| Aug 27, 2019 |
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(Nanowerk News) Scientists from RMIT have developed a cost-efficient and scaleable method for rapidly fabricating textiles that are embedded with energy storage devices (Scientific Reports, “Large-scale waterproof and stretchable textile-integrated laser- printed graphene energy storages”).
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In just three minutes, the method can produce a 10x10cm smart textile patch thats waterproof, stretchable and readily integrated with energy harvesting technologies.
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The technology enables graphene supercapacitors powerful and long-lasting energy storage devices that are easily combined with solar or other sources of power to be laser printed directly onto textiles.
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| A sample of the waterproof e-textile. (Image: RMIT University)
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In a proof-of-concept, the researchers connected the supercapacitor with a solar cell, delivering an efficient, washable and self-powering smart fabric that overcomes the key drawbacks of existing e-textile energy storage technologies.
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The growing smart fabrics industry has diverse applications in wearable devices for the consumer, health care and defence sectors – from monitoring vital signs of patients, to tracking the location and health status of soldiers in the field, and monitoring pilots or drivers for fatigue.
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Dr Litty Thekkakara, a researcher in RMITs School of Science, said smart textiles with built-in sensing, wireless communication or health monitoring technology called for robust and reliable energy solutions.
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Current approaches to smart textile energy storage, like stitching batteries into garments or using e-fibres, can be cumbersome and heavy, and can also have capacity issues, Thekkakara said.
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These electronic components can also suffer short-circuits and mechanical failure when they come into contact with sweat or with moisture from the environment.
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Our graphene-based supercapacitor is not only fully washable, it can store the energy needed to power an intelligent garment and it can be made in minutes at large scale.
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By solving the energy storage-related challenges of e-textiles, we hope to power the next generation of wearable technology and intelligent clothing.
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The research analysed the performance of the proof-of-concept smart textile across a range of mechanical, temperature and washability tests and found it remained stable and efficient.
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RMIT Honorary Professor and Distinguished Professor at the University of Shanghai for Science and Technology, Min Gu, said the technology could enable real-time storage of renewable energies for e-textiles.
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It also opens the possibility for faster roll-to-roll fabrication, with the use of advanced laser printing based on multifocal fabrication and machine learning techniques, Gu said.
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