SMITA Research Lab- CoE in Smart Textiles

SMITA Research Lab, established in 2007 under the joint coordination of Prof. Ashwini. K. Agrawal and    Prof. Manjeet Jassal, is the first group, to initiate research work on Smart Textile Materials in India. Awarded the status of Centre of Excellence (CoE) in Smart Textiles in 2021, the centre now has a motivated team of faculty members from other departments such as Chemistry, Electrical Engineering, Chemical Engineering, Physics, Biotechnology, and Design, to bring in new concepts for developing novel smart textile materials.

1. Enhance the visibility of the work being carried out by the institute in the area of SMART Textiles.

2. Encourage and support researchers from other departments and disciplines to explore their interest in Smart Textile Materials.

3. Create technically competent manpower for the development and commercialization of Smart Textile Materials in the country.

4. Network with other agencies, institutes, labs, and industries (National as well as international) to develop and commercialize novel technologies in Smart and functional textiles.

5.  Serve as a national resource for academic, industrial, and government researchers in the field of Smart and Functional Textiles.

Equipped with state-of-the-art research facilities, the Centre has been instrumental in developing several cutting-edge technologies and taking them to commercial scale with the help of Industry partners. Some of the novel technologies that have been commercialized or are ready for commercialization are:

1. Pollutant and mal-odour capturing textiles

2. Highly efficient moisture management finish for textiles

3. Aqua silver-based anti-viral nanocoating

4. Blue silver technology for antimicrobial textiles (National Award for the year 2016),

5. Nanofibre-based filters for automobiles and personal protection (National Award for the year 2017)

6.  Aqueous-based self-cleaning technology

7.  Continuous electrospinning machine for commercial applications

8.  Corneal implants based on transparent nanofibre scaffolds

9.  Specialized medical bandages

10. Atmospheric pressure plasma reactor technology for chemical processing of textiles

11. Wearable flexible and stretchable sensors and other textile-based electronic devices.