Hydrophilic, Breathable, and Washable Graphene Decorated Textile Assisted by Silk Sericin for Integrated Multimodal Smart Wearables

Achieving integrated systems with comfortability and durability comparable to traditional textiles is one of the ultimate pursuits of smart wearables. This work reports a hydrophilic, breathable, biocompatible, and washable graphene-decorated electronic textile that is achieved with the assistance of silk sericin and enables the fabrication of comfortable and integrated multisensing textiles. The graphene-decorated textile is prepared by dyeing commercial textile with an aqueous graphene ink, which contains natural silk sericin-coated graphene and is free of any artificial chemicals. The conformally coated hydrophilic sericin-graphene flakes and the well-reserved knitted structure endow the textile with good conductivity, excellent hydrophilicity, biocompatibility, breathability, and flexibility, ensuring its electronic performance and wearing-comfort. Moreover, the obtained textile is washable after processed with a cross-linking agent. Based on the obtained textile, an integrated multisensing textile that can simultaneously collect and analyze myoelectrical and mechanical signals is developed, enabling the recognition and distinguishment of complex human motions. With the combined features of hydrophilicity, breathability, biocompatibility, washability, and versatility, this strategy of fabricating electronic textiles based on conventional textiles and an aqueous sericin-graphene ink provides a scalable and sustainable way to construct smart wearables.

Automated summary

This work presents the fabrication of a hydrophilic, breathable, biocompatible, and washable graphene-decorated electronic textile using silk sericin. The resulting textile exhibits good conductivity, excellent hydrophilicity, biocompatibility, breathability, and flexibility. An integrated multisensing textile is also developed based on this textile, allowing for the collection and analysis of myoelectrical and mechanical signals. This strategy provides a scalable and sustainable way to construct smart wearables.