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Effect of Stainless Steel-Containing Fabrics on Electromagnetic Shielding Effectiveness

Ching-Iuan Su and Jin-Tsair Chern
Textile Research Journal 2004 74: 51
DOI: 10.1177/004051750407400109

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Effect of Stainless Steel-Containing Fabrics on

Electromagnetic Shielding Effectiveness
CHING-IUAN SU
1 AND JIN-TSAIR CHERN
Department of Polymer Engineering, National Taiwan University of Science and Technology,
Taipei, Taiwan, Republic of China
ABSTRACT
In this paper, stainless steel is selected as the conductive filler to produce stainless steel
hybrid yams to make woven fabrics. Using coaxial transmission equipment, the electro-
magnetic shielding effectiveness (EMSE) of these fabrics is measured. The experimental
results show that a denser structure has a higher EMSE. The fabric made from the core yarns
has a higher EMSE than that made from the cover yams and the plied yams. In addition,
the EMSE of the fabric made from different genera of stainless steel has an optimum EMSE
value at different measured frequencies. Analyses of the weave types reveal that the plain
weave has a higher EMSE than other weave types.

People useelectrical equipment more frequently due that the electromagnetic shielding effectiveness (EMSE)
to the progress of science and technology, which exposes varies with the woven structures, the number of layers.
them to different frequencies of electromagnetic waves. and the blend ratio of the fibers. In this research, we
Many devices contribute to such exposure such as cell discuss the effects of density, yam geometry, and various
phones with frequencies of 900 and 1800MHz, micro- genera of ss and weave type on the EMSE properties of
wave ovens of 2450 MHz, radar signal communication fabrics.
systems extending from 1 to 10,000 MHz, and FM/AM
radio broadcasts of 30-300 MHz and 300-3000 KHz,
Experimental
respectively. Cell phone use is particularly widespread.
If an electromagnetic wave gets into an organism, it Two genera of stainless steel were used as conductive
vibrates molecules to give out heat. In the same way, fillers: one was an ss staple fiber of 8 pm diameter and
when an electromagnetic wave enters the human body, it 38-80 mm length, and the other was an ss monofilament
will obstruct a cell’s regeneration of DNA and RNA. Fur- of 50 pm diameter. First, several kinds of ss hybrid yams
were produced, that is, ss filaments were twisted with
thermore, it brings on abnortnal chemical activities to
two strands of 250d/75f polyester (PET) filaments (S-
produce cancer cells, and increases the possibility of
leukemia and other cancers. Injuries by electromagnetic yam) and three strands of Ne30 polyester (Per) spun
waves to the human body are the top priority of profes- yams (T-yam). The ss filaments covered the spun yarn
sionals and scholars, and we are most concerned with (cover yam) or remained in the inner region of the spun
solving this problem. yam (core yam), or were twisted with the spun yam
The development of electromagnetic wave resistant (plied yam) and two strands of the Ne30 ss/PET blend
textiles originated in the military industry and moved spun yam. We made a variety of woven fabrics from
these hybrid yams, listed in Tables I and II.
gradually to civilian industries. There are many methods
of improving fabric conductivity [5, 7, 11 ], such as According to ASTM D4935 [ 1 ], we used a spectrum
laminating conductive layers onto fabrics [3, 4, 8, 9] or analyzer (Advantest R3132) with coaxial transmission
adding conductive fillers [6, 7, 101. Because stainless equipment to measure the EMSE of the fabrics. Electro-
steel (ss) has a high absorption and low reflection of magnetic frequencies range from 9 KHz to 3 GHz. We
calculated the EMSE of the woven fabrics using the fol-
electromagnetic energy, we have incorporated ss fibers
or filaments into conductive fabrics. Cheng and Lee [2] lowing equation:
developed a method for fabricating conductive woven
fabrics on a handloom with blended yarns. They showed
Here, decibel (dB) is a unit of power ratio, commonly

used to specify shielding effectiveness, Pcu, is output

1
To whom correspondence should be addressed. power (watts), and is
P;~ input power (watts).

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TABLE I. Fabrics specifications.a

a b
Note: 54 x 29 ends/inch, 1/1 plain weave, 250 glm’ weight. Note: opening size formed by ss: units in mm.

Results and Discussion ing in better EMSE. On the other hand, if the fabric has ss
in only one direction (weft or warp), its EMSE will cer-
EFFECT OF SS HYBRID YARN DENSITY ON EMSE
tainly be worse.
The woven fabrics had a plain structure of 54 x 29
ends/inch. The fabrics used two kinds of yams, warp and EFFECT OF YARN GEOMETRY ON EMSE
weft, where one was the plied yam where the ss filament W 1, W2, and W3 (Table II) are made from three
was twisted with two strands of 250 denier pet filament,
different hybrid yams: cover, core, and
plied yams, re-
called the S-yam, and’ the other was the plied yam of
spectively. The three kinds of fabrics in Figure 4 show
Ne30/3 PET spun yarn, known as T-yam. Table I lists the the same trend. The EMSE initially increases as the fre-
woven fabrics 51-S5 made from different densities of ss
quency increases, and then declines. The EMSE values of
hybrid yams, and Figure 1 shows the schematic diagrams W2 and W3 are better than that of W 1. Analyzing the
of these woven fabrics’ opening sizes formed by ss.
geometry of the three hybrid yams from which the fab-
Figure 2 illustrates the effect of ss density on the EMSE rics are made, they all contain the same ss filaments. In
of the fabrics. The five curves show their peak EMSE the cover yam, the ss filaments cover the spun yam along
values at 1800 MHz. Fabric S I displays a higher EMSE a helical line. Their distance (ss filament length) is the
than S2, S3, S4, and S5, which is attributable to the
longest, so it has a higher electric resistance, resulting in
higher ss density of S compared to the other fabrics. a lower EMSE. In the plied yam, the ss filament twists
Fabric S 1 has a mesh of 0.5 X 0.9 mm, which is higher with the spun yam. The distance is shorter than that of
than those of the other fabrics. The higher the density, the plied yam, so it has a low electrical resistance,
the greater the amount of ss in the fabrics, which im-
resulting in a good EMSE. In the core yam, the ss fila-
proves their EMSE. ments lie in the inner region of the spun yarn. They are
straight and their distance is the shortest among these
COMPARISON OF EMSE BASED ON SS CONTENT IN ONE three yams, so the core yarn has a lower electrical
OR TWO DIRECTIONS
resistance. Certainly, W2 and W3 result in better EMSE.
Fabric S I (in Table I) has ss in both directions,
whereas fabric S6 has ss in only the weft direction. We EFFECT OF VARIOUS GENERA OF SS ON EMSE
compared those two fabrics to investigate the effect of There are two genera of ss, which we selected mainly
the different structures on the EMSE. Figure 3 shows that as the conductive fillers to produce the ss hybrid yams
the S 1 curve has an EMSE of 37.76 dB at 1800 MHz, for the woven fabrics in this experiment. One is an ss
which is much higher than that of S6 (18.15 dB at 500 fiber 8 pm in diameter and 38-80 mm long, and the
MHz). This is because Sl is made from the warp/weft other is an ss filament 50 ILm in diameter. As shown in
interlacing of ss filaments at right angles, so it forms a Table II, W3 is made from the ss filament hybrid yam,
better electrical conducting net. It easily intercepts elec- and W6 is made from the ss staple fiber hybrid yam. The
tronic magnetic waves and destroys their tenacity, result- results in Figure 5 show that W3 has a better EMSE value

TABLE II. Fabrics specifications.

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FiGURE I. Schematic diagrams of.woven fabric opening sizes formed by ss (fabric specifications
of S I -S5 are shown in Table 1.

FIGURE 2. Effect of ss hybrid yarn density on EMSE. FIGURE 4. Effect of yam geometry on EMSE.

FIGURE 3. Comparison of EMSE based on ss content

in one or two directions. FIGURE 5. Effect of various gexra of ss on EMSE.

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54

of 41.25 dB than W6 (35.38 dB) at 1500 MHz. The EMSE ment, we clearly show that the denser structures of ss
of fabric W6 increases with increasing incident fre- fabrics have higher EMSE values. But if the fabrics con-
quency. However, the EMSE of fabric W3 declines after tain ss in only one direction (either warp or weft), they
the peak. It is obvious that after 2000 MHz, the EMSE of have lower EMSE values. The fabric with different genera
W6 is better than the EMSE of W3. We can therefore of ss hybrid yams has the optimum EMSE value at differ-
conclude that the fabrics made from the various genera ent measured frequencies. As to the influence of yam
of ss have optimum EMSE values at different measured structure, a fabric made from the core yam has a higher
frequencies. EMSE than fabrics made from the cover yarn and the plied
z

yarn. As regards weave type, we can conclude that the

EFFECT OF WEAVE TYPE ON EMSE fabrics with 1/1 plain weave structures have optimum
EMSE values.
Figure 6 shows the effect of weave type on the EMSE of
the three fabrics-W3, W4, and W5-with incident fre-
quency. These fabrics are made from the same ss fila- ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
ment hybrid yam listed in Table II. As Figure 6 shows,
the EMSE of the three fabrics increases with increasing This research was supported by the National Science
incident frequency, and then declines after the peak. The Council (NSC 91-2216-E-011-028). We thank our de-
curves of W3 and W4 are nearly identical. The optimum partmental colleagues for their help with the experi-
ments. We also thank the China Textile Institute for
EMSE values of W3 and W4, 41.5 dB in 1500 MHz, are
better than that of W5. However, W5 has a better value providing the electromagnetic shielding tester to evaluate
above 1900 MHz. Analyzing the weave types, W3 (1/1 shielding effectiveness.
plain weave) and W4 (2/2 twill weave) display smaller
square meshes, but the mesh of W5 (3/1 twill weave) is Literature Cited
narrow and longer. This means that W3 and W4 have a
better electrical conducting net than W5 below 1900 1. ASTM D-4935, Standard Test Method for Measuring the
MHz. Consequently, the fabric with the 1/1 plain weave Electromagnetic Shielding Effectiveness of Planar Materi-
has optimum EMSE. als, 448-456, 1989.
structure an
2. Cheng, K. B., Lee, M. L., Ramakrishna, S., and Ueng,
T. H., Electromagnetic Shielding Effectiveness of Stainless
Steel/Polyester Woven Fabrics, Textile Res. J. 71 (1),
42-49 (2001).
3. Kirkpatrick, S., Percolation and Conduction, Rev. Mod.
Phys. 45
(4), 574 (1973).
4. Last, B. J., and Thouless, D. J., Percolation Theory and
Electrical Conductivity, Phys. Rev. Lett. 27(25), 1719
(1971).
5. Stewart R., Recent FCC Shielding Regulation and
Levy,
the Metal Finisher, Metal Finish (7), 21 (1983).
6. Miyasaka, K., Mechanism of Electrical Conduction in
Electrically-conductive Filler-Polymer Composites, Int.
Polym. Sci. Tech. 13
(6), 41-48 (1986).
7. Ramon, S., Metalloplastics: High Conductivity Materials,
Polym. News 8, 134 (1982).
8. Schulz, R. B., Plantz, V. C., and Brush, D. R., Shielding
Theory and Practice, IEEE 187-201 (1988).
9. Shante, V. K. S., and Kirkpatrick, S., An Introduction to
Percolation Theory, Adv. Phys. 20, 325 (1971).
FIGURE 6. Effect of weave type on EMSE. 10. Slupkowski, T., Electrical Conductivity of Polymers Mod-
ified with Conductive Powders, Int. Polym. Sci. Tech.
(6), 80 (1986).
13
Conclusions 11. Storms, C. D.,
et al., Metallizing for EMI/RFI Shielding,
Metal Finish (2), 47 (1983).
As expected, the amount of ss in a fabric has a strong
influence on its EMSE characteristics. From this experi- Manuscript received November J J. 2002; accepted April 28. 2003.

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