WELCOME TO TECHNICAL-TEXTILES.NET, the web's most comprehensive source of information about the world of performance and technical textiles. Full membership gives access to: unique feature articles; relevant, edited and verified news; events and more, to keep you up to date with the latest developments in materials, technologies, processes, patents and research, and business and markets

Smart textiles

Success in 'growing' carbon nanotubes

1 September 2014
Scientists at Swiss research institute Empa and the Max Planck Institute for Solid State Research in Germany have succeeded in creating self-assembling carbon nanotubes (CNTs).
Read more

Ambiotex launch planned for October

1 August 2014
Representing the state-of-the-art in wearable fitness monitoring, the ambiotex t-shirt developed by match2blue GmbH of Mainz, Germany, was showcased at this year's Wearable Technologies Conference in
Read more

Nanotech companies to merge

1 August 2014
OCSiAl has acquired carbon nanotube (CNT) functionalisation specialist Zyvex Technologies, based in Columbus, Ohio, making the combined venture the largest nanotechnology company in the world.
Read more

Nanocellulose to compete with carbon?

1 August 2014
Japan is now taking nanocellulose extremely seriously, with around 100 companies actively involved in working together to develop it as a next generation material.
Read more

3D-printed assembly support at BMW

1 August 2014
New ergonomic tools are being 3D printed by BMW.
Read more

Smart sensor system in composites

1 August 2014
Nanoelectronics research centre Imec, Ghent University and their partners in the Smartfiber European FP7 project have demonstrated a miniaturised fibre optical sensor system that can be embedded in a
Read more

Multiple screens on bendable phone

1 August 2014
Paperfold is an experimental bendable smartphone which has three different displays which can fold over one another and are responsive to where they are relative to each other.
Read more

Ceiling of light

1 August 2014
Global lighting leader Philips recently launched a luminous panel that can cover an entire ceiling with homogenous white light.
Read more

Don't miss the bus with electronic timetables

1 August 2014
Swiss public transport operator PostBus is currently testing new electronic timetable displays at bus stops.
Read more

PointLEDs save space for e-textiles

1 August 2014
Forster Rohner Textile Innovations in Switzerland is now employing PointLEDs from Osram Opto Semiconductors to make its e-broidery textiles.
Read more

3D printing for new engineered cores

1 August 2014
The blades of today's wind turbines still have a decidedly low-tech material at their core - balsa wood.
Read more

Nano route to advanced MRI

1 August 2014
Submicroscopic particles that contain even smaller particles of iron oxide could make magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) a far more powerful tool to detect and fight disease.
Read more

SPECIAL FEATURE: Screen tests and wrist action

1 August 2014
LEDs, OLEDs and plastic electronics are threatening to change the way we look at the world - and interact with everyday surfaces - writes editor Adrian Wilson.
Read more

New low cost nanotubes make wide adoption possible

1 July 2014
Luxembourg-headquartered OCSiAl is claiming a significant breakthrough in producing its Tuball single wall carbon nanotubes (SWCNTs) in bigger, better quality and much cheaper batches than has been pr
Read more

New process for 100% textile sensors

1 July 2014
Auckland, New Zealand-based Footfalls & Heartbeats - the company founded by award-winning chemist Simon McMaster - has developed a proprietary process for manufacturing smart fabrics.
Read more

Self-cleaning roof for Brazil 2014

1 July 2014
A TiO2 self-cleaning coating protects the new tensile roofing system of the Estadio Mineirao in Belo Horizonte, Brazil, which recently reopened after a three-year modernisation project to prepare for
Read more

Top cleantech honour goes to Avantium

1 July 2014
Avantium, the Dutch developer of biofibres and bioplastics has been named the European Cleantech Company of the Decade by Cleantech Group (CTG).
Read more

Major military work for Intelligent Textiles

1 July 2014
UK company Intelligent Textiles (ITL), based in based in Laleham, Surrey, has just signed a major contract worth several million pounds with the US Department of Defence, as part of a joint project wi
Read more

Wearable technology for behaviour control already widespread

1 July 2014
Northamptonshire Police has become the first force in the UK to pilot the use of alcohol-detecting ankle tags.
Read more

Carbon monoxide sensing clothing

1 July 2014
A range of clothing with the potential to warn the wearer of a number of environmental issues has been designed by a self-styled 'textile alchemist'.
Read more

Supersonic stretching for new nanofibres

1 July 2014
'CO2 laser supersonic stretching' is a new process developed by JX Nippon, headquartered in Tokyo, Japan, for manufacturing polypropylene nanofibres with diameters of between 300-500 nm - a range that
Read more

Aspen plans expansion after IPO

1 July 2014
Aspen Aerogels - the manufacturer of Cryogel, Pyrogel and Spaceloft high performance aerogel insulation blankets based in Northborough, Massachusetts - has commenced an initial public offering of 6,66
Read more

Flexible health patch based on miniature electronics

1 July 2014
The Holst Centre and Imec in Eindhoven, the Netherlands, have developed a prototype flexible health patch weighing just 10g - half the weight of currently available products.
Read more

IBM sees no limit to possibilities for new polymers

1 July 2014
High performance computing is being combined with synthetic polymer chemistry by scientists at IBM Research, to develop entirely new polymeric materials.
Read more

3D printed car for Shell Eco-Marathon

1 July 2014
A design team at the University of Applied Sciences (Hogeschool Zuyd) in The Netherlands employed a bank of off-the-shelf 3D printers to make composites for the shell of the car it entered in this yea
Read more

Organic photovoltaics are 100% inkjet printed

1 July 2014
Scientists from Solliance, the cross-border thin-film solar cell research alliance, have produced the world's first organic photovoltaics (OPVs) to be made exclusively with inkjet printing processes.
Read more

Wearable tech for horses

1 July 2014
Horse training methods have remained virtually unchanged for 150 years. Now, a completely new approach is gaining acceptance.
Read more

New route to TiO2 nanoparticles

1 July 2014
Sandia National Laboratories, based in Albuquerque, New Mexico, has developed an inexpensive way to synthesize titanium-dioxide nanoparticles and is seeking partners who can demonstrate the process at
Read more

Lignin for next-generation materials

1 July 2014
A research project led by Biome Bioplastics, based in Southampton, UK, has demonstrated the feasibility of extracting organic chemicals from lignin for the manufacture of bioplastics.
Read more

Heart monitor for car drivers

1 July 2014
The Advanced Textiles Research Group at Nottingham Trent University and Plessey Semiconductors, based in Plymouth, have recently been awarded UK Technology Strategy Board funding to develop an automot
Read more

New sensors with stretch

1 July 2014
Danish smart fabrics specialist Ohmatex is partnering with Danfoss PolyPower, a designer and manufacturer of PolyPower DEAP smart film and elements, to supply PolyPower stretch sensors for wearable ap
Read more

Electrospinning superabsorbents

1 July 2014
A new process for producing superabsorbent, crosslinked nanofibres by electrospinning water-soluble polymers and subjecting them to UV radiation is outlined in patent WO/2014/053345, which has recentl
Read more

Nanotubes the key to high-performance li-ion batteries

1 July 2014
A wire-shaped lithium ion battery that contains electrodes consisting of two composite yarns made of carbon nanotubes and lithium titanium oxide or lithium manganese oxide, has been developed by resea
Read more

Nanoparticles improve catheters

1 July 2014
Foster Corporation, based in Putnam, Conneciticut, USA, is introducing LoPro Plus radiopaque compounds reinforced with nanoparticles for improved pushability of thin wall catheters.
Read more

Recreating the womb

1 July 2014
A smart textile 'artificial uterus' is being developed by scientists at the Hohenstein Institute in Bonnigheim, Germany, in a bid to recreate the environment and sensory stimulation of a mother's womb
Read more

New materials from milk waste

1 July 2014
The world's first ever industrial level continuous production of lactic acid from deproteinized lactose whey has been achieved by Cellulac, an industrial biochemicals company cased in Cambridge, UK.
Read more

Spectacular view and sun without heat

1 July 2014
Special architecture fabrics laminated into glass are providing unique optical effects, subtle reflections and a reduction of solar heat gain for a landmark new Swiss building.
Read more

Nonwovens from recycled carbon composites

1 July 2014

A range of recycled carbon veils and mats is being introduced to the portfolio of wet-laid high performance nonwovens by Technical Fibre Products (TFP), headquartered in Kendal, UK.

Read more

Compression sock predicts the onset of diabetic foot ulcers

1 July 2014
A New Zealand company that is developing smart textiles with sensors knitted into the fabrics is working with the University of Nottingham, UK, on smart socks that could predict the onset of diabetic
Read more

Nanofibres and bacteria combine for 'living materials'

1 June 2014
Scientists at MIT are developing hybrid materials that are a cross between living bacterial cells and non-living components such as gold nanoparticles or quantum dots.
Read more

Vascular networks for self healing

1 June 2014
A new self-healing system for composites has been developed by the Beckman Institute's Autonomous Materials Systems (AMS) Group at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.
Read more

Light-emitting plants

1 June 2014
Bioglow, based in St Louis, Missouri, has developed the world's first autoluminescent (light producing) plants based on the work of molecular biologist Dr Alexander Krichevsky.
Read more

Strong nanowebs without chemicals

1 June 2014
Single layer breathable nanowebs have been developed using an environmentally benign electrospinning process by a team of interdisciplinary researchers at Texas Tech University.
Read more

Natural framework for high-performing nanostructure

1 June 2014
A lightweight, high-strength new nanomaterial inspired by the framework structure of bones and wood and the shell structure of bees' honeycombs could find applications in insulation and shock absorbin
Read more

Nanofibre mesh for low-cost dialysis

1 June 2014
Researchers from the National Institute for Materials Science (NIMS) in Ibaraki, Japan, have developed a nanofibre mesh that can remove toxins and waste from blood.
Read more

Auxetic behaviour observed in stem cells

1 June 2014
Stem cells have been shown to exhibit auxetic properties - the ability to expand when stretched - in work by scientists at the University of Cambridge.
Read more

Thinnest ever material?

1 June 2014
A new stable porous membrane that consists of two layers of graphene and is thinner than a nanometre - 100,000 times thinner than the diameter of a human hair - could be groundbreaking in filtration a
Read more

Nanofibre arrays in new thermal interface material

1 June 2014
By harnessing an electropolymerization process to produce aligned arrays of polymer nanofibres, a thermal interface material able to conduct heat 20 times better than the original polymer has been dev
Read more

Move over spider silk, make way for slime

1 June 2014
Hagfish - an ancient group of bottom-dwelling creatures that have remained relatively unchanged for more than 300 million years - secrete a gelatinous slime containing mucus and tens of thousands of p
Read more

3D printing with wool

1 June 2014
The next generation of Walt Disney toys could contain an entirely new level of intelligence as the result of a new technique for the creation of soft materials in 3D.
Read more
XXXX