SmartTextiles

History

2023: Starting production of the thinnest surgical threads

In June 2023, on the basis of the scientific and technological park "Factory" BFU named after I. Kant, a laboratory of polymer and composite materials SmartTextiles was opened. One of her projects is the production of the thinnest synthetic surgical suture threads based on polyamide in Russia.

To create threads in the laboratory, an extruder is used - a device that allows you to create a thread with specified properties from polymer raw materials. Further, specialists check the produced material for electrical conductivity and mechanical characteristics.

On the basis of the scientific and technological park "Factory" opened a laboratory of polymer and composite materials SmartTextiles

The industrial partner of the project is the Amperetex plant, which is engaged in the production of high-tech products in the Kaliningrad region.

According to the developers, a unique feature of the new threads is their thickness. The diameter of the development is 10 microns and less. There were no sutures thinner than 40 microns on the Russian market before. Ultra-thin threads will be applied in the field of vascular surgery, neuro- and cardiac surgery.

Composite threads will become the basis of smart textiles. Such a fabric, as noted in the university, has seamless integration with electronic elements, such as microcontrollers, sensors and wires. These materials are used for the manufacture of medical and sportswear, which controls many functions of the body in real time, details and elements of the interior, upholstery of furniture.

To create smart clothes, increasing attention is paid to fabrics that are capable of conducting electricity. For this purpose metal fibres are used together with textile fibres. However, metals and classical semiconductors are rigid materials, which limits the possibilities during the wearing of clothing from such products. On the basis of the new SmartTextiles BFU laboratory, research is actively underway to develop and create electrically conductive threads and transistors from textile fibers in order to completely eliminate metal, "said Olga Moskalyuk, head of the SmartTextiles laboratory.[1]

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