TEXTILE FABRICS AS THERMAL INSULATORS

Abstract

In recent times, a wide range of textile materials has been used as thermal insulators in many industrial applications. The thermal insulating properties of textile fabrics depend on their thermal conductivity, density, thickness and thermal emission characteristics. Experiments have been made with the aim of studying heat transfer by conduction through the different types of fabrics used as thermal insulators. 100% polyester and 100% polypropylene nonwoven fabrics are used in this work as case studies. The temperature variation through the selected fabrics is measured under different operating parameters such as densities and inlet temperature. The thermal response and behaviour for the selected fabrics used in this work as thermal insulators are illustrated. The relationship between the thermal conductivity and material density of the selected fabrics is studied. Polyester fabric has higher thermal resistance and specific heat resistance than polypropylene. Fabric thickness has a significant effect on the fabric temperature variations. The results of ?[Anova-two way measurements] are presented for 100% polyester and 100% polypropylene nonwoven fabrics. The temperature variation of the fabric increased with the testing time, and also decreased with the increase of fabric weight up to a certain limit beyond its optimum level. The results show that the selected nonwoven fabrics are suitable for usage as thermal insulators.