24-Aug-2020 | Market Research Store
Researchers from UBC Okanagan along with the outdoor apparel giant Arc'teryxhave created a sustainable, non-toxic and high-performance water-repellent fabric. This fabric is considered to be the Holy Grail by many clothing companies and outdoor enthusiasts. It is the first time that researchers are working toward developing a non-toxic oil and water-repellent textile. The study published in the journal Nature Sustainability could help avoid the use of perfluorinated compounds (PFCs) to repel oil and water that is usually used in outdoor fabrics. However, according to researcher Sadaf Shabanian, it is time we change the standard stain repellents, PFCs, used in non-stick frying pans and clothing with a sustainable material as these chemicals are found to have hazardous effect on the environment and human health.
The risks associated with the use of PFCs is found to be persistent in terms of both health and the environment as they take more than 100 Years to breakdown and till then is found to linger in the environment or inside the body. This is a motivating factor the clothing companies used to find a new method to achieve the same repellent properties in the products. The team found a nanoscopic layer of silicone on each fiber in a woven fabric to create an oil, water, and sweat repellent effect. Thus, obtaining a clear understanding about the fabric helped them create a finished fabric without the use of PFCs.
This new finished fabric is not only biodegradable but also recyclable which they can help overcome the problems related to PFC use and instead create suitable technical apparel which consumers and manufacturers are looking for. Arc'teryx finds this breakthrough as a perfect solution. The world of textiles or outdoor apparel industry and DWR-treated textiles is very excited to have this new proof-of-concept made applicable for various applications. Furthermore, keeping the greenhouse gas emissions issue and other environmental impacts in focus Arc'teryx is definite about bring about 65% plummet in the emissions by 2030. The oil and water-repellant finish is projected to pave way for green textile manufacturing. Even though this new technology has immense potential it still needs years of research and development before being commercialized.
Market Research Store has published a report on global textile chemicals market. This report touches up on the product circulation, industrial development, and overall market dynamics of the textile chemicals market.