Thermo-responsive textiles

Abstract

Thermo-responsive polymers can switch their hydrophilic/hydrophobic state by varying the temperature below or above the lower critical solution temperature (LCST). This chapter systematically reviews the recent research on thermoresponsive polymers and their applications in the field of textiles. It mainly contains two aspects. The first aspect introduces the fundamental properties of the thermo-responsive polymers, including phase transition, transition behaviors, and factors that influence the transition behaviors. After that, the main types of thermo-responsive polymers, such as polymers bearing amide groups, polymers bearing oxygen atoms in main or side chains, and polymers bearing phosphate groups, are discussed with their special properties. Then the synthesis of the thermo-responsive polymers and the characterization of their molecular structure, molecular weight, molecular weight distribution, morphology, and thermal properties are described. The second aspect mainly focuses on the textiles with thermo-responsive polymers. Some of the most promising applications of the thermo-responsive textile, such as moisture permeability-adaptive fabric, fabrics for medicine/perfume control release, and water storage, are reported first. After that, the requirements of the thermo-responsive polymers for textiles, including adjustable LCST, soft hand, and easy binding, are discussed. Then the diverse methods to immobilize thermo-responsive polymers onto textile and characterize the properties of the modified textile are introduced. The existing challenges and strategic solutions of the thermo-responsive textiles are also briefly summarized at the end.