Bio-inspired approaches to design smart fabrics

The nature's intrigue plans to create structures from nano-micro to mesoscale has inspired researchers to design artificial object with novel and extra ordinary properties. Recently, the convergence of biomaterials and polymer advances from nano-to micro-scale with new experimental and computational tools has provided the opportunity to constitute increasingly complex fabrics for the textiles industry. In this regard, learning lessons from efficient natural processes to design smart fabrics, mimicking natural phenomena could revolutionize the textile industry for the design of interactive apparel. Here, we review 10 bio-inspired strategies to imply textile industry, to change the face of fashion and fabrics, based upon current advances in science to enrich diverse areas of textile industry. In each case, we present examples demonstrating nature's design and subsequent parallel advances in biomimetic materials and polymer sciences, combining interdisciplinary engineering principles to mimic nature inspired designs into fabrics. We predict as advances in science of biomimesis continue to unfold and uncover finer details, bioinspired emulations may increasingly give way to benefit in designing smart fabrics. (C) 2011 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.