SBIR Phase I: Manufacturing USA: Ultra-thin radiative-cooling fabric

这个小企业创新研究（SBIR）第一阶段项目的广泛影响/商业潜力是双重的。(1)通过提供具有辐射冷却功能的功能性纺织品，抓住运动休闲市场的商机。随着气候变化导致夏天更加炎热，具有先进冷却功能的服装将具有重要的公共安全价值。到2021年，全球冷却织物市场预计将以10%的年增长率从18亿美元增长到29亿美元。冷却织物通常依赖于排汗，没有一个主要品牌在纺织品中采用辐射冷却技术。MetaRE面料将通过提供比排汗更有效的新型冷却技术来解决这一未满足的需求。(2)缓解纺织业对环境的影响。每年生产6300万吨合成纤维。这些纤维变成了3000亿平方米的纺织品，经过服装价值链，最终变成了纺织废料。这一庞大且不断增长的纺织废料流正在造成巨大的环境负担。通过在纤维中引入纳米级的空隙，MetaRE织物将减少30%的石化产品消耗，并减少50%的染料使用，以达到所需的颜色亮度和饱和度。这项小企业创新研究（SBIR）第一阶段项目将建立辐射冷却纤维和织物的设计和制造技术。原型聚合物织物将具有三个独特的特征：卓越的不透明度，辐射冷却和明亮的金属光泽，所有这些都是由于纳米级的空气细丝嵌入纤维。特别是，辐射冷却特性是由于光纤在太阳光谱中的强反射率和宽带反射率以及光纤在热辐射光谱中的高发射率的结合。该SBIR一期项目的研究目标包括：开发熔融和湿挤压配方，以生产具有适当形态、光学和热力学性能以及机械强度的纳米结构聚合物纤维；演示辐射冷却织物的光学、热力学和机械性能。为了克服工业采用的障碍，纤维生产过程将需要对现有纤维挤压设备进行相对较小的更改，并且生产的纤维将需要满足与传统纤维相当的机械和吞吐量要求。将开发一套光学和热力学技术和工具，以表征纤维和织物从紫外到长波中红外的光谱特性，并量化成品织物的辐射冷却能力。该奖项反映了美国国家科学基金会的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的知识价值和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，被认为值得支持。

The broader impact/commercial potential of this Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Phase I project is twofold. (1) Capturing business opportunities in the athleisure market by providing functional textiles with radiative cooling capabilities. As climate change has led to more hot summer days, clothing with advanced cooling features will have significant public safety values. The global cooling fabrics market is projected to grow at a 10% annual rate from $1.8 Billion to $2.9 Billion by 2021. Cooling fabrics conventionally rely upon sweat wicking, and no major brand has incorporated radiative cooling technologies in textiles. MetaRE fabrics will address this unmet need by delivering a novel cooling technology substantially more efficient than sweat wicking. (2) Alleviating the environmental impact of the textile industry. Each year, 63 million tons of synthetic fibers are produced. These fibers turn into 300 billion square meters of textiles, which go through the clothing value chain, and ultimately turn into textile waste. This vast and growing stream of textile waste is creating a massive environmental burden. By introducing nanoscale air voids into fibers, MetaRE fabrics will reduce the consumption of petrochemicals by 30% and will use 50% less dye to reach desired color brightness and saturation.This Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Phase I project will establish design and manufacturing technologies for creating radiative cooling fibers and fabrics. The prototype polymer fabrics will have three unique features: superior opacity, radiative cooling, and brilliant metallic luster, all resulting from nanoscale air filaments embedded in the fibers. The radiative cooling feature, in particular, is due to a combination of strong and broadband reflectivity of the fiber in the solar spectrum and high emissivity of the fiber in the thermal radiation spectrum. Research objectives of this SBIR Phase I project include: Develop melt and wet extrusion recipes to produce nanostructured polymer fibers with proper morphology, optical and thermodynamic properties, and mechanical strength; Demonstrate optical, thermodynamic, and mechanical performance of radiative cooling fabrics. To overcome obstacles to industrial adoption, the fiber production processes will require relatively minor changes to existing fiber extrusion equipment, and fibers produced will need to meet mechanical and throughput requirements comparable to those for conventional fibers. A set of optical and thermodynamic techniques and tools will be developed to characterize the spectral properties of the fibers and fabrics from the ultraviolet to the long-wavelength mid-infrared and to quantify the radiative cooling capabilities of the finished fabrics.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.