News

Replicating Shear-mediated Self-assembly of Spider Silk Through Microfluidics

Dr Jianming Chen, Member of the Research Centre of Textiles for Future Fashion, collaborated with other researchers and published an article entitled “Replicating shear-mediated self-assembly of spider silk through microfluidics” in Nature Communications.   ABSTRACT The development of artificial spider silk with properties similar to native silk has been a challenging task in materials science. In this study, we use a microfluidic device to create continuous fibers based on recombinant MaSp2 spidroin. The strategy incorporates ion-induced liquid-liquid phase separation, pH-driven fibrillation, and shear-dependent induction of β-sheet formation. We find that a threshold shear stress of approximately 72 Pa is required for fiber formation, and that β-sheet formation is dependent on the presence of polyalanine blocks in the repetitive sequence. The MaSp2 fiber formed has a β-sheet content (29.2%) comparable to that of native dragline with a shear stress requirement of 111 Pa. Interestingly, the polyalanine blocks have limited influence on the occurrence of liquid-liquid phase separation and hierarchical structure. These results offer insights into the shear-induced crystallization and sequence-structure relationship of spider silk and have significant implications for the rational design of artificially spun fibers.   Read the full article in Nature Communications. URL: https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-024-44733-1

Robust, Flexible, and Superhydrophobic Fabrics for High-efficiency and Ultrawide-Band Microwave Absorption

Prof. Xungai Wang, Member of the Research Centre of Textiles for Future Fashion, collaborated with other researchers and published an article entitled “Robust, Flexible, and Superhydrophobic Fabrics for High-efficiency and Ultrawide-Band Microwave Absorption” in Engineering.   ABSTRACT Microwave absorption (MA) materials are essential for protecting against harmful electromagnetic radiation. In this study, highly efficient and ultrawide-band microwave-absorbing fabrics with superhydrophobic surface features were developed using a facile dip-coating method involving in situ graphene oxide (GO) reduction, deposition of TiO2 nanoparticles, and subsequent coating of a mixture of polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) and octadecylamine (ODA) on polyester fabrics. Owing to the presence of hierarchically structured surfaces and low-surface-energy materials, the resultant reduced graphene oxide (rGO)/TiO2-ODA/PDMS-coated fabrics demonstrate superhydrophobicity with a water contact angle of 159° and sliding angle of 5°. Under the synergistic effects of conduction loss, interface polarization loss, and surface roughness topography, the optimized fabrics show excellent microwave absorbing performances with a minimum reflection loss (RLmin) of −47.4 dB and a maximum effective absorption bandwidth (EABmax) of 7.7 GHz at a small rGO loading of 6.9 wt%. In addition, the rGO/TiO2-ODA/PDMS coating was robust, and the coated fabrics could withstand repeated washing, soiling, long-term ultraviolet irradiation, and chemical attacks without losing their superhydrophobicity and MA properties. Moreover, the coating imparts self-healing properties to the fabrics. This study provides a promising and effective route for the development of robust and flexible materials with microwave-absorbing properties.   Read the full article in Nature Communications. URL: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.eng.2024.03.009

RCTFF and People’s Government of Lanxi City Sign MoU to Establish Partnership

Research Centre of Textiles for Future Fashion (RCTFF) and the People’s Government of Lanxi City (Lanxi) signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on 24 Apr 2024, symbolising a closer and more concrete collaborative relationship. The two sides will collaborate to pursue joint research projects aimed at developing new technologies and materials, as well as to facilitate the exchange of knowledge.

Soft Robotic Textiles for Adaptive Personal Thermal Management

Prof. Jintu Fan, Director of the Research Centre of Textiles for Future Fashion (RCTFF), and Dr Dahua Shou, Member of RCTFF, collaborated with other researchers and published an article entitled “Soft Robotic Textiles for Adaptive Personal Thermal Management” in Advanced Science.   ABSTRACT Thermal protective textiles are crucial for safeguarding individuals, particularly firefighters and steelworkers, against extreme heat, and for preventing burn injuries. However, traditional firefighting gear suffers from statically fixed thermal insulation properties, potentially resulting in overheating and discomfort in moderate conditions, and insufficient protection in extreme fire events. Herein, an innovative soft robotic textile is developed for dynamically adaptive thermal management, providing superior personal protection and thermal comfort across a spectrum of environmental temperatures. This unique textile features a thermoplastic polyurethane (TPU)-sealed actuation system, embedded with a low boiling point fluid for reversible phase transition, resembling an endoskeleton that triggers an expansion within the textile matrix for enhanced air gap and thermal insulation. The thermal resistance improves automatically from 0.23 to 0.48 Km2 W−1 by self-actuating under intense heat, exceeding conventional textiles by maintaining over 10 °C cooler temperatures. Additionally, the knitted substrate incorporated into the soft actuators can substantially mitigate convective heat transfer, as evidenced by the thermal resistance tests and the temperature mapping derived from numerical simulations. Moreover, it boasts significantly increased moisture permeability. The thermoadaptation and breathability of this durable all-fabric system signify considerable progress in the development of protective clothing with high comfort for dynamic and extreme temperature conditions.   Read the full article in Advanced Science. URL: https://doi.org/10.1002/advs.202309605

RCTFF Secured Funding from the Innovation and Technology Fund

Dr Tracy Mok (Associate Director of RCTFF), Prof. Jintu Fan (Director of RCTFF), and Ir Prof. Albert Chan (Member of RCTFF), recently have secured approximately HK$5 million from the Innovation and Technology Fund (ITF) for a 2-year research project entitled “Multimode Anti-Heating Green Uniforms for Construction Workers in Hong Kong – A complete ESG development and Management Proposal”.   This project aims to develop new Multimode Anti-Heating green fabrics and garments for the production of construction worker uniforms in Hong Kong. The project will investigate new methods that best integrate novel knitting fabric structure as well as fabric surface modification approaches to realise new radiative cooling fabrics for construction worker uniforms. For moisture management, the new uniforms will allow fast and one-way moisture transportation from skin to outer surface of the garments. It can keep the skin dry and prevent the clothing layer sticking to the skin even in an excessive sweating condition. For thermal management, the garments can facilitate the dissipation of mid-infrared radiation from human body to the environment for passive cooling while the outer layer of the fabrics can reflect solar radiation in a broad spectrum (near-IR, visible, UV) to reduce the heat absorption in outdoor environment. New fabrics and uniforms will be developed, tested and evaluated so as to suggest new standard/guideline for the production and management of construction worker uniforms, ensuring compliance to the new quality requirements.

Personal Thermal Management by Radiative Cooling and Heating

Prof. Jintu Fan, Director of the Research Centre of Textiles for Future Fashion (RCTFF), Prof. Xungai Wang and Dr Dahua Shou, Members of RCTFF, collaborated with other researchers and published an article entitled “Personal Thermal Management by Radiative Cooling and Heating” in Nano-Micro Letters.   ABSTRACT Maintaining thermal comfort within the human body is crucial for optimal health and overall well-being. By merely broadening the set-point of indoor temperatures, we could significantly slash energy usage in building heating, ventilation, and air-conditioning systems. In recent years, there has been a surge in advancements in personal thermal management (PTM), aiming to regulate heat and moisture transfer within our immediate surroundings, clothing, and skin. The advent of PTM is driven by the rapid development in nano/micro-materials and energy science and engineering. An emerging research area in PTM is personal radiative thermal management (PRTM), which demonstrates immense potential with its high radiative heat transfer efficiency and ease of regulation. However, it is less taken into account in traditional textiles, and there currently lies a gap in our knowledge and understanding of PRTM. In this review, we aim to present a thorough analysis of advanced textile materials and technologies for PRTM. Specifically, we will introduce and discuss the underlying radiation heat transfer mechanisms, fabrication methods of textiles, and various indoor/outdoor applications in light of their different regulation functionalities, including radiative cooling, radiative heating, and dual-mode thermoregulation. Furthermore, we will shine a light on the current hurdles, propose potential strategies, and delve into future technology trends for PRTM with an emphasis on functionalities and applications.   Read the full article in Nano-Micro Letters. URL: https://doi.org/10.1007/s40820-024-01360-1

A Durable, Breathable, and Weather-Adaptive Coating Driven by Particle Self-Assembly for Radiative Cooling and Energy Harvesting

Dr Dahua Shou, Member of the Research Centre of Textiles for Future Fashion, collaborated with other researchers and published an article entitled “A Durable, Breathable, and Weather-Adaptive Coating Driven by Particle Self-Assembly for Radiative Cooling and Energy Harvesting” in Nano Energy.   ABSTRACT The imperative to attain net-zero emissions emphasizes energy conservation. Radiative cooling stands out as a compelling technology in this pursuit for its self-sufficiency and cost-effectiveness. However, the radiative cooling faces the challenge in varied weather, including high ultraviolet (UV), cloudy and rainy days, primarily due to instability of radiative cooling materials and mono-energy conservation mechanism. To address this, a durable, breathable, and weather-adaptive coating (porous PTFE coating) is developed through assembling polyfluortetraethylene (PTFE) nanoparticles enabled by the differential interaction in a binary-solvent system. The porous PTFE coating exhibits high solar reflectivity (94%) and thermal emissivity (93%), which results from the precisely tunable assembly of PTFE nanoparticles, forming a desired porous morphology. This serves as effective scattering, achieving a sub-ambient cooling effect of approximately 5 ℃ at midday. With an outstanding UV protection factor (UPF) of 179.15, the porous PTFE coating sustained stability after 40 days exposure to solar radiation. Leveraging the porous PTFE coating's exceptional negative triboelectric effect, an engineered high-performance droplet electricity nanogenerator (DEG) achieves a notable power density of 153.8mW/m2, revealing significant potential for raindrop energy harvesting on rainy days. The versatile porous PTFE coating, with its exceptional weather adaptation and UV stability, holds promise for diverse applications, advancing sustainable and efficient energy solutions with reliability in varying conditions.   Read the full article in Nano Energy. URL: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.nanoen.2024.109489

Shenzhou International Group Holdings Limited visited The Hong Kong Polytechnic University

Mr Jian-Rong Ma, Chairman of the Board and Executive Director, along with a delegation from Shenzhou International Group Holdings Limited (Shenzhou), visited The Hong Kong Polytechnic University (PolyU) on February 2nd. Shenzhou is the largest vertically-integrated knitwear manufacturer in China. Its primary production base is situated in the Ningbo Economic and Technological Development Zone. The delegation was warmly received by Prof. Jintu Fan, Director of the Research Centre of Textiles for Future Fashion (RCTFF), and his research team. Prof. Fan and his team presented their research work on Breathable Fabrics and a mockup of their Fashion Style Recommendation System. Meanwhile, Mr Ma shared his views on the Fashion and Textile Industry. Both sides anticipated ongoing, comprehensive collaboration in the future. The delegation also had the opportunity to meet with Prof. Jin-Guang Teng, President of PolyU. Prof. Teng presented Mr Ma with a certificate, appointing him as a member of the International Advisory Committee of RCTFF. The visit provided a platform for potential collaborations between Shenzhou and PolyU.

3D Cellular Solar Crystallizer for Stable and Ultra-Efficient High-Salinity Wastewater Treatment

Prof. Jintu Fan, Director of the Research Centre of Textiles for Future Fashion (RCTFF), and Dr Zhanxiao Kang, Member of RCTFF, collaborated with other researchers and published an article entitled “3D Cellular Solar Crystallizer for Stable and Ultra-Efficient High-Salinity Wastewater Treatment” in Advanced Science.   ABSTRACT Recent developed interfacial solar brine crystallizers, which employ solar-driven water evaporation for salts crystallization from the near-saturation brine to achieve zero liquid discharge (ZLD) brine treatment, are promising due to their excellent energy efficiency and sustainability. However, most existing interfacial solar crystallizers are only tested using NaCl solution and failed to maintain high evaporation capability when treating real seawater due to the scaling problem caused by the crystallization of high-valent cations.   Herein, an artificial tree solar crystallizer (ATSC) with a multi-branched and interconnected open-cell cellular structure that significantly increased evaporation surface is rationally designed, achieving an ultra-high evaporation rate (2.30 kg m−2 h−1 during 2 h exposure) and high energy efficiency (128%) in concentrated real seawater. The unit cell design of ATSC promoted salt crystallization on the outer frame rather than the inner voids, ensuring that salt crystallization does not affect the continuous transport of brine through the pores inside the unit cell, thus ATSC can maintain a stable evaporation rate of 1.94 kg m−2 h−1 on average in concentrated seawater for 80 h continuous exposure. The design concept of ATSC represents a major step forward toward ZLD treatment of high-salinity brine in many industrial processes is believed.   Read the full article in Advanced Science. URL: http://doi.org/10.1002/advs.202305313

Prof. Jintu Fan appointed as Visiting Chief Scientist of Donghua University

Prof. Jintu Fan, Director of the Research Centre of Textiles for Future Fashion and Chair Professor of Fiber Science and Apparel Engineering, was appointed as Visiting Chief Scientist of the Shanghai International Fashion Innovation Centre (SIFIC), Donghua University for a period of three years, from 1 June 2023 to 31 May 2026.  Prof. Fan will provide professional advice and strategic inputs to the Center in relation to disciplinary development, scientific research, talent development, international collaboration and other matters. These include but not limited to: formulating development plans and goals, identifying frontier research directions, building high-level research teams, nurturing leading fashion innovators, steering independent innovative research, promoting collaborations with world-renowned universities and research institutions, and driving the commercialisation of the Centre’s research achievements.