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You must've heard about nanotechnology now and then on the news. In your regular life, hearing about nanoelectronics is quite common recently. Another one is nanofiber. Nanoparticles (nanofibers, nano molecules) are usually particles with a diameter between 1nm and 100nm.
Nanomaterials are getting so much hype. But why, you may wonder. Nanoscale materials have a far larger surface area-to-volume ratio than bulk materials. As surface area per volume increases, materials can become more reactive in their respective operations.
What is a nanofiber cloth, and how did it come about?
Nanofibers are 1nm-100nm diameter fibres synthesized from different polymers for different applications. They have many possible technological and commercial applications.
Some are used in tissue engineering, drug delivery, seed coating material, cancer diagnosis, lithium-air batteries, optical sensors, air filtration, redox-flow batteries, and composite materials. Today, we'll discuss only their purpose in textile applications. Nanofabrics have gained significant attraction in this sector.
Imagine adding tiny ingredients to your regular clothes to make them waterproof, heatproof, fireproof, or even bulletproof! These magic molecules could even prevent electricity shock—to think of that must be cool, right?
Nano fabrics could be on par with Aladdin's magic carpet. Since 1934, far more research has been ongoing. Nanofibers are usually made through electrospinning, a man-made chemical procedure with an electro-voltage mechanism.
Nanofabrics' magic in regular days
Lightweight and super functional. That's the best way to describe nanofabrics. This is why it's getting popular in households. Nanofiber masks, nanofiber bed sheets, rugs, curtains, tents, ropes, and many more are available if we speak of their application. These garments attain water repellency, soil resistance, wrinkle resistance, anti-bacterial, anti-static and UV protection, flame retardation, improvement of dyeability, and sometimes self-cleaning ability through nano fabrics technology. You don't need a high-tech, superficial, heavyweight utility to perform extra chores. Your regular washcloth or rug with nano finishing will do the thing for you.
The sporting industry, cosmetic industry, space, and material technology use nano ingredients for better results. Athletes require stain-repellent, wrinkle-resistant, and heat-channeling jerseys. Nanofabrics can provide all of that in a lightweight form of clothing. Nano socks treated with silver nanoparticles act against infection and odour. Olympic sharkskin swimsuits are layered with a plasma nano-coating that provides waterproof characteristics and excellent sliding flexibility.
Nanotech can tweak the features of running shoes, tennis racquets, golf balls, skin creams, and more. Scientists have created textile sensors attached to the suit to withstand extreme environments that look for naturally existing viral nanoparticles in the harshest environments on earth.
Future in Sustainability
The incredible characteristics of nanomaterials have allured scientists, research workers, and businesses because of their enormous economic potential.
Less resources, less sacrifices, more performance- nanotechnology will raw materials and upgrade the quality of life in the upcoming years.
According to a report in TextileLearner, the National Science Foundation reports that nano-related goods and services will increase to a US$ 1 trillion market by 2015. This amount is more significant than the combined businesses of the telecommunications and information technology industries.
Several hundred billion Euros are forecast to be created by nanotechnology in the next decade (24). The nanomaterials markets could expand to US$ 4 billion by 2007. It was believed that 2 million new employment opportunities would be created to meet the worldwide annual production demand of US$ 1 trillion in 10-15 years. Nanotechnology may be beneficial to the environment as well.
Scientists and industrialists are often aligned on nanotech garments, and such occurrences don't usually happen.
First-world countries are shifting their focus from regular Textiles to technical textiles. Recently, a significant percentage of Technical Textile products have used nanotechnology.
China, India, Japan, Germany, and the USA have already taken initiatives so nano industries could thrive.
If the price tags are marked with affordable numbers, Asia Pacific is the largest market for technical textiles, again in terms of production and consumption.
To ride this new wave, many textile manufacturing companies are investing in R&D to increase the production of technical textiles and attract more technical textile buyers. The Asia Pacific technical textile market is expected to continue its dominance in the global market through 2020. In 2015, Asia Pacific accounted for nearly 40% revenue share of the global technical textiles
market.
China launched a comprehensive "Double Incentive Scheme" program for technical textiles. Meanwhile, India, the self-proclaimed opponent of the Chinese economy, has also issued relief packages to promote technical textiles.
In the next five years, India will provide $170-$200 million to promote technical textiles. This wise step will undoubtedly give India a massive advantage in the technical textiles market.
Challenges of Nanoindustry setup in Bangladesh
According to an article published in TextileFocus, the global nanotextile market should grow from $5.1 billion in 2019 to $14.8 billion by 2024 at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 23.6% for 2019-2024.
The global market for technical textiles is estimated to increase from $197.8 billion in 2022 to $255.4 billion by 2027 at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 5.2% from 2022 through 2027. The global market for nanofiber should grow from $2.2 billion in 2021 to $6.7 billion by 2026, with a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 25.1% for 2021-2026(bccresearch).
But Bangladesh's scenario is a bit different. Moving to smart textile manufacturing becomes difficult since we can't grow from ready-made garment production. Here, we need skilled operators for high-end machines, researchers who are nanotechnology experts, and, of course, a billion-dollar nano industry setup. All these seem like big dreams for a third-world country like Bangladesh.
Sayma Haque is pursuing her master's in molecular studies at a university in Germany. She said, "I know I'll get a well-paying job here after my master's degree. But if I return to Bangladesh, there's no appropriate scope for my expertise, and I won't get paid much either."
To welcome this favourable trend of emerging nanotextiles into our economy, more and more funding for research in material science, polymeric study, and nanotechnology must be approved.
Another thing that needs to be done is collaborating with China, the USA, and Europe to set up nanotech laboratories for the experimental stage to study how far this sector can flourish. Bangladeshi postdoc students can return there and contribute back to the industries.
There's still hope. Researchers said that the production of textiles and technical textiles based on nanotechnology won't require huge investments like the traditional textile companies require. The article in TextileToday backs up the idea that the risk will also be lower as Bangladesh has a good local market. 170 million people in Bangladesh use technical textiles, and this trend will increase daily. Such industries will also produce products used as input materials for the other textile and allied industries.