Session 11: Flexible Electronics Applications II

E-Textiles Fabricated via Inkjet Printing of Particle-Free Conductive Inks
Wednesday, February 14, 2018
4:40 PM - 5:00 PM

Through collaboration between North Carolina State University’s College of Textiles and Liquid X Printed Metals, the use of conductive particle-free silver ink for the development of a reliable and conformal inkjet printing process for manufacturing of e-textiles is explored.  The particle-free silver ink can be printed directly on polyester based wovens, nonwovens, knits and nylon/spandex blends achieving a sheet resistance of 0.1-0.3 Ω/□, creating highly conductive, bendable and stretchable fabrics.   The results open up the possibility of integrating inkjet printing in the scalable and automated manufacturing process for E-textile products.  Performance results using this method will be explored along with potential e-textile applications, including medical and sports apparel; industrial filters and flexible energy storage devices.