Date of Award
5-2013
Document Type
Dissertation
Degree Name
Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)
Legacy Department
Materials Science and Engineering
Committee Chair/Advisor
Brown, Philip
Committee Member
Cole , Christine
Committee Member
Lickfield , Gary
Committee Member
Marcus , Richard
Abstract
A fiber-based composite comprised of two functional components which work concurrently to adsorb toxic organic compounds was developed and characterized for use in chemical threat protective clothing. The first functional component, the sorptive layer, consists of a carded nonwoven loaded with adsorptive particles. In this layer, Capillary-Channeled PolymerTM (C-CPTM) fibers were used instead of traditional round fibers since the grooved nature of the C-CPTM fibers enables increased adsorptive particle loading. The species of adsorptive particles investigated, zeolite and modified PS, are considered as a replacement for more commonly used activated carbon spheres. The second functional component, the flow restrictive layer, consisted of a meltblown polypropylene (PP) nonwoven, which significantly retards air flow due its inherent nanoporous nature thus allowing increased residence time between vapor (molecules) and adsorbent particles. The fabrication of these layers into a composite structure as well as particle loading of the sorptive layer was examined. Testing of the developed composite showed that it has the adsorptive capacity required to protect the wearer from a lethal dermal dose of toxic compounds.
Recommended Citation
Green, Jessica, "The Production and Characterization of a Multi-functional Fiber-based Composite for use in Protective Clothing" (2013). All Dissertations. 1109.
https://open.clemson.edu/all_dissertations/1109