Chameleonic Textiles

Ahana Bhattacharya
Department of Silpa-Sadana, Textile Section
Palli Samgathana Vibhaga, Visva Bharati (A Central University)
email: ahanab1201@gmail.com
“Chameleonic Textiles are the result of the art of thinking out of the box, the science to turn imagination into concept and the understanding of technology to transfer the concept into a product.”

Introduction: Photochromic Colourants Methods of Application on Textile

What are Smart Textiles  Photochromic colourants change colour reversibly with change in light Exhaust Process
• Smart textiles are those, which can sense and react to intensity. Usually they are colourless in dark place and when sunlight or
environmental conditions or stimuli from mechanical, thermal, UV- radiation is applied the molecular structure of the colourants change
chemical, electrical or magnetic sources. and it exhibits colour and when the relevant light source is removed
Classification: colour disappears.
.
Presence of
Ultraviolet light
Fig- VII
Colourless or weakly coloured
Coloured
molecule

Absence of
Molecule
Continuous Method
Ultraviolet light

Fig-III

Classification of Photochromic Colourants

Fig-I
P-Type Naphthopyrans Fig- VIII

What are Chameleonic Textiles? (Back reaction through

irradiation with light of Direct colouration
another range of wavelengths)

 Chameleonic textiles are smart textiles having chromic Photochromic Spirooxazines

Colourants
materials which have colour changing properties caused by the
effect of an external stimulus. T-Type
(Back reaction is driven Spyropyrans
 There are various types of chromism according to external
thermally)

stimulus, such as Thermochromism, Photochromism, Fig-IV

Electrochromism, Solvatochromism, Piezochromism,
Cathodochromism, Halochromism. Thermochromic Colourants
 In the textile industry, photochromism and thermochromism  Thermochromic colourants undergo a color change over a specific
Fig-IX

applications are generally used. temperature range. The dyes currently available change from a particular Screen Printing with Photochromic colourants
color at low temperature to colorless at a high temperature (e.g. red at  Photochromic colorants can also be applied by screen printing as a
29.5C and colorless at above 32C). pigment.
 The color change temperature can be controlled, such that the color-
change can take place at different temperatures (eg. just below a person's As Disperse Dye
external body temperature so that a color change occurs in response to a  To use photochromic colorants as a disperse dye, first a colorant
human touch). dispersion is prepared followed by milling.
 A thickener solution is formulated.
Fig-II  The colorant dispersion is then mixed with the thickener solution.
 The fabric is printed, dried and cured.
Objectives of Chameleonic Textiles
Surface coating with Photochromaic colourants
 Ability to sense environment conditions or stimuli.  Various fabrics like polyamide, polyester etc. can be coated with
 Reacting automatically to some kind of stimuli. different coating systems like polyurethane (PU), polyacrylate (PA) and
 Quick change in colour hues, depth of shade or optical a Sol-Gel system.
transparency.
Microencapsulation
Advantages
 Photochromic or Thermochromic colorants occupy a suitable Fig-V

position within the coloration industry, with majority of Classification of Thermochromic Colourants
applications in the textile sector limited to fashion, leisure and
sports garments. Major materials to Mechanisms
exhibit
 Great aid to apparel manufacturers due to novel marketing thermochromism Fig- X
Change in Crystal
opportunities. Structure

References
Organic
Compounds and
Sol-gels
Stereoisomerism
 A. Seeboth, D. L. (2014). Thermochromic Polymers – Function by Design. ACS Publications, 1.
Disadvantages Molecular Rearrangement .  Gobi, P. S. (2007, March). Chameleonic Textiles – Only TheColours Change. Retrieved from
Fibre2Fashion: https://www.fibre2fashion.com/industry-article/1690/chameleonic-textiles-only-the-
 Photochromic textiles Phase Transitions colours-change-
• Sensitive structure Thermochromic
Colourants
Inorganic Changes in Ligand
 Kumbasar, S. M. (2019). Photochromic textile materials. IOP Conf. Series: Materials Science and
• Low water solubility. Compounds Geometry Engineering, 1-3.
 M. A. Chowdhury, M. J. (2014). Photochromic and Thermochromic Colorants in Textile Applications .
 Thermochromic textiles
Equilibria between
different molecular
structures Journal of engineered fibers and fabrics , 108-121.
• Wash fastness is moderate and it varies for different colours and is Changes in the number of solvent
 Sengupta , A. (2016). An Overview of Light Sensitive Colorants & Its Use for Development of Smart
Chameleonic Textiles. Wool Tech, 3-7.
poor for yellow. Polymers
molecules in the co-ordination sphere

• Light fastness property is not satisfactory till date. Change in lattice arrangement and
Sources
structure
 Fig (I,II,VII,VIII,IX,X)- Google Images
 FigV- https://www.fibre2fashion.com/industry-article/3059/thermochromic-colors-in-textiles
Fig-VI