Fabrication of Conductive Fabrics Based on SWCNTs, MWCNTs and Graphene and Their Applications: A Review

Abstract

In recent years, the field of conductive fabrics has been challenged by the increasing popularity of these materials in the production of conductive, flexible and lightweight textiles, so-called smart textiles, which make our lives easier. These electronic textiles can be used in a wide range of human applications, from medical devices to consumer products. Recently, several scientific results on smart textiles have been published, focusing on the key factors that affect the performance of smart textiles, such as the type of substrate, the type of conductive materials, and the manufacturing method to use them in the appropriate application. Smart textiles have already been fabricated from various fabrics and different conductive materials, such as metallic nanoparticles, conductive polymers, and carbon-based materials. In this review, we study the fabrication of conductive fabrics based on carbon materials, especially carbon nanotubes and graphene, which represent a growing class of high-performance materials for conductive textiles and provide them with superior electrical, thermal, and mechanical properties. Therefore, this paper comprehensively describes conductive fabrics based on single-walled carbon nanotubes, multi-walled carbon nanotubes, and graphene. The fabrication process, physical properties, and their increasing importance in the field of electronic devices are discussed.

Keywords: MWCNTs; SWCNTs; applications; graphene; smart textile.

Figure 1

This timeline shows different generations of electronic textiles. Adapted [7].

Figure 2

Structure of carbon nanotubes (a) SWNTs and (b) MWNTs.

Figure 3

Potential applications for the use of carbon nanotubes in textiles.

Figure 4

Structure of graphene as a honeycomb lattice of carbon atoms.

Figure 5

Potential Applications of graphene.

Figure 6

Schematic representation of the device used for the coating of cotton yarns with graphene sheets [130].

Figure 7

Images of the pristine, GO-modified, and rGO-modified CGYs [134].

Figure 8

Illustration of the fabrication process for graphene/WPU with dip coating on para-aramid knitted fabric, which consists of two steps: (a) preparation of graphene/WPU composite solution, (b) dip coating of para-aramid knitted fabric with different coating cycles [137].

Figure 9

Screen printing process for the production of conductive cotton with graphene ink [143].