Strain sensors that are made of textiles offer wearability and large strain sensing range. Recent exciting developments in material, structure, fabrication, performance, and application of textile strain sensors are evaluated and guidelines are provided to overcome the current challenges.

Lignin is a promising UV-shielding material to substitute the synthetic absorbers in a composite due to its excellent UV-shielding property. The chromophores group of lignin is responsible for the UV-shielding property of composites, but it brings an undesirable dark color. This perspective is the first to review the recent progress on fabricating light-colored UVshielding composites that contain lignin; we provide a clear picture of the concept of light-colored UV-absorbing lignin composite materials that can be used in food packaging, healthcare products, and solar panel protection. The UV-absorbing and photostability mechanisms are introduced by correlating UV absorption with intrinsic factors, like phenolic substructures and molecular weight of lignin. Extrinsic factors that affect the UV-shielding properties and color of lignin, such as the extraction process, chemical modification method, and obtained size of lignin, are also systematically discussed in this perspective. By summarizing recent studies on the synergetic effect between the lignin and the second constitute materials, this perspective discusses the benefits of lignin to the composite's overall properties, such as stability under UV radiation, mechanical property, dispersity, and water permeability.

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The concept of thermoregulating textiles capable of providing personal thermal management property (PTM) has attracted significant attention in recent years. It is considered as an emerging approach to promote the comfort and general well-being of wearers and also to mitigate the energy consumption load for indoor living space conditioning. Regulating the heat exchange between human body and environment has been the core subject of many studies on introducing the PTM functionality to textiles. This work provides an overview of the latest literature, summarizing the recent innovations and state-of-the-art approaches of controlling the heat gain and loss of textiles. To this end, methods to control the fundamental aspects of heat gain and loss of fabrics such as using near-infrared reflective materials and conductive nanomaterials, designing photonic structures of fabrics, and engineering nanoporous structures for passive cooling and heating effects will be discussed. Moreover, specific attention is given to the application of phase change materials in textiles, their integration methods, and the associated mechanisms. Several commercial methods such as adapting the innovative designs, introducing moisture management capability, and using air/liquid thermoregulating systems will also be discussed. This review article provides a clear picture of the concept of thermoregulating textiles and recommends some future research trajectories for this emerging field.

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A wool fabric has been subjected to an atmospheric-pressure treatment with a helium plasma for 30 seconds. X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy and time-of-flight secondary ion mass spectrometry confirmed removal of the covalently-bound fatty acid layer (F-layer) from the surface of the wool fibers, resulting in exposure of the underlying, hydrophilic protein material. Dye uptake experiments were carried out at 50°C to evaluate the effects of plasma on the rate of dye uptake by the fiber surface, as well as give an indication of the adsorption characteristics in the early stages of a typical dyeing cycle. The dyes used were typical, sulfonated wool dyes with a range of hydrophobic characteristics, as determined by their partitioning behavior between water and n-butanol. No significant effects of plasma on the rate of dye adsorption were observed with relatively hydrophobic dyes. In contrast, the relatively hydrophilic dyes were adsorbed more rapidly (and uniformly) by the plasma-treated fabric. It was concluded that adsorption of hydrophobic dyes on plasma-treated wool was influenced by hydrophobic interactions, whereas electrostatic effects predominated for dyes of more hydrophilic character. On heating the dyebath to 90°C in order to achieve fiber penetration, no significant effect of the plasma treatment on the extent of uptake or levelness of a relatively hydrophilic dye was observed as equilibrium conditions were approached.

The composite alpaca/acrylic fibers were auspiciously produced through a wet spinning technique to reduce the consumption of petroleum-based polyacrylonitrile (PAN) and to enhance the thermal stability and moisture properties of the fibers. The waste alpaca fibers were converted into powder using a mechanical milling method without applying any chemicals. Alpaca powders were then blended with the PAN dope solution in different weight ratios of alpaca: PAN (10:90, 20:80, and 30:70) to wet spin the composite fibers. The Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy showed that all the composite fibers possess the functional groups of both alpaca and PAN. The nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy confirmed the presence of typical carbonyl carbon (C O) and nitrile carbon (C≡N) peaks of protein and PAN, respectively. The differential scanning calorimetry and thermogravimetric analysis revealed the enhanced thermal stability of alpaca/PAN composite fibers. The moisture properties of the composite fibers were subsequently found to increase with the incorporation of alpaca, more than three times that of pure PAN fibers. These results revealed a potential green pathway to producing composite acrylic fibers with improved thermal and moisture properties by applying textile waste materials.

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