Patent ID: 8101814

Claim:
A disposable absorbent article comprising: a. a liquid permeable topsheet; b. a liquid impervious outer cover; c. an absorbent core disposed between said topsheet and outer cover; and d. a barrier layer comprising a fibrous sheet having a first side and an opposing second side, said first side having a total surface area, the barrier layer being disposed between said core and outer cover, wherein said barrier layer further comprises: 1) a first region of the fibrous sheet having a first region surface area on said first side, the first region surface area forming a portion of the total surface area, wherein the first region surface area is smaller than the total surface area, the first region having a non-fibrous coating deposited thereon, the coating being disposed on the fibrous sheet between the absorbent core and the outer cover: and 2) a second region of the fibrous sheet adjacent said first region of the fibrous sheet, having a second region surface area on said first side, the second region surface area forming a portion of the total surface area, wherein the second region surface area is smaller than the total surface area; wherein the non-fibrous coating comprises one or more materials selected from the group consisting of microcrystalline waxes, stearyl behanates, sucrose fatty acids, polyethylene waxes, fatty alcohols, sucrose fatty esters, stearyl alcohol, sucrose hardened soy esters having an iodine value of less than 107, natural alcohol still bottoms, wax esters, aldol condensation products with melting points greater than 60° C., natural petrolatum waxes, ozokerite wax, synthetic petroleum waxes, beeswax, stearic acids, carnauba wax, hydrogenated soybean oil, unhydrogenated soybean oil, corn oil, palm oil, coconut oil, castor oil, linseed oil, safflower oil, sunflower oil, rapeseed oil, silicones, silicone waxes, xantham gum, gum arabic, petrolatums, mineral oils, vinyl copolymers, vinyl emulsifiers, sorbitol, propylene glycol, glycerine solid esters and combinations thereof; wherein the non-fibrous coating inhibits the flow of a liquid in the first region of the fibrous sheet as compared to the flow of the liquid in the second region of the fibrous sheet; wherein said first region of the fibrous sheet with the non-fibrous coating exhibits a water vapor transmission rate (WVTR) of from about 100 to about 50,000 gsm/day and a convective air permeability of at least about 0.01 cfm; wherein said second region of the fibrous sheet is substantially free of the non-fibrous coating and exhibits a convective air permeability of at least about 0.1 cfm; and wherein the non-fibrous coating is deposited onto the first region of the fibrous sheet via a mechanism selected from the group consisting of spraying, dipping, brushing, coating, printing, slot-coating, and combinations thereof.