By exploiting chemistry and nanotechnology, researchers are
creating a new generation of clothes that do more than look
fashionable and keep the wearer warm. Already, stores are
selling pants that resist stains thanks to coatings made of
“nanowhiskers,” and odor-eating socks that trap microbes using
nanoparticles. Now, scientists are developing clothing for
military and medical applications that seem to do it all: block
toxins, kill bacteria on the surface, and breathe sufficiently
to allow perspiration to escape. The latest advance, a
collaboration between researchers at Cornell University and the
University of California, Davis, stitches together porous
membranes and bacteria-killing polymer molecules. The results
could provide enhanced performance for situations where
resistance to liquid or vapor is needed, such as for medical
personnel or soldiers exposed to pathogens. The researchers plan
to test their new fabric on medical and military staff this
year, and to commercialize the fabric by 2008. “There ha