A new transient approach for testing water vapor diffusion of fabrics and fibers

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to describe a new transient approach for testing water vapor diffusivity of fabrics and fibrous assemblies.

Design/methodology/approach

An apparatus was designed and built in order to investigate the transient water vapor diffusivity of fabrics and fibrous assemblies, and the apparatus is validated by applying a theoretical model and comparing the result obtained by the desiccant cup method.

Findings

The transient water vapor diffusion test method permits rapid testing of small quantities of fabrics in a short amount of time. The method has an excellent correlation and agreement with the desiccant cup method. The variation of the new method is much smaller than the desiccant method. It also provided a way to study water vapor transfer through fibrous assemblies.

Originality/value

The paper introduces a new approach for testing water vapor diffusivity of fabrics and fibrous assemblies.

Citation

Song, W. and Yu, W. (2011), "A new transient approach for testing water vapor diffusion of fabrics and fibers", International Journal of Clothing Science and Technology, Vol. 23 No. 5, pp. 361-372. https://doi.org/10.1108/09556221111166293