Big fiber: weaving the future smart world

When it comes to fiber, people will immediately think of spinning and weaving. A fiber revolution that is brewing internationally is trying to give fiber perception and information processing capabilities that make traditional fabrics have life and intelligence. At that time, the modified fiber will serve as a carrier to connect the physical world, the human world and the virtual world.

Domestic experts captured this information for the first time and took the lead in proposing the concept of “big fiber” internationally. At present, the process of research and development and industrialization of intelligent fiber at home and abroad has obviously accelerated. In particular, some universities, R&D institutions and related industries and enterprises in China have paid attention to and devoted themselves to this new field.

All stories stem from fiber changes

As the fiber that constitutes the material world and the basic components (units) of the living body, it is closely related to the life of our human beings. The clothing is the world's cotton and mulberry, the basic diet for life, and its origin is nothing but fiber.

When it comes to fiber, people will immediately think of a one-dimensional form and a very flexible state of mind. However, today, fiber is still that fiber, but its connotation has changed greatly. Due to the involvement of many disciplines and technologies such as nanomaterials, polymers, semiconductor electronic devices, software engineering, fiber modification, etc., fibers are being given finer, more wear-resistant and more tensile properties, while being given electrical and optical properties and Information transmission and reception, storage function. At present, domestic and foreign laboratories have obtained fibers that can receive electrical signals or emit light, heat, and energy.

A new family of smart materials based on new fiber materials with multi-material, multi-structure and multi-functional features that can sense, calculate, store, communicate and execute has begun to appear and go to market. At the same time, the ultra-high performance and greening of fiber will become the mainstream trend in the future; the further cross-integration of intelligent, super-energy and green features will lead to many new fiber varieties, and a considerable proportion will eventually be transformed into huge commercial value. . This new category is completely cross-border, and the new category is called “big fiber”. Supporting large fibers is a new interdisciplinary subject. It may be called “big fiber science”.

The Chinese first proposed the concept of "big fiber"

It is worth mentioning that a working group composed of Chinese cross-border experts has been paying attention to this major trend of change two years ago, and has been sparing no effort to do information gathering, research and dissemination, and one year ago. Put forward the concept of "big fiber". The so-called "big fiber" refers to technological breakthroughs and cross-integration based on materials, information, machinery, biology, energy and Other disciplines. It is characterized by "smart, super performance, green" and has multi-functional, multi-structure and multi-material characteristics. A new generation of fibers that can be highly permeable, disruptive, and revolutionary for traditional industrial clusters .

The above definition of large fiber has been approved by a group of authoritative experts in the field, including Professor Cheng Zhengdi, an academician of the US Academy of Engineering. They believe that the expression of "big fiber" is closer to the understanding of the nature of this fiber revolution than smart fiber.

The change in performance caused by fiber changes makes it possible to transform fabrics and garments from original low-function items to high-tech items. The United States proposed the concept of "revolutionary fabrics and fibers" a year and a half ago. The revolutionary fabrics and fibers mentioned here are multi-material, multi-structured smart fibers. In the context of such fiber revolution, the future textile industry will no longer be just the concept of spinning and weaving, but will provide a series of health and fitness, energy saving and environmental protection , intelligent communication services, etc. while providing various warm and beautiful needs. Functional products and services industry. This will also be an industrial revolution brought by fiber after the invention of the silicon-based chip in the 20th century, which is bound to stir up the progress of social progress in the 21st century.

Since 2014, Germany has established a national-level strategic project called “future textile” (futureTEX). In the eyes of the Germans, today's textile industry is no longer a traditional industry, but a new industry, products and services based on new materials , energy conservation and environmental protection, and intelligent products. The German positioning of the textile industry is: "To make new textiles and fibers a pioneer in Industry 4.0, become one of the most innovative industries in Germany." Also in the EU 's innovative plan to reshape the textile and apparel industry, high performance , versatile and intelligent fiber are core themes.

The global laboratory work on fiber modification has been published in Nature magazine since 2007. After ten years of development, especially in recent years, with the accelerated penetration of nanotechnology, materials, electronics, information and other technologies, the development of this aspect has shown a turning point. According to the American Revolutionary Fiber Program, MIT professor Fink is in April this year.

According to the report, the number of devices or chips contained in fiber will double every 12 months. This "Moore's Law of Smart Fiber" will create an unprecedented new industry.

Large fiber application field

Let us understand the impact of this fiber revolution on people's lifestyles from the practical and artifact level.

In a recent report by T-shirts and smart phones, Professor Fink opened the door to equating T-shirts with Apple phones: the key to the good function of Apple's mobile phones is the electronic chip, which combines the advantages of electronic chips and information exchange technology. But in fact, the key object that forms the network for people to communicate is optical fiber. Therefore, Apple phones and fiber are essentially the same.

The Future of Wearable Electronics For the past four years, the MIT research team is trying to maximize the function of the fiber and try to design and produce fibers that can be used as tools. The scientist's work can be imagined as they attempt to build a complete integrated socket inside the fiber. The key is that the integrated socket is not glued or attached to the fiber, but is part of the fiber itself.

In order to do this, there are three prerequisites: First, the fiber requires a variety of materials, and diversification of sources can lead to functional diversification. Second, the process of building together different materials is also an important factor in determining the final function. Therefore, materials and construction are equally important. Finally, the scale of the fiber, that is, the size of the fiber is more suitable for the function of the fiber. What scientists immediately think is that they can be inspired by highly integrated semiconductor devices.

Hearing fiber Since fiber can distinguish objects, does it recognize sound? To make the fiber recognize the sound, the researchers turned the electronic material into fiber and plotted the fiber. Connect the metal wire ends of the fibers to a multi-plug socket so that you can hear the sound of fiber conduction. Not only that, but if you talk to the fiber, it collects the sound and converts it into electrons. About a year ago, these jobs were published in the journal Nature Materials. After that, the MIT team of scientists used this technology to develop fibers that can transmit sound. At the heart of this effort is the ability to emit fibers at different frequencies.

What is the appeal of fiber with hearing to us? Many people like to listen to music while running, but when you run, the headphones always fall, it will feel very uncomfortable. Once the fiber can be inserted into the garment in the future, the wavelength of the vibration is enough to guide the sound, so that there is no need to stuff things into the ear, and the clothes will directly transmit the sound to the ear. Scientists predict that it will soon be possible to use this practical fiber.

The color-changing fiber scientist adds a substance that can develop color to the fiber. When it sees light, it changes. In the State Key Laboratory of Fiber Materials Modification of Donghua University, a fiber that can actively sense the external environment and make relevant reactions can generate electricity, emit light, heat, discolor and deform. Professor Wang Hongzhi's research group has achieved independent autonomous discoloration of the fiber in an energized environment after repeated experiments. By introducing a low-voltage stimulus of 2-3 volts, the fiber can change red, yellow, and blue in milliseconds and maintain color for half an hour. It can change color even in the case of twisting, knotting and weaving.

Professor Tao Xiaoming of the Hong Kong Polytechnic University also developed this kind of color-changing clothes two years ago. They used plastic optical fibers, and they can now connect optical fibers with LED technology to control discoloration and pattern change.

In the recent speech, Prof. Peng Huisheng, a professor of polymer science at Fudan University, showed the audience some experiments in the field of intelligent fiber-oriented practical applications that his laboratory is exploring, including power generation and electricity storage. Clothes and clothes that can change color and shine. In the future, if we can wear electricity, we can solve the electricity demand in many fields and change our lives.

To make this kind of power-generating clothes, we must first obtain the fibers that can generate electricity. The researchers invented a unique material called "oriented carbon nanotube fibers", which has the same conductivity as metal, can be made into fiber-wound carbon nanotube batteries, and then made into clothes, so that a piece of clothing is a day (10 hours) ) It can generate 61,000 mAh of electricity, and its power can charge the Apple mobile phone 4 times.

Other applications of smart fibers Smart fiber has many other functions, such as making it hot and cool, to easily cope with extreme conditions. For example, you can make the fibers with adhesive function into gloves. As long as you wear gloves, you can crawl on the wall and transform into the real version of "Spider-Man".

This unique fiber can also be used for important medical applications. For example, the Hong Kong Polytechnic University Tao Xiaoming team developed a neonatal jaundice phototherapy device called "O-carpet", which contains a layer of luminescent fabric and is sandwiched by the surface layer. The reflective back fabric is formed between the covering fabrics. The fabric consists of a side-emitting polymer fiber and a woven yarn that provides illumination at wavelengths of 440-460 nm and is in compliance with American Academy of Pediatrics standards. The illuminating fiber is made into a blanket, and the soft light emitted can treat the newborn jaundice, so that the baby does not need to be placed in the cold treatment box, and the blanket can be better treated by wrapping the blanket in the baby. The role, but also the need to separate the baby and mother.

The functions of the intelligent fiber introduced above have successfully obtained the displayable results and data in different laboratories at home and abroad. Some have gone from the experiment to the sample, and a small part has been undergoing the amplification test before industrialization. Because of this, large fiber has attracted the attention of a number of venture capital funds, and some innovative companies with forward-looking vision have begun to pre-industrial layout.

Of course, Chinese and foreign scientists in this field admit that the above progress is basically still in the laboratory stage, and some of the results must be turned into commodities, and many scientific research work needs to be improved. The big fiber industry revolution, which was born out of smart fibers, is by no means a fantasy, and a new industrial field is sprouting.

(This article is based on the materials of many experts at home and abroad, including Professor Cheng Zhengdi of the American Academy of Engineering, Professor Fink of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Dr. Tao Guangming of the University of Central Florida, Researcher Wang Jian of the Large Fiber Industry Working Group, Zhu Mei of Donghua University Professor Fang, Professor Peng Huisheng of Fudan University, etc., I would like to thank you!)

Expert Reviews

What do you think is the essence of this big fiber industry revolution? What does it affect and change?

Liu Deming (Professor, Huazhong University of Science and Technology):

The so-called "big fiber industry revolution" is essentially an extension of the application of the Internet of Things and artificial intelligence in the textile industry, that is, by giving the fiber "perception" and "information processing" functions, the traditional fabric becomes life and intelligence. In this sense, it can be called an industrial revolution.

This industrial revolution will affect and change all aspects of the textile industry, first of all, intelligent fiber technology, involving the close integration of textile industry and information and Internet technology; secondly, production technology, that is, how to integrate intelligent fiber with fabric; third It is a design technology that mainly solves how this life-based smart fabric is combined with traditional design; finally, application technology.

There is no doubt that artificial intelligence (specifically, intelligent fiber technology) is crucial in this industrial revolution, but the textile industry is still the dominant force of this revolution and the most basic thing.

Although this fiber revolution originated in fabrics, it has affected and changed far from the textile industry. Do you agree with this understanding?

Qiu Jianrong (Professor of Zhejiang University):

Identity. For example, smart clothing can collect the heartbeat number, posture, position, and electrocardiogram of the wearer through the fiber to timely understand its health. Smart clothing can be said to be an integrated system of various functional components, which puts new and higher requirements on the configuration and function of various fibers. New applications will promote awareness of fibers and other materials.

How do you think China should seize the opportunity of this industrial revolution?

At this stage, it has been widely recognized by the academic community and I feel that this is a good opportunity. Next, we need to plan from top to bottom, increase publicity, organize strength, and implement.

Why haven't you seen mature smart clothing products in the market?

Tao Xiaoming (Professor, Hong Kong Polytechnic University):

Mainly the problem of the industrial chain. At present, the industrial chain of smart clothing does not exist yet. A single device cannot be applied and must be a system in order to be applied. Because the industrial chain involved in smart clothing is very long, there is no ready-to-borrow industry chain from devices to hardware, to software, to services, to standards.

The other is the lack of talents across the two fields of textiles and electronics. Smart textiles are a cross-border integration of textiles and electronics. Although the individual development of these two fields is mature, there is no bridge of connectivity.

As the proponent of the concept of large fiber, what are the basic judgments of the experts and the experts of the Big Fiber Working Group? What role can Shanghai play in it?

Wang Jian (Secretary-General of China Science and Technology Automation Alliance, leader of the Large Fiber Industry Working Group):

Our basic judgment is: As the next generation of industrial revolution enabling technology, large fiber will have a profound impact on many downstream industries, and fundamentally change the ecology of these industries, thus creating a huge cluster of emerging industries. The "big fiber industry" will vigorously promote the arrival of the next industrial revolution, completely change our way of life, and greatly promote the progress of human society.

We call for collaborative innovation to build Shanghai into a birthplace for new fiber materials and device technologies and high-end talents, and promote rapid development in information, automotive, biotechnology, medicine, energy and other related fields, and promote industrial upgrading in Shanghai and even the whole country. The overall level surpasses other countries and leads the international market.

Large fiber product form

One-dimensional fiber:

A new generation of fibers based on basic fibers such as optical fibers, inorganic fibers, organic fibers, metal fibers, bio-fibers, and natural fibers, which are improved through intelligent, green, and super-energy technologies.

Two-dimensional fabric:

The large fiber and the basic fiber are organically combined, and a special two-dimensional textile material with characteristics of intelligence, super energy and green is formed through special processing techniques such as weaving and interconnection.

3D device:

Multi-layer two-dimensional fabrics are stacked and bonded by three-dimensional integration technology, or one-dimensional fibers are combined with conventional three-dimensional devices, and the three-dimensional interconnection of the through-substrate is realized, thereby realizing intelligent, super-enhanced and greening of the device. (Jiang Shiliang)