designboom · Kunst en ontwerp

New Purple Fabric Stays Cool by Reflecting Sunlight and Releasing Heat

Researchers have developed a novel purple textile that challenges the notion that only white fabrics can effectively cool. This innovative material combines color with passive radiative cooling, demonstrating that aesthetic appeal and thermal performance can coexist in textiles.

A new purple cooling fabric, created by scientists from Zhengzhou University in China and the University of Adelaide in Australia, integrates color with passive radiative cooling. The fabric uses microscopic fibers containing a metal-organic framework and zinc oxide nanoparticles. These components reflect solar energy and release heat, allowing the material to stay cooler than conventional purple cotton under direct sunlight. This development addresses the conflict between color and thermal performance, as darker colors typically absorb more solar energy.

The experimental textile is produced using electrospun fibers that incorporate a purple metal-organic framework (MOF) and zinc oxide nanoparticles. This combination creates the purple hue while enabling the fabric to reflect approximately 87.6% of solar radiation and emit 96.4% of mid-infrared radiation, facilitating heat escape. The researchers highlight that color can be engineered at a microscopic level for performance textiles, not just for decoration.

In outdoor tests, the purple fabric was up to 6.2°C cooler than commercially dyed purple cotton and 4.2°C cooler than white cotton. When used to cover simulated skin, it achieved a temperature reduction of up to 8°C, significantly outperforming white and conventional purple cotton. The fabric is also lightweight, flexible, breathable, water-repellent, and retains its cooling properties after multiple washes and UV exposure.

The researchers believe this technology has potential applications beyond comfort, particularly for outdoor workers and athletes, to help manage body temperature without consuming energy. They also suggest that by using different metal-organic frameworks, other colors could be developed, moving away from the idea that cooling fabrics must be white. Currently, the fabric is still in the research and manufacturing stage in China.

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