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Biobased Radiative Cooling Fibers Developed by Academician Zhumeifang's Team: Over 5°C Perceived Cooling, Breathable, Moisture-Wicking

NTMT New Textile Materials 2025-10-17 10:53:50

With the growing global demand for sustainable cooling technologies, passive daytime radiative cooling technology has attracted significant attention for its ability to directly radiate heat to space through the atmospheric transparency window. However, most existing radiative cooling fabrics rely on petroleum-based synthetic materials and complex coating processes, which are not environmentally friendly and severely impact the breathability and wearing comfort of textiles, limiting their widespread application in the wearable field.

Based on this, the team led by Associate Researcher Kong Weiqing and Professor Zhu Meifang from Donghua University proposed a bio-inspired, coating-free green strategy and successfully prepared regenerated cellulose/SiO₂ nanoparticle composite fibers through wet spinning technology. These fibers mimic the micro-nano wrinkle structures on human skin surfaces, achieving a solar reflectance of up to 93.7% and an infrared emissivity of 0.98, enabling efficient heat dissipation without any external coating. Under a solar irradiation of 800 W/m², this material can achieve a net cooling power of 100.1 W/m², cooling down by more than 5°C compared to ordinary cellulose fabrics in summer conditions, while possessing excellent breathability and moisture-wicking properties, providing a new solution for sustainable personal thermal management.

On September 25, 2025, the related paper was published in ACS Nano under the title "Eco-Friendly Skin-Wrinkle-Inspired Micro-Nano Structured Cellulose Composite Fibers for Highly Efficient Daytime Radiative Cooling."

The key aspect of this research lies in the one-step manufacturing process that eliminates the need for toxic coatings and energy-intensive post-treatment procedures, providing a cost-effective alternative to traditional coated fabrics. By combining renewable cellulose with the design of biomimetic skin wrinkle structures, an eco-efficient radiative cooling material paradigm is pioneered, balancing optical performance, wearing comfort, and large-scale manufacturing.

Image and text description

Inspired by the multilayer structure of human skin and its thermal regulation mechanism, micro-nano structured fibers resembling epidermal wrinkles have been designed. The biomimetic design concept and preparation process involve uniformly dispersing SiO₂ nanoparticles in a cellulose solution. During the wet spinning process, solvent exchange induces phase separation, resulting in the spontaneous formation of surface protrusions approximately 2 microns in height, simulating the light scattering and infrared radiation characteristics of the skin surface, achieving an integrated structure-function formation.

Figure 1. Scalable Manufacturing of Biomimetic Design and RCSF. (a) Schematic illustrating the principle of biomimetic fiber design, inspired by the multilayer structure of human skin (epidermis, dermis, and subcutaneous tissue) and its multimodal optical regulation mechanisms (reflection, scattering, and infrared emission). (b) Manufacturing roadmap of RCSF: solution design, wet spinning, and structure-function synergy.

Scanning electron microscopy images show that the surface of the composite fibers exhibits regular protrusions resembling skin wrinkles, while atomic force microscopy and energy dispersive spectroscopy confirm the uniform distribution of SiO₂ nanoparticles and their hydrogen bonding interactions with cellulose. Infrared and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy analyses reveal the synergistic effects between cellulose and SiO₂ at the molecular level, enhancing the fiber's emission capability in the mid-infrared range, thereby establishing a material basis for its efficient radiative cooling performance.

Figure 2. Morphological and structural characterization. (a, b) SEM images of RCF and RCSF, respectively: left: cross-section, right: high-resolution longitudinal cross-section. (a1, b1) AFM images of the longitudinal sections of RCF and RCSF. (a2, b) Simulated images of the longitudinal sections of RCF and RCSF. (c) EDS elemental analysis of RCSF. Distribution of different elements on the fiber and SEM images. (d) FTIR spectra of SiO₂ nanoparticles, RCF, and RCSF. (e) XPS spectra of RCF and RCSF. High-resolution scans of the Si 2p/Si 2s spectral regions. (f) Analysis of the O 1s variations in RCF and RCSF.

As the SiO₂ content increases, both the solar reflectance and infrared emittance of the fibers improve synchronously. The optimal sample achieves a reflectance of 93.7% in the 0.4–1 μm wavelength range and an emittance of 0.98 in the 8–13 μm range. In field tests conducted in Shanghai, this fabric was found to be 6.7°C cooler than the ambient temperature under strong midday sunlight, with a net cooling power exceeding 100 W/m², significantly outperforming traditional cellulose fabrics and various existing radiative cooling materials.

Figure 3. Optical properties and outdoor test performance. (a) Adsorption amounts of RCF and RCSF in different proportions. (b) Solar spectrum reflectance and (c) mid-infrared spectrum emissivity of RCF and RCSF in different proportions. (d) Schematic and optical image of the outdoor cooling performance test box. (e) Real-time temperatures of the fabric and environment, the temperature difference between the two fabrics (ΔT), and solar irradiance (I solar) (July 5, 2024, Shanghai, China). (f) Net cooling power of RCSFs-50. (g) Comparison of comprehensive performance between RCF and RCSFs-50. (h) Comparison of emissivity and reflectance between existing radiative cooling materials and RCSFs-50 in this study.

Compared to common fabrics such as cotton and polyester, this material enhances breathability by approximately 9.5 times while maintaining high cooling efficiency. Its moisture permeability is comparable to that of high-end cotton, and it retains 97.6% of its cooling efficiency even after 10 washes and abrasion, demonstrating good practical potential.

Figure 4. Wearing Performance. (a) Heat dissipation of the human body in an outdoor environment. (b) Commercial cotton fabric and RCSFs-50 and their indoor radiative cooling effects. Inset: Infrared images of the two fabrics at different times. (c) Outdoor wearing test with infrared imaging showing real-time temperature changes. (d) Breathability of polyester fabric, poly-cotton fabric, cotton fabric, and RCSFs-50. (e) Water vapor permeability. (f) Real-time temperature of RCSFs-50 and other commercial fabrics, solar radiation intensity (I_solar), ambient temperature, and humidity (June 19, 2025, Shanghai, China). (g) Scanning electron microscope (SEM) images of RCSF-50 before and after 10 washes. (h) Reflectivity changes of fabrics after 0, 1, 3, 6, and 10 washes. (i) Real-time temperature of RCSFs, washed and worn RCSFs, solar radiation intensity (I_solar), and humidity (June 27, 2025, Shanghai, China).

In summary, through biomimetic design, green manufacturing, and a coating-free photothermal regulation strategy, a cellulose-based composite fiber has been successfully developed that combines efficient cooling, comfortable wearing, and sustainable characteristics. This material not only exhibits excellent cooling capabilities in extreme environments but also has the potential for scalable production, providing a new technological pathway to address global high-temperature challenges and promote the development of green textile technology.

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Biobased Radiative Cooling Fibers Developed by Academician Zhumeifang's Team: Over 5°C Perceived Cooling, Breathable, Moisture-Wicking

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