Oct 2022
Speaker: Professor Juan Hinestroza, Cornell University
Our research group has focused a significant portion of our research efforts not only developing new materials, but also imparting new functionalities to materials that have been used traditionally as textile fibers. We use cotton as a primary substrate as cotton is a very challenging natural fiber with quite unique physical and chemical heterogeneities –heterogeneities that are amplified as cotton fibers are transformed into yarns and then into textile structures. Our research group was the first one to report on the decoration of cotton fibers and fabrics with Metal-Organic Frameworks (MOF). We were also the first to evaluate the potential use of these new textile substrates as sorbents for pesticides as well as antibacterial fabrics. We expanded this work by using lantanide-based MOF structures to change the color of cotton from its traditional white to red, green, and blue (RGB) colors under exposure to UV. Lately, we ventured into post-modification strategies of MOF structures to expand the color palette of these materials under visible light, hence creating true panchromatic MOFs. We have expanded our portfolio from the use of nanoparticles, nanolayers of polymers, and nanolayers of metal oxides to the incorporation of quantum wires and superabsorbent polymers onto cotton fibers, yarns and fabrics. Our ultimate goal is to impart unique properties to natural fibers without affecting their comfort and textile properties. We believe that natural fibers will remain a large section of the textile market for years to come and that enabling them with unique properties is an avenue for creating revolutionary textile materials without significantly altering existing textile manufacturing processes.
Juan P. Hinestroza, a U.S. Fulbright Scholar and a PMP®, is the Rebecca Q. Morgan '60 Professor of Fiber Science & Apparel Design, and directs The Textiles Nanotechnology Laboratory at the College of Human Ecology of Cornell University in Ithaca, NY. Professor Hinestroza works on understanding fundamental phenomena at the nanoscale that are of relevance to Fiber and Polymer Science. Hinestroza, is inventor of more than 33 granted international patents; author of over 100 peer-reviewed articles and 5 book chapters; and co-editor of a seminal book on cellulose-based green composites. Hinestroza’s pioneering work has enabled the creation of 3 start-up companies, and he has served as a consultant to major Fortune50 corporations, and investment banks in the field of smart and interactive textiles and fibers.