In this study, a new type ternary composite, called warp-knitted spacer fabric reinforced syntactic foam (WKSF-SF), with the advantages of high mechanical properties and a lower density, was proposed. Then, a meso-mechanics theoretical model based on the Eshelby–Mori–Tanaka equivalent inclusion method, average stress method and composite hybrid theory was established to predict the compression modulus of WKSF-SF. In order to verify the validity of this model, compression modulus values of theoretical simulations were compared with the quasi-static compression experiment results. The results showed that the addition of suitable WKSF produces at least 15% improvement in the compressive modulus of WKSF-SF compared with neat syntactic foam (NSF). Meanwhile, the theoretical model can effectively simulate the values and variation tendency of the compression modulus for different WKSF-SF samples, and is especially suitable for the samples with smaller wall thickness or a moderate volume fraction of microballoons (the deviations is less than 5%). The study of the meso-mechanical properties of WKSF-SF will help to increase understanding of the compression properties of this new type composite deeply. It is expected that WKSF-SF can be used in aerospace, marine, transportation, construction, and other fields.

Many pressure wound protection products, such as pressure redistribution supports and exuding wound dressings, are made of polyurethane sponge. However, polyurethane sponge does not possess a desirable combination of air permeability, moisture management and mechanical properties required by pressure redistribution supports and exuding wound dressings. This study explores the optimization of a 3D warp-knitted spacer fabric (WKSF) structure for pressure ulcer protection. The influence of construction and material parameters on the compression performance and air permeability of WKSFs was investigated by numerical simulation and then validated with experiments. The moisture transport and wetting properties of WKSFs were characterized by a moisture management tester. The numerical simulation and experimental results indicate that the WKSF structure can be tuned to achieve compressional properties, air permeability, and moisture management performance that are more suitable for pressure ulcer protection than polyurethane sponge. WKSFs constructed with a low-density surface layer, coarser spacer yarns, and larger spacer yarn inclination-angle are more suitable for pressure redistribution support surfaces, while WKSFs constructed with dense surface layers and coarse spacer yarn can better meet the performance requirements of exuding wound dressings.

There is a large somatosensory gap between the three-dimensional (3D) printing of clothing and traditional garments due to the limitations (e.g., air permeability and skin-friendliness) of the printing materials. For this reason, the application of traditional textile materials in 3D printing has become a hot topic in the field of 3D printed clothing. Based on the above, this work prepared four kinds of cotton-containing composite solutions and then impregnated thermoplastic polyurethane core yarns in these solutions to obtain four types of 3D printed cotton-containing composite core yarns (3Dp-C-CYs). Afterward, based on the two-dimensional (2D) braiding method, four kinds of cotton-containing 3D printing wires used for fused deposition molding technology were prepared by wrapping low-melting polyester filaments around the different 3Dp-C-CYs. After comparing the printing performance of the four cotton-containing 3D printing wires, the wire containing cotton powders had the best comprehensive performance and was selected to print the cotton-containing 3D printed fabrics. The results showed that the cotton-containing 3D printed fabric has good flatness and contains a large number of cotton powders; in addition, compared with the traditional polylactic acid and acrylonitrile butadiene styrene copolymer 3D printed fabrics, the 3D printed fabric made up of cotton-containing 3D printing wire can provide a closer wearing experience to that of cotton fabric. The 3D printing wire produced by the 2D braiding method offers a new idea for applying traditional textile materials in 3D printing, showing great application potentials in the field of 3D printing of clothing.

In this study, a organosilicon modified waterborne polyurethane (WPU) is synthesized with polyethylene glycol 1,4-butanediol adipate ester diol (PBA) to form the soft segment, dimethylolpropionic acid (DMPA) as the hydrophilic chain extender, and isophorone diisocyanate as the hard segment to synthesize the WPU prepolymer, and aminoethyl aminopropyl dimethicone (AEAPS) as the graft chain extender. The properties of the formed WPU films are then characterized by using Fourier transform infrared spectrometry, thermogravimetric analysis, X-ray diffraction, and dynamic mechanical analysis. It is found that when the amount of AEAPS in the WPU is increased from 0 to 30 wt%, the particle size of the AEAPS modified WPU emulsion is increased from 84.8 nm to 271.9 nm and maintained high centrifugal stability. Moreover, the water absorption of the WPU film is reduced from 43.4% to 24.1%, and the hardness is enhanced from 3H to 5H, while the glass-transition temperature (Tg) of the soft segment of the modified WPU shifts from -37.4 °C to -44.3 °C, and the Tg of the hard segment shifts from 73.6 °C to 118.1 °C. Therefore, the overall performance of AEAPS modified WPU is improved.