Optimal Selection of Working Cloth Fabric for Military Personnel and Workers in Hot and Dry Areas with A Multivariate Decision-Making Approach

Working cloth is one of the most important personal protective equipment for workers and the military, and its proper selection for hot and dry areas plays an important role in heat exchange and balance between the human body and the environment. Therefore, this study was conducted to evaluate the heat transfer and comfort of fabrics and the optimal selection of fabrics for military personnel and workers in hot and dry areas.

This experimental study was carried out on 16 types of common fabrics of military personnel and workers in hot and dry areas. This fabric has a combination of 4 texture patterns and 4 types of percentage of a combination of cotton and polyester. The fabrics were evaluated in terms of air permeability and water vapor permeability, water absorption, equivalent pore radius, thermal conductivity, tear resistance, and bending stiffness of the machine. Finally, the optimal fabric was selected by combining multivariate decision-making and hierarchical analysis (AHP-TOPSIS) and compared with other fabrics using SPSS 16 software.

The results of AHP-TOPSIS showed that the fabric with a combined share of 65% cotton and 35% polyester with a texture of 1/2 shows the optimal behavior in terms of comfort characteristics and heat transfer of the fabric. In a texture of 1/2, the average amount of water absorption, bending stiffness and thermal conductivity in 35% polyester and 65% cotton fabrics are not significantly different from 100% cotton fabrics (P>0.05). Also, the average amount of air and water vapor permeability and tear resistance in 35% polyester and 65% cotton fabrics are not significantly different from 65% polyester and 35% cotton fabrics (P>0.05).  

The results of this study showed that the most optimal fabric for military personnel and workers in hot and dry areas has a composition of 65% cotton and 35% polyester and also has a texture of 1/2.