Flame resistance is needed during laser applications and oxygen administration. There are specific norms by CPSC and also National Fibre Production Association with respect to flame retardancy required for this product. The other Medical Textiles or Hygiene Textiles include bedding, shoe covers, mattress cover and wipes. Cotton leno woven blankets replace woollen blankets to reduce the risk of cross infection due to the water washability of the former. In isolation wards and Intensive Care Unit (ICU), composite fibres are used for protective clothing, incontinal textiles, diapers or bedding.

The disposable diapers have 3 layers: Inner covering layer, an absorbent layer and an outer layer. The inner covered hydrophilic finish treated polyester web or spun-laid poly propylene non woven bonded fabric as well as tissue papers are used in clothes and wipes having antiseptic finish. These clothes and wipes are used to clean the wounds. Surgical hosiery or knitted material have a lot of compressibility and are used to support the knees and also in the treatment of disorder and during physical injury.

Protective Textiles

In case of protective textiles, the industrial need is to offer the protection either from extreme heat and fire on one hand or from extreme cold on the other. Also protection from harmful chemicals, gases, bacterial environment, radiation etc. and ballistic protection which is also the form of mechanical protection is required. Low visibility textiles are used in military and defense purposes. These kind of textiles not only become the present need for accident free operations, but also it is by the legislations which are presently existing in the developed countries and which will soon be the part of human rights protection in our country. It has now become a law that the employer has to conduct the hazard assessment at the work place and provide the employee the proper safe surrounding and see that they wear safely designed and constructed protective clothing.

Of course, these products also had to adhere to certain international quality standards. As to the protection from high temperature, in the standard clothing asbestos and mineral fibres were used in the past. However, because of its carcinogenic nature, it has been withdrawn. By definition a material which can be used at a temperature more than 200C without decomposition and losing its physical property, is considered to be high temperature textile. It is important that due to the continuous exposure to heat, the strength of the fabric should not be decreased to a level lower than what is required as optimum. By using higher GSM of the fabric, its weight strength loss can be delayed.

The flame retardant clothes are designed to prevent ignition and even if they are ignited it is with a great difficulty. They have ability to get extinguished thus preventing the spread of flame. Flame resistant fabrics are obtained by using inherently flame retardant textile materials or treating the fibres or the fabrics with special flame retardant chemicals.

The requirement of flame retardant clothing includes ability to offer the protection from the flame, without compromising the comfort property and durability of such flame retardancy. Light weight garments with a flame retardant property is the present need and for a fire fighter, the moisture transferability along with flame retardant property becomes special requirement. As far as textile garment offering protection from flame is concerned, sewing thread should also be made of flame retardant material. The protective clothing should also have thermal comfort properties and thus under the higher outside temperature and humidity the vapours of sweat have to smoothly escape.

Flame retardant textiles find applications in fire fighters dresses, manufacture of furniture, airline suits, children sleepwear, etc. The fire fighters protective clothing system includes coat, pant, underwear, helmet, boots, gloves and breathing devices. While core property of resistance to flame has to be expected by such clothing, resistance to cut and punctures and mobility, water proofness, durability are other essential characteristics. In general fire fighting clothes of 3 layered material are made, the outer layer, the moisture barrier and the thermal barrier. The outer layer must be heat and flame resistance.

The two most common materials used for outer layer are Kevlar and PBI 60:40 and Nomex. The main purpose of moisture barrier is to keep the fire fighter dry and the material is expected to prevent water penetration. Woven and spun bonded substrates coated or laminated with neoprene or PTFE are commonly used as moisture barrier. Although the first two layers are flame resistant, the 3rd inner layer of thermal barrier offers proper protection against heat. Different fibres can be used after planning to form a composite. It has to be light and airy. While it is a multi layer garment, it has to also offer least resistance to movement of the body parts.

Chemical Protective Clothing (CPC)

In this case the body parts are isolated from hazardous chemicals coming in direct contact with them e.g. protection of the farmers from insecticides or truck drivers from chemicals toxic during loading or unloading and fire fighters from chemical substances. These CPC may be of encapsulating i.e. covering the whole body including the respiratory protection or non-encapsulation which is assembled from supported components and the respiratory apparatus may be worn outside the suit.