E-textiles (electronic textiles) are fabrics that possesses electronic counterparts and electrical interconnects knitted into them, offering flexibility, stretchability, and a characteristic length scale that cannot be accomplished using other electronic manufacturing methods currently available. However, knitting is only one of the technologies in e-Textile integration. Other technologies, such as sewing, embroidery, and even single fiber-based manufacture technology, are widely employed in next-generation e-textiles. Components and interconnections are barely visible since they are connected intrinsically to soft fabrics that have attracted the attention of those in the fashion and textile industries. These textiles can effortlessly acclimatize themselves to the fast-changing wearable electronic markets with digital, computational, energy storage, and sensing requirements of any specific application.
This mini-review focuses on recent advances in the field of e-textiles and focuses particularly on the materials and their functionalities. At the end of the 19th century, as people developed and grew accustomed to electric appliances, designers and engineers began to combine electricity with clothing and jewelry—developing a series of illuminated and motorized necklaces, hats, brooches and costumes In 1985, inventor Harry Wainwright created the first fully animated sweatshirt. The shirt consisted of fiber optics, leads, and a microprocessor to control individual frames of
animation. The result was a full-color cartoon displayed on the surface of the shirt. in 1995, Wainwright went on to invent the first machine enabling fiber optics to be machined into fabrics, the process needed for manufacturing enough for mass markets and, in 1997, hired a German machine designer, Herbert Selbach, from Selbach Machinery to produce the world’s first CNC machine able to automatically implant fiber optics into any flexible material.
➨Like normal fabrics, they provide comfort, durability and resistant to regular textile maintenance processes.
➨They allow incorporation of latest technological elements in everyday clothes or textiles.
➨They are flexible and invisible to others.
➨No wires are used to snag the environment.
➨Thermal resistant and electrical resistant
➨They have large surface area for sensing.
➨Cheap manufacturing makes it more affordable for both consumer electronics and military applications
The existing technology is not completely waterproof. Hence they can not be worn continually under rainy environment.
➨Smart fabrics used in medical applications require calibration as per government requirements.
➨They are yet to be commecialized and yet to be developed for children.
➨Due to durability of the materials, they get implicated by harsh environmental conditions.
➨Not as flexible as normal textile clothing
➨Limited reliability compare to textile clothes
➨They have specific range of applications
➨They have limited processing and storage capability.
In e-textiles, conductive metal or polymeric fibres need to be embedded in the fabrics to carry the signals, which are created by the sensors that react to various input parameters such as sound, light, movement and chemicals, as well as to certain gases and liquid vapours in the environment. The sensors can be classified as light sensors, acoustic sensors, heat sensors, motion sensors, activity recognition sensors, location detection sensors and chemical sensors
The contribution of nanotechnology in the advancement of new materials for advance textile is remarkable.The existing functional properties in textile fabrics can be improved using nanomaterials, but textiles can also be produced with new properties or, in a single textile material, with an amalgamation of various functions
From a materials standpoint, electrical conductivity can be imparted to textile assemblies at any of the hierarchical levels using: (i) metals; (ii) intrinsically conducting polymers; or (iii) conducting-particle/polymer (micro or nano)
composites at loading levels just above the percolation threshold. These materials could be cast off in the form of fibers or in any other appropriate form, such as solder for routing circuits, or as a printed layer. It is worth stating here that, at present, there are many commercial soft and flexible conductors in many of these arrangements on the market Numerous approaches have also been investigated to yield electrically conductive fabrics, including metallized textiles, conductive polymer-based textiles, and composite nanoparticle coatings, for e-textiles. Among such fabrics is nanocarbon-based conductive textiles. The integration of graphene, carbon nanotubes (CNTs), and carbon nano/micro fibers (CNFs) with textiles is worth mentioning. Electrospinning and melt spinning techniques have been used to produce polymeric nano/micro fibers, which have thereafter been carbonized to fabricate conducting carbon fabrics. In some cases, electrospinning was performed on textiles to produce wearable electronics.For example, Huang et al. electrospun carbon nanowebs on metallic textiles to produce high-capacitance supercapacitor fabrics. They directly electrospun multi-walled carbon nanotubes (MWCNTs) onto wearable nickel-coated cotton fabrics. Joseph et al.presented a unique method of integrating substrate-free electrospinning with textile technology. A completely new collector was designed that yielded a pressure-driven, localized cotton–wool structure in free space, from which high strength and continuous yarns were drawn. The fabrication of conductive, flexible, and durable textiles with reduced graphene oxide (RGO) on nylon-6 yarns, cotton yarns, polyester yarns, and nonwoven textile fabrics via a facile preparation method has been reported recently by Prof. Byung Hoon Kim’s group They also solved the problem of adhesion between GO and textiles using bovine serum albumin (BSA) proteins, which serve as universal adhesives for any textile, regardless of their surface conditions.
The inadequate durability of those coatings of nanoparticles on textiles and the stability of several properties induced by nanoparticles are major obstacles that hinder the commercialization of e-textiles Many researchers are actively involved in this field to solve this. For example, Prof. Yun and his co-workers at Harvard University, USA, have been working on textiles integrated with electronic and photonic nanomaterials for applications in the areas of digital displays, sensing, and drug delivery within the background of their performance, durability, and connectivity
Recently, Du et al.reported on a highly washable e-textile fabricated by ultrasonically nanosoldering carbon nanotubes onto polymer fibers.
They reported that their fabricated CNT e-textiles fabrics have good washability. The CNTs remain on the fiber surface even after forceful mechanical washing in water for several hours, and the conductance of the textile slightly reduces. The superior electrical conductivity of conducting polymers, carbon nanotubes, and graphene makes them live options for producing textiles that allow for an integration of sensors and actuators with fabrics. The addition of
electronic components to these fabrics would create a fully new range of functional clothing.
Optical light emitting diodes (OLEDs), nanoelectronics, conducting liquid metals, etc., in fiber form could lead to revolutionary applications by integrating optical, optoelectronic, flexible, and stretchable devices with textiles. Recently, Levi’s musical jacket prepared by the Media Lab at Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), USA, includes a flexible and durable embroidered fabric keyboard. It is developed with a composite fabric made from polyester and low conductive stainless-steel thread consuming ordinary embroidery methods. They reported that this keyboard is very reactive to touch and transforms a usual denim jacket into a wearable musical gadget that permits the owner to play notes, chords, and rhythms
A multifunctional body-motion sensors and user-interface (UI) strategies in textile platform using polymerized poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene) (PEDOT)-coated fibers has been developed by Prof. Kim’s research group in South Korea Upon integration of PEDOT fibers in a fabric through a fiber pattern design, multifunctional textile sensors, such as highly sensitive and consistent strain sensors, body-motion monitoring sensors, touch sensors, and multilevel strain recognition UI devices, have been constructed. However, motion capture using fabrics is an old
and recurring topic in smart textiles. It is also one of the current limitations of e-textiles owing to their bulky electronics, batteries, and rigid interconnection. Currently, many new studies are focusing on its solution; nanocomposites and carbon-based fabrics are thus attracting substantial attention
Additionally, coatings of holographic films and optical fibers with periodic multilayered dielectric materials on textiles offers a 3D visual effect and an angle of observation that is sensitive, colorful, and highly reflective. Wearable communication is also gaining immense interest recently .
Textile antennas are essential components in this area that cover sensing, and wireless communication functionalities even though being integrated inside or within clothes. The available large area in textiles can be explored to install multiple antennas along with other electronic circuitry. To make the best use of the antenna’s area, the batteries or energy harvesters can be placed on top of the radiating patch. However, when incorporating the
flexible textile wireless communication modules inside the clothes, the device will also be subjected to deformation and distortion owing to activities and movements by the user, producing crumpling, stress, strain, and bending. An enthusiastic design technique is thus essential to secure a stable and reliable antenna performance in these circumstances.
Additionally, the selection of materials for textile antennas that offers both good radiation characteristics and great user comfort is critical. The materials should possess conductive as well as insulating parts, and a suitable fabrication method is needed to incorporate an antenna topology to the textiles. Interestingly, to overcome the discrepancy in antenna performance in diverse environmental surroundings, hydrophobic fabrics that show minimum moisture
regain must be selected [76]. There are mainly three types of textile antenna fabrication techniques available in the market which pattern the conductive portions and connect them to the insulating antenna portions. The modest approach involves knitting, integrating, or embroidering copper tape, conducting wires (such as silver or aluminum), or conductive yarns into a slice of clothing The other widespread technique comprises the incorporation of
e-textiles (usually copper- or copper-nickel-plated nonwoven fabrics) with textile fabrics by thermally activated thermal sheets.Lastly, additive manufacturing techniques, such as screen or ink-jet printing and 3D printing, may be applied to configure the antenna, reflector, and ground plane on the textiles.
Energy storage is another emerging area where wearable electronic textiles that harvest and use capacitive energy can be used in personalized electronics. Huang et al.reported on soft conductive yarns that were produced using a twist-bundle-drawing technique and were mechanically robust enough to be woven to a fabric by a commercial machine. Then, the yarns were treated with reduced graphene oxide and became conductive. These yarns were
then covered with a hierarchical MnO2 nanosheet/polypyrrole thin film structure to fabricate weavable, knittable, and wearable yarn supercapacitors. It is worth mentioning that Jost et al. have published a comprehensive review paper in this area that provides an overview and perspective on textile-based energy storage with a precise emphasis on devices made from textiles or made as fabrics themselves.
In addition, Zhai et al. in their review, focused particularly on the design concepts and structures of textile energy storage devices presently explored, including their fabrication strategies. They mainly highlighted the key developments in the creation of 2D (two-dimensional) textile and 1D yarn batteries and supercapacitor electrodes he most important challenge in this direction is to implement suitable power sources for e-textiles. This issue has been addressed by lightweight fabric consists of carbon nanofibers, carbon nanotubes, and graphene-based upercapacitor electrodes. Additionally, thermoelectric generators, triboelectric nanogenerators, flexible fiber and thin film batteries, and stretchable polypyrrole-based supercapacitors for energy transfer are existing options Deformable, flexible, and stretchable electronic circuits are essential in e-textiles especially for bio-medical applications requiring interconnections between components and devices.
One of the main obstructions to the growth of e-textiles is the creation of interconnects within textile fabrics, with hard semiconductor chips and other rigid and/or soft devices and circuits. This problem is aggravated by the requirement of textiles and other materials to survive various mechanical stresses and strains during repetitive use. The vital challenge of making these interconnects includes making them stretchable,flexible, strong, and stable in ambient conditions while guaranteeing sufficient electrical connectivity. Agcayazi et al recently published an interesting review in this area addressing the technological issues related to textile interconnects and potential research directions and challenges.
Usually, the approach used is to develop electroplated metallic wires in a stretchable polymeric material Stretchability in electrical conductors is a necessity that can be fulfilled with different designs. Interconnects made with these materials and techniques coupled with textile fabrics can withstand actual issues concerning the lack of sturdiness in e-textile circuits. In this context, Hu et al. [89] used an interesting methodology to achieve stretchable and highly conductive textiles. With a simple “dipping and drying” route consuming single-walled carbon nanotube (SWNT) ink, their group manufactured highly conductive textiles and obtained conductivities of ~125 cm−1 and sheet resistances of less than 1Ω /sq. In this fashion, such conductive textiles maintain the same stretchability of the regular fabric. To be sure, the porous micro/nanostructure of the textiles helps ease the use from any electrolyte and such porous and stretchable conductors catch an inclusive range of applications in the field of e-textiles
Recently, transfer printing, printable elastic conductors and conductive liquid metalsare becoming popular in this area. Printable elastic conductors made from silver flakes, a fluorine rubber, and a fluorine surfactant were developed by Matsuhisa et al at the University of Tokyo in Japan. The fluorine surfactant creates a key constituent that leads to the formation of surface-localized conductive networks in the printed elastic conductor, creating high conductivity and stretch ability.
Recently, Gao et al.3D-printed boron nitride (BN)/poly(vinylalcohol) (PVA) conductive composite fibers for efficient personal cooling with thermal regulation textiles. The highly aligned printed BN nanosheets in the microfibers performed heat transfer efficiently with the surrounding medium The enrichment of efficient, independent, multifunctional, actuation, mechanical, and biosensing arrangements in textiles is possible by lab-on-fiber technology Those multifunctional smart sensors integrated with individual fibers exchange information about
analysis and provide efficient sensing. For example, in the case of a plasmonic sensor, a surface plasmon propagates along a metal/dielectric interface in an optical fiber upon excitation The variation in the optical refractive index of an analyte near the metal layer significantly enhances phase matching and thus changes the spectral response of the optical fibers; thereby, sensing occurs Environmental parameter (such as heat, humidity, and pressure) sensors have already been attached in textiles [102]. Henceforth, 3D printing and microfluidics can be combined in fabric-based point-of-care diagnostic applications Integrated with light emitting diodes (LEDs), these fabrics can be used for visual sensing The programmable delivery and release of therapeutic drugs is also possible by combining drug-
loaded micro/nanoparticles with e-textiles
Recently, Prof. Ali Khademhosseini’s research group at Harvard Medical School, USA, has developed an actively controlled wound dressing using composite fibers attached to a heating element and enclosed by a hydrogel layer comprised of thermoresponsive drugs. They have assembled the drug- and biological-factor-loaded fibers using textiles and have created a flexible and wearable wound dressing. Such fibers can individually address the programmable release of different drugs with a collective temporal profile. In a recent study, it has been demonstrated that sensors can be integrated with textiles such that they are wearable and can be used to monitor biochemical changes in body fluids, such as sweat. Caldara et al. reported the efficient monitoring of sweat pH by a wearable sensor based on a cotton fabric treated with an organically modified silicate and miniaturized and low-power electronics with wireless interfaces. In a separate study, a fully textile, wearable organic electrochemical transistor (OECT) sensor for the detection of biomarkers in external body fluids was developed by Gualandi et al. without using an invasive electrode E-textiles, as flexible substrates, are suitable for applications in various areas, such as wearable sensors. Such textiles can be used for sensing, computing, actuating, and communicating when integrated with electronics or photonics. Electronic counterparts can be incorporated with apparel, and a wearable scheme can lead to more adaptable, multipurpose uses. A user can adjust their look and obtain valuable information based on environmental changes and their own specific preferences. Therapeutic drugs and biological factors using
textiles are also of importance. Though the recent advances in e-textiles have been remarkable, their electrical enactment and device arrangements are still inadequate for end user level. In addition, they are typically not waterproof nor weather-resistant and cannot be washed. Concerns regarding the toxicity of the nanomaterials used in fabrics along with the commercial trends in the global textile market need more attention. To resolve these issues,
innovative designs of new functional soft materials and novel processing expertise and knowledge have been introduced. With the high amount of research being conducted in emerging textile technology, together with research on stretchable and printed electronics, conductive inks, wearable, printed, and flexible sensors, energy storage, and so on, e-textiles have managed to gain a substantial amount of attention. The use of typical manufacturing techniques to produce textile-based sensors, energy harvesting devices, and other smart electronics as well as techniques that allow for easy integration with wearable garments, which has great mass-market potential.
