The utilization of 3-Dimensional (3D) porous textile materials by the civil and mechanical engineers for improved thermo-acoustic environment has widened the research scope. Unconventional three-dimensional textile material which grabs the attention of the researchers for multi-functional applications is spacer fabrics. Since spacer fabrics have superior thermal and acoustic characteristics compared to conventional woven/knitted structures or nonwovens due to their wonderful 3D porous nature. It has two outer layer connected with the help of monofilament or multifilament spacer yarn which kept the fabric bulkier with low density and highly breathable. Due to porous nature, interconnected pores, bulkier and 3D structure, the spacer fabrics have ability to attenuate more sound energy than the conventional materials. This research paper presents an experimental investigation on the sound absorption behaviour and thermal properties of warp knitted spacer fabrics. The Sound absorption coefficient (SAC) and thermal conductivity (K) were measured using two microphone impedance tube and Alambeta. This study deeply discusses the influence of material parameters and characteristics on acoustic properties of 3D spacer knitted fabrics. The results show that the fabric surface property, porosity, flow resistivity and tortuosity have significant effects on the sound absorption as well as thermal conductivity. With the obtained results, this work derives regression equations and correlation between noise absorption and thermal properties of spacer fabrics.

Phellodendron amurense was used as natural dye source. Orthogonal experiment was carried out to select optimal extract process of phellodendron amurense dye. The orthogonal analysis results showed extract temperature was the most important factor. Stability investigation showed phellodendron amurense extract was stable to weak acid and alkaloid environment. Common metal ion had little effects on absorbance of phellodendron amurense extraction. Wool fabric and silk fabric had been dyed with phellodendron amurense aqueous solution. Solarization experiment showed high concentration dyeing sped up photofading rate and the dyed silk fabric was more sensible to the solarization. Vitamin C acid treatment slowed down photofading rate.

In view of the many problems in the coating of the trademark, such as the poor stability of the filler, the poor adhesive resistance and ink absorption of the fabric, the high pH value and insufficient printing stability, etc. this paper focuses on the study of two kinds of common inorganic fillers, wollastonite and kaolin, on the structure of the polyamide 6 coating film and the properties of the wet coating trademark fabric. The mixture of these two kinds of filler is applied to the coating slurry, and the ratio and dosage are optimized. On this basis, combined with production practice, the wet coating process conditions were optimized. The results showed that the mass ratio of wollastonite and kaolin is 1:1 (the mass of the filler is 22% of anhydrous methanol), the compatibility of coating slurry is higher than that of the coating slurry prepared from single wollastonite, it is not easy to settle, but also the dispersion of coating slurry is better than that of only kaolin, and the microporous structure on the surface of coating film is more uniform. Moreover, the coated fabrics presented higher ink absorption performance. When the coating temperature is 35 ◦C, the viscosity of the coating is 2∼3 Pa·s, the baking temperature is 160 ◦C, and the baking time is 80 s. The color fastness to the soaping color of the coated fabric reaches to grade 4-5, the printing effect reaches to 3-4, the whiteness and the fabric style are better.

Graphene has demonstrated extraordinary electrical, optical, thermal and mechanical properties. In last decade, a lot of research has been done to improve fabrication and solution processing of graphene to graphene oxide and reduced graphene oxide. Graphene oxide contains more number of oxygen containing functional groups which increase interlayer distance and make its dispersion easy in aqueous solutions. These advances in graphene have further improved its properties including tensile strength, elastic modulus, low resistance, carrier mobility and stability against higher temperatures and chemicals. Alginate is obtained from brown seaweeds and has potential applications in treatment of wounds and cell differentiation due to its non-toxicity, biodegradability and biocompatibility. It is a hydrophilic natural polysaccharide and provides moist and ideal environment for wound healing and cell growth. However, Alginate fibers still also display some unsatisfactory properties, such as low mechanical strength and electrical conductivity. Combining the intriguing properties of graphene and alginate, we develop smart composite fibers with suitable conductivity and mechanical strength which can be processed to nonwoven wound dressings and can be used as biosensors for medical applications. Sodium alginate/Graphene oxide fibers were fabricated by using wet spinning setup. The developed sodium alginate/graphene oxide fibers were further thermally and chemically reduced to improve conductivity. Their structure and properties were characterized by conductivity measurements, fiber strength testing, absorption behaviors, FTIR (Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy) and SEM (scanning electron microscope). The addition of graphene oxide improves the strength of sodium alginate/graphene oxide fibers due to high compatibility and even distribution of graphene oxide fillers in alginate matrix. Thermal and chemical reduction methods increase the conductivity of sodium alginate/graphene oxide fibers due to removal of oxygen containing groups. Chemical reduction method seems to have greater effect in improving the conductive properties of sodium alginate/graphene oxide fibers. These fibers also have good ability to absorb fluid and forms hydrogel to keep appropriate moist environment for wound healing which make them ideal material to develop smart wound dressings.

With the aim to gain an appreciation of how nature insulates animal bodies with furs, in this exploratory study we investigated the TC and morphology of natural and synthetic fibrous materials. Specifically, we present our experimental observations on coyote, wolverine, and synthetic furs, as well as Polyacrylonitrile (PAN) nanofibers and knitted fabric. The TC was measured at a temperature range of −10 ◦C to 65 ◦C. The natural furs consist of fibers with different diameters and cuticular scale patterns. They form coreshell fibers with complex cellular structures in the core. The natural furs have lower TC compared to that of the synthetic fibrous structures. The coyote furs have the lowest TC value of ∼ 0.046 W/mK at −10 ◦C. While the TC of all of the samples decreased with temperature, the TC of the natural furs decreased at a higher rate and showed a different behavior with temperature, compared to the synthetic fibrous materials.