Thinsulate is a brand of

synthetic fiber Synthetic fibers or synthetic fibres (in British English; see spelling differences) are fibers made by humans through chemical synthesis, as opposed to natural fibers that are directly derived from living organisms, such as plants like cott ...

thermal insulation Thermal insulation is the reduction of heat transfer (i.e., the transfer of thermal energy between objects of differing temperature) between objects in thermal contact or in range of radiative influence. Thermal insulation can be achieved with s ...

used in

winter clothing Winter clothing are clothes used for protection against the particularly cold weather of winter. Often they have a good water resistance, consist of multiple layers to protect and insulate against low temperatures. Winter clothes are especially o ...

. The word is a

portmanteau In linguistics, a blend—also known as a blend word, lexical blend, or portmanteau—is a word formed by combining the meanings, and parts of the sounds, of two or more words together.

of the words ''thin'' and ''insulate'', trademarked by 3M. The material is made by the 3M Corporation and was first sold in 1979. It was originally marketed as an inexpensive alternative to down; at the time, 3M claimed it was twice as warm as an equivalent amount of any natural material. Originally designed for clothing, it later became popular as an acoustic damping material. In 1997, 3M generated

US$ The United States dollar (Currency symbol, symbol: Dollar sign, $; ISO 4217, currency code: USD) is the official currency of the United States and International use of the U.S. dollar, several other countries. The Coinage Act of 1792 introdu ...

150 million in annual revenue from the product.Fiedler, Terry
"The quiet Thinsulate; 3M again capitalizes on both name, performance with brand extensions.(BUSINESS)."
Star Tribune (Minneapolis, MN). The Star Tribune Company. 1997. HighBeam Research. 13 Sep. 2018 . Its development originated from other microfibre products made by 3M. It has been used in US army clothing since the mid 1980s.

Description

Thinsulate fibers are about in diameter, which is thinner than the

polyester Polyester is a category of polymers that contain one or two ester linkages in every repeat unit of their main chain. As a specific material, it most commonly refers to a type called polyethylene terephthalate (PET). Polyesters include some natura ...

fibers normally used in insulation for clothing such as gloves or winter jackets. Advertising material suggests that Thinsulate is more effective due to the increased density of fibers with decreased size of fibers compared with more traditional insulation. Like most insulation materials, the gaps between fibers not only reduce heat flow, but also allow moisture to escape. It retains its insulating properties when wet. The thermal resistance R-value provided by Thinsulate products varies by the specific thickness and construction of the fabric. Values (US units) range from 1.6 for 80-gram fabric to 2.9 for 200-gram fabric. Thinsulate is considered "the warmest thin apparel insulation" available. In fact, when equal thicknesses are compared, it provides about 1½ times the warmth of down and about twice the warmth of other high-loft insulation materials.

Material safety data sheets A safety data sheet (SDS), material safety data sheet (MSDS), or product safety data sheet (PSDS) is a document that lists information relating to occupational safety and health for the use of various substances and products. SDSs are a widely ...

from the manufacturer show that different varieties of Thinsulate are made from different mixtures of

polymers A polymer () is a substance or material that consists of very large molecules, or macromolecules, that are constituted by many repeating subunits derived from one or more species of monomers. Due to their broad spectrum of properties, b ...

, but most are primarily

polyethylene terephthalate Polyethylene terephthalate (or poly(ethylene terephthalate), PET, PETE, or the obsolete PETP or PET-P), is the most common thermoplastic polymer resin of the polyester family and is used in synthetic fibre, fibres for clothing, packaging, conta ...

or a mixture of polyethylene terephthalate and

polypropylene Polypropylene (PP), also known as polypropene, is a thermoplastic polymer used in a wide variety of applications. It is produced via chain-growth polymerization from the monomer Propene, propylene. Polypropylene belongs to the group of polyolefin ...

. Other materials in some include polyethylene terephthalate-polyethylene isophthalate copolymer and acrylic. Thinsulate is now used in the fabric roof of the convertible automobile, the

Porsche Boxster The Porsche Boxster and Cayman are mid-engine two-seater sports cars manufactured and marketed by German automobile manufacturer Porsche across four generations—as a two-door, two-seater roadster (Boxster) and a three-door, two-seater fastbac ...

. The extra layer not only reduces heat loss but has also reduced noise levels inside the car by 3 decibels. It is also used in the roof of the

Jaguar F-Type The Jaguar F-Type (X152) is a series of two-door, two-seater sports cars manufactured by British car manufacturer Jaguar Land Rover under their Jaguar Cars marque from 2013 to 2024. The car's Jaguar Land Rover car platforms#D6a, JLR D6a platfor ...

sports car. It features in the upholstery of Saturn sedans, Ford F-150 pickups, Buick Park Avenues, and F-16 fighters. It is used in a wide variety of clothing products, such as footwear, gloves, hats, and coats. It became popular in outerwear jackets as early as 1985. The fibers are thinner in diameter than polyester fibres, so the material is used as a waterproof synthetic alternative to down. In 2015 Thinsulate was named a recipient of an ISPO Award as a Top 10 Insulation.

References

External links

* {{3M Synthetic fibers 3M brands Products introduced in 1979 Insulators

Description

References

See also

External links