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OpNom: IVA Clothing Study
Overview | Description | Applications | Operations | Results | Publications | Imagery
Experiment OverviewThe Intravehicular Activity Clothing Study (IVA Clothing Study) dresses crewmembers in commercially available lightweight clothes that have been designed to resist germs. There’s no laundry in space, so dirty garments are trashed. Sufficient cotton clothes for a crew of six adds more than 900 pounds of freight to the International Space Station. Replacing crew uniforms with non-cotton apparel could reduce weight for cargo launches and trash removal, and provide crewmembers with more comfortable, longer-lasting clothes.
Principal Investigator(s)
Developer(s)
Johnson Space Center, Houston, TX, United States
National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA)
Sponsoring OrganizationTechnology Demonstration Office (TDO)
Research BenefitsInformation Pending
ISS Expedition DurationMarch 2014 - September 2014
Expeditions Assigned39/40
Previous ISS MissionsInformation Pending
• Why is the research needed?
o Clothing accounts for over 900 pounds for an ISS crew of six for a year. Traditional cotton garments also contribute to lint generation causing clogging of air filters and increased cleaning.
• What will be accomplished?
o Test the length of wear and crew response to light weight, germ resistant, commercially available clothing.
• What will be the impact of the research?
o Reduce clothing launch and trash mass.
o Provide crew with comfortable, long lasting clothing.
N/A
DescriptionBoth preflight and in-flight, astronauts will wear study t-shirts and shorts for 15-day study periods, one preflight period and one in-flight period. There is no postflight activity. For the preflight component of the study, there is only an exercise wear activity. For the in-flight component of the study, there are both routine wear and exercise wear components of the study for t-shirts and just an exercise wear component for shorts. For routine wear, either a modacrylic or an Icebreaker Wool t-shirt will be worn. For exercise periods, a polyester t-shirt and shorts will be worn during cardiovascular sessions only. Exercise t-shirts and shorts will be pretreated with an approved antimicrobial.
Some of the exercise t-shirts and all of the shorts will be treated with the antimicrobial 3-(Trimethoxsilyl) propyldimethyloctadecyl ammonium chloride, Chemical Abstract Service number (CAS #) 27668-52-6, from the supplier PureShield, Inc., under the brand name Bio-Protect 500. This compound was reviewed and approved in 2007 by the Environmental Protection Agency as safe for use on clothing when applied as directed in Reregistration Eligibility Decision (RED) EPA 739-R-07-007.
Other exercise t-shirts will be made with yarn containing an antimicrobial copper ion. This fabric treatment is marketed commercially under the name Cupron, by Cupron, Inc. The material has passed standard allergenicity and skin irritation tests. This compound was reviewed and approved in 2011 by the Environmental Protection Agency as safe for use in fabrics for personal use such as bed linens with EPA Registration Number 84542-6.
All t-shirts and shorts will be hung up to dry out and then stowed away when not in use during the 15-day study periods. A questionnaire, taking five to ten minutes, will be completed at the end of each day for the routine wear t-shirt and after each exercise period for the exercise wear t-shirt and shorts. If a t-shirt or shorts are deemed no longer acceptable for wear, then that item will be withdrawn from use and a new study item will be put in use. For the preflight component, all t-shirts and shorts will be returned to representatives of the PI. For the in-flight component, used t-shirts and shorts will be discarded.
Eliminating cotton would reduce lint, which can clog air filters on the International Space Station. Longer-lasting and lighter-weight clothes can reduce storage and launch requirements for crewmember apparel, which reduces costs. Clothing with antimicrobial properties can reduce odor problems.
Earth ApplicationsCrewmembers exercise in commercially available shirts and shorts repeatedly, until they deem the clothes no longer acceptable to wear. Some of the test clothing is treated with various antimicrobial products, which could also be used in areas of the world where washing clothes is difficult.
Crew members will wear the exercise shirt and shorts only during cardiovascular exercise sessions. This may include T2, TVIS, and CEVIS hardware. The exercise clothing will be hung up to dry for up to 4 hours and then stored in flame-resistant bags. A questionnaire will be taken daily soon after exercise to document perception of the exercise clothing and at the end of the day to document perception of the routine wear shirts. Routine wear shirts will be worn during all nominal activities. If a PAO event or another event requires a different shirt to be worn, it will be worn over the provided routine wear shirt.
Operational Protocols
• Exercise Shirts and Shorts
o Crew members will wear the provided exercise shirts and shorts during cardiovascular exercise sessions (T2, CEVIS, TVIS) for a 15 day study period.
o After each exercise session, the garments will be hung up to dry for up to 4 hours and then placed in flame-resistant bags for storage until the next day.
o A questionnaire will be taken after the exercise session to document perception of the garments.
o The same garments will be worn on subsequent study days until the crew member does not deem it acceptable to wear.
o Fresh garments will be used on the following exercise session.
• Routine Wear Shirts
o Routine wear shirts will be provided to the 3 crew members participating in the 15 day study to wear during nominal daily activities.
o At the end of each day, a questionnaire will be taken to document perception of the shirt.
o The shirt will be reworn on subsequent days until it is deemed unacceptable at which point a fresh shirt will be put on.
Information Pending