Nanotexturing of High-Performance Woven Fabrics for Novel Composite Applications; Conference paper

摘要

Nanotechnology offers the ability to create new material systems as well as dramatically improve the performance of existing systems through the introduction of new physical mechanisms not found in the original material. Nanomaterial modification of fibers and textiles has been used to increase fabric performance in areas ranging from biocidal capability to stain resistance and water repellency. In this study we use scalable methods to modify nanoscale features on organic materials to probe the potential for increased impact energy absorption and mechanical properties in composite applications. Specifically atmospheric plasma treatment and wetchemistry methods were utilized to create nanoscale chemical scaffolding and surface textures on model polyethylene films and fibers. This approach was successful at modifying the surfaces of these fibers and scaling to high speed web manufacturing is easily envisioned.