Smart textiles – when colloid chemistry bears a challenge

Abstract

Functional coatings from inorganic–organic hybrid materials were deposited on polyethylene films and technical polyester fabrics The differently modified inorganic–organic hybrids were based on 3-glycidyloxpropyltrimethoxysilane (GPTMS) and bisphenol A (BPA). The GPTMS–BPA hybrids were modified by UV-active components. The modification was performed by filling of the inorganic organic network with zinc oxide nanoparticles to create UV-protective technical laminates or with light-sensitive dyestuffs to produce fabrics with self-adapting colorations, respectively. Although fabrics which have been modified by inorganic–organic coating possess several advantages they are prone to insufficient wear resistance and insufficient long-term stability. Other limitations for a common application of the so-called smart materials is the lack of suitable feedback loops; these have to be integrated into the interactive fabrics for them to become really smart ones. The latter argument can be regarded as the most important reason why smart textiles even nowadays remain a real challenge for colloid chemistry and textile engineering.

Acknowledgements We thank the Forschungskuratorium Textil e.V. for funding this research project (AiF-nos. 10954 N and 12000 N). The project was funded with financial resources of the Bundesministerium für Wirtschaft und Technologie with a grant from the Arbeitsgemeinschaft industrieller Forschungsvereinigungen “Otto von Guericke” e.V.