Evaluate the Functional Performance of the Proposed Smart Fabric for Equestrian Sports Clothing

In recent years, the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia strives to create an attractive environment for investment, productivity, competitiveness, and focus on the industrial and technology sectors. The Kingdom has also paid clear attention to sports to improve the quality of life for all segments of society and achieve the goals of its Vision 2030. Since the textile industry constitutes one of the basic and civilizational components for any society, this research aims to improve the functional performance properties of the fabric used in equestrian sports clothing in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. The research hypothesis was to verify that treating the fabric commonly used in equestrian sports clothing in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia with silver nanoparticles may improve the functional performance properties. The research followed the experimental method by treating the research sample of shirt fabric mixed from 95% cotton and 5% spandex with silver nanoparticles at three different concentrations (30-60-90 micrograms/ml) and evaluating the performance of the fabric before and after treatment in terms of bacterial resistance and some physical and mechanical properties. The study concluded that treating the fabric with silver nanoparticles improved some performance properties, the most prominent of which is resistance to bacteria, which increases directly with increasing concentration of silver nanoparticles. Likewise, the weight per square meter of the sample, stiffness in the warp and weft direction, and tensile strength in the warp direction increase with increasing solution treatment concentration. The research concluded with a set of recommendations, the most prominent of which is encouraging interest in treating blended fibers with nanotechnology to create sustainable fabrics suitable for clothing. المزيد