A research team led by Dr. Vinoy Thomas, a native of Valakam, Kottarakkara, and a scientist at the University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB), has developed a way to turn regular clothing into self-cooling garments. The findings have been published in the journal of the American Chemical Society, and a patent has already been filed.
How It Works
Instead of creating a brand-new type of fabric, the researchers developed a method to treat existing clothes using nanotechnology. They use two primary techniques:
- Electrospinning: This allows Boron Nitride nanoparticles to be spread evenly across the fabric’s surface.
- Plasma Surface Treatment: Using low-temperature plasma (LTP), Silicon Oxide nanoparticles are embedded into the stitching threads.
Key Benefits
- Significant Cooling: In tests, garments treated with this coating reduced an external temperature of 35°C down to 20°C (a 15°C drop).
- Versatility: The researchers state this method can be applied to any type of fabric.
- Durability: The coating remains effective for about 5 to 8 washes. The team is currently working on a “double-layered” nano-coating to make the effect last even longer.
- Cost-Effective: The study notes that this method is more efficient and cheaper than previous attempts to create heat-resistant clothing.
The Research Team
The study involved several experts from the Department of Mechanical and Materials Engineering, including Dr. Ranjith Rajan Pillai, Dr. Kannadasan Appavu, Dr. Claudia T. Luong, and Dr. Sanjay K. Behura.
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