DiAPLEX can be called a material with self-control because it senses changes in the environment and adjusts itself accordingly to maintain comfortable in-garment condition. In addition to being highly waterproof and effectively breathable, DiAPLEX also features anti-condensation characteristics, heat retention, wind proofing and water repellency required in severe weather conditions; while it also has stretchability, durability and a sensitive soft touch that make it suitable for sportswear.

Corpo Nove, through their R&D spin-off Grado Zero Espace, has used Thermal Shape Memory metals as a fabric for the manufacturing of a shirt with long sleeves. The sleeves can be programmed to shorten immediately as the room temperature becomes a few degrees hotter. The fabric can be screwed up into a hard ball, pleated and creased then, just by a flux of hot air (even a hairdryer) pop back automatically to its former shape.

a)      Aerogels

The aero gel insulation blanket produced by Aspen Aerogels in the U.S. is being employed as a lining for extreme winter clothing, and is said to be three times more effective than 3M's Thinsulate and 39 times more insulating than the best fiberglass insulation. Aerogels are produced through the creation of gelatinous structures and then removal of all liquid without allowing any shrinkage. It is therefore packed with microscopic insulative air pockets of silica, alumina, carbon or other such materials with diameters of less than 100 nanometers that make it impossible for most gas molecules, including air, to pass through, resulting in virtually zero heat loss.  A wafer thin layer is sufficient to protect a hand from a blowtorch. A block the size of a person weighs less than a kilogram and yet can support a small car. Aerogels were used as insulation on the rover vehicle of the Mars Pathfinder.

b)      Nettle fibers

Textiles made of nettle fibers are naturally insulating. The fibers of the stinging nettle have a special characteristic in the fact that they are hollow which means they can accumulate air inside thus creating a natural insulation. To create a cool fabric for summer, the yarn lengths are highly twisted closing the hollow core and reducing insulation. For winter fabrics, yarns with a low twist are used. The hollow core of the fibers remains open maintaining a constant temperature.

Conductive Materials

Conductive fabrics combine the breathing/ moisture managing finishes with high metallic content in textiles. With the addition of nickel, copper and silver coatings of varying thickness, these fibers provide a versatile combination of physical and electrical properties for a variety of applications. For example, the thermal conductivity of fabric is increased a thousand-fold after the fibers are metallized. Clothing constructed with conventional polymers have minimal thermal insulation.

Another type of conductive fiber is carbon. ECT (Electric Conductive Textile) is a carbonized glass fiber textile, each filament of which is coated with a few nanometers of carbon. The textile can be woven, braided or knitted with any kind of glass fiber and any kind of yarn. The carbon creates the electrical conductivity and therefore electrical resistance. This electrical resistance presents the opportunity to use the textile as an electric heating medium. Heat is distributed evenly over the entire surface of the textile with resistance varying between 10 and 3000 Ohm per square of surface area. However, whether the square is 1 cm2 or 1 m2 in dimension, the resistance per square is constant. The applied power can be up to 600 Volts (AC or DC). The combination of both parameters allows ECT to generate an energy output of between 50 and 10,000 Watt/m2.