High-Efficiency Electro/Solar-Driven Wearable Heater Tailored by Superelastic Hollow-Porous Polypyrrole/Polyurethane/Zirconium Carbide Fibers for Personal Cold Protection

Abstract

With the frequent occurrence of extreme weather, using massive energy inputs to maintain the thermal stability of the indoor environment or the human body has become common, and such excessive overuse of nonrenewable energy has created numerous significant problems for modern society. Personal thermal management textiles which can provide the better thermal comfort with less energy consumption than the room heating devices have attracted vast attention in recent years. A polypyrrole/polyurethane/zirconium carbide (PU/PPy/ZrC) fiber with superior electrothermal/photothermal conversion was fabricated via a simple two-step strategy. The surface temperature of PU/PPy/ZrC fibers can reach 51.7 °C under IR lamp irradiation and 55.8 °C at 2 V. In addition, excellent electrical conductivity can be maintained even though the fiber has been stretched to 150%. Due to the porous and hollow structure of the PU/PPy/ZrC fiber, the fiber exhibits outstanding thermal stability and can reach a temperature difference of 5.2 °C. The excellent quick-drying properties allow for fast and complete drying of the material in both modes. Combined with the considerable mechanical properties and hydrophobicity of the PU/PPy/ZrC fiber, it demonstrates the outstanding potential and broad development of this dual-driven fiber for basic research and practical applications in personal cold protection.

Keywords: electrothermal conversion; hollow-porous fibers; personal cold protection; photothermal conversion; sweat releasing.