Patent ID: 8652300

Claim:
A method of making a belt-creped absorbent cellulosic sheet, the method comprising: (a) compactively dewatering a papermaking furnish to form a dewatered web having an apparently random distribution of papermaking fiber orientation; (b) applying the dewatered web having the apparently random distribution of papermaking fiber orientation to a translating transfer surface that is moving at a transfer surface speed; (c) belt-creping the web from the transfer surface at a consistency of from about 30% to about 60% utilizing a generally planar polymeric creping belt provided with a plurality of perforations through the belt, the belt-creping step occurring under pressure in a belt creping nip defined between the transfer surface and the creping belt, wherein the belt is traveling at a belt speed that is slower than the transfer surface speed, the belt geometry, nip parameters, velocity delta, and web consistency being selected such that the web is creped from the transfer surface and redistributed on the creping belt to form a web having a plurality of interconnected regions of different local basis weights including at least (i) a plurality of fiber-enriched hollow domed regions projecting from an upper side of the sheet, the hollow domed regions having sidewalls and a local basis weight that is higher than a mean basis weight of the sheet, (ii) a plurality of connecting regions forming a network interconnecting the hollow domed regions, the connecting regions having a local basis weight that is lower than the local basis weight of the hollow domed regions, and (iii) transition areas with consolidated fibrous regions that transition from the connecting regions into the hollow domed regions, by extending upwardly and inwardly from the connecting regions into the sidewalls of the hollow domed regions; and (d) drying the web to produce the belt-creped absorbent cellulosic sheet.