New Zealand : Space clothing to beat circuit heat

Ace drivers Lewis Hamilton and Kimi Raikkonen can now beat the heat when they power their cars to the finish line.
This is because drivers will now don racing gears made from the same fabric that was used in suits of NASA astronauts. Like the cosmonauts, this special fabric will help the drivers maintain a comfortable body temperature on the circuit.
The range of garments, called 2BKool, integrates phase change materials to help drivers and pit crew control their body temperature.
Used in a wide range of industrial applications, phase change material, known as PCMs, help regulate temperature by quickly absorbing large quantities of heat as they change from a solid to a liquid state.
Racing drivers and their crew members have to face a lot of heat stress as they wear fire resistant clothing. In order to tackle heat generated due to this clothing, drivers take recourse to complex external cooling systems.
2BKool's revolutionary approach is to include PCMs in the clothing to help the wearer maintain a comfortable body temperature.
Apart from this, research is also being conducted as to how 2BKool can be put to medical use, including heat regulation of multiple sclerosis patients, as well as its military applications, where 2BKool's ability to mask heat profiles is being probed.