An investigation of thermal comfort properties of Abaya woven fabrics |
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Authors: | Salwa Tashkandi Sinnappoo Kanesalingam |
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Affiliation: | 1. School of Fashion and Textiles, RMIT University , Melbourne , Australia;2. Department of Fashion and Textiles , King Abdul Aziz University , Jeddah , Kingdom of Saudi Arabia;3. School of Fashion and Textiles, RMIT University , Melbourne , Australia |
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Abstract: | Abaya is a traditional Muslim woman’s outer garment. It is black in colour, and must be worn over the normal day-to-day clothing according to Islamic law. It is mandatory to wear Abaya in Arabian Gulf countries irrespective of the outside environmental temperature, which can be up to 50°C. Having many layers of clothing including Abaya makes it extremely uncomfortable for the wearer in a hot environment. Thermal comfort performance is, therefore, essential for fabrics used for Abaya. This study investigated some commercially available woven Abaya fabrics for thermal resistance, air permeability, thermal comfort, vapour resistance and fabric structural and surface properties. The results indicated that the Abaya fabrics with different weave structures, fibre composition and fabric weight have greater influence on the fabric thermal comfort performance. |
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Keywords: | Abaya thermal comfort thermal resistance air permeability woven fabric |
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