The Four Kings of Outdoor Waterproof and Breathable Fabrics
Many people are curious How can outdoor technical fabrics be both waterproof and breathable? Because the two aspects are in conflict. Mainly due to the film technology used in the fabric, the pores of the film are smaller than water droplets and larger than water vapor molecules. No matter how small the water droplets are, they cannot pass through the film. Human sweat vapor can pass through easily, making the film both waterproof and breathable.
1. Gore -Tex® fabric
Excellent outdoor technical fabrics on the market all use this technology, the most famous ones are Gore-Tex® and eVent®.
Gore-Tex® fabric Gore-Tex® (abbreviation: GTX) waterproof and breathable film is a product of Gore company, which is popular among outdoor everyone and outdoor manufacturers. The most trusted waterproofing product. The waterproof principle of GTX is a film structure, and it is made up of two chemical molecular films of ePTFE and PU. ePTFE is waterproof and breathable but easy to tear and afraid of oil stains. PU is used to protect and resist oil stains. The pores of the film are smaller than water droplets. It is larger than water vapor molecules, so it can prevent outside water from entering, and the moisture inside can be discharged.
Indirect breathability, Moisture permeability means that the sweat emitted by the human body first condenses into sweat on the PU layer, and then relies on the heat of the human body (positive pressure) to evaporate the sweat on the PU layer, allowing the moisture to squeeze through the PU protective layer, allowing the moisture to pass through. Pass through the micropores to the outer fabric, and then spread out through the fiber gaps of the outer fabric. Therefore, it must be emphasized that the breathability principle of the GTX film can work, allowing the body’s sweat to escape from the inside of the clothes to the outside in the form of steam. The external temperature must be lower than the internal body temperature or the external humidity must be lower than the internal humidity. The GTX jacket is not used in hot and humid weather in the south. Areas with high temperatures and high humidity have difficulty in bringing out the performance of the GTX jacket, and the thermal bonding strips are easy to open. This is only possible in spring and autumn. The winter season or snow-capped mountains, and winter travel are the most suitable places to perform.
2. Sunshine-Tex® fabric
Sunshine-Tex fabric is produced by Kunshan Hua Yang Co., Ltd. launched a series of multifunctional high-end composite film products; the company focuses on the research and development and production of high-end functional film products, actively promotes the transformation of scientific and technological research and development results, and is committed to creating a national brand belonging to the Chinese people. Under the protection of scientific management model, strong R&D team, high-efficiency production facilities and nearly 100 technical patents, Huayang Co., Ltd. is making steady progress and gradually leading the development trend of the functional textile products industry.
The main products include (SunshineTex far-infrared health care film, SunshineTex temperature-sensitive film, SunshineTex coffee carbon film, SunshineTex graphene technology film, SunshineTex-PTFE film, SunshineTex M -PTFE microporous membrane, SunshineTex-PES regenerated series membrane, SunshineTex-PU, TPU, Porelle series and SunshineTex biomass environmentally friendly series membrane).
Currently, M- PTFE two-component microporous film is an internationally leading technology. M-PTFE membrane is different from traditional two-component PTFE film. It has strong waterproof, windproof and microporous steam and moisture permeability properties. M-PTFE film can quickly Quickly discharge the water vapor (sweat) generated during exercise from the body, keeping the body dry at all times, and regulating body temperature appropriately; it can better reflect the comfort of clothing and cope with extreme environmental climates, which is a major breakthrough in textile technology in the 21st century .
We are a high-tech enterprise focusing on the manufacturing, R&D, production and sales of functional polymer films. We have passed ISO9001 quality system certification, REACH, Bluesign , Oeko-tex100 textile eco-label certification.
3. eVent® fabric
eVent is a waterproof and breathable film product of BHA, a subsidiary of GE. , eVent film technology is later than GTX. It uses a new process to improve the Gore-Tex® ePTFE film and press PU into the porous ePTFE film. There is no need to attach a PU layer under the ePTFE layer to cover the microporous film. The micropores affect the breathability effect. Without one layer of film layer, there is no need for “moisture permeability” like GTX to convert sweat into sweat and then discharge it out of the body through heat, achieving the so-called two-way flow “direct breathability”, so eVent will It is more breathable than GTX, but the actual effect during use is affected by the environment and is the same as GTX.
According to tests, the breathability of eVent is about 2 times that of Gore-Tex with the same waterproof performance. The Breathability Rating of eVent is 15K-25K (g/ m2/24H), about 0.1-0.2CFM. However, the shortcomings of eVent are also more obvious. Although ePTFE is not so afraid of oil stains, it is still very susceptible to oil stains.It is easy to clog the small holes, and then the performance will be significantly reduced.
4. NeoShell® fabric
Neoshell® is a new fabric launched by Polartec. The air permeability is 2 times more breathable than eVent® and 5 times more breathable than GTX. The main reason is that Neoshell does not use a film to make it waterproof and breathable, but relies on a “sub-micron” level weaving structure. Controlling windproofing and breathability, an innovative process is used to form a mesh of PU molecules. The number of breathable micropores will be several times higher than that of previous traditional materials. It has a certain degree of ductility and makes clothes with less friction noise. The water resistance is lower in the same price range.
According to published data, Neoshell®’s waterproofness and hydrostatic pressure are about 10K, and its air permeability reaches 0.5CFM. It is obvious that waterproofing is its weakness (although Polartec has always emphasized 10K It is already fully waterproof). Editor’s nonsense: However, don’t take the so-called breathability of a jacket too seriously. No matter how breathable a jacket is, it can’t be as breathable as the worst soft shell. In my opinion, pursuing a jacket that is too breathable (not so waterproof and windproof) is a waste of money. At the end of the day, it is more practical to consider the breathability of the jacket material than to consider the jacket with breathable zippers under the arms (a design that can quickly discharge heat).
5. Brand’s own fabrics
In addition to these four mainstream waterproof and breathable fabrics, some Domestic products use Japanese Toray fabrics. Each company promotes its own windproof and waterproof technology, such as Mammut’s DRYtech; MHW’s Dry.Q; Marmot’s NanoPro; Patagonia’s H2NO; Columbia’s Omni Tech technology, etc., which are basically the same.
