Scientists create fabric that can cool skin
When the mercury rises, people often crank up the air conditioning or turn on a fan.
Engineers at Stanford University have developed a plastic fabric they believe can cut back on the need for such temperature dropping means and the energy they consume.
It's a fabric that can decrease one's skin temperature by up to 4 degrees Fahrenheit.
According to a university press release, "The material cools by letting perspiration evaporate through the material..." while, "...allowing heat that the body emits as infrared radiation to pass through the plastic textile."
Researchers started with an industrial-grade polyethylene that offered both light opacity and thermal transparency.
They then treated, "...it with benign chemicals to enable water vapor molecules to evaporate through nanopores in the plastic."
Finally, to make it appear more like a clothing-appropriate textile, they placed a layer of cotton between two pieces of the modified plastic sheeting.
Testing showed their new creation performed better than cotton alone when it came to whisking the heat away from the wearer.
The team is now working on ways to make the fabric in a wider range of colors and produce it at a budget-friendly price.