Durable, Washable and High-Performance Conductive Textiles
(Left) Schematic illustration of the process of preparing conductive cotton yarns via in-situ free radical polymerization (Only grafting of PMANa is illustrated here. Grafting of PAANa follows the same procedures). (Right) As-made PMANa-assisted copper-coated cotton yarns. Copyright : Hong Kong PolyU
In this new method for preparing electrically conductive textiles, the textile surface is modified with a negativelycharged polyelectrolyte poly(methacrylic acid sodium salt) (PMANa) or poly(acrylic acid sodium salt) (PAANa) by in-situ free radical polymerization, and then treated with electroless metal deposition.
The as-fabricated conductive textiles preserve robust mechanical and electrical stability under repeated cycles of rubbing, stretching and washing. They can be integrated into wearable electronics to replace the conventional rigid conductive electrodes and wires.
Special Features and Advantages:
• The negatively charged polymer interfacial layer that bridged the deposited metal and the textile surface provides the metal layer with outstanding adhesion properties and good washing durability.
• The method is low cost (without expensive catalyst) and readily applicable to the industry to develop scale production of high performance conductive textiles.
Applications:
• Flexible electronic interconnects, contacts and electrodes, especially for wearable electronics, smart textile and fashion
• EMI shielding, electrostatic discharge, thermal control materials
Awards:
Sliver Medal – 43rd International Exhibition of Inventions of Geneva,
Switzerland (April 2015)
For further information contact:
Principal Investigator
Dr Zijian ZHENG
Institute of Textiles and Clothing
Contact Details
Institute for Entrepreneurship
Tel: (852) 3400 2929
Fax: (852) 2333 2410
Email: pdadmin@polyu.edu.hk
Associated links
Hong Kong PolyU article
Media Contact
More Information:
http://www.researchsea.comAll latest news from the category: Materials Sciences
Materials management deals with the research, development, manufacturing and processing of raw and industrial materials. Key aspects here are biological and medical issues, which play an increasingly important role in this field.
innovations-report offers in-depth articles related to the development and application of materials and the structure and properties of new materials.
Newest articles
Trotting robots reveal emergence of animal gait transitions
A four-legged robot trained with machine learning by EPFL researchers has learned to avoid falls by spontaneously switching between walking, trotting, and pronking – a milestone for roboticists as well…
Innovation promises to prevent power pole-top fires
Engineers in Australia have found a new way to make power-pole insulators resistant to fire and electrical sparking, promising to prevent dangerous pole-top fires and reduce blackouts. Pole-top fires pose…
Possible alternative to antibiotics produced by bacteria
Antibacterial substance from staphylococci discovered with new mechanism of action against natural competitors. Many bacteria produce substances to gain an advantage over competitors in their highly competitive natural environment. Researchers…
