Air conditioner in a fabric?

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It is difficult to feel perfectly comfortable in terms of body temperature. We are either too cold or too hot, and constantly tinkering with the air conditioner is not the way to go. How about an AC embedded into our clothing? This seems absurd and impossible, but believe it or not, something of this sort has been made possible.

In the University of Maryland, a new fabric has been invented that cools down a person when they’re hot and warms them up when they’re cold. The strands of the fabric are coated with carbon nanotubes that are efficient at emitting heat, and the other coating is copper that is good at trapping heat. This fabric also feels exactly like regular clothing. When a person is sweating, the fabric reacts to the increased temperature and moisture levels, so the strands twist becoming thinner which activates the nanotube coating. This results in the fabric to have gaps, allowing infrared radiation to pass through, almost like pores in a body, causing a person to cool down. The opposite process is that when a person is cold the fabric is cool and dry, so the strands expand blocking and trapping the heat in order to warm someone up.

I think that this is a great innovation of clothing, and something that I would love to acquire. I myself am either always too cold or too hot, so finding an equilibrium is extremely rare. On the other hand, the uses and advantages of this for different people is uncountable. This fabric is not only comfortable on daily basis, but it would be most beneficial for athletes, but also babies, elderly or disabled people. This is because they require the “most attention and constant comfort”. However, imagine men that wear suits at 30 degrees Celsius during the summer, or women that live in countries that require them to cover up their skin at all times. This fabric would be beneficial not just for specific people, but for all people on regular basis. After all we all sweat.

Sources:

https://www.technologyreview.com/s/612909/this-new-fabric-will-automatically-cool-you-down-when-you-get-hot-and-sweaty/

https://www.newscientist.com/article/2193057-heat-sensitive-fabric-cools-you-on-hot-days-and-warms-you-in-the-cold/

New Fabric Warms or Cools Depending How You Wear It

 

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