Efficiency of PCM products tested

The Hohenstein Institute, Bonningheim, Germany, is investigating the effectiveness of Phase Change Materials (PCM). Researchers developed the first measuring method that allows the effect and efficacy of PCM in textiles to be tested without costly wearer trials. The research project involves testing PCM-containing products from the market and coating textile samples with varying quantities of PCM using the WATson Heat Loss Tester, which is capable of simulating heat build-up and sweating. It is possible to correlate the objective data measured in the investigations using the Heat Loss Tester with the results of wearer trials on PCM textiles. Tests performed on human subjects demonstrated the cooling effects of PCM textiles. In terms of skin temperature, they are extremely low. The measurements obtained with the WATson Heat Loss Tester were confirmed by the data from the wearer trials.