Investigation of Support Fabrics for Graphene-Based End-of-Life Sensors for Fire Protective Garments

• Author / Creator

  Yehia, Diana

• Fire-resistant fabrics used in protective clothing experience a reduction in performance because of ageing. Yet there are generally few visible clues before the loss in performance has reached a dangerous level. To solve this issue, a graphene-based end-of-life (EOL) sensor is being developed at the University of Alberta which will be placed as a patch on the protective clothing’s surface. It will indicate when fire-resistant fabric of the protective clothing has reached an unsafe level of performance. My thesis aims to identify the most suitable fabric to serve as a support for the EOL sensor.
  The support fabric should be flame resistant and washable. It should also withstand ageing conditions (e.g. temperature, ultraviolet light, and moisture) without degrading. Therefore, a series of FR fabrics made of different materials as well as those that are commonly used for fire protective clothing were subjected to accelerated ageing at specific conditions. The residual mechanical performance was assessed to identify the best candidate for the support fabric.
  The final candidate fabric was coated with reduced graphene oxide (rGO) so that the durability of the rGO coating to washing and the quality of bond between the coating and the selected support fabric could be assessed. This was done by monitoring changes in the surface conductivity of the rGO coating and observing changes in the morphology of the coating on the support fabric following multiple laundering cycles.
  The fabric substrate is the cornerstone for the development of the graphene-based EOL sensor. The success of the selected fabric substrate and meeting the requirements proposed will allow the manufacturing of the EOL sensor which will be suitable for keeping firefighters safe and ensure that their protective clothing is safe to use.

• Subjects / Keywords

  • Flame-resistant textiles
  • High-performance fibres
  • Protective clothing
  • Firefighters
  • Textile fabric ageing
  • Textile degradation
  • Thermal ageing
  • Hydrothermal ageing
  • Photochemical ageing
  • Trapezoid tear test
  • PBO
  • PBI
  • Aramids
  • meta-aramid
  • para-aramid

• Graduation date

  Fall 2021

• Type of Item

  Thesis

• Degree

  Master of Science

• DOI

  https://doi.org/10.7939/r3-k7hs-yv07

• License

  This thesis is made available by the University of Alberta Libraries with permission of the copyright owner solely for non-commercial purposes. This thesis, or any portion thereof, may not otherwise be copied or reproduced without the written consent of the copyright owner, except to the extent permitted by Canadian copyright law.