Phase change materials (PCMs) are widely being used in thermal energy storage systems for solar engineering, building materials, heat pumps, spacecraft, and in textile field especially smart and technical textiles. There are large numbers of organic and inorganic PCMs that possess a wide range of melting and solidifying temperature which attracts researcher’s attention for their applications in different fields. This review paper summarizes the investigation and analysis of the available organic and inorganic PCMs, different encapsulating techniques, characterization techniques, incorporation into fiber and pad application on textiles with practical applications in the field of smart textiles.

The contact angles, wicking properties, scourability, and dyeability of wool and cotton fabrics are affected by low-temperature plasma treatments. After treatment, wool and cotton fabric specimens show increased hydrophilicity and improved scouring and dyeing processing by nearly 50%.

Following previous work [Textile Research Journal, 74,751-756 (2004)], the mechanical and surface properties and handle of wool and cotton fabrics were measured using the KES-FB system after different stages of treatment. This investigation shows that the mechanical properties of wool and cotton changed remarkably after oxygen plasma treatment. There were no significantly observed differences between plasma treated and untreated fabrics after wet scouring and dyeing.