Techtextil to display innovative ideas for new application

Doctors are agreed that clothing with a high level of UV protection can significantly reduce the risk of skin cancer. Here, too, nanotechnology offers a variety of approaches to solutions. Textile coatings containing nanoparticles of titanium oxide or zinc oxide have, thanks to their huge total surface area, an enormous ability to absorb ultraviolet radiation.

At the North West German Textile Research Centre (Deutsches Textilforschungszentrum Nord-West) sol-gel coatings, based on nano-sized zinc oxide particles, have been developed and can be applied using conventional methods such as dipping and spraying. The completely wash-resistant layer not only significantly improves UV protection; it also improves resistance to abrasion, whilst having virtually no effect on the degree of whiteness of the fabric.

Nanoparticles can also be used to improve the dimensional stability and wear-resistance of man-made fibres, which are subject to high levels of mechanical stress or direct sunlight, as, for instance, in car seats.

This topic is the subject of a research project at the Denkendorf Institute for Textile Chemistry and Chemical Fibres (Institut fürTextilchemie und Chemiefasern Denkendorf) in collaboration with various partners, including the proudly traditional company, ETTLIN Textiles, and the textile-processing company, Lindenfarb Textilveredlung Julius Probst.

The polyamide-fibre products which have been optimised using nano-sized additives will be capable in future of being processed on traditional machines without any major technical changes.

Textiles in polyester have only limited moisture-absorbing and waterretaining capabilities, which make them more difficult to wash and limit their range of applications from a technical point of view. Working with a number of other partners, research and development staff from the German Institute for Wool Research at Aachen University (Deutsches Institut für Wollforschung, RWTH Aachen) and from the companies, Wirth Fulda and Märkische Faser, have achieved significant improvements in the hydrophilic properties of polyester fabrics.

Using a nanometre-thin polyamine coating, it has proved possible to increase the water absorbency of PET microfibre fabrics by up to 40 per cent by weight, compared to the original material.

Washability and wash-resistance have also been significantly improved, with simultaneous cost reductions as against traditional solutions. Suppliers for the motor vehicle industry should benefit from this improvement as much as apparel manufacturers.