4) Technical textiles

Technical textiles are engineered with specific performance characteristics that suit a particular purpose or function. 

Interactive textiles

• Technical textiles or intergrated textiles are when electronic devices and circuits are intergrated or embedded into textile fabric and clothing to interact and communicate with wearer. 
• Conductive fibres and threads have developed from carbon, steel and silver can be woven into textile fabrics and made into clothing or conductive threads can be sewn into a product to connect a circuit. 

Microfibres 

• Microfibres are extremely fine lightweight synthetic fibres, usually polyester or nylon, that are significantly finer than a human hair.
• Useful properties include excellent strength-to-weight ratio, water resistance and breathability. 
• Fabrics made from microfibres are used throughout the textiles industry from clothing and cleaning cloths. 

Phase-changing materials 

• Phase-changing materials (PCM) change from one state to another with the ability to absorb, store and release heat over a small temperature range by changing from a liquid to solid and vice versa. 
• PCMs absorb energy during the heating process (returning to liquid) and release energy to the environment during cooling (returning to solid) 
• In cold weather clothing, PCMs encapsulated into the fabric allow body heat to…