Scalable Reconfigurable Meta-textile System Enabling Adaptive and Self-Automated Thermoregulation

Abstract

Radiative thermoregulatory textiles control thermal emission without continuous energy input, offering a sustainable route to personal thermal comfort and energy savings. However, it remains challenging for such textiles to autonomously respond to complex or rapid environmental changes while maintaining comfort across wide temperature fluctuations. Here, we develop a scalable, adaptive, and self-automated thermoregulatory meta-textile (ASTM) system by integrating a reconfigurable metallic–polymer meta-textile with sensing, control, and actuation modules. The mechanically reconfigurable metafiber architecture provides large and continuous infrared emissivity modulation, while the closed-loop control system enables automatic adaptation to environmental changes without human intervention. The ASTM expands the thermal comfort zone by 16.5 °C and maintains a stable temperature range of 20–26.7 °C during outdoor temperature fluctuations of up to 23.4 °C. Building energy simulations show that the meta-textile can achieve an average annual heating and cooling energy savings of 515 MJ m⁻² across global climates, with notable CO₂ reduction potential. This work demonstrates a system-integrated strategy for smart thermoregulatory textiles and provides a practical route toward personalized thermal comfort and energy-efficient building envelopes.

Graphical Abstract

Keywords

Thermoregulatory textiles / Dynamic infrared emissivity / Adaptive thermal management / Building energy savings

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Funding

Shanghai Science and Technology Development Foundation(24CL2900500)

Shanghai Jiao Tong University 2030 Initiative

Ministry of Education, Singapore(A-8000107-01-00)

National Research Foundation, Singapore (NRF) under NRF’s Medium Sized Centre: Singapore Hybrid-Integrated Next-Generation μ-Electronics (SHINE) Centre funding programme

RIGHTS & PERMISSIONS

Donghua University, Shanghai, China

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