Heat preservation, breathability, and unidirectional
liquid penetration
properties of wearable materials are vital for personal thermal management
applications. Herein, flexible wearable Kevlar aerogel membranes with
breathable and unidirectional liquid penetration properties were fabricated
by underwater protection spraying of PDMS-trichlorotoluene onto one
side of a Kevlar aerogel membrane and magnetron sputtering of Al nanoparticles
on the other side of a Kevlar aerogel membrane PDMS (Al-KAM-PDMS).
The results indicated that the PDMS side played an important role
in improving the unidirectional liquid penetration property due to
the asymmetric wettability property and an aerogel structure. To simulate
unidirectional liquid penetration, simulated sweat can be penetrated
from the PDMS side to the Al side of Al-KAM-PDMS within 14.4 s, implying
excellent permeability. The Al side with high infrared reflectivity
(72.77%) demonstrates that infrared radiation can be reflected back
to the human body to achieve passive heating. An infrared image shows
that Al-KAM-PDMS enables a simulated skin temperature decrease of
5 °C under a low temperature environment as compared to the Kevlar
aerogel. The introduction of PDMS into Al-KAM-PDMS endows the membrane
with high tensile stress of 5.60 MPa. In addition, Al-KAM-PDMS also
possesses excellent breathability, showing its potential in wearable
materials. Because of the exceptional unidirectional liquid penetration,
breathability, and radiant heat insulation ability, Al-KAM-PDMS is
a promising wearable material to help maintain a comfortable microclimate
for individuals in outdoor environments.
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