A process for stripping chemically bonded spinning solvent from a
solution-spun nonwoven web comprising the steps of providing a nonwoven
web comprising solvent-laden polymeric fibers having average fiber
diameters of less than about 1 micrometer, and transporting the nonwoven
web through a solvent stripping zone wherein infrared radiation
irradiates the nonwoven web and a solvent stripping fluid impinges on the
nonwoven web in order to reduce the solvent concentration of the fibers
to less than about 10,000 ppmw.