Modern Electromagnetic-Radiation-Shielding Materials Made Using Different Knitting Techniques

Abstract

This paper summarizes the possibility of employing knitted textile barriers as a shield against electromagnetic fields to protect the human body from their negative impact. Ten variants of knitted fabrics made of electrically conductive yarns, steel, and copper wire that differed in stitch pattern, structural parameters, and raw material, were designed, manufactured, and tested. The knitted fabrics produced differed in structural parameters, including course and wale density, surface density, thickness, thread length in the loop, wale and course take-up, volume cover factor, and surface porosity. These parameters were examined in accordance with the research methodology used in knitting. Barrier measurements were taken in the direction of the wales and in the direction of the courses for two frequencies of electromagnetic fields: 2–4 GHz and 4–7 GHz. It was observed that the shielding effectiveness of the manufactured materials depends on the structural parameters of the fabric, the stiches applied, and the type of yarn.