allows them to recover their shape when crushed or otherwise distorted. Recovery after crush is a measurement often used for resiliency. In the context of the present invention, resiliency includes both elastic and plastic deformation as long as the material substantially recovers its original shape and essential properties after the stress gradient that is the cause of the crush has been removed.
Bonding of fabrics to form garments may require fusion of the fabric material with other materials. Such fusion is easier with a material that has a reduced crystalline structure. What is needed therefore is a fabric with a high resilience, as evidenced by crush value, and a lower crystallinity than heretofore available so that bonding with other layers is enhanced. There are multiple situations where the deformation can occur while positioning or using the material of interest. It is then desirable that the material recovers its original shape and essential properties.
In one embodiment the present invention is directed to a flash-spun plexifilamentary fiber strand having a total crystallinity index of less than or equal to 55%.
In a further embodiment the fiber strand has a BET surface area of less than 12 m2/g, a crush value of greater than or equal to 0.9 mm/g. In a still further embodiment the fiber strand comprises predominantly fibers formed from polyethylene.
In a still further embodiment the fiber strand comprises predominantly fibers formed from polyethylene said fibers having a total crystallinity index of less than 52%.
The fiber strand of the invention may further have a monoclinic and orthorhombic structure as determined by an X-ray analysis as described herein, and a crystallinity index of the monoclinic structures is equal or higher than 1%.
In a further embodiment, any of the embodiments disclosed here of plexifilamentary fiber strands may be consolidated into a sheet structure. This sheet structure may then be optionally thermally or mechanically bonded.
In a still further embodiment, the invention is directed to a multilayer structure comprising a multiplicity of two or more consolidated sheets.
A multilayered structure of the invention may further comprise a multiplicity of two or more sheets wherein at least one sheet is a polyethylene sheet comprising the plexifilamentary structure of any of the embodiments described herein. For example, the plexifilamentary structure may be a consolidated sheet made of a fiber strand according to any of the embodiments described herein. In a further embodiment, the plexifilamentary sheet or sheets may be thermally consolidated.
FIG. 1 shows a schematic, not to scale, cross sectional view of a spin cell illustrating a process for making flash-spun plexifilamentary sheets.
FIG. 2 is an illustration of the X-ray signals from polyethylene with monoclinic and orthorhombic crystal structures.
FIG. 3 shows a plot of total crystallinity index v. BET for examples of the invention and comparative examples.
FIG. 4 shows a plot of crush v. total crystallinity index for examples of the invention and comparative examples.
Applicants specifically incorporate the entire contents of all cited references in this disclosure. Further, when an amount, concentration, or other value or parameter is given as either a range, preferred range, or a list of upper preferable values and lower preferable values, this is to be understood as specifically disclosing all ranges formed from any pair of any upper range limit or preferred value and any lower range limit or preferred value, regardless of whether ranges are separately disclosed. Where a range of numerical values is recited herein, unless otherwise stated, the range is intended to include the endpoints thereof, and all integers and fractions within the range. It is not intended that the scope of the invention be limited to the specific values recited when defining a range.
The term "polymer" as used herein, generally includes but is not limited to, homopolymers, copolymers (such as for example, block, graft, random and alternating copolymers), terpolymers, etc. and blends and modifications thereof. Furthermore, unless otherwise specifically limited, the term "polymer" shall include all possible geometrical configurations of the material. These configurations include, but are not limited to isotactic, syndiotactic and random symmetries.
The term "polyethylene" as used herein is intended to encompass not only homopolymers of ethylene, but also copolymers wherein at least 85% of the recurring units are ethylene units.
The term "nonwoven fabric, sheet or web" as used herein means a structure of individual fibers or threads that are positioned in a random manner to form a planar material without an identifiable pattern, such a pattern, for example, as would be seen in a knitted fabric. Individual fibers that may organize themselves locally in some preferential ways or directions are still considered as positioned in a random manner for the purposes of this definition.
As used herein, the "machine direction" is the long direction within the plane of a sheet, i.e., the direction in which the sheet is produced. The "cross direction" is the direction within the plane of the sheet that is perpendicular to the machine direction.
The term "plexifilamentary" as used herein, means a three-dimensional integral network of a multitude of thin, ribbon-like, film-fibril elements of random length and with a median fibril width of less than about 25 microns. In plexifilamentary structures, the film-fibril elements are generally coextensively aligned with the longitudinal axis of the structure and they intermittently unite and separate at irregular intervals in various places throughout the length, width and thickness of the structure to form a continuous three-dimensional network.
The term "spin fluid" refers to the total composition that is spun using the spinning apparatus described herein. Spin fluid includes polymer and spin agent.
The term "spin agent" refers to the solvent or mixture of solvents and any additives, solubility aids and blends therewith that is used to initially dissolve the polymer to form the spin fluid.
By "multilayered structure" is meant a composite structure that contains layers of distinct materials layered and optionally bonded in a face to face arrangement over at least a portion of their faces. In one embodiment the multilayered structure of the invention is directed to a multiplicity of two or more sheets wherein at least one sheet is a polyethylene sheet comprising any plexifilamentary structure as described herein.
EMBODIMENTS OF THE INVENTION
The process for making flash-spun plexifilamentary sheets, and specifically Tyvek® spunbonded olefin sheet material, was first described in U.S. Pat. No. 3,081,519 to Blades et al. (assigned to DuPont.) The '519 patent describes a process wherein a solution of fiber-forming polymer in a liquid spin agent that is not a solvent for the polymer below the liquid's normal boiling point, at a temperature above the normal boiling point of the liquid, and at autogenous pressure or greater, is spun into a zone of lower temperature and substantially lower pressure to generate plexifilamentary film-fibril strands. As disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 3,227,794 to Anderson et al. (assigned to DuPont), plexifilamentary film-fibril strands are best obtained using the process disclosed in Blades et al. when the pressure of the polymer and spin agent solution is reduced slightly in a letdown chamber just prior to flash-spinning.
The general flash-spinning apparatus chosen for illustration of the present invention is similar to that disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 3,860,369 to Brethauer et al., which is hereby incorporated by reference. A system and process for flash-spinning a fiber-forming polymer is fully described in U.S. Pat. No. 3,860,369, and is shown in FIG. 1. The flash-spinning process is normally conducted in a chamber 10, sometimes referred to as a spin cell, which has a spin agent removal port 11 and an opening 12 through which non-woven sheet material produced in the process is removed. A spin fluid, comprising a mixture of polymer and spin agent, is provided through a pressurized supply conduit 13 to a spinning orifice 14. The spin fluid passes from supply conduit 13 to a chamber 16 through a chamber opening 15. In certain spinning applications, chamber 16 may act as a pressure letdown chamber wherein a reduction in pressure causes phase separation of the spin fluid, as is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 3,227,794 to Anderson et al. A pressure sensor 22 may be provided for monitoring the pressure in the chamber 16.
The spin fluid in chamber 16 next passes through spin orifice 14. It is believed that passage of the pressurized polymer and spin agent from the chamber 16 into the spin orifice generates an extensional flow near the approach of the orifice that helps to orient the polymer. When polymer and spin agent discharge from the orifice, the spin agent rapidly expands as a gas and leaves behind fibrillated plexifilamentary film-fibrils. The gas exits the chamber 10 through the port 11. Preferably, the gaseous spin agent is condensed for reuse in the spin fluid.
The polymer strand 20 discharged from the spin orifice 14 is conventionally directed against a rotating deflector baffle 26. The rotating baffle 26 spreads the strand 20 into a more planar structure 24 that the baffle alternately directs to the left and right. As the spread fiber strand descends from the baffle, the fiber strand is electrostatically charged 28 so as to hold the fiber strand in a spread open configuration until the fiber strand 24 reaches a moving belt 32. The fiber strand 24 deposits on the belt 32 to form a batt 34. The belt is grounded to help ensure proper pinning of the charged fiber strand 24 on the belt. The fibrous batt 34 may be passed under a roller 31 that compresses the batt into a lightly consolidated sheet 35 formed with plexifilamentary film-fibril networks oriented in an overlapping multi-directional configuration. The sheet 35 exits the spin chamber 10 through the outlet 12 before being collected on a sheet collection roll 29.
A "thermally consolidated" or "thermally bonded" sheet is a sheet made by thermal consolidation of a web of the invention. Some examples of thermal bonding processes are through gas bonding, steam entanglement, ultra-sonic bonding, stretched bonding, hot calendaring, hot roll embossing, hot surface bonding.
Thermal surface bonding can be performed by a process as described in U.S. Pat. No. 3,532,589 to David for hard bonded surfaces. In this process the plexifilamentary sheet passes subsequently over a heated drum—cooling drum—heating drum—cooling drum to thermally bond both sides of the material. The heating drum is kept at a temperature that would result in partial melting of the plexifilamentary structure to include the bonding of the sheet. The cooling drum has the purpose to reduce the temperature to a value where the sheet will not shrink nor distort when unrestrained. During the bonding process the sheet is slightly compressed by a flexible belt to have a controlled shrinkage.
Alternatively, the plexifilamentary sheet may be bonded by means of embossing rolls and rubber coated back-up roll to bond one or two sides of the sheet. The embossing roll can be smooth or contain different patterns, for example, but not limited to those shown in the following references, namely a point pattern (U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,478,141, 6,610,390 US 2004/241399 A1), a rib pattern (US2003/0032355 A1), a random pattern (U.S. Pat. No. 7,744,989) or different patterns (U.S. Pat. No. 5,964,742). The sheet may pass through one or multiple stations of an embossing roll with rubber coated back-up roll. In addition, before and after the pairs of embossing and back-up rolls the sheet may be in contact with pre-heat or cooling rolls as described in U.S. Pat. No. 5,972,147. Finally, the bonding process the material may be softened, for example, a button breaking device as described in U.S. Pat. No. 3,427,376 by Dempsey.
In the description, examples, and claims, the following test methods were employed to determine various reported characteristics and properties.
The surface area of the plexifilamentary fiber strand product is a measure of the degree and fineness of fibrillation of the flash-spun product. Surface area is measured by the BET nitrogen absorption method of S. Brunauer, P. H. Emmett and E. Teller, J. Am. Chem. Soc., V. 60 p 309-319 (1938) and is reported as square meter per gram (m2/g).
Crush values represent the ability of the fiber strand to recover its initial shape after having been compressed. They were determined using the following procedure: Three plexifilamentary fiber strands of different sizes were pulled from a Reemay® sheet. The three samples weighed about one, two and three grams. The reported crush values are the averages of the values measured on the three samples. Each sample plexifilamentary strand was formed into a ball shape with minimum application of pressure to avoid crushing and the sample was then weighed in grams. A crush tester comprised of an acrylic sample holder and crusher was used to measure the crush value of each sample. The sample holder comprised a cylindrical section having an inner diameter of 2.22 inches (5.64 cm) and an outer diameter of 2.72 inches (6.91 cm). The center of the cylinder was located at the geometric center of a square base measuring 6.00 inches by 6.00 inches (15.24 cm by 15.24 cm). The crusher comprised a cylindrical plunger rod (diameter=0.75 inches (1.91 cm)) having a first disk-shaped face (the disk having a thickness of 0.25 inches (0.64 cm) and a diameter of 2.20 inches (5.59 cm)) located at one end of the plunger rod and a second disk on the plunger rod spaced back 1.50 inches (3.81 cm) from the first disk. The second disk also had a thickness of 0.25 inches (0.64 cm) and a diameter of 2.20 inches (5.59 cm). The disks were sized slightly smaller than the inner diameter of the cylindrical sample holder in order to allow air to escape from the sample during crushing. The plexifilamentary samples were placed, one at a time, in the sample holder and a thin piece of paper having a diameter of about 2.2 inches (5.59 cm) was placed on top of the plexifilamentary sample prior to crushing. The plunger rod was then inserted into the cylindrical sample holder such that the first disk-shaped face contacted the piece of paper. The second disk served to maintain the axis of the plunger rod in alignment with the axis of the cylindrical sample holder. Each plexifilamentary strand sample was crushed by placing a 2 lb (0.91 kg) weight on the plunger rod. The crush height (mm) was obtained by measuring the height of the sample from the bottom of the cylindrical sample holder to the bottom of the crusher. The plunger and weight were removed from the sample after approximately 2 minutes, leaving the piece of paper in place to facilitate measurement of the restored height of the sample. Each sample was allowed to recover approximately 2 minutes and the restored height (mm) of the sample was obtained by measuring the height of the paper from the center of each of the four sides of the sample holder and averaging the measurements. The crush value (mm/g) is calculated by subtracting the average crush height from the average restored height and dividing by the average of the weights of the samples. The crush value is a measure of how much the sample recovers its original size after being crushed, with higher values indicating greater recovery of original sample height.
Crystallinity Index
The crystallinity index of the polyethylene was measured using X-ray analysis according to the following procedure.
A diffractometer in reflection θ-θ Bragg-Brentano geometry was fitted with a Cu—Kα x-ray tube source with wavelength of 1.54 Å and a 1-dimensional detector. Samples were mounted horizontally on a flat holder at the center of the diffractometer and normal to the scattering vector; during the measurement the sample rotated on this plane.
The method used for the determination of crystallinity index was based on the ratio the scattering intensity of the crystalline regions to the total intensity as described in S. L. Aggarwal, G. P. Tilley, Determination of crystallinity in polyethylene by X-Ray diffractometer, Journal of Polymer Science, Vol. 18, pp. 17-26, 1955. The analysis reported in this publication only considers the case in which the orthorhombic phase is present. Additionally, the monoclinic phase may also be present, and in those cases we applied the procedure described below.
1. A local linear background, drawn from 2θ=13±1 to 29±1° in scattering angle, was subtracted.
2. The scattering signal was fitted with four distinct peaks: one associated with the amorphous diffuse scattering (2θ=21.8°, peak width (full width at half height, FWHH) ˜4.5 to 5°, with integrated intensity Iamorphous), two peaks associated with the 110 (2θ=21.59°, I110) and 200 (2θ=24.03°, I200) reflections of the polyethylene orthorhombic crystal form, and the last peak associated with the 100 (2θ=19.47°, I100) reflection of the polyethylene monoclinic crystal form. The quoted angular positions were allowed to vary slightly to account for an expected 20 shift. The crystalline peaks were ˜1° in width (FWHH). Gaussian peaks shapes accounted well for the observed intensities, but Pearson VII peak shapes were also used with good results. Grams Al peak fitting software was used.
3. The total crystallinity index was calculated from the ratio of crystalline to total scattering. The crystalline scattering was defined as the sum of the integrated intensity from the crystalline peaks (monoclinic and orthorhombic). The total scattering was defined as the sum of the integrated intensity of crystalline and amorphous peaks:
crystallinity   index = CI total = I 110 + I 200 + I 100 I 110 + I 200 + I 100 + I amorphous
Accordingly, the partial crystallinity indices CIorthorhombic and CImonoclinic were calculated respectively from these expressions
CI orthorhombic = I 110 + I 200 I 110 + I 200 + I 100 + I amorphous  CI monoclinic = I 100 I 110 + I 200 + I 100 + I amorphous
FIG. 2 is an illustration of the X-ray signals obtained using the X-ray analysis of polyethylene with monoclinic and orthorhombic crystal structure. The various crystalline phases are differentiated by the peak profiles, and, the related apex positions and the heights.
The flash spun plexifilamentary webs are generated on a 1 gallon experimental flash spinning unit. The 1 gallon capacity flash spinning apparatus employed herein is a larger version of the 50 cc unit that is described in U.S. Pat. No. 5,147,586. The apparatus consisted of two high-pressure cylindrical chambers, each equipped with a piston that had been adapted to apply pressure to the contents of the chamber through a hydraulic pump. The cylinders each had an internal capacity of 1 gallon. The cylinders were connected to each other to one end by channel with a static mixer. The pistons were driven by high pressure oil supplied by a hydraulic system. The output of one of the cylinders was attached to a chamber that had a spinneret assembly at the other end. The two cylinders are heated to a temperature similar to the desired spin temperature. The polymer is charged into one cylinder. Subsequently a vacuum is pulled on the cylinders. The spin agent is added by a high pressure pump in order to give the desired polymer concentration. The polymer and spin agent were then heated to the desired mixing temperature as measured by a type J thermocouple and held typically at that temperature between 60 and 120 minutes. During heating the pistons were used to alternatively establish a differential pressure between the two cylinders. This action repeatedly forced the polymer and spin agent through the mixing channel from one cylinder to the other to provide mixing and to effect formation of a spin fluid. After mixing and just prior to spinning, the contents were placed completely in one cylinder by moving the other piston to the top of its cylinder. Subsequently a valve is opened to direct the spin fluid to the chamber opening of the spinneret. The flash spun plexifilamentary web is directed by a baffle onto a moving Reemay@-covered belt in a nitrogen-purged stainless steel enclosure to collect the plexifilamentary web.
Material Description
Dichloromethane is a technical grade purity from Brenntag Northeast, 81 W. Huller Lane, Reading, Pa. 19605, United states and used as received. Dichloromethane has CAS Nr. 75-09-2. Dichloromethane is also known as methylene chloride.
2,3-dihydrodecafluoropentane is a hydrofluorocarbon with CAS Nr. 138495-42-8 obtained from E.I. DuPont de Nemours and Company, 1007 Market Street. Wilmington Del., United States and used as received.
Trans-1,2-dichloroethylene, is purchased from Diversified CPC Intentional Inc. 24338 W. Durkee Rd. Channahon Ill. 60410-9719, United States and used as received. Trans-1,2-dichloroethylene is also known to as trans-1,2-dichloroethene and has CAS Nr. 156-60-5
HFE 7100 is a commercial grade hydrofluoroether known under the tradename Novec™ 7100 from 3M™ purchased from 3M Center, Building 224-3N-11, St. Paul Minn. 55144-1000. Novec™ 7100 is a mixture of methyl nonafluoroisobutylether, CAS Nr. 163702-08-7 with a contribution of 20-80 wt % and methyl nonafluorobutylether, CAS Nr. 163702-07-6, with a contribution of 20-80 wt %. The purity of Novec™ 7100 is 99.5% and used as received.
1H-perfluorohexane (1,1,1,2,2,3,3,4,4,5,5,6,6-tridecafluorohexane) is a hydrofluorocarbon with CAS Nr. 355-37-3. 1H-perfluorohexane is purchased from Fluoryx Inc., 1933 Davis St. Ste. 294, San Leandro, Calif. 94577, United States. 1H-perfluorohexane has a purity above 98% and used as received.
1H,6H-perfluorohexane (1,1,2,2,3,3,4,4,5,5,6,6-dodecafluorohexane) is a hydrofluorocarbon with CAS Nr. 336-07-2. 1H,6H-perfluorohexane is purchased from Exfluor Research Corporation, 2350 Double Creek Dr., Round Rock, Tex., 78664, United States. 1H,6H-perfluorohexane has a purity level of about 95% and used as received.
The examples 1 and 2 and the comparative examples were spun from a high density polyethylene having a melt index of 2.35 g/10 min (measured according to EN ISO 1133 at 190° C. and 5 kg load), and 24.5 g/10 min (measured according to EN ISO 1133 at 190° C. and 21.6 kg load) a density of 0.96 g/cm3 (measured according to EN ISO 1183). Examples 3 to 6 are spun from a high density polyethylene having a melt index of 0.74 g/10 min (measured according to ASTM D 1238 at 190° C. and 2.16 kg load) and 29.6 g/10 min (measured according to ASTM D 1238 at 190° C. and 21.6 kg load) and density of 0.95 g/cm3.
The sheet of the invention resulted from a flash spinning process conducted from an upstream pressure letdown chamber of at least 15 cm3 and a discharge pressure of 70 bar gauge minimum, yielding a fiber of 200 to 400 denier.
Table 1 summarizes spinning conditions for the examples and table 2 the properties obtained for the examples.
spin fluid
compo- spin condition
sition temper- pres- spinagent media wt %/ PE ature sure
Case 1 2 wt % wt % ° C. barg
1 DCM 2,3- 80.0/20.0 10 181.5 77.4 dihydrodeca- fluoropentane 2 DCM 2,3 80.0/20.0 12 193.8 91.3 dihydrodeca- fluoropentane 3 DCM 1H- 80.0/20.0 12 193.4 97.9 perfluorohexane 4 DCM 1H,6H- 77.5/22.5 10 195.3 74.0 perfluorohexane 5 DCM HFE 7100 75.0/25.0 8 192.1 129.5 6 trans-1,2- 2,3- 77.5/22.5 10 186.6 70.9 DCE dihydrodeca- fluoropentane 7 trans-1,2- HFE 7100 75.0/25.0 8 189.2 79.4 DCE 8 DCM HFE 7100 75.0/25.0 10 192.5 127.5
fiber property crystallinity index
BET Crush monoclinicCImonoclinic orthorhombicCIorthorhombic totalCItotal Case m2/g mm/g % % %
1 2.7 4.9 5.8 42.0 47.8 2 10.5 1.4 3.0 45.7 48.7 3 11.8 1.1 2.8 48.1 50.9 4 9.0 1.4 2.8 44.7 47.5 5 7.4 1.7 4.1 45.0 49.1 6 10.9 1.5 2.6 49.7 52.3 7 8.6 1.5 3.0 47.8 50.8 8 9.4 1.3 3.4 44.7 48.1
Table 3 summarizes spinning conditions for the comparative examples and table 4 the properties obtained for the comparative examples.
A n-pentane cyclopentane 75.0/25.0 20 199.6 99.0 B n-pentane cyclopentane 75.0/25.0 20 179.3 69.4 C n-pentane cyclopentane 75.0/25.0 20 211.0 113.2
A 14.0 1.0 0.2 61.7 61.9 B 23.1 0.6 1.0 56.7 57.7 C 4.7 2.6 0.3 65.3 65.6
A BET surface area of less than or equal to 12 m2/g, a crush value of greater than or equal to 0.9 mm/g, and a crystallinity index of less than or equal to 55%, which is the set of properties that meet the invention objectives, is only reachable under the conditions of spinning and with the compositions described in the examples. None of the comparative examples meet the invention desired set of properties.
Total crystallinity index (CItotal) vs BET plots in FIG. 3 for the comparative examples A through C made with hydrocarbon spin agent are shown by the black diamonds in the figure and show a drop in CItotal with BET. With the other spin agent systems, cases 1-8 shown as the open circles, FIG. 3 shows an increasing trend in CItotal with BET.
FIG. 4 shows the crush values as a function of the total crystallinity index. For the comparative examples, cases A through C shown as black diamonds, the crush increases with increasing total crystallinity index, whereas for the examples 1-8, open diamonds, crush values above 0.9 mm/gram correspond to a crystallinity index below 55%.
1. A thermally or mechanically consolidated sheet comprising a flash-spun plexifilamentary fiber strand comprising fibers having a total crystallinity index of less than or equal to 55%, the flash-spun plexifilamentary fiber strand having a BET surface area of less than or equal to 12 m2/g and a crush value of greater than or equal to 0.9 mm/g,
wherein said fiber strand comprises predominantly said fibers, and said fibers are formed from homopolymers of ethylene and have a monoclinic and orthorhombic structure as determined by X-ray characterization and a crystallinity index of the monoclinic structures is higher than 1%;
the sheet resulting from a flash spinning process utilizing a spin agent medium comprising a mixture of i) and ii), wherein
i) is dichloromethane or trans-1,2-dichloroethylene; and
ii) is 2,3-dihydrodecafluoropentane, 1,1,1,2,2,3,3,4,4,5,5,6,6-tridecafluorohexane, 1,1,2,2,3,3,4,4,5,5,6,6-dodecafluorohexane, or a hydrofluoroether.
2. The sheet of claim 1 wherein said fibers have a total crystallinity index of less than or equal to 52%.
3. A multilayer structure comprising a multiplicity of two or more sheets wherein at least one sheet is a sheet according to claim 1.
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PCT International Search Report, dated Oct. 28, 2015, for International Application No. PCT/US2015/040566, filed Jul. 15, 2015, ISA/European Patent Office; Jo Verschuren, Authorized Officer.
Filed: Jul 10, 2015
Date of Patent: Jun 25, 2019
Assignee: E I DU PONT DE NEMOURS AND COMPANY (Wilmington, DE)
Inventors: Jan Van Meerveld (Remich), Corneille Schmitz (Aywaille), Joseph Mathieu (Esch-sur-Alzette), Noel Stephen Brabbs (Garnich), Orest Skoplyak (Newark, DE), Christine Lemoine (Waldbredimus), Serge Rebouillat (Echenevex)
Primary Examiner: Scott R. Walshon
Current U.S. Class: With Formation Of Lamina By Bulk Deposition Of Discrete Particles To Form Self-supporting Article (156/62.2)
International Classification: D01F 6/04 (20060101); D04H 1/724 (20120101); D01D 5/11 (20060101); D01D 10/00 (20060101);


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Justin Timberlake Paid Tribute to Prince During His Super Bowl Performance
People in America and even some parts of the world are glued to their TV screens and monitors to watch this year's Super Bowl game, but one thing we look forward to every year would have to be the half time performance.
This year, Justin Timberlake took the stage and promised a performance that went back to his roots. He sang and danced to (I feel so tired for him) his chart-topping songs like "Rock Your Body," "SexyBack," and "Suit & Tie."—complete with a marching band dressed in tuxedos. He also sang "Filthy," the one song he picked from his most recent album. The show was concluded with "Can't Stop the Feeling."
.@JTimberlake kicks off the #SB52 halftime show https://t.co/AnoevlnJIt pic.twitter.com/4KG2uqJLSo
— Hollywood Reporter (@THR) February 5, 2018
.@jtimberlake brought down the house at #SBLIIpic.twitter.com/NJbTyu6V7g
— Super Bowl on NBC (@SNFonNBC) February 5, 2018
The controversial bit would have to be his tribute to Prince. He played on a white grand piano and sang "Until the End of Time" then transitioned to a cover of "I Would Die 4 U." A big purple curtain came down to show a projection of Prince from "Purple Rain." The final projection showed Prince's shadow from his 2007 Super Bowl performance.
'Minneapolis, Minnesota, this one's for you.' pic.twitter.com/1L0RJMJOgY
Back in 1998 during a magazine interview, Prince said that he had no interest in using high-tech effects that would let him perform with a deceased artist. "That's the most demonic thing imaginable. Everything is as it is, and it should be. If I was meant to jam with Duke Ellington, we would have lived in the same age."
"That whole virtual reality thing… it really is demonic," he continued. "And I am not a demon … To prevent that kind of thing from happening is another reason why I want artistic control."
Prince's sister reacted when the rumors of a hologram came out days before the performance saying that they did not approve of anything like it and even spoke to Justin to clarify the issue. But I guess he still didn't follow.
UNDER NO CIRCUMSTANCES did we approve of this! Prince's music moved, NOW THIS! #Istand2protectthislegacy #prnfamily
— Sharon L. Nelson (@Sharon_L_Nelson) February 3, 2018
Twitter had split reactions based on his tribute to Prince. Some loved it and thought it was fire, but the rest felt like he didn't do him justice.
I know some people didn't like it but you can't be in Minneapolis and not do something pertaining to Prince pic.twitter.com/y2XvQ7KqnS
— Jasmine (@JasmineLWatkins) February 5, 2018
Prince didn't like Justin Timberlake.. it's kind of rude to use his image for this performance #PEPSIHALFTIMESHOW
— Affinity Magazine (@TheAffinityMag) February 5, 2018
If you ever shared two words with #Prince.
Or heard him speak.
Or saw him play.
You'd understand in the base of your bones — them deciding to hologram him at the SB — would've busted his heart to pieces. pic.twitter.com/TqK76Yacqi
— Vic Mahoney (@VictoriaMahoney) February 5, 2018
Holy Crap. That might be the best Super Bowl halftime I ever saw. Justin Timberlake crushes it. With the University of Minnesota Marching Band. Whoa. pic.twitter.com/O8rHxk9tlI
— Patrick Kessler (@PatKessler) February 5, 2018
Whew! Thank you, @jtimberlake. #SuperBowlLII
— Ajit Pai (@AjitPaiFCC) February 5, 2018
@jtimberlake that was FIIIIIIRE 🙌 so many tunes!! And moves I need to learn asap #SuperBowl
— Tove Lo (@ToveLo) February 5, 2018
Remember that Justin's previous Super Bowl performance was also controversial because of Janet Jackson's wardrobe malfunction. He left unscathed while Janet was the one left penalized.
What do you think of his performance? Leave a comment below!
[Variety and The Huffington Post]
Photo by Matt Slocum/AP/REX/Shutterstock
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· Posted on Apr 24, 2019
37 Horrible TV Moments That Actually Caused People To Stop Watching The Show
"It was so ridiculous that Fitz would wage war to save Olivia on Scandal."
by Nora Dominick
We asked the BuzzFeed Community to tell us which TV moment caused them to stop watching a show. Here are some of our favorites:
🚨Warning: Some major spoilers ahead!🚨
1. First, when Michael left Scranton to be with Holly on The Office.
"I couldn't bring myself to watch the show after Micheal left. Even when I rewatch it now, I still stop after he leaves with Holly."
—urdnotcami
2. On Friday Night Lights, when Landry killed someone, but it was never addressed again.
"When Landry killed the man who assaulted Tyra and then the duo dumped his body and covered up the crime. It was such a random plot line that didn't really go anywhere. I always skip those episodes when rewatching."
—vjohnson
3. On Shameless, when Mickey had to flee the country and it basically caused him and Ian to breakup for no reason.
"When Mickey left and had to say goodbye to Ian, it kind of ruined the show for me. They were so cute!"
—makaylamills
4. On Grey's Anatomy, when Izzie had sex with Denny's ghost after her brain tumor caused her to hallucinate him.
"The ghost sex storyline in Season 5 was just too much! Izzie's a doctor and she's not supposed to think it's alarming that she's having sex with a ghost!"
—lindsayb42bb479a4
5. When Lexa was killed by a stray bullet on The 100.
"Clarke and Lexa's relationship was the first time I felt represented on TV. Lexa was important to the LGBT community and her death was written in a terrible way. Her death still hurts me to this day and I can truthfully say that I haven't watched an episode since Season 3, Episode 7."
—madelynh4da386cb1
6. When Barry Allen didn't learn his lesson and continued to mess up the timeline on The Flash.
"When Barry Allen went back in time a whole bunch of times to 'fix' everything but ended up making it worse. I pretty much gave up after he literally changed Diggle's daughter Sara into a son named John."
—madisony4d71664ba
7. After the Tenth Doctor regenerated on Doctor Who.
"After David Tennant left Doctor Who I couldn't continue watching. I tried watching Matt Smith's version of The Doctor, but it just wasn't the same. Tennant will always be my favorite."
—jessicar4fee2d485
8. When Luke and Lorelai broke up and she immediately went and slept with Christoper on Gilmore Girls.
"I'll never be over Lorelai getting angry at Luke and immediately running to Christopher. And on top of that, she went and married Chris later on! I still haven't watched the entire last season of Gilmore Girls because of it."
—andreav11
9. After Elliot Stabler left Law and Order: SVU.
"After Christopher Meloni left I tried to keep watching, but it just wasn't the same. The entire show started to focus on Olivia Benson and her kid drama and I wasn't interested anymore."
—jackyv467b86aa2
10. When Charlie was trapped underwater during the iconic "not Penny's boat" scene on Lost.
"I was so upset after watching Charlie drown on Lost that I quit watching. And it was all for nothing because it wasn't even Penny's boat!"
—solec3
11. When Negan killed Glenn for basically no reason on The Walking Dead.
"I know it happens in the comics, but Glenn was the heart of the show and losing him was a big mistake. I almost quit earlier in the show when they made it look like he was dead for several episodes, but I stuck it out. I was so happy when they brought him back, only to have my heart ripped out half a season later. I never watched another episode."
—laurens4faa6b76c
12. When Jessica Pearson was forced to leave Pearson, Specter, and Litt on Suits.
"After Season 6, I feel like the show should've ended. Jessica Pearson was so important and once she was gone I just gave up."
—erfanahmadd
13. When Betty did a sexy dance at a bar on Riverdale.
"When Betty did the 'serpent dance,' which basically meant a 16-year-old stripped to a cringeworthy cover of 'Mad World' in a room full of middle-aged men and her mom. I couldn't watch anymore."
—abigails43ad284bd
14. When Poussey was killed for no reason on Orange Is the New Black.
"She was the only character I truly cared about and I was genuinely shocked when she died. I couldn't bring myself to continue the series."
—sophiarias
15. On Scandal, when Olivia was kidnapped and then Fitz went to war in order to get her back.
"It was so ridiculous that POTUS would wage war to save his mistress. I didn't think the show could ever redeem itself, so I stopped watching."
—mariel4d33e222b
16. When Spike assaulted Buffy after she explicitly said she didn't want to sleep with him again on Buffy the Vampire Slayer.
"I love the show, but I stopped watching for years after Spike assaulted Buffy, especially when it was basically used as a plot device in order to give Spike a soul again. It's also the same episode that Tara was shot in, so not good ALL AROUND."
—angeladawnc
17. When basically the entire Stark family was brutally murdered during the Red Wedding on Game of Thrones.
"I took all of the deaths in this episode so hard. I stopped watching for several seasons and only now have I considered picking it back up."
—victoriathecurious
18. When 13 Reasons Why graphically showed how Hannah killed herself.
"It was completely unnecessary to show Hannah's death. Viewers would've understood how severe the situation was without it. I couldn't watch the show after that."
—c4ea9f3904
19. When Cristina decided to leave Grey-Sloan Memorial and Meredith on Grey's Anatomy.
"I stopped watching after Cristina left because I felt like she completed Meredith's character. With her gone, the show just didn't feel the same."
—aliciaglover32
20. When The Vampire Diaries decided to introduce a cure for vampirism.
"I quit The Vampire Diaries after there was suddenly a way to cure the vampires. I liked that Elena was a vampire and felt kind of cheated knowing that she was probably going to take the cure eventually."
—maiahpiano
21. On How I Met Your Mother, when Barney and Robin got divorced after we spent an entire season watching their wedding.
"I know they split up for good in the last episode, but I have never been able to rewatch the show because of it. The entire last season centered on Barney and Robin's wedding and it was all for nothing. I hated it."
—caarsie
22. When Laurel was killed by Damien Darhk on Arrow.
"I kind of keep up on the show now, but I haven't really watched since the original Laurel died. I always thought her and Oliver should end up together, so once that hope was lost, I gave up."
—thomaskbartlau
23. On One Tree Hill, when Lucas and Peyton moved away from Tree Hill.
"When Lucas and Peyton left Tree Hill at the end of Season 6, I was done with the show. I wasn't even a big fan of Lucas and Peyton together, but they were so important to the show overall. I was done once they left."
—sarab4a0871f6f
24. On Heroes, when they decided to focus on a carnival troupe during the final season.
"Season 4 of Heroes was completely unwatchable, mainly because I just did not care about the new characters or the carnival storyline. It was even worse that the show was cancelled after this season."
—thatsnotaknife
25. Once they decided to completely stray from the books on Pretty Little Liars.
"After Season 1 I stopped watching PLL because it was clearly not going to follow the books. I mean, Toby literally died in the second book but he stuck around for the entire series."
26. When Derek was killed on Grey's Anatomy.
"I haven't watched the show since Derek's death. There have been a lot of deaths on Grey's Anatomy, but I couldn't bounce back from this one. Derek meant so much to the show and Meredith, it just seemed wrong continuing without him."
—kelseytompkins
27. When Dexter cheated on Rita with Lila on Dexter.
"Dexter is my favorite show of all time, however, when Dexter cheated on Rita with Lila I stopped watching for months. I've since watched the entire series, but that moment was tough to get over."
—nkc224
28. When Rayna died on Nashville.
"After Rayna died I tried to keep watching but I was pretty disappointed week after week. Eventually I gave up all together."
—lindsays43
29. When Carl tragically died after being bitten by a walker on The Walking Dead.
"In the comics, Carl is such an important character and an obvious nod to a better future, so his death made no sense. I can let deviations from source material slide, but this just completely ruined the entire idea of the show for me. They killed him off in a dumb way and I had to stop watching."
30. On Sons of Anarchy, when Tara was killed basically to give Jax a good storyline.
"Tara became so important on the show that it became pretty obvious that she was going to die in order to jump start Jax's story again. I will never be over it and I actually never finished the series because of it."
—amandafeltsullen
31. On Empire, when Luscious woke up from his come and lost his memory.
"I was so done with Empire after this."
—mscryssycrys
32. When Hayley was killed during the final season of The Originals.
"I know it happened close to the end of The Originals, but I gave up on the show once Hayley died. She was my favorite character."
—emmabooks
33. On How to Get Away With Murder, when Wes was revealed as the body.
"Wes was the heart of the show, so I just couldn't get over the fact that they killed him."
—samanthab4e1727f84
34. When Eric decided to leave Point Place on That '70s Show.
"I think the show should've ended once Eric decided to leave. The last season just didn't work without him and once I realized that I quit the show."
—lain1472580369
35. When Matthew and Sybil died in the same season of Downton Abbey.
"The fact that they killed Sybil and Matthew in the same season was something I could never get over. Once they killed Matthew in the last 30 seconds of a season finale, it was the final straw for me."
—ellas48d9106f9
36. When Sookie escaped the fairy world on True Blood.
"When Sookie escaped from the fairy world while they were throwing fireballs after her, I was done. It was the most ridiculous thing I had ever seen. Season 1 was so good, it's mind-boggling how fast it went downhill after that."
—malinrh11
37. And finally, when Scrubs didn't end with Season 8 and came back with one more season.
"For me, the way Season 8 ended was the perfect way to wrap up the show, but then they decided to make Season 9. They went from working in a hospital to teaching med students and it was boring compared to the other eight seasons."
—supersammy
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