At present, the triangular tea bags on the market are mainly made of several different materials such as non-woven fabrics (NWF), nylon (PA), degradable corn fiber (PLA), polyester (PET), etc.

Non Woven Tea Bag filter paper roll

Non-woven fabrics are generally made of polypropylene (pp material) granules as raw materials, and are produced by high-temperature melting, spinning, laying, hot pressing and rolling in a continuous one-step process. The disadvantage is that the permeability of tea water and the visual permeability of tea bags are not strong.

Nylon tea bag filter paper roll

In recent years, the application of nylon materials in tea bags has become increasingly popular, especially fancy teas mostly use nylon tea bags. The advantages are strong toughness, not easy to tear, can hold larger tea leaves, the whole piece of tea leaves will not damage the tea bag when it is stretched, the mesh is larger, it is easier to brew the tea flavor, the visual permeability is strong, and the shape of the tea leaves in the tea bag can be clearly seen.

PLA Biodegraded Tea Filters

The raw material used is PLA, also known as corn fiber and polylactic acid fiber. It is made of corn, wheat and other starches. It is fermented into high-purity lactic acid, and then undergoes a certain industrial manufacturing process to form polylactic acid to achieve fiber reconstruction. The fiber cloth is delicate and balanced, and the mesh is neatly arranged. The appearance can be compared with nylon materials. The visual permeability is also very strong, and the tea bag is also relatively stiff.

Polyester (PET) tea bag

The raw material used is PET, also known as polyester and polyester resin. The product features high firmness, high transparency, good gloss, non-toxic, odorless, and good hygiene and safety.

So how to distinguish these materials?

1. For non-woven fabrics and the other three materials, they can be distinguished from each other by their perspective. The perspective of non-woven fabrics is not strong, while the perspective of the other three materials is good.

2. Among the three mesh fabrics of nylon (PA), degradable corn fiber (PLA) and polyester (PET), PET has better gloss and a fluorescent visual effect. PA nylon and PLA corn fiber look similar in appearance.

3. The way to distinguish nylon (PA) tea bags from degradable corn fiber (PLA): One is to burn them. When a nylon tea bag is burned with a lighter, it will turn black, while when a corn fiber tea bag is burned, it will have a plant fragrance like burning hay. The second is to tear it hard. Nylon tea bags are difficult to tear, while corn fiber cloth tea bags are easy to tear.