Thermo-physical comfort

 Sports, everyday and leisure wear has to satisfy the following demands to confirm thermo-physical comfort. 

 Supports the wearer’s thermo-regulation. 

 Keep the wearer at a comfortable body temperature

  Keep the micro-climate between skin and textile as dry as possible. 

 For all types of clothing ,heat balance that is human body heat production and heat loss should be equal at all the time is to be maintained.

  For sports wear , metabolic rate may vary from 350W to 1000W or more due to higher physical activity. 

 For everyday and leisure wear, metabolic rate varies from 100W to 250W due to lower physical activity level. 

 These differences of metabolic heat production have to be taken into account if wearer comfort in different situation is to be achieved. 

 It is particularly important for sports wear to dissipate body heat to prevent over heating. 

 On the other hand, everyday and leisure wear may need higher thermal insulation to keep the wearer comfortably worm. 

 The micro-climate between the human body skin and clothing should be dry for sports wear, everyday wear and leisure wear for all the time. 

 It needs high water vapor transport rate so that moisture can escape from the clothing and sweat can evaporate to cool the body. 

 In sports wear liquid sweat is normal but in everyday and leisure wear it is exceptional. 

 The management vapors and liquid sweat follows the following different physical principles: 

* Vaporous sweat is mainly transported through clothing by diffusions, convection and radiation. 

* The absorption of vaporous sweat is controlled by the hygroscopic properties of textiles and chemical nature of fibres. 

* Liquid sweat is transported by the effects of ( a ) adsorption and migration ( b ) capillary action 

* Liquid sweat may be stored in the free space between the fibres and within the fibres being absorbed. Fibres should be hydrophilic to improve liquid storage. 

* Drying time is one of the important physiological parameter for sports wear comfort. It needs quick drying time from liquid sweat to avoid discomfort after hard physical activity. 

* Drying time for everyday and leisure wear are less likely to be soaked with liquid sweat, consequently drying time is less important for the comfort.