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Firefighter Photo Andrea at Pixabay
20.09.2023

Intelligent Textiles as Protection against PAH Toxins

Fraunhofer IWS Supports Industry Partners in the Development of New Protective Suits for Firefighters.
Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon (PAHs) are considered harmful to health, especially as potential carcinogens. For example, the molecular compounds of carbon and hydrogen atoms can arise in house fires when mattresses, curtains, wooden beams, plastic, or other objects made of organic materials burn.

Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons PAH enter the body through the skin and are deposited in fatty tissue. Because the human defense systems are unaware of the ring-shaped carbon compounds, the body does not break down these pollutants – they accumulate and concentrate. This increases the risk of carcinoma over the years. According to “Deutsche Gesetzliche Unfallversicherung” (DGUV) studies, this risk is limited if protective clothing is worn correctly. However, minor carelessness can lead to problematic exposures when firefighters are on duty for decades.

Fraunhofer IWS Supports Industry Partners in the Development of New Protective Suits for Firefighters.
Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon (PAHs) are considered harmful to health, especially as potential carcinogens. For example, the molecular compounds of carbon and hydrogen atoms can arise in house fires when mattresses, curtains, wooden beams, plastic, or other objects made of organic materials burn.

Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons PAH enter the body through the skin and are deposited in fatty tissue. Because the human defense systems are unaware of the ring-shaped carbon compounds, the body does not break down these pollutants – they accumulate and concentrate. This increases the risk of carcinoma over the years. According to “Deutsche Gesetzliche Unfallversicherung” (DGUV) studies, this risk is limited if protective clothing is worn correctly. However, minor carelessness can lead to problematic exposures when firefighters are on duty for decades.

To better protect firefighters from these risks, the Fraunhofer Institute for Material and Beam Technology IWS in Dresden, together with partners from industry, has laid the groundwork for developing novel anti-PAK protective suits. The German Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF) is funding the project with 1.24 million euros until December 2023 as part of the “Research for Civil Security” program.
 
The innovative protection concept of the new suits includes high-materials and intelligent monitoring: Modern nonwovens, as a central component of the protective suits, effectively prevent skin contact with the pollutants. Ultraviolet sensors are also integrated into the fabrics to determine when the textile protective shield is saturated with PAH and needs to be replaced. This provides double safety for rescue personnel. The new protective clothing has already passed the first tests in fire containers.

PAK-Accumulation over a Lifetime of Work Increases Cancer Risk
“On a single job, it may only be a few micrograms of PAH that get onto the skin through openings in the protective suit,” explains Felix Spranger, Group Manager Gas and Particle Filtration at Fraunhofer IWS. “The treacherous aspect of PAH is that they can continue to accumulate in the firefighters' bodies over an entire working life. Studies from Germany and the U.S. have shown increased incidences of cancer in this occupational group. Therefore, it was important to find solutions incorporating new technological approaches such as smart textiles.” For this purpose, Fraunhofer IWS joined forces with four other partners in 2020 to form the project “3D-Funktionsvliesstoffe mit integrierter Gassensorik für die Schutzbekleidung von Einsatzkräften” (3D-PAKtex, Engl: “3D functional nonwovens with integrated gas sensor technology for the protective clothing of emergency personnel”). To protect firefighters from the harmful PAH in flue gases and soot swirls in burning houses in the future, the collaborative partners pursued a two-pronged concept: on the one hand, the focus was on the development of fleece-based new filters, and on the other hand, on a sensor concept to monitor their functionality.
 
Activated Carbon Fleeces Filter Ring Molecules from Flue Gas
Fraunhofer IWS first identified suitable porous activated carbons that bind PAH particularly well. Project partner Norafin fixed these adsorbents with special binders in nonwovens optimized for fire applications. Norafin's partner S-GARD integrated the new additional nonwovens into a demonstration suit. The manufacturer added small closure pockets at sleeve openings, waistbands, and other points, which can accommodate the new additional filters using press studs at those points where, in the worst case, smoke gases could still enter the suit despite all insulation. If smoke gas flows past these spots, the fleece binds the toxins.

In addition, project partner JLM Innovation equipped the new filter fleeces with specifically engineered monitoring sensors based on fluorescence spectroscopy. These mini-spectrometers emit ultraviolet light of a precisely defined wavelength. When these UV rays hit PAH, the ring molecules first absorb their energy and then send back other UV rays at a slightly different wavelength. The sensors measure the returned light: The more intense, the higher the PAH concentration in the fleece. An electronic control unit in the firefighter's breast pocket evaluates this data and sends it to a smartphone via Bluetooth. The development and implementation of the repective software was accomplished by ATS Elektronik. It enables the rescuers to see in real-time how their PAH filters are filling up and when they need to be replaced.

In laboratory tests, the new nonwoven activated carbon filters have significantly reduced the flue gas PAH load. This was followed by practical simulations in fire containers: Experienced testers donned the suit prototypes, and set fire to mattresses, then rubber tires and other test objects in a shielded container to try out the new protective clothing in different fire scenarios.

“We will thoroughly evaluate these findings and continue to monitor the market to make a well-founded decision on possible series production,” announced Jonas Kuschnir of S-GARD. The new protective approach against PAHs entails certain additional costs, but the project’s results were promising.
 
High Market Potential for Intelligent Textiles Expected
Whatever the outcome of this decision, “3D-PAKtex” has, in any case, led to a considerable gain in expertise for the collaborative partners. The topic will also continue to occupy Fraunhofer IWS. Felix Spranger: “We still see some approaches, for example, to further improve the new protection technology's sensors and interfaces. From feedback, we know that industry partners still perceive great potential in such smart textiles, even beyond protective firefighting clothing.”

This is also consistent with the findings of international observers. For example, analysts at the British market research company IDTechEx expect the market for electronically enhanced or “smart” textiles to grow to the equivalent of around 713 million euros by 2033. Annual growth rates averaging 3.8 percent are expected.

Project Partners “3D-PAKtex”

  • Fraunhofer IWS contributes its expertise in the selection of filter materials and analytics
  • Norafin Industries from Mildenau in the Ore Mountains produces technical textiles
  • Hubert Schmitz (“S-GARD”) from Heinsberg produces protective clothing for firefighters
  • JLM Innovation from Tübingen is dedicated to sensor technology in intelligent textiles
  • ATS Elektronik developed the required software in Wunstorf, Germany
Components of the ConText infrastructure in the Berlin Open Lab. Components of the ConText infrastructure in the Berlin Open Lab. © DFKI
15.03.2023

Smart Home: Textile-based solution for seamless integration of IoT devices

A growing number of people are equipping their homes with smart, networked devices. However, the required connections are not always located where they are needed. The solution: smart textile surfaces that make walls and floors in the living area usable for cable-based power supply and communication. The innovative technology was developed by a consortium led by the German Research Center for Artificial Intelligence (DFKI) in the ConText project funded by the German Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF).

A growing number of people are equipping their homes with smart, networked devices. However, the required connections are not always located where they are needed. The solution: smart textile surfaces that make walls and floors in the living area usable for cable-based power supply and communication. The innovative technology was developed by a consortium led by the German Research Center for Artificial Intelligence (DFKI) in the ConText project funded by the German Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF).

There are many ways to make living environments intelligent. Thanks to the so-called Internet of Things (IoT), living objects can be connected with each other in such a way that they make our everyday lives easier in many ways. However, private households generally lack comprehensive low-voltage and communication connections to install IoT components such as temperature sensors, microphones, or light signals where they are needed. As a result, the devices usually operate on batteries and wireless technologies, which makes them susceptible to interference and failures.

Textile-based power supply, communication, and interaction
But how can the desire for creativity and flexibility in the use of smart home systems be met while at the same time dispensing with unfavorable energy supply and data communication? This was the question addressed by a consortium of industry and research partners in the ConText ("Connecting Textiles") project, which has now been completed. Inspired by the possibilities of smart textile materials, such as those already used in the manufacture of smart clothing, the partners investigated the potential of electronic textiles for cable-based low-voltage power supply and communication in indoor spaces. In an exploratory and use-oriented process, they developed an infrastructure that takes advantage of wired connections while integrating invisibly into textile surfaces. The so-called Connecting Textiles not only enable the flexible attachment of actuators and sensors in living areas by means of freely positionable patches, but also power supply and communication with smart home systems. In addition, the developed infrastructure provides haptic interaction modalities for intuitive control of IoT devices.

Demonstrators provide infrastructure via textile wallpaper
Demonstrators produced in the project implement the Connecting Textiles using a wallpaper as an example. The wallpaper consists of several layers: a magnetic backing layer that increases the adhesion between the patches and the wallpaper, a functional layer with woven-in conductor tracks that distribute the current vertically through the wallpaper, and a decorative top layer. To create the conductive traces, the partners investigated various woven and non-woven materials, such as those used today for standard wallpaper, as well as different processing techniques, including screen printing and weaving. Woven samples proved to be the most suitable for the functional layer due to their comparatively high conductivity. The electrical contacting of a wallpaper strip is made via the baseboard, which also connects adjacent wallpaper strips to enable large-area applications. The strip also contains the necessary electronics as well as functions that monitor the current flow to detect possible damage to the wallpaper or incorrectly applied strips.

User-oriented development of intuitive interaction elements
Functional patches serve as the central interaction elements of the Connecting Textiles, which can be flexibly attached to the wallpaper either with the help of magnets or by means of microneedles mounted on the back. The patches can either contain an IoT functionality, e.g., a sensor, or connect one or more IoT devices to integrate them into the smart home system. Control and configuration of the devices can also be done directly on the wallpaper via an additional interaction patch fabricated by screen printing on textile. Pattern recognition software captures the basic patterns of gesture interactions and allows control gestures and interaction sequences to be defined by the user. The interaction concept was developed and evaluated in the project in a participative way with the direct involvement of users.

Dr. Serge Autexier, ConText project manager at DFKI's Cyber-Physical Systems research department: "Thanks to the commitment and very good collaboration of the project partners, we have succeeded in demonstrating the feasibility of Connecting Textiles as a flexible, adaptable and easily configurable interaction medium that can be seamlessly integrated into Smart Homes. This not only opens up new possibilities for the confection of functional textile surfaces, but also for the development of novel IoT applications and the creative design of personalized human-environment interaction beyond the application context of home environments.”

One of the demonstrators developed in the project is integrated into the infrastructure of the Bremen Ambient Assisted Living Lab (BAALL) of DFKI as part of the Smart Home environment.

ConText was funded by the German Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF) from July 1, 2019 to Dec. 31, 2022.

Project partners included:

  • DFKI - Research Department Cyber-Physical Systems, Bremen
  • DFKI - Research Department Interactive Textiles, Berlin
  • Robert Bosch GmbH, Renningen
  • German Institutes for Textile and Fiber Research Denkendorf (DITF), Denkendorf
  • Fraunhofer Institute for Manufacturing Technology and Applied Materials Research (IFAM), Bremen
  • Norafin Industries (Germany) GmbH, Mildenau
  • Peppermint Holding GmbH, Berlin    
  • Innovative Living Institute GmbH & Co.KG, Mülheim an der Ruhr (subcontracted)
Source:

German Research Center for Artificial Intelligence

(c) Gestamp
23.08.2022

Green fiber-reinforced composites instead of steel for chassis parts

Gestamp, Fraunhofer Institute for Chemical Technology ICT and its project partners are facing the scientific challenge to implement mass production of green fiber chassis parts. The broad Eco Dynamic SMC consortium brings together expertise from the aerospace, automotive and scientific industries.

Mobility demands are subject to constant change. Due to new emissions regulations and increasing electric mobility, lightweight construction and safety continue to be drivers for future automotive and mobility applications. The sustainable use of limited resources and the mandatory reduction of CO2-emissions during the production process and the lifetime of the vehicle are now the focus of development, in addition to the performance of the individual parts of a vehicle.

Gestamp, Fraunhofer Institute for Chemical Technology ICT and its project partners are facing the scientific challenge to implement mass production of green fiber chassis parts. The broad Eco Dynamic SMC consortium brings together expertise from the aerospace, automotive and scientific industries.

Mobility demands are subject to constant change. Due to new emissions regulations and increasing electric mobility, lightweight construction and safety continue to be drivers for future automotive and mobility applications. The sustainable use of limited resources and the mandatory reduction of CO2-emissions during the production process and the lifetime of the vehicle are now the focus of development, in addition to the performance of the individual parts of a vehicle.

Gestamp is comitted to create a vehicle that is better for the environment and safer, to contribute to the mitigation of climate change. The focus is on the production of a lighter car, so that it emits less emission during its use. For this reason, Gestamp, Fraunhofer Institute for Chemical Technology ICT and several other consortium partners have collaborated to make the ECO Dynamic SMC project a tangible reality.

Thanks to its good material properties, recyclability and worldwide availability, steel is still often the material of choice in the automotive and mobility industry, and will certainly continue to be so in the future. However, the trend is also towards new materials that expand the range of materials and fulfill the motto "the right material in the right place". Fiber-reinforced composites offer excellent lightweight construction potential and safety features. The use of recyclable materials leads to a good balance between energy consumption, profitability and sustainability.

Fiber-reinforced materials are currently used in large numbers for body parts, but not for chassis components in the automotive or aerospace industry. The Eco Dynamic SMC project addresses this issue by developing a closed engineering loop for an automotive chassis control arm for a high volume production and a suspension part of a motor glider, substituting steel with fiber-reinforced material with the aim to implement the CF-SMC Technology for dynamic and safety relevant chassis components in high volume productions.

Initiated in October 2021 and funded by the German Ministry of Energy and Climate Protection, Eco Dynamic SMC (Grant Number: 03LB3023A) will address the scientific problem of developing a comprehensive continuous engineering process for fiber composite reinforced components that meet OEM approval procedures. The broad Eco Dynamic SMC consortium brings together expertise from the aerospace, automotive and scientific industries. Cooperation between universities, academic institutes and companies from various relevant sectors promotes the transfer of technology and experience across industry borders. Gestamp is the head of the consortium of Eco Dynamic SMC project.

Today, a continuous development process is established for metals and the procedure is defined based on available material data for manufacturing, product simulations and specific material parameters addressing e.g. formability, durability, stiffness, strain rate behavior or weldability.

Starting with the development of a digital shadow from the raw material manufacturing to be aware about the fiber content and weight of the material stack before the transfer into the tool. Substantial material characterization will be the groundwork for the integration of the material properties and fiber orientation from manufacturing process into the product development simulation. At the end of the development, a prototype will be manufactured and tested as component and on a test vehicle to evaluate the mechanical and acoustic behavior.

In the second project stream, a suspension part for a motor glider is developed by following the same strategy of the closed loop of process and product engineering.

In addition to the development cycle, the Eco Dynamic SMC project is dedicated to other core aspects such as a good CO2 balance, a recycling concept, optimized use of materials, reduced energy consumption and the careful use of resources.

Eco Dynamic SMC Consortium
The project consortium consists of: Fraunhofer Institute for Chemical Technology ICT, Karlsruher Institut für Technologie, DG Flugzeugbau GmbH, Koller Formenbau GmbH, Schmidt & Heinzmann GmbH & Co.KG, Toray Industries Europe GmbH, Vibracoustic SE, Gestamp Autotech Engineering Deutschland GmbH.

Associated Partners: BMW AG, Premium Aerotec GmbH

Gestamp
Gestamp is a multinational company specialized in the design, development and manufacture of highly engineered metal components for the main vehicle manufacturers. It develops products with an innovative design to produce lighter and safer vehicles, which offer lower energy consumption and a lower environmental impact. Its products cover the areas of bodywork, chassis and mechanisms.

The company is present in 24 countries with more than 100 production plants, 13 R&D centers and a workforce of nearly 40,000 employees worldwide. Its turnover in 2021 was 8,093 million euros. Gestamp is listed on the Spanish stock exchange under the ticker GEST.

Fraunhofer Institute for Chemical Technology ICT
The main campus houses more than 100 laboratories, pilot plants and test centers on a total area of 21 hectares. The research orientation enables us to combine research and development activities in this area with large demonstration plants. The focus is on the scalability of processes, on the transfer of research results from the laboratory to the pilot plant scale, and in some cases on pre-series application.

Customers and project partners are chemical and process engineering companies, automotive manufacturers and their suppliers, the plastics processing industry, material manufacturers, recycling companies, companies from the energy and environmental sectors, customers from the security industry, the construction industry and the aviation sector.

Source:

Gestamp; Fraunhofer ICT

(c) Photographer & visual artist Patrick Klein Meuleman
09.08.2022

Second Skins: e-Textiles redefined

As part of the European STARTs project Re-FREAM, designers, technologists and scientists researched together on future as well as sustainable technologies for the textile industry. In the research focus area of e-Textiles, the fashion tech expert Malou Beemer from the Netherlands worked with an international team consisting of Profactor, EMPA, Wear It Berlin and Fraunhofer Institute for Reliability and Microintegration IZM on adaptive garments that can adapt to the practical and social needs of users.

As part of the European STARTs project Re-FREAM, designers, technologists and scientists researched together on future as well as sustainable technologies for the textile industry. In the research focus area of e-Textiles, the fashion tech expert Malou Beemer from the Netherlands worked with an international team consisting of Profactor, EMPA, Wear It Berlin and Fraunhofer Institute for Reliability and Microintegration IZM on adaptive garments that can adapt to the practical and social needs of users.

Malou Beemer approaches garment sustainability though her deep understanding of the social functionality of garments. Her research reflects on how design can change the way we want, wear, and discard fashion. Could smart garments be equipped to improve and maintain their desirability? Her modular Second Skins garment system combines adaptive parts which create a personal light symphony. Its composition responds to the aesthetic need for novelty, for interaction, and for standing out.

Beemer started with deconstructing the idea of the garment itself. First, she explains, “we stepped away from the idea that a garment always has two legs or two sleeves”. Instead, the team decided to visualize it as components. The next step was researching the activation of responsive and reactive textiles elements, which could be modulated to create novelty.

With a main focus on evening and party wear, a category showing high single use behavior, the choice fell on color changes based on LED patterns. With her Re-FREAM partners, she conceived a garment consisting of a base layer integrating LED lights with IZM Fraunhofer, a diffuse layer which alters the light with Profactor, and a top layer which gives a final shape to the garment as well as allowing for further updates. Wearers can upload LED color patterns, then modulate them with a tap sensor. Due to the construction and modular bonding technique the garment can be repaired when needed or even completely disassembled and the end of life.

Beemer uses the customization of garment colors, patterns, and structures to enhance garment lifespans. She defines sustainability through longevity: the goal is garments that update, perhaps for decades. Her wearable tech designs also aim to enhance social interactions with others. A particularly innovative aspect of her concept is her aim for new levels of garment agency. She envisions clothing which cares for us, according to our social and aesthetic needs. Instead of passive and polluting garments, Beemer envisions fashion as a second skin, with different layers which can shift properties. Allowing for such inbuilt versatility gives garments an active role in their survival, as well as in ours.

Together with the Fraunhofer team, Beemer created two undergarments integrating PCBs (printed circuit boards) and LEDs: one that centered more around the neck, and one more centered around the ribs, below the bust. The Second Skins project uses hardware modules developed by IZM. IZM developed an Arduino-based modular hardware platform that enables easier, more flexible and more reliable integration of e-textile prototypes and small series into textiles. Modules already available include various sensors (temperature, proximity, pulse, IMU) as well as actuators, RGB LEDs, ADC, µC, Bluetooth and more. In addition to the conventional sewing of the modules using electrically conductive yarn, all modules also offer the possibility of integrating them mechanically and electrically in a single step using the proprietary e-Textile Bond technology developed at IZM.

Here, for example, Smart IMU modules record the wearer's body language and movement data, and proximity sensors are also integrated. The sensor data obtained can be used to control individual lighting effects of the RGB LED display, through which the wearer communicates non-verbally with her surroundings. All modules can be freely placed on the garment during the design process. For power supply and communication with the process unit, a textile 4-wire IIC bus conductor made of a thermoplastic insulated hybrid conductor of stranded material and reinforcing textile fibers is embroidered onto the undergarment, thus connecting the modules. The electrical connection between the module and the textile bus is then made using the e-Textile bonding technology described above, which provides reliable but also repairable contacting without the need for additional additives such as pastes, fluxes or the like. Due to the remeltability of the thermoplastic adhesive, the module can also be thermally removed from the carrier again. The inner layer between the upper and lower garment contains thin textile layers that allow masking of the lighting effects by means of 3-D printing or lamination, thus allowing the user to customize the lighting design.

Further Links:
https://www.maloubeemer.com/project/second-skins-re-fream/
https://re-fream.eu/pioneers/second-skins/
https://www.izm.fraunhofer.de/en.html