Scientists from Zhejiang University have developed a gown that makes the rabbit almost invisible to the infrared camera thanks to a fiber that mimic the structure of the polar bear feathers. Arctic polar bears have holes, reflecting backward infrared emission emanating from the body. This structure helps prevent heat loss and keeps bears warm in arctic environments.

But bear feathers have the added advantage of being able to hide bears without the thermal imaging cams used in many night vision devices discovered. Textiles that mimic the infrared reflectivity of polar bears can be useful in stealth applications such as stealth. Previous attempts to make synthetic versions of the wool have created too unstable fibers that can not be used in practice.

The team from Zhejiang University is now using a rigid fiber spray method to create a porous, durable, high-strength foam. Fiber includes fibroin, which is found in silk, along with small amounts of polysaccharide chitosan.

The researchers squeezed the water mixture, slurring the materials through a cold copper ring, forming hardening fibers containing flat ice crystals. The freeze-drying process removes cold stone by sublimation to produce fibers up to 200 micrometers wide and 87% hollow. After varying conditions such as the viscosity of the mixture and the temperature of the ring, they found that operating at a sound pressure of 100 ° C produced 30 μm voids, creating the best balance between degrees. durable and heat-insulating.

To demonstrate the heat's heat-inducing potential, the researchers wove the fibers into a textile material to make a small hat for rabbits in the laboratory. Heat of the body is almost impossible to detect by thermal imaging, whether the background temperature is 40 ° C, 15 ° C or -10 ° C.

The Zhejiang team produced the conductive textile material by adding carbon nanotubes to a mixture of fibrous precursors. The 5V voltage has raised the temperature of the conductive fabric from 24 ° C to 36 ° C in less than a minute - not useful for invisibility but potentially useful for keeping warm winter clothes.

Source vinatex.com