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The work "will open an avenue to a new generation of wearable materials," predicts Hinestrosa. He says that Kotov's nanotube-coated cotton "keeps the properties of the textile and adds new functions." Albumin-sensing clothing for soldiers could alert remote medical teams to the fact that a soldier is bleeding, says Kotov. The change in current indicating the presence of a wound could be picked up by a wearable computer that would then send out a message. Textiles incorporating antibody-treated nanotubes could also alert the wearer to allergens by illuminating LEDs or sending a message to a cell phone. Clothing incorporating multiple strips of sensing fabric, each targeted to a different biomarker or to parameters like temperature, would be capable of more-sophisticated monitoring of vital signs.
"We're getting closer to the goal of intelligent textiles," says Pulickel Ajayan, a professor of mechanical engineering and materials science at Rice University. Kotov's work, he says, is a good demonstration that textiles incorporating nanomaterials can do more than just conduct electricity.
The advantage of incorporating carbon nanotubes into textiles, says Hinestrosa, is that they can perform many different functions, making it unnecessary to add on extra, bulky components. "You can use the same threads as conductors, sensors, and as transducers of the signal," he says. For example, in clothes that adjust to the weather, carbon nanotubes could sense the temperature, carry the reading to a wearable computer, then carry a signal from the computer that directs the fibers to conform to a more open weave if it's hot out.
Kotov notes that his textiles' biosensing mechanism, which relies on changes in current, is uncomplicated. In the simplest possible scenario, the change in current indicating the presence of a protein of interest can be read using nothing more than a battery and a lightbulb. "Despite the simplicity of the concept, the sensitivity is amazing," Kotov says. By contrast, conventional methods for identifying proteins require multiple preparation steps in a wet lab and fluorescence imaging equipment.
How do nanotubes in fabrics square with a couple of TR articles from last May (e.g.- http://www.technologyreview.com/Nanotech/20815/ )? They said that preliminary results of studies showed nanotubes to be similar to asbestos as potential carcinogens. Not what I'd want next to my skin.
I guess as long as both the fabrics and the carcinogenic studies are in the investigative stage, no harm is done. But both better be complete before nanofabrics are considered ready for prime time.
DaveT
Dave T, I asked Rice's Ajayan this, and he said the question is "fair game"--if these are to be in long-term contact with the skin, safety will have to be studied. "As far as we know," he said, "it's not a particular danger but it needs to be tested."
I think this is a beautiful development
To the guy that said more for China to Manufacture. What a fuckin pessimist! Let's not make the same mistakes our parents made. I live in Michigan, bottom on the economic rung, I can only hope it spawns a High Tech company right here, rather than chasing the High Tech money in California and Massachusetts.
i guess there might be safety concerns with nano thread but we'll just screw up some lives to find out.yaaa.i how ever have other plans for the thread.have any of you thought of ways it can be used.chop chop.
Manufacturing in the United States is in trouble. That's bad news not just for the country's economy but for the future of innovation.
This document is part of the “How-To Guide for Most Common Measurements” centralized resource portal. This tutorial provides a detailed guide for measurement and device considerations to take temperature measurements using thermocouples. Get an introduction to thermocouples, which are inexpensive sensing devices widely used with PC-based data acquisition systems. Also review some specific thermocouple examples and learn how thermocouples work and ways to integrate them into a data acquisition measurement system.
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mfolbe
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manufacturing
This is great. More textiles developed by US engineers to be manufactured in China.
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