Table of contents

The 8^th Edition of International Conference on Intelligent Textiles and Mass Customization (ITMC 2022), which was held at the beautiful city of Montreal (Canada), from the 21st to the 23rd of September 2021, targeted guests from various branches and disciplines related to the textile industry. Its interdisciplinary approach is the key to maximizing the potential and development of textile materials and tools for various applications. The purpose of the conference is to explore new ideas, effective solutions and collaborative partnerships for business growth by catalyzing the creation of a beneficial synergy between designers, manufacturers, suppliers and end users of all sectors and making full use of this potential.

The International Conference on Intelligent Textiles and Mass Customization (ITMC) meets every two years, where the organization rotates among the 5 coordinating countries (Belgium, Canada, France, Japan and Morocco). On behalf of the Conference organizers, we are honored to invite all interested business, research institutions and organizations from around the globe to participate in a lively exchange of ideas and experiences featured at the ITMC2022 Conference.

ITMC conference themes are axed on intelligent textiles and mass customization. During two days, Inspiring speakers from industries, academies, governments and societies have shined the light over new chances and challenges, bringing global statistics and success stories about cutting edge science and technology. The innovation brought to the table of discussion will bloom through cooperation, policy, education and training and rise via an outstanding interaction between speakers and participants, guaranteed through Novel IT tools. Participants were also invited to show their prototypes during the Smart Textiles Salon.

All papers published in this volume have been reviewed through processes administered by the Editors. Reviews were conducted by expert referees to the professional and scientific standards expected of a proceedings journal published by IOP Publishing Publishing.

• Type of peer review: Single Anonymous

• Conference submission management system: In-house process

• Number of submissions received: 28

• Number of submissions sent for review: 28

• Number of submissions accepted: 26

• Acceptance Rate (Submissions Accepted / Submissions Received × 100): 92.9

• Average number of reviews per paper: 2.6

• Total number of reviewers involved: 13

• Contact person for queries:

Name: Vincent Deregnaucourt

Email: vderegnaucourt@gcttg.com

Affiliation: CTT Group

Electronic textiles (e-textiles) can incorporate conductive materials at all levels of integration, from fibers to yarns to fabric itself. There are many ways to connect the textile elements to electronic components with interconnect mechanisms from mechanical gripping to welding, to gluing, to printing, to embroidery, knitting, and weaving. 3D printing method offers the possibility of creating flexible and stretchable interconnects for e-textiles applications. This study explored 3D printing of flexible conductive filaments on fabric to create interconnects for hard electrical components as well as transmission lines and switches for electronic textile applications. NinjaTek Eel and Palmiga TPU based conductive filaments were printed on polyester knit fabric. Electrical characterization measurements as well as visual and haptic analysis of printed samples were conducted. The results showed that TPU based flexible conductive filaments offer possibilities of direct 3D printing onto textiles for electronic textile applications.

Electrocardiography (ECG) monitoring is very important for the diagnosis and examination of heart-related diseases. Electrodes are the main components in monitoring and recording ECG signals. In this work, we have developed embroidered electrodes using two types of conductive yarns. ECG detection performance of the electrodes was measured at static and dynamic conditions and results were compared to standard Ag/AgCl electrodes. The electrodes were developed with three different dimensional areas to investigate the effect of the size on ECG acquisition performance. ECG signals collected from both the embroidered and standard Ag/AgCl electrodes have visible P, QRS, and T waveforms. Signals collected using large-size textile electrodes show better signal amplitude, which would reveal that the performance of the electrodes becomes improved with an increase in size. However, signals collect more artifacts dynamic conditions contain motion artifacts, indicating this aspect requires further improvement.

As humans we have a tendency to seek to confirm data and to avoid disconfirming data. COVID-19 that has thrown plans large and small into disarray, but well before then, the pace of change was already challenging the ability of SMART materials and systems to achieve full scalable commercialisation. While plans may not be feasible, what is possible and indeed necessary is planning. In this presentation I will present a toolkit that takes account of and even embraces uncertainty as a planning method directed at a more effective route for commercialisation and market growth.

In the present work, we studied the effect of adding PZT nanoparticles to PVDF-HFP/PLA matrix on piezoelectric properties of blend-based nanocomposites. Polyvinylidene fluoride hexafluoro-propylene /Polylactic acid /Lead titanate zirconate (PVdF-HFP/PLA/PZT) films nanocomposites were prepared by solvent casting technique using different percentages of PZT Nano fillers. The different samples were characterized by Polarized optical microscope (POM), Fourier transformed infrared (FTIR) and Thermogravimetric analysis (TGA).

POM images indicate uniform distribution of PZT Nano fillers in the PVdF-HFP/PLA matrix. FTIR analysis reveals the appearance of β-phase in nanocomposites and the enhancement of their piezoelectric properties. These electroactive nanocomposites thin films are a potential candidate for the piezoelectric Nano generators, energy storage devices and energy harvesting applications.

Recently, air pollution attracted many worries because of its high number of deaths per year. To solve the problem, the industries are trying to fabricate the giant air filtration system for public areas. However, the clogging of air filters should be detected in real-time to change or clean them. E-textile is a very fascinating field, which is often used in medical, safety, military and clogging detection applications. These components are integrated into soft textile materials according to their usage requirements. One of the most attractive textile structures is the nanofibers due to their advantageous properties such as porosity, lightweight, and high surface area. To have conductive nanofiber-based membrane sensors, two in situ electrical conductivity principles using conductive particles and surface conductivity, such as immersion and printing methods are recommended. In this research, the thermoplastic polyurethane (TPU) nanofibers' membranes are produced using an electrospinning system and the carbon ink was printed on the surface of nanofibers to apply in textile sensors applications. SEM images showed the uniform structure of the nanofibers and the porosity of the system even after printing. The electromechanical properties of printed membranes demonstrated the change of electrical resistance under stretch. Conclusively, these conductive membranes could be employed as strain sensors to detect the small changes in the output airflow indicated the possible clogging of air filters.

Printed electronics technology is one of the most dynamic in the world, allowing for the low-cost fabrication of electronic networks on textile substrates using the inkjet printing technique which is commonly used in various industries. In the field of formulation of conductive inks, silver nanoparticles are generally used as precursors that confer electrical conductivity to the printed patterns. In the present work, we synthesized silver nanoparticles by an ecological reduction method and then dispersed them in a PEG/Glycerol mixture to prepare a conductive ink. The silver nanoparticles were characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD), as well as the morphology of the printed silver tracks was characterized by SEM. The developed ink was then successfully printed on a piece of pre-treated cotton fabric to produce flexible electronic components on the textile.

A wide range of wearable devices are now used to help people with various health conditions. While approximately 10% of the Canadian population is affected by some form of urinary incontinence, there is a significant need for devices addressing this condition. This paper presents an ongoing research project for the design and development of an underwear fitted with urinary detection capacities. The paper focuses on the testing and comparison of three different solutions identified from scientific literature for detecting urinary leakage, namely by measuring conductivity, temperature, and humidity. These three detection modules have been integrated into a single prototype to ensure that they are tested under the same conditions. Our results point out that conductivity and humidity measurements appear to be viable for urine leakage detection in an absorbent pad, whereas temperature measurement has proven to be unsuccessful due to the rapid drop of the solution temperature and the time required for the liquid to reach the sensor. The temperature method is hence excluded from the next development stages. Finally, further tests on participants are still required to evaluate how body fluids other than urine might impact conductivity and humidity measurements.

Smart textiles must combine both textile and electronic systems into one product. This presents challenges as each industry has their own design and evaluation standards that are not compatible with one another. As such, smart textile designers tend to rely heavily on the production and iteration of physical prototypes to create a product that meets the specified design criteria. One emerging tool in the apparel industry that has potential to shorten the prototyping cycle is 3D CAD for textiles, also known as 3D garment simulation. While typically used for apparel design and e-commerce, this work presents two case studies that demonstrate how 3D garment simulation can be used as a tool for predictive design of smart textile products. In particular, how strain-dependent properties such as resistance and contact pressure can be predicted and how designs can be optimized to achieve certain performance metrics.

We have developed a viscoelastic-plastic dilatant compound, whose stiffness increases with increasing deformation rate, as a matrix material, and a "fiber composite dilatant compound" to which fibers have been added. In this study, three-point bending flexural tests were conducted to clarify the mechanical properties of the material. The results showed that the bending load increased when the fibers were oriented in the bending direction. It was also found that, under constant fiber content, lengthening the fibers and increasing the number of fibers by decreasing their diameter contributed to the increase in bending load.

This conference paper reports the tuft bridging behaviour of a single tuft when used in an orthotropic or a quasi-isotropic laminate. Laminates are subjected to pull-out experiments with a full release film placed in the mid-layer of laminates. The force-separation diagrams and damaged samples obtained by tensile tests are analysed to compare two different laminate. The results show that the larger amount of resin present around the tuft in orthotropic laminate reduces by 60% the ultimate tensile strength of the tuft when compared to quasi-isotropic laminates. The tuft tends to fail in the mid-layer of quasi-isotropic laminate with no pull-out, while the tuft has a bit pulling out in orthotropic laminate, causing an increase in the fracture energy.

The composites made of natural and synthetic fiber reinforced materials are getting attentions continuously for different engineering applications. Previously, only synthetic fibers were considered for the reinforcement materials due to their superior mechanical properties. However, with the span of time natural fibers are also gaining popularity for their sustainable features. However, the pretreatment of fiber materials could enhance the thermomechanical performances through improving the fiber to matrix interfaces. In this regard, a comparative study is conducted between the synthetic glass and natural hemp woven fabrics to investigate their morphological (before and after the tensile loads) properties. Furthermore, the mechanical tensile properties (tensile and flexural) also shown improved mechanical performances of the products. Glass fiber reinforced epoxy composite shown 79 (1.8) MPa tensile strength, whereas the hemp fibers reinforced composites only provided 39 (1.5) MPa. In case of flexural characteristics, glass fibers also showing better strength by 196 (32.8) MPa than that of hemp 48 (3.5). Thermal stability of the products was also tested using TGA (Thermogravimetric analysis)/DTG (Derivative thermogravimetry) analysis and found that glass fiber reinforced composites have better stability than that of hemp. The results obtained from the developed composite materials clearly reflects the significant differences between the two types of woven fabrics.

This paper demonstrates the feasibility of manufacturing a light and low cost near-net-shape vertebra from Tailored Fiber Placement (TFP) preforms. The TFP preforms were produced flat and sewn together at the ends by a classic sewing process. Low pressure Vacuum Assisted Resin Transfer Molding (VARTM) was used for the consolidation and impregnation of the preforms. The molding strategy was oriented towards the use of silicone conformers to ensure a compaction that well fits the preform despite its imperfections. The resulting part required a light finishing. The mass was reduced by 40% and the manufacturing cost by 76% compared to the original part.

The main objective of this paper aims at investigating the potential use of sisal yarn into composite material despite the inherent variability of properties of natural resources. A multi-scale approach of the behavior of sisal fiber woven reinforcements is conducted to understand and evaluate the different properties of woven reinforcements. At the yarn scale, a piezo-resistive sensor yarn was developed to assess deformations and stress concentrations in-situ in order to understand the material behavior during the weaving of woven reinforcements fibrous for bio-sourced composite materials. At the fabric scale, 2D woven reinforcements are developed based on a conventional weaving process. The production and characterization of composite sheets based on 2D woven reinforcements show the potential of sisal fiber woven reinforcements compared to natural fiber woven reinforcements from literature.

Fire-resistant (FR) fabrics used in protective clothing experience a reduction in performance as a result of exposure to various ageing conditions, for instance: heat, ultraviolet (UV) light, moisture, abrasion and laundering procedures. However, there are few visible clues to indicate if the deterioration of the protective clothing has reached a dangerous level. To address this issue, graphene-based end-of-life sensors (heat, UV light, and moisture) are being developed at the University of Alberta in collaboration with five industry partners, including Davey Textile Solutions, Inc (DTS). DTS has the production capacity to manufacture the graphene-based end-of-life sensors, including weaving, finishing, conductive track application, fusing, and product assembly. The lifetime of fire-protective clothing is an important parameter to monitor, and the graphene-based end-of-life sensors are a straightforward, non-destructive, and effective tool for this purpose. The plan is to fabricate, integrate and commercialize the sensors. DTS, alongside academic researchers from the University of Alberta, are in the process of scaling up the manufacturing and testing of the sensors. The health and safety of firefighters will be improved by bringing graphene-based end-of-life sensors to the market.

Textile industry is evolving towards limiting the use of synthetic dyes due to their environmental and health concerns. Natural dyes are considered the ultimate alternative as it is green and ecofriendly. However, natural dyeing is limited by the use of metal mordants to enhance the colorimetric and fastness behavior of dyed textiles. In this work, madder roots (Rubia Tinctorum) from Morocco were analyzed by mean of HPLC-PDA and used to dye wool yarns. The effect of pre-mordanting with different metal mordants was assessed. Color properties, exhaustion, and fixation rates of dyed wool was also evaluated depending on the mordants.

Wool fibers have been used as textile raw materials for clothing and home textiles for many years. Recently, it has also been increasingly used in technical textile applications. However, man-made fibers dominate the market and minimize the importance of wool in the textile industry. On the other hand, the great future opportunity for wool is the growing interest of consumers in natural, renewable and sustainable materials. In addition, in the past few decades, wool production has improved significantly in terms of yield and quality.

In this study we have characterized and applied different analysis on the physical and chemical properties of raw Moroccan wool using various instruments such as FTIR and OFDA, etc., and several test methods according international standards like grease rate, alkali content, acid content, Solubility in alkali and Tensile strength, etc. The aim of our study is to determine the potential use of wool for elaboration of nonwoven textile for a technical use and determine their end-use applications.

The aim of this paper is to investigate biodegradation properties of PLA (as a bio-based polymer), Hemp, Jute (as natural bast fibers) and Viscose (as a cellulose regenerates) for agrotextile nonwovens production. For the purpose of those investigations, an analysis of the biodegradation time of samples were performed by soil burial test (ISO 11721 – Textiles – Determination of resistance of cellulose-containing textiles to microorganisms – Soil burial test) conducted under controlled conditions in laboratory and under real weather conditions. The samples were exposed in the soil for 4, 7, 9 and 11 days. An analysis of mass loss and changes in their mechanical properties, compared to unexposed samples, were determined.

Lyocell is a man-made, regenerated cellulosic fibre developed through cellulose dissolution in non-derivative solvents. Hemp offers a preferential source of cellulose for lyocell production as it is considered an environmentally friendly agricultural crop, requiring less water, fertilizers, pesticides, and herbicides than other crops and sequesters carbon dioxide (CO₂) from the atmosphere. There are currently no Canadian sources of domestically manufactured lyocell filament or staple fibres. Our goal is to manufacture 100% lyocell fibre and to demonstrate techniques for pulping and solution-spinning hemp-based lyocell fibre. Utilizing both the bast and hurd of the hemp plant allows for the creation of many different fibre densities with varying properties while contributing to whole plant utilization and Canadian industry creation and expansion.

Recently, metallic dry EEG electrodes have been introduced to overcome the limitation of wet electrodes, as the conductive gel used causes skin irritation and dries out over time. However, the metal dry EEG electrodes have a high weight and a stiff structure that limits them from wearable application. In this work, we have developed a textile-based EEG electrode (textrode) from silver-plated polyamide loop fabric washable up to 100 cycles. The new EEG textrode collects quality signals comparable to commercial dry Ag/AgCl EEG electrodes. The signals were detected at all major EEG bandwidths. In addition, the new textrodes showed a lower skin-to-electrode impedance (-19.23%) than the commercial dry electrode and a higher signal-to-noise ratio (+27.4%). Therefore, these novel textile-based electrodes can be used to monitor brain activity for wearable applications, especially when long-term monitoring is required.

Many textile fields, such as industrial structures or clothing, use the electrical conductivity variation of yarns to detect fluid leakage. Such yarns can be developed by melt spinning conductive polymer composites (CPC). CPC filaments are composed of a polymer's matrix which is blended with sufficient quantity of electrically conductive fillers to make the filament conductive. To combine properties or improve the compounds preparation, more and more studies are investigating different polymers blends. In this study, CPC monofilaments and multifilaments are developed and characterized to observe the formulation influence on spinnability and the implementation process on the water detection. Two principles of water detection are studied on the CPC which is composed of a blend of partially miscible polymers (polyethylene terephthalate (PET)/polybutylene terephthalate (PBT)) filled with carbon nanotubes (CNT). The principle of absorption is based on the electrical conductivity variation of the filament in contact with water. For the short circuit principle, the presence of the liquid is detected when the water creates a conductive path between two filaments in parallel.

Laminated fabrics are widely used in diverse industries because of their ability to adapt to many different functions. Understanding their tear force behaviour is critical to evaluate their serviceability. The tearing behaviour of laminated fabrics can be examined using high-speed imaging and analyzed using image analysis techniques. This technique is an attractive tool to elucidate the tearing behaviour of laminated fabrics. Through high-speed imaging it is possible to observe the tearing process on the fabric (e.g., yarns bearing the load before failure, yarn breaking behaviour) and membrane (e.g., pop-in crack length, crack propagation, formation of wrinkles, thinning) sides of the laminated fabrics to understand the tearing behaviour. In addition, this technique helps quantify different phenomena such as the membrane pop-in crack length, and crack wake bridging width by yarns. High-speed imaging analysis is a promising technique to visualize the tear phenomena in laminated fabrics.

Silica xerogel has attracted increasingly more attention in the field of thermal insulation as its extraordinary properties such as thermal conductivity, fire resistance, hydrophobicity and low density. This work focuses on the development of new insulating material, based on the xerogel as charge for cotton fabric. The composite was developed using vacuum molding process. The microstructure has been determined in each materials using SEM observations, and have a good hydrophobicity which the contact angle is 125°. The results obtained from this study can be useful to develop new low cost, sustainable, light product, insulation and environmentally friendly materials.