Innovative technologies for high performance textiles

Abstract

Increasing global competition in textiles has created many challenges for European dyers and finishers. The rapid growth in technical textiles and in their end‐uses has generated many opportunities for the application of innovative chemical finishes. Novel finishes of high added value for apparel fabrics are also greatly appreciated by a more discerning and demanding consumer market. This review will concentrate on some of the new approaches to producing high added value textiles that provide consumers with greater levels of comfort, safety, aesthetics and functional performance. Some of the technologies to be described are developed to the commercial exploitation stage, while others are still in development but offer potential for the future. Textile finishing personnel and companies must be active in keeping abreast of the developments in chemical finishing that are emerging globally, in order to survive and prosper in this very competitive and cost‐conscious sector of the textile industry. The future of textile finishing within Europe depends upon rapid adoption of high performance, high added value finishes that provide innovation and novelty to the consumer, and in seeking out new end‐uses and markets for such finishes.

Durable Superomniphobic Surface on Cotton Fabrics via Coating of Silicone Rubber and Fluoropolymers

“…[1,2]. With different products developed, protective clothing with a single function, such as being flame retardant [3,4], water repellent/superhydrophobic [5], oil repellent [6], self-cleaning [7], or with cold protection [8], chemical protection [7] and moisture management, has been widely developed to serve customers in different areas [3,9]. Recent research and development are focusing on multiple protection of performance textiles [10], among which the exploration of the omniphobic surface of textiles has been regarded as the key to develop textiles that protect skin against chemicals, oils and lubricants [11].…”

Effect of Weft Knitted Polyester Fabric Structure on its Hydrophobicity after Fluorocarbon Finishing

“…However, as the roughness of the cloth is usually on a relatively large scale, some efforts have been made to generate smaller scale structures on the fiber surface to increase the superhydrophobicity and pressure resistance of the structures [12,13]. It has been reported [14,15] that these fractal structures could effectively enhance the repellency of a solid surface, but so far there has been only limited research on how surface shapes and dimensions enhance surface hydrophobic behaviors.…”

Functionalization of cotton with poly-NiPAAm/chitosan microgel: Part II. Stimuli-responsive liquid management properties

“…encapsulated phasechange materials-PCMs); and moisture management finishes (e.g. silicone microemulsions and thermoreactive polyurethane) (Holme 2007). Nevertheless, the latest concepts from the emerging areas of responsive polymers and surface modification techniques enable taking cotton moisture management one step further-to develop stimuli-responsive material which can actively control material performance by polymer grafting (Hu et al 2006;Liu et al 2009;Save et al 2005) or functional finishing by application of microgel based on stimuli-responsive polymers (Jocic 2008).…”