Coaxial electrospun membranes with thermal energy storage and shape memory functions for simultaneous thermal/moisture management in personal cooling textiles

Developing textiles with simultaneous thermal regulation capability and adaptive moisture permeability is of great significance for not only reducing energy consumption but also enhancing personal comfort. To meet the above requirements, coaxial electrospun microfibers based on polyurethane (PU) and polyethylene glycol (PEG) were fabricated, in which PU worked as a supporting shell and PEG worked as an energy-storage core. The coaxial electrospinning technique made PEG to be uniformly encapsulated inside the microfibers to form a ‘core-shell’-like structure, imparting the membranes with a high phase change enthalpy (60.4 J/g), good encapsulation effect, thermal energy storage property and robust mechanical property (sustaining 125 times mass of load). Furthermore, the PU/PEG porous membranes exhibit excellent thermal-actuated shape memory effect, which enables macroscopic shape deformation and adaptive micropore geometry upon heating. The PU/PEG membranes with both thermal regulation capability and temperature-sensitive moisture permeability can generate excellent cooling and drying performances (7.6 °C cooler and better breathability than commercial cotton textile). Therefore, our work may provide a new strategy to design smart textiles with dynamic thermal and moisture management functions for improving the comfort of wearers under hot situations.