Thermal comfort and waterproof-breathable performance of aluminum-coated polyurethane nanowebs

In this study, aluminum (Al) vapor was deposited on the surface of electrospun polyurethane nanowebs in order to improve their thermal comfort while maintaining water vapor permeability. After the deposition, the pore size and air permeability decreased, while the water vapor permeability remained at a level of 5000g/m ^{2 ·24hr} . Because of the reflection of the radiation heat, the thermal resistance increased by 30–40% compared with untreated nanowebs. Evaluation of clothing performance using a thermal sweating manikin demonstrated that the water vapor resistance of the deposited nanowebs was lower and the thermal resistance was higher than existing waterproof–breathable textiles.