What is the Effect of Various Fabrics on Heat Loss Caused by Wind?
Researched by Melissa E. 2000-01	PURPOSE  HYPOTHESIS  EXPERIMENT DESIGN  MATERIALS  PROCEDURES  RESULTS  CONCLUSION  RESEARCH REPORT  BIBLIOGRAPHY  ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Purpose

The purpose of this experiment was to determine the effect of various fabrics on heat loss caused by wind.

I became interested in this idea while looking through the atlas at our school library to get more information about wind because I want to be able to choose the best type of clothing for keeping warm during the coldest times of the year.

The information gained from this experiment would help people to choose the right fabrics while purchasing winter clothing.

Hypothesis

My hypothesis was that out of the materials tested (Wool, Denim, Fleece, Leather, and Cotton/Polyester), that the wool fabric would provide the best insulation.

While researching the five fabrics all of them claimed to provide the best insulation during the winter. So I based my hypothesis on observing that the majority of people wear wool during the winter to help insulate their body temperature. 

Experiment Design

The constants in this study were: 

The speed of the wind
The temperature and the amount of water
The size of the container
The size of fabric pieces
The thermometer 
The placement of the jar and the fan 
The stopwatch

The manipulated variable was the type of fabric used to wrap the glass jar around its sides and on the bottom. 
 

The responding variable was how long it took the jar’s temperature to drop from 38 degrees Celsius to 27 degrees Celsius. 

To measure the responding variable I used a stopwatch.

Materials
 

QUANTITY	ITEM DESCRIPTION
1	Denim fabric square  (22 X11cm)
1	Wool fabric square  (22 X 11cm)
1	Fleece fabric square  (22 X 11cm)
1	Leather fabric square (22 X 11cm)
1	Cotton/Polyester fabric square (22 X 11cm)
1	Glass Jar
1	Glass thermometer
	Tap Water
1	Fan

Procedures

1.  Gather all material 
2.  Fill glass jar up to rim with hot tap water and place glass thermometer in water. 
3.  Wait for temperature of the water to drop to 38 degrees Celsius.
4.  Place fan blowing at its highest speed 30centimeters in front of the jar.
5.  Watch the temperature of the water until it drops to 27 degrees Celsius.
6.  Record amount of time it took in seconds.
7.  Repeat procedures 2-3
8.  Cover all of jar except for the top with a 30centimeter piece of fabric.
9.  Repeat procedures 4-6
10.  Repeat procedure 7-8 using each piece of fabric.
11.  Repeat procedures 2-10 for a second, third, and fourth trial.
12.   Record all data

Results

The original purpose of this experiment was to determine the effect of various fabrics on heat loss caused by wind.
 
 

The results of the experiment were that the Fleece fabric with a heat loss average time of 3749 seconds provided the best insulation compared to Wool with a time of 2267 seconds, Denim with a time of 2286 seconds, Leather with a time of 2859 seconds, and Cotton/Polyester with a time of 1963 seconds.

See the table and graphs

Conclusion

My hypothesis was that the wool fabric was going to provide the best insulation for the glass jar when covered at a cold temperature.

The results indicate that this hypothesis should be rejected because the fleece fabric provided the best insulation for the water in the glass jar.

Because of the results of this experiment, I wonder what it would be like to do an experiment on heat loss caused by various temperatures of water instead of air.

If I were to conduct this project again I would have set a time limit for the jar’s temperature to drop and I would have used more fabrics to test with and had more trials.
 
 
 

Research Report     INTRODUCTION  Where winters are cold, people need insulating fabrics to keep themselves warm. Some of the fabrics used are natural fibers and some are man-made. Wool  Wool is an animal fiber that forms a covering that protects sheep or other hairy animals such as goats and camels. Pre-historic man used wool to cover himself. In every day life we still use wool as clothing but it is now more modified. To obtain wool a sheep is sheered. When the wool is cleaned it removes "wool grease" which is made into lanolin and is marketed for cosmetics and ointments. Wool fibers can resist breakage when weights up to 0.5 to 1 ounce are subjected to it. But when wool is wet it can be broken more easily. Denim  Denim is a durable twill-woven cotton fabric that has warp and white filling threads that are dyed to be a certain color, usually blue. Denim is also woven in colored stripes. The name "denim" is said to have originated from the French word, serge de Nimes. Over decades denim has proven to be comfortable, warm, durable, and great for heavy labor. Since denim was so strong it was used for leisurewear in the 20th century. Fleece  Fleece is a warm fabric that is manufactured and used to keep people warm during any time of the year and is used for many different styles of clothing. Fleece is also lightweight and is easy to pack around for camping and sitting indoors.  Leather  Leather is made from cowhide and is sold for many different purposes, like clothing that is heavy but warm, such as jackets, boots, and even gloves. Leather is also used to make hats to block the wind from your face and help insulate your body temperature from your head, feet, core, and even hands. Cotton/Polyester  This fabric is used to make sweatshirt material that is warm and durable for any time of year. Many people use this material to go outside without having to put on a heavy coat. It is very cost efficient and is used in many ways to help keep your body warm. Thermodynamics  Thermodynamics is the study of various forms of energy and the conversion of energy from one form into another. Thermodynamics is used to help engineers, chemists, and physicists understand events in nature and is based on two laws. The first law states that energy in a system cannot be created or destroyed. It is either converted from one form into another or transferred from one system to another. The second law deals with the natural direction of energy process that states that heat will only flow from a hotter object to a colder object. Summary Discussed were the fabrics used in this experiment: Denim, Wool, Fleece, Leather, and Cotton/Polyester. Also information on Thermodynamics was included because it deals with heat and energy loss.

Bibliography "Cotton/Polyester", [Online] Available http://www.britannnica.com  December 18, 2000 "Denim", [Online] Available http://www.britannnica.com  December 18, 2000 "Fleece", [Online] Available http://www.britannnica.com  December 18, 2000 "Gore-Tex", [Online] Available http://www.britannnica.com  December 18, 2000 "Leather", [Online] Available http://www.britannnica.com  December 18, 2000  "Thermodynamics", World Book Encyclopedia  January 24, 2001  "Wool", [Online] Available http://www.britannnica.com  December 18, 2000

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
I would like to thank the following people for their contributions in making my science project possible and successful. 

• I would like to thank Bree for helping me with writing my journal and my overall science project. 
• I would like to thank Alicia for helping me with my science project by getting the fabrics for my project.
• I would like to thank Ali for helping me with my science project by always waiting for me to get done with my project instead of just leaving after school.
• I would like to thank Katie for helping me with my science project by taking some of the pictures when I was doing my experiment.
• I would like to thank Mrs. Pasckvale for helping me with my science journal and my project display board.
• I would also like to thank Mr. Newkirk for helping me chose an experiment that had something to do with wind chill. 

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