Woolen Respirators for Thermal Management

Abstract

COVID‐19 pandemic recently has a great impact on personalized protection and healthcare, especially in the area of the respiratory mask. However, due to the complex relationship between filtration performance and thermal management, there is a lack of investigation considering both characters in respirators. Woolen knitwears are recently well acknowledged as textiles for both hot and cold because of their superior water‐actuated shape memory performance. To incorporate protective function against bacteria, virus, microdroplet, and particulate matter, melt‐blown polypropylene can be introduced as a barrier layer. Herein, a robust and sustainable bio‐based woolen respirator with the superior ability of thermal management is prepared using simple knitting and melt‐blown technology. The as‐prepared respirators provide excellent protection from airborne particulate along with the high level of comfort, compared with a commercial mask. Moreover, it exhibits a high rating during wear trial. This provides a new insight to develop high quality sustainable respiratory mask with an excellent comfort performance from functional biomaterials.

Recent Advances in Thermoregulatory Clothing: Materials, Mechanisms, and Perspectives

“…Textiles are an integral part of the human body and can be thought of as a second layer of the skin . Garments, as a boundary requirement of the interior microclimate, have an influence on thermoregulatory applications because clothing functions as a barrier between the interior microclimate and the surroundings, and should be specifically tailored for efficient PTMSs. , Consequently, it is worth mentioning that the optical characteristics (α, ρ, and τ) of textiles in the IR region determine radiative heat transmission between objects and the atmosphere. Traditional fabrics, on the other hand, rarely utilize solar and heat radiation to enhance thermal comfort of the human body.…”

“…Compared with conventional HVAC systems, a state-of-the-art PTM system (PTMS) facilitates the design of wearable, precise, and individual-specific textiles by employing energy conversion technologies such as radiative cooling and Joule heating. − Researchers are intrigued by PTMSs that may economically harness the excess heat of the human body to generate power or precisely control temperature for thermal comfort. , A PTMS focuses on three functions: (1) personal thermoregulation with the aim of regulating the body temperature, (2) energy harvesting with an emphasis on heat recovery, and (3) thermal insulation based on sustainable energy conservation. ,,− PTMS may be a promising candidate, given the limitations of centralized space thermoregulatory systems (i.e., HVAC systems) because they have the potential to enhance adaptability at the individual level as well as in a wide range of outdoor circumstances, including athletics, military, and specific occupations. The emergence of PTMSs, which strive to deliver optimal thermal comfort, is a response to these growing demands. − …”

An Intelligent Wearable Filtration System for Health Management

“…Considering the lower production cost and mature processing industrial equipment, the most common method for producing commercial respirators is the traditional melt-blown process based on polypropylene. , According to the statistical data, the domestic demand for respirators in the UK is around 24.4 billion in 2020; in Japan, about 600 million surgical masks were required in April 2020 . However, 59 g of CO 2 -equiv greenhouse gas to the environment will be released and about 10–30 Wh energy will be consumed when producing a mask. , Meanwhile, the generation of tons of mask waste is a serious problem, which has a great threat to the natural environment and mineral resources. , Therefore, it is valuable to develop a type of respirator and its manufacturing process. Since the micro/nanofiber products have a high specific area, in principle, it has a large adsorption area; it is promising to develop a highly efficient filtration system through advanced nanotechnology. , As a representative technology for the preparation of nanomaterials, the application of electrospinning technology in the field of advanced protection has received great attention. − Electrospinning technology possesses many special characteristics, like simple operation, controllable processes, low cost, and low energy consumption, ,, and the corresponding electrospun products have various different characteristics, such as controllable diameter, high separation efficiency, high permeability, and large specific surface area. ,− Many related studies including various materials, such as nylon, PS, PVDF, PAN, PVA, PCL, and silk, have been conducted for fabricating nanofibrous filters with tunable structures.…”

“…20,21 Meanwhile, the generation of tons of mask waste is a serious problem, which has a great threat to the natural environment and mineral resources. 22,23 Therefore, it is valuable to develop a type of respirator and its manufacturing process. Since the micro/nanofiber products have a high specific area, in principle, it has a large adsorption area; it is promising to develop a highly efficient filtration system through advanced nanotechnology.…”

Fibers/Textiles-Based Flexible Sweat Sensors: A Review

“…The most explored textile substrates include cotton, nylon, polyethylene terephthalate (PET), and woven and knitted fabrics, which can provide mechanical support and abrasion resistance to fabric-based sensors. They have achieved great success in various fields, e.g., display, , sensors, ,− nanogenerators, − thermal management, − intelligence protection, and therapy. , Among these fields, textile-based sensors are highly suitable for sweat composition analysis, as they are non-invasive and can be used for real-time monitoring continuously on the skin. Various flexible sensors are based on fibers/textiles for human sweat composition and rate analysis.…”