Three technologies lead to improved protective cooling textile

The Safe&Cool system makes use of three special technologies.

Firstly a special 3D-textile structure is used in the thermal and moisture management layer to replace the interliner and moisture barrier of classical three-layered protective clothing. The materials used in the special 3D-textile structure are hydrophobic thermal comfort fibres to avoid a wet feeling when in contact with the body, combined with hydrophilic fibres to create suction channels to transport moisture away from the skin.

The second technology is the cooling apparatus derived from astronauts' suits. This enables liquid to be circulated through tubing inserted in cavities in the 3D-textile structure, creating 'blood vessels' for heat removal.

A water-binding polymer is the third technology and this will be added either as a coating or in the form of a powder dispersed inside the fabrics.

The polymer will absorb and bind excess moisture migrating through the semi-permeable membrane to maintain the temperature below a threshold controlled by the cooling apparatus. If there is a sudden temperature increase, arising from a burn flashover for example, and the cooling system cannot remove heat fast enough from the body, the polymer will release the liquid accumulated, reproducing the human natural sweating process through evaporative cooling.