Patent ID: 7339016

Claim:
A method for preparing a water-absorbent polymer composite comprising a water-absorbent polymer particle and two or more fibers from a polymerizable monomer capable of providing a water-absorbent polymer by polymerization and said fibers in a reactor, wherein, in said water-absorbent polymer composite, said polymer particle has a substantially spherical shape, at least one of said two or more fibers is partially wrapped in the polymer particle and partially exposed to outside the particle, at least one of said two or more fibers is unwrapped in the polymer particle and partially adhered to a surface of the polymer particle, and said method comprises the steps of contacting a droplet containing a solvent and said polymerizable monomer before polymerization and/or under polymerization with first fibers fed through a first supply port of said reactor in a gas phase, proceeding with polymerization of said polymerizable monomer, contacting the resultant droplet containing said solvent, the polymerizable monomer under polymerization and said first fibers with second fibers fed through a second supply port of said reactor in a gas phase, and proceeding with further polymerization of said polymerizable monomer to form said water-absorbent polymer composite.