Researchers Discover Solution to Prevent Electrical Faults in Yarn

What may sound like an April Fool’s joke is anything but, as researchers from North Carolina State University have discovered a method to prevent electrically-conductive yarns that store energy from shorts and other faults. The discovery could advance smart materials capable of capturing energy from the wearer’s movements to power mobile devices and other electronics.

“A supercapacitor functions like a battery, but in this case, we’re working on a flexible battery shaped as a textile yarn that you could weave or knit into your T-shirt or sweater,” stated associate professor Wei Gao, lead author of a recentlty released paper on the breakthrough. “In this study, we have woven this yarn into a piece of fabric so that it can store electrical energy, and eventually, we want to use it to power whatever electronic devices you need, whether it be a sensor, a light or even a cell phone.”

To solve the problem, the team ran tests on what would happen if they wrapped the supercapacitor yarns in an insulating thread, with the idea that they would act as a physical barrier, preventing contact and short-circuiting. They then tested the yarn’s performance by connecting the electrodes to a power source and recording the current response. They also tested how well the yarns were able to hold a charge.

The researchers learned that the yarns kept 90% of the initial energy after charging and discharging them 10,000 times. They also found the yarns retained their capacitive performance even after bending and stretching the material. The researchers state that they will use these findings to design a wearable garment and integrate it into other energy-generating devices.