Bullets, shrapnel, and the occasional dirty look are all things that Kevlar can put a stop to. OK, only kidding about that last one, but soon Kevlar body armor may be able to stop more than just projectiles. Researchers, looking to upgrade the usefulness of Kevlar (which is already found in everything from SilentArmor tires to fiber optic cables to sports equipment), have been experimenting with giving the polymer a coating that will make it germicidal and fungicidal. While your heavy duty garden gloves may not be immediately affected, germicidal Kevlar would go a long way towards protecting our soldiers, enforcement officials, and emergency response personnel.
Yuyu Sun and Jie Luo, of the University of South Dakota, have been testing Kevlar coated with a germicidal compound. Against organisms like E. Coli, Staph (Staphylococcus aureus), and spores like that found in anthrax, the coated Kevlar resists and kills the organisms, lending an extra level of protection to any wearers that might be exposed to such hazards. While it, by itself, doesn’t afford protection from airborne or other methods of exposure, these biological threats would be incapable of being transmitted via exposed body armor; a welcome relief.
While there is no specific timetable for the deployment of this upgraded Kevlar, the results of Sun and Luo’s work are currently being evaluated by a number of unidentified companies (one probably being DuPont, the original manufacturers of the polymer).
Picture courtesy of: Soller Composites;
