UPWEARS Project: from Plant Fibres to Textiles
With the European UPWEARS project, researchers at FEMTO-ST are exploring the potential of bio-based materials, from their mechanical behaviour to the integration of electronic functionalities capable, in particular, of detecting environmental pollutants.
Plant fibres for the textiles of tomorrow
How can we design high-performance, smart and more environmentally friendly textiles? This is the ambition of the European UPWEARS project, funded by the Horizon Europe programme. It brings together 14 academic and industrial partners from 7 countries (including New Zealand) to develop a new generation of technical textiles made from bio-based resources such as flax, hemp and cork.
Running for four years, from September 2024 to August 2028, the project has a total budget of €7.8 million, of which €7 million is funded by Horizon Europe. It is coordinated by INRAE.
Beyond simply replacing synthetic fibres, the project aims to develop a complete value chain, from the processing of plant fibres to their integration into functional, connected and recyclable textiles.
As part of the consortium, Université Marie et Louis Pasteur, through FEMTO-ST, contributes to understanding the behaviour of plant fibres and developing microelectronic functionalities integrated into textiles.
Understanding how plant fibres respond to hygrothermal conditions
The MAT’ECO and MICRO teams from FEMTO-ST’s Applied Mechanics Department are studying the structure and mechanical behaviour of plant fibres and the yarns made from them.
Their properties vary depending, in particular, on their internal structure and environmental conditions. Humidity, for example, can cause fibres to swell and alter their mechanical properties.
Using X-ray microtomography under different humidity conditions, carried out at the MIFHySTO platform, researchers can observe changes in yarn structure and the associated deformations in 3D.
This research helps establish a better understanding of the relationship between fibre structure and the behaviour of yarns and textiles, while also supporting the development of predictive models that account for the variability of plant-based materials.
Plant fibres that respond to their environment
FEMTO-ST’s second contribution to UPWEARS focuses on integrating gas microsensors directly into textiles to monitor the wearer’s exposure to certain pollutants.
Led by Jean-Baptiste Sanchez at the Micro Nano Sciences & Systems Department, this research explores the use of bio-based materials derived from lignin, a by-product of flax and hemp processing, to develop compact, low-power sensors suitable for smart textiles.
Sensors integrated into textiles
Jean-Baptiste Sanchez’s research aims to develop resistive gas microsensors made from bio-based materials, capable of operating at room temperature to minimise energy consumption.
Integrated into flexible textiles and combined with artificial intelligence, these sensors will be able to detect different chemical signatures, paving the way for garments capable of monitoring their surrounding environment in real time.
Bringing together bio-based materials, mechanics and electronics
The originality of UPWEARS lies in bringing together plant fibres, materials science, microelectronics and artificial intelligence to design smart, bio-based textiles.
FEMTO-ST’s research contributes to this approach, from understanding the properties of plant fibres to developing sensors capable of analysing their surroundings, with the aim of creating multifunctional, sustainable and circular textiles.
Towards textiles that can sense their environment
The research aims to improve sensor performance and their integration into flexible textiles. Ultimately, combining plant-based materials, microsensors and artificial intelligence could pave the way for garments capable of detecting and analysing their surroundings in real time, with applications in technical textiles, air quality monitoring and wearable environmental monitoring systems.
Contact : Vincent Placet