this volume contains proceedings of 18 papers delivered at the meeting that was described to discussion of recent developments in the field of nonwoven textiles and their applications. one paper appears in abstract form only. among others, the following topics are covered - a new generation of rayon fibers for nonwovens; sorption, characteristics of pp fibers; foam finishing technology; standard testing method for nonwovens applied to wound surfaces; structural factors influencing performance characteristics of absorbent sanitary products; the development of a soft latex binder for durable nonwovens; effect of finishes on the properties of spunlaced fabrics; permeability testing of fabrics and fabric/soil systems; tensile test methods for geotextiles; design criteria for some filter fabrics; cotton as one of the oldest and newest fibers for nonwovens applications. some contributions are accompanied by bibliographic data. 17 papers are abstracted and indexed separately