January 31 20
Innovation

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A FIBRE THAT COMES TO THE SUPER-HEROES’ RESCUE

Batman, Superman and friends may find at CeNTI’s lab the solution they need for their next suits. A new generation of fibres, able to absorb 50% more impact energy when compared to conventional fibres, promises to revolutionize protective clothing.

“This is a great innovation because this yarn has incorporated the ability to absorb impact energy, which so far was only applied in the garment finishing”, details Nelson Durães, supervisor of the fibres section at CeNTI and of this project, which is under development for almost two years and a half and is now being brought up to the public.

The impulse for the creation of these fibres started at Polyanswer, a Portuguese company that specializes in polymers, which patented an innovative material – a non-Newtonian fluid – that is, essentially, a viscous paste that turns rigid on impact.

If this material was already used in clothing finishing and protective shoes, CeNTI thought of taking the idea even further. “Since we have the ability of extruding filaments, from this product we have created a bicomponent thread of 90% this (non-Newtonian) fluid and 10% polypropylene”, explains the director of the project, ensuring that the same technology has the potential to be replicated with polyester, polyamide or any other thermoplastic fibre.

The thread then went on to CITEVE, where the manufacturing of the first experimental garments took place. If at first sight and first touch everything seems to be the same, during the first tests its new features stood out. A drop test was made – an impact with a 5kg (11 lbs) object –, which is standard for protective workwear. “We saw that this material absorbs two times the impact of a normal fibre and three times the impact of a naked body. Well above what we expected”, revels Nelson Durães.

The positive signs are a boost of confidence in the team, who see in this technology great potential: from cycling suits to motor bikers as well as security forces, where it may be used as added protection to bullet proof equipment.

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