SBIR Phase II: Second Skin: 3D Microfluidics-Enabled Technology for Perspiration Management

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The broader impact/commercial potential of this Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Phase II project is in increasing the comfort of people, such as athletes during their high intensity workouts and competitions, warehouse workers who require protective clothing in hot and humid environments, and safety (e.g. firemen and first responders) and military personnel who must endure extreme working conditions. Our revolutionary moisture management technology utilizes a novel 3D microfluidic transport principle to move sweat from the skin to the outside of clothing, where it can drip away or be controlled. Compared with conventional moisture wicking products which are based on capillary absorption, our technology allows fabric and apparel products to remain lightweight, always dry, highly breathable and never-saturated. ATACAMA?s technology is designed to provide the wearer an improved regulation of body temperature and comfort level during high intensity activities, contributing to both performance and safety. This project aims at solving the current problems of moisture-management products that are inadequate when dealing with large amount of moisture (e.g. sweat). In high sweat or high heat situations, apparel can become quickly saturated with moisture, leading to a wet, heavy, sticky feeling that impacts the performance of the wearer. Our proposed research aims to develop a broad range of textiles that can continuously transport moisture, so that fabric remain dry, breathable and lightweight during high intensity physical activities in hot and humid environment. Utilizing the large-scale manufacturing process developed in Phase I, ongoing research efforts will focus on the implementation of the technology on a broad range of fabric materials (e.g. polyester/polyurethane blends, cotton). As well, scientists at ATACAMA will optimize designs of the fluidic channels based on body sweat mapping research and will further enhance the robustness of the fluidic network. A series of breakthrough textile products (e.g. fabrics and apparel) integrated with optimized and robust 3D microfluidic-enabled moisture management technology will result from the completion of Phase II.