TY - JOUR T1 - The Development of Pad-Dry-Cure Compatible Method for Preparing Electrically Conductive Copper Coated Cotton Woven Fabrics JO - Journal of Fiber Bioengineering and Informatics VL - 2 SP - 117 EP - 128 PY - 2013 DA - 2013/06 SN - 6 DO - http://doi.org/10.3993/jfbi06201301 UR - https://global-sci.org/intro/article_detail/jfbi/4827.html KW - Electronic Textiles KW - Pad-dry-cure KW - Polymer Brushes KW - Electroless Deposition KW - Cotton AB - Electrically conductive cotton fabrics were successfully prepared by a first free radical polymerization, assisted by a conventional pad-dry-cure textile technology and subsequent electroless deposition (ELD) of copper thin layers on cotton fiber surfaces. Pad-dry-cure takes a major role in the even uptake and penetration of the monomer [2-(methacryloyloxy)ethyl]trimethyl-ammonium chloride (METAC) solution throughout the cotton fabrics, making subsequent ELD plating of copper metal uniform. The surface electrical resistivity of as-prepared electro-conductive cotton fabrics varies from 10^3 to 10^{-1}Ω/sq, depending on the ELD conditions. The whole process is low cost, low chemical wastage and compatible with current wet processing in the textile industry, which provides a great potential in commercialization in a bulk scale.