Microscale knots double tensile strength of new material

August 1, 2023  |  Swatches

Knots are known for boosting the strength of materials, including the tiniest twists of DNA. The California Institute of Technology (Caltech) in Pasadena reports that engineers there have developed a new material consisting of microscale knots and shown that it’s far tougher than a version of the…
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Research produces a supercharged textile finish

August 1, 2023  |  Swatches

Scientists have developed a simple metallic coating treatment for clothing or wearable textiles that can repair itself, repel bacteria from the wearer and even monitor a person’s electrocardiogram (ECG) heart signals. Researchers from Flinders University in South Australia, North Carolina State U…
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Biomimetic soft “seed robot” navigates through soil

August 1, 2023  |  Swatches

Researchers at the Italian Institute of Technology (IIT) in Genoa, Italy, have created what they say is the first biomimetic, biodegradable soft robot that changes shape in response to humidity and can navigate through soil. The researchers say the device has great potential as a new means of analyz…
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Mattress textiles could be used to make EV batteries

August 1, 2023  |  Swatches

In a three-year study at the National Institute for Materials Advancement at Pittsburg State University (PSU) in Kansas, researchers led by Ram Gupta, Ph.D., developed a process that transforms mattress textiles into conductive carbon materials used to make the anodes and cathodes in lithium-sulfur …
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Photonic fibers could help in recycling textiles

July 1, 2023  |  Swatches

When it comes to recycling, one issue is the efficient and correct sorting of materials. Regarding textiles, not all fabrics sent to recycling have tags, or the tagless information printed on them has worn off. Even if a garment has a tag, no recycling sorter is going to take each individual piece, …
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Denim waste becomes a jet plane (artwork), cabinetry

July 1, 2023  |  Swatches

One company’s textile waste is another’s art medium. At Milan Design Week in April, the “More or Less” exhibit by artist Maarten Baas stopped people in their tracks with a denim-covered jet plane, the fabric being waste from the G-Star RAW brand. 
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USDA develops reusable cotton antimicrobial wipes

July 1, 2023  |  Swatches

U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) Agricultural Research Service (ARS) researchers have developed machine-washable cotton antimicrobial wipes that can be used at least 30 times for cleaning hard surfaces.
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RadiciGroup debuts 100% castor bean yarn

July 1, 2023  |  Swatches

RadiciGroup recently developed sustainable, recyclable yarn called Biofeel® Eleven, made from 100% castor bean oil.
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Synthetic spider silk created using mussels

July 1, 2023  |  Swatches

Its strength and flexibility in comparison to its weight have made bioengineering spider silk on a commercial scale a challenge for decades.
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Zebra stripes inspire a new wearable technology

July 1, 2023  |  Swatches

Research on zebra stripes in the last few years has shown that the animals can raise the fur of their black stripes to transfer heat away from the skin for temperature regulation. This has inspired scientists to create a device that produces electricity using the contrasting shades as thermal cond…
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