Modification of thermal conductivity of cotton fabric using Graphene

Abstract

This paper investigates the possibility to use Graphene coated fabric for thermal conductive purposes. Existing methods of thermal conductivity improvement of textiles require extrusion facilities and the end products are heavy due to insertion of metal wires. By using Graphene Oxide application, these disadvantages can be eliminated. Graphene Oxide was applied onto the fabric using a simple dip and dry method and an exhaustion dyeing method. Then the coated fabric was allowed to react with an aqueous solution of reducing agents. The test results showed that the most suitable method to obtain a significant improvement in thermal conductivity of textiles is to follow an exhaustion dyeing method with reducing agents. The reduction process should be maintained at 70°C for 30min duration with the addition of Sodium Hydrosulphide. Exhaust dyed fabric which was treated with reducing agents showed an improvement of 55% in thermal conductivity compared to the uncoated fabric, which is a significant improvement in the thermal conductivity of textiles. In addition to the thermal conductivity values, few related textile properties were tested to evaluate the effect of the Graphene coating on the fabric characteristics.