Thermal storage and insulation properties of a diver dry suit

Thermal storage and insulation properties of a diver dry suit incorporating phase change material are investigated. A complete model for the fabric, air-gap, skin system is developed. The numerical results show that the diver dry suit consisting of phase change material and conventional insulating materials provides significantly enhanced thermal protection under cold environmental conditions. A sensitivity analysis investigates how changes in the values of the thickness of air space affect the temperature distribution in the system. References Chitrphiromsri, P., Kuznetsov, A. V., Modeling heat and moisture transport in firefighter protective clothing during flash fire exposure, J. Heat Mass Transfer., 41, 2005, 206--215. doi:10.1007/s00231-004-0504-x Dusan, F., Kevin, J.L. and Martin S., A computer model of human thermoregulation for a wide range of environmental conditions: the passive system, J Appl Physiol 87,1999, 1957--1972. http://jap.physiology.org/cgi/content/abstract/87/5/1957 J. A. Gear, M. J. Lachut and Y. Ding. Enhanced thermal performance of garments embedded with encapsulated phase change material. ANZIAM J., 47(emac2005):C137--C151, 2006. http://anziamj.austms.org.au/ojs/index.php/ANZIAMJ/article/view/1035. Ghali, K., Ghaddar, N., Harathani, J. and Jones, B., Experimental and numerical investigation of the effect of phase change materials on clothing during periodic ventilation, Textile Research Journal, 74(3), 2004, 205--214. doi:10.1177/004051750407400304 J. M. Hill and J. N. Dewynne. Heat Conduction. Applied Mathematics and Engineering Science Texts. Blackwell Scientific Publications, 1987. Ng, E. Y. K., Tan, H. M. and Ooi, E. H., Boundary element method with bioheat equation for skin burn injury, J. Burns., 35, 2009, 987--997. doi:10.1016/j.burns.2009.01.010 Nuckols, M. L., Analytical modelling of a diver dry suit enhanced with micro-encapsulated phase change materials, J. Ocean Engineering., 26, 1999, 547--564. doi:10.1016/S0029-8018(98)00001-8 Saxena, V. P. and Arya, D., Steady---state heat distribution in epidermis, dermis and subdermal tissues, J. Theor. Biol., 89, 1981, 423--432. doi:10.1016/0022-5193(81)90360-X Saxena, V. P., Temperature distribution in human skin and subdermal tissues, J. theor. Biol., 102(2), 1983, 277--286. doi:10.1016/0022-5193(83)90365-X Wissler, E. H., Pennes' 1948 paper revisited., J. Appl. Physiol., 85, 1998, 35--41. http://jap.physiology.org/cgi/content/abstract/85/1/3