How tampons are made

Tampon absorbency is tested on a machine called the Syngyna, which is short for synthetic vagina.

stations: 7
things upstream: 50
raw sources: 14
steps from the ground: 9

The short version

Most tampons are made from rayon or a rayon and cotton blend. A strip of absorbent fiber is rolled or folded into a blank, compressed into a cylinder called a pledget and heat set so it holds its shape. A withdrawal string is attached, many are fitted into an applicator, and each is wrapped and packaged for sale.

Prepare the fibers

Rayon, which is cellulose from wood pulp, and cotton are the usual absorbent fibers. They are blended and laid into a loose strip, in proportions that help set the absorbency.

Goes in
Rayon Raw cotton
Roll the strip

A rectangular strip of the material is rolled or folded into a blank, sometimes with a cover layer around it.
Compress the pledget

The blank is squeezed into a narrow cylinder called a pledget and heat set so it stays that shape until it meets fluid. Applicator tampons expand along their length while digital ones expand across their width.
Attach the string

A withdrawal string is fixed to one end of the pledget. Mercerized cotton is a common choice for the string.

Goes in
Sewing thread
Add an applicator

Applicator tampons are placed inside a tube made of plastic or cardboard. Digital tampons skip this step.

Goes in
Plastic Cardboard
Test the absorbency

Samples are tested on the Syngyna, in which a tampon sits in a condom while synthetic menstrual fluid is fed in. The result sets the absorbency rating printed on the pack.
Wrap and box

Each tampon is wrapped and boxed, and the FDA requires the absorbency rating on the label.

Goes in
Paper

End of the lineTampon

Worth repeating

Toxic shock syndrome was named by James K. Todd in 1978.
In 1992 the US Congress found an FDA memo about dioxin in tampons, a chemical made when wood pulp is bleached with chlorine.