Researchers Develop Battery-Powered Glow in the Dark Clothing

Researchers at the University of Manchester have recently developed a state-of-the-art textile that is battery operated that can to make clothes glow in the dark. The high-tech textile uses electroluminescent (EL) yarns to make it glow. This new technology could prove to be useful to joggers, cyclists or pedestrians when they are going about their activities at night.

The William Lee Innovation Centre (WLIC) developed the electroluminescent (EL) yarn which can be incorporated in different types of clothing. The EL yarns have the ability to be permanently visible, thus improving personal safety. Current glow in the dark products depend on another light source to make them visible which could be ineffective in low light situations; when there are no external lights, the purpose of the high visibility products is defeated and the wearer could suffer a fatal fate. The EL yarn is based on thin film electroluminescent technology and can emit light when powered by a battery, eliminating the need for external light sources.

The yarn can emit light when an electric current passes through it and is made up of a conductive core found inside the yarn that is coated with electroluminescent ink. The inner conductive core is protected by a transparent encapsulation and then the yarn's outer layer is wrapped with an outer conductive yarn. When the EL yarn is powered by a battery, the electricity is conducted by the inner and outer conductors which then cause the electroluminescent coating to produce light. Light is produced between the contact points of the outer and inner yarn. According to the researchers, the EL yarn can also be used in flexible woven or knitted road safety signs.

According to the head of the WLIC, Dr. Tilak Dias, the EL yarn that they have developed is currently less flexible than ordinary yarns but the EL yarns is more flexible than the optical fibres used by some in fabrics to provide illumination. Dr. Dias said, "EL yarn can be easily incorporated into a knitted or woven fabric and the resultant active illuminating fabric provides illumination when it is powered."

Dr. Dias further claims that one strand of the EL yarn has a greater luminescence than photoluminescent glow yarns that are currently being used in some glow-in-the-dark products. Dr. Dias also said that when the yarn is knitted or wove in a particular manner so that there is more yarn per unit area, the EL yarn produces greater luminance.

SOURCE:

University of Manchester, "High-Tech Textiles Pave The Way for Glowing Garments." Manchester.ac.uk