Generally, synthetic leathers other than genuine leather, such as PVC leather and PU leather, are collectively referred to as artificial leather or protective leather. Both PVC leather and PU leather are polyvinyl chloride (a type of plastic), but the production, manufacturing and processing techniques of these two types of leather are different.
In the production process of PVC leather, recycled plastic is first heated and mixed to form a thick consistency. It is then evenly coated onto a T/C knitted fabric base with a thickness that meets the requirements and sent into a polyurethane foaming furnace for polyurethane foaming, endowing it with the softness that can be integrated into the processing of various types of leather and different requirements. At the same time as it comes out of the oven, surface treatment (dyeing, embossing, polishing, matting, grinding and fuzzing, etc.) is carried out, mainly in accordance with the actual leather requirements.
The production and manufacturing process of PU leather is a bit more complex than that of PVC leather. Given that the base fabric of PU leather is made of high-strength canvas PU leather material, in addition to being coated on the top of the base fabric, it can also be included in the middle, making the base fabric not visible from the outside. The physical property indicators of PU leather are better than those of PVC leather. It is resistant to bending, has good softness, high compressive strength and breathability (which PVC leather does not have).
The texture of PVC leather is formed by rolling and pressing the texture of steel. The texture of PU leather is achieved by first heat-pasting a type of patterned paper onto the surface of the semi-finished processed leather. After the water cools down, the paper and leather are separated for surface treatment. The price of PU leather is several times higher than that of PVC leather. For some rigid regulations, the quoted price of PU leather is 2 to 3 times higher than that of PVC leather.
Generally, the patterned paper required for PU leather can only be used 4 to 5 times before being reimbursed. The service life of the textured roller is long, so the cost of PU leather is higher than that of PVC leather.
