Major factors affecting the performance of ESD-protective fabrics

Abstract

An innovative design was developed to set up a new structure for producing antistatic fabrics, known as electrostatic discharge (ESD) fabrics. The design is based on a thorough investigation of the construction of ESD fabrics and factors associated with it. Emphasis was placed on selection of the conductive fiber and mechanism of manufacturing. Also studied were the level of static control and the different static fabric mechanisms with the ultimate target of fulfilling the concept of antistatic fabrics. Nonwoven and weft knitted techniques were employed to achieve the new structure of antistatic fabrics. The work was further extended to include testing, characterization, and evaluation of the various ESD fabrics obtained in order to clarify their performance and verify the feasibility of the design that has been devised for manufacturing these ESD fabrics.