Comparison of regenerated bamboo and cotton performance in warm environment

Abstract

Different materials have been used to fabricate summer (warm environment) clothing, such as cotton, nylon, neoprene, polyester and 100% synthetic fibers. However, due to mechanical and thermal properties, nylon and polyester cloth have a tendency to rot and chafe in damp conditions. In addition, close-fitting synthetic fibers and neoprene make some wearers feel uncomfortable due to the rapidly occurring body skin sweat. However, bamboo and cotton have demonstrated to have low thermal conductivity. Hence, they are excellent materials to fabricate summer clothing. In this study, a theoretical analysis complemented with practical measurements of thermal properties of three different rib knitted structures produced from a 30 tex yarn of three blends of fibers (100% regenerated bamboo, 100% cotton and 50:50 regenerated bamboo: cotton) was realized to compare bamboo and cotton performance in warm environment. Obtained results show that garment thickness and heat storage rate in the human body can significantly be reduced by using 100% regenerated bamboo, without compromising comfort.