Patent ID: 7060155

Claim:
A method for manufacturing an encapsulated fiber batt comprising the steps of: conveying a fiber batt in a first direction, the fiber batt having n surfaces; providing a liquid polymeric coating composition to a plurality of spray heads, at least one spray head being arranged adjacent each of the n surfaces of the fiber batt, wherein said polymeric coating composition comprises a polyvinyl alcohol polymer and a polyethylene glycol dioleate additive, wherein the polymer and the additive are present in the coating composition in a ratio of about l:1; forming a coating layer by spraying a stream of the liquid polymeric coating composition from an opening provided in each of the spray heads toward the surface of the fiber batt adjacent each of the spray heads; heating the liquid coating layer to dry and fuse the polymeric coating composition to form a substantially continuous polymeric skin layer on each of the n surfaces of the fiber batt and thereby encapsulate the fiber batt.