Influence of knitting structure and metal wire amount on electromagnetic shielding effectiveness of knitted fabrics

Abstract

In this study, the influence of knitting structure and metal wire amount on the electromagnetic shielding effectiveness (EMSE) of knitted fabrics were investigated comparatively. Single jersey, single pique, weft locknit, and cross miss fabrics involving stainless steel or copper wires were produced on a flat knitting machine. In order to measure the EMSE, a free space measurement method was used in an anechoic chamber because of its high reproducibility and accuracy. The variance analysis results of the EMSE values showed that knitting structure, metal wire type, metal wire amount, and incident wave frequency is highly significant. It was observed that fabrics with tuck and miss loop structures had higher EMSE values than single jersey fabrics. Also, single pique fabrics had higher EMSE than single jersey fabrics that contain twice as much metal wire. It indicates that the knitting structure has a great effect on EMSE rather than the amount of the conductive material.