A one-way moisture-wicking fever-reducing patch and its preparation method

Abstract

This invention discloses a one-way hygroscopic fever-reducing patch and its preparation method. The preparation method includes the following steps: S1. Hydrophobic treatment of cotton fabric to obtain hydrophobic cotton fabric; S2. Hydrophilic treatment of one side of the hydrophobic cotton fabric using air plasma to obtain the one-way hygroscopic fever-reducing patch. This invention prepares a one-way hygroscopic cotton fabric that is hydrophilic on one side and hydrophobic on the other by using hydrophobic reagents to treat the cotton fabric and air plasma to treat it with hydrophilicity. The degree and thickness of hydrophilicity can be precisely controlled by adjusting the time and power of the hydrophilic treatment, solving the technical problems of short cooling time and gradually decreasing cooling effect of existing fever-reducing patches. The preparation method is simple and easy to operate. The prepared one-way hygroscopic fever-reducing patch has a significant cooling effect, not only about 1.5℃ lower than the original cotton fabric, but also achieving efficient cooling for up to seven hours by spraying 0.3-0.5g of water every 20 minutes.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This invention relates to the field of fever-reducing patch technology, specifically to a one-way moisture-wicking fever-reducing patch and its preparation method. Background Technology

[0002] Fever, also known as pyrexia, refers to a condition where a body temperature rises above the normal range due to a direct effect of a pyrogen on the body's temperature regulation center, dysfunction of the temperature regulation center, or excessive heat production and reduced heat dissipation caused by various reasons. A traditional method for reducing fever is to cover the feverish forehead with a thick, damp towel, relying on the evaporation of moisture for physical cooling. However, using a damp towel to lower body temperature presents several problems. First, towels are bulky, requiring a lot of water to wet them, resulting in wasted water. Second, it's difficult to control the degree of wetness during actual use. If the towel is not wet enough, it won't provide enough moisture for evaporation and cooling; if it's too wet, excess water will overflow from the edges, causing inconvenience. A wet towel can also put pressure on the forehead, causing discomfort. Finally, due to severe moisture dispersion, the water near the skin often evaporates completely, while the water further away from the skin remains stagnant, causing heat to accumulate between the forehead and the wet towel. This not only fails to cool the body but also creates a stuffy and uncomfortable feeling, further aggravating the condition.

[0003] Currently, various medical fever-reducing patches are available on the market. These patches typically consist of a backing layer, a gel layer, and a polyethylene film covering layer. The gel layer contains hydrophilic polymer hydrogel; when used, the water in the gel layer vaporizes, thus carrying away local heat from the body and achieving a physical cooling effect. However, medical fever-reducing patches on the market generally have some problems. First, even if a medical fever-reducing patch contains polymer hydrogel, such water cannot support its cooling effect for a long time; therefore, the stated cooling time for medical fever-reducing patches is generally only 4-6 hours. Second, in actual use, it has been found that medical fever-reducing patches cool down rapidly in the initial stage, but the cooling effect gradually decreases with the extension of the usage time, thus failing to guarantee a good cooling effect. Finally, most medical fever-reducing patches use additives in the manufacturing process, and these additives are harmful to special groups such as newborns and pregnant women; therefore, medical fever-reducing patches will have warnings stating that they should not be used by newborns and pregnant women. Summary of the Invention

[0004] To address the shortcomings and deficiencies of existing technologies, the primary objective of this invention is to provide a method for preparing a unidirectional moisture-wicking fever-reducing patch. Cotton fabrics are widely used in the textile industry due to their low cost, easy availability, good softness, excellent breathability, and biodegradability. However, cotton fabrics themselves do not possess unidirectional moisture-wicking properties. Therefore, this invention mainly involves surface modification of cotton fabrics, transforming the originally hydrophilic cotton fabric into a unidirectional moisture-wicking cotton fabric with one side hydrophilic and the other side hydrophobic, thereby utilizing this unidirectional moisture-wicking function to prepare a unidirectional moisture-wicking fever-reducing patch for long-lasting cooling.

[0005] Another objective of this invention is to provide a one-way moisture-wicking fever-reducing patch prepared by the above method, which uses the physical method of water evaporation to reduce temperature, so as to achieve the purpose of reducing the user's fever (body temperature <37°C).

[0006] The above-mentioned objective of this invention is achieved through the following technical solution:

[0007] A method for preparing a one-way hygroscopic fever-reducing patch includes the following steps:

[0008] S1. Perform hydrophobic treatment on cotton fabric to obtain hydrophobic cotton fabric;

[0009] S2. Use air plasma to hydrophilicate one side of the surface of the hydrophobic cotton fabric to obtain the unidirectional moisture-wicking fever-reducing patch.

[0010] This invention modifies traditional single-piece hydrophilic cotton fabric into a unidirectional moisture-wicking cotton fabric that is hydrophilic on one side and hydrophobic on the other, enabling it to transport liquids in one direction. Specifically, liquids are transported from the hydrophobic side to the hydrophilic side, and vice versa. Because the modified cotton fabric has different degrees of wettability on both sides, only one side (the hydrophilic side) can hold water. This structure has unique advantages: firstly, the hydrophobic side does not need to be wetted, reducing the volume of the cotton fabric that needs to be wetted and lowering water consumption; secondly, water is concentrated on the hydrophilic side of the cotton fabric (i.e., the side that is closer to the hot skin during use), enhancing the water evaporation effect and thus achieving efficient cooling.

[0011] Traditional hydrophilic modification methods cannot create an adjustable hydrophilic layer on a single piece of cotton fabric. Soaking the entire fabric in a hydrophilic reagent will modify it to be hydrophilic; while applying a hydrophilic substance to one side of the hydrophobically modified fabric to form a separate hydrophilic layer not only involves additional material consumption, but the applied substance is also prone to embedding into the fabric pores, leading to reduced air permeability. This invention uses air plasma for hydrophilic treatment, which allows for precise control of the degree and thickness of hydrophilicity by adjusting the treatment time and power. Air plasma modification only involves changing the chemical bonds of the fabric surface material, specifically by imparting -OH hydrophilic groups to the silica on the fabric surface, without altering the fabric's morphology, thus effectively maintaining the original fabric's air permeability and other properties.

[0012] Furthermore, in step S1, the thickness of the cotton fabric is 0.4 to 0.6 mm.

[0013] Furthermore, in step S1, the hydrophobic treatment involves spraying or soaking the cotton fabric with a hydrophobic reagent.

[0014] Preferably, the hydrophobic reagent is an environmentally friendly and non-toxic Glaco reagent.

[0015] Furthermore, the hydrophobic treatment also includes a step of removing excess moisture.

[0016] Furthermore, the removal of excess moisture specifically involves evaporating the excess moisture at 70–75°C.

[0017] Further, in step S2, the air plasma is selected from one or more of oxygen, nitrogen, and argon.

[0018] Furthermore, in step S2, the hydrophilic treatment time is 0.5 to 3.5 minutes.

[0019] Furthermore, in step S2, the power of the hydrophilic treatment is 500-800W.

[0020] If the hydrophilic treatment time or power is too low, the irradiated side of the cotton fabric cannot be modified to be hydrophilic; if the hydrophilic treatment time or power is too high, the non-irradiated side (reverse side) of the cotton fabric will be modified to be hydrophilic.

[0021] This invention also protects a one-way hygroscopic fever-reducing patch prepared by the above method.

[0022] This invention utilizes the unidirectional liquid transport properties of unidirectional moisture-wicking cotton fabric, allowing moisture to be fully transferred to the side of the fever-reducing patch closest to the skin. Since the forehead of a person with a fever is at a high temperature (>37°C), the moisture will continue to evaporate under the influence of the high temperature on the forehead, and the evaporation will take away heat, thus achieving the purpose of reducing fever (<37°C).

[0023] The one-way moisture-wicking fever-reducing patch provided by this invention abandons the gel layer with limited water molecule content used in medical fever-reducing patches, and instead sprays moisture directly onto the cotton fabric side. In a specific embodiment, only 0.3 to 0.5g of water needs to be sprayed each time to achieve continuous cooling for up to 20 minutes; repeated spraying can achieve cooling for up to 7 hours.

[0024] The one-way moisture-wicking fever-reducing patch provided by this invention does not contain any additives and is suitable for special populations such as newborns and pregnant women, overcoming the problem that existing medical fever-reducing patches cannot be universally applied.

[0025] Compared with the prior art, the beneficial effects of the present invention are:

[0026] 1. This invention prepares a unidirectional moisture-wicking cotton fabric that is hydrophilic on one side and hydrophobic on the other by using a hydrophobic reagent to treat the cotton fabric and air plasma to treat it with hydrophilicity. The degree of hydrophilicity and the thickness of the hydrophilicity can be precisely controlled by adjusting the time and power of the hydrophilic treatment. The preparation method is simple and easy to operate.

[0027] 2. The one-way moisture-wicking fever-reducing patch provided by the present invention abandons the gel layer with limited water molecule content used in medical fever-reducing patches, and instead sprays water directly onto the cotton fabric side. Each time only 0.3 to 0.5g of water needs to be sprayed, it can achieve continuous cooling for up to 20 minutes; repeated spraying can achieve cooling for up to 7 hours.

[0028] 3. The one-way moisture-wicking fever-reducing patch provided by this invention does not contain any additives and is suitable for special populations such as newborns and pregnant women, overcoming the problem of the lack of universal applicability of existing medical fever-reducing patches. Attached Figure Description

[0029] Figure 1 This is an SEM image of the hydrophobic surface of the unidirectional moisture-wicking fever-reducing patch prepared in Example 1.

[0030] Figure 2 This is an SEM image of the hydrophilic surface of the unidirectional hygroscopic fever-reducing patch prepared in Example 1.

[0031] Figure 3 These are XPS images of the hydrophobic and hydrophilic surfaces of the unidirectional moisture-wicking fever-reducing patch prepared in Example 1.

[0032] Figure 4 This is the SEM image of the fever-reducing patch prepared in Comparative Example 1.

[0033] Figure 5 This is a diagram showing the contact angle changes of the hydrophilic and hydrophobic sides of the unidirectional hygroscopic fever-reducing patch prepared in Example 1.

[0034] Figure 6 The images show the test results of fever-reducing patches prepared with different hydrophilic treatment parameters.

[0035] Figure 7 This is a comparison diagram of the evaporation of the one-way hygroscopic fever-reducing patch (JAP) prepared in Example 1 and the original cotton fabric (CF).

[0036] Figure 8 This is a comparison of the real-time cooling effects of the one-way moisture-wicking fever-reducing patch (JAP), the original cotton fabric (CF), and the medical fever-reducing patch (MAP) prepared in Example 1 on a heating platform.

[0037] Figure 9 This is a comparison chart of the real-time cooling effects of the one-way moisture-wicking fever-reducing patch (JAP), the original cotton fabric (CF), and the medical fever-reducing patch (MAP) prepared in Example 1 during actual use. Detailed Implementation

[0038] Unless otherwise defined, all technical and scientific terms used herein have the same meaning as those commonly understood by those skilled in the art of the present invention. The terms used in this specification of the present invention are only for the purpose of describing specific embodiments and are not intended to limit the present invention.

[0039] The present invention will be further described below with reference to the accompanying drawings and specific embodiments, so that those skilled in the art can better understand and implement the present invention. However, the embodiments described are not intended to limit the present invention.

[0040] Unless otherwise specified, the experimental methods used in the following examples are conventional methods, and the materials and reagents used are commercially available.

[0041] This invention provides a method for preparing a one-way hygroscopic fever-reducing patch, comprising the following steps:

[0042] S1. Perform hydrophobic treatment on cotton fabric to obtain hydrophobic cotton fabric;

[0043] S2. Use air plasma to hydrophilicate one side of the surface of the hydrophobic cotton fabric to obtain the unidirectional moisture-wicking fever-reducing patch.

[0044] This invention constructs a wettability gradient for cotton fabrics, that is, one side is hydrophobic and the other side is hydrophilic in the thickness direction.

[0045] In a specific embodiment, the preparation method includes the following steps:

[0046] S1. The cotton fabric is treated with a hydrophobic reagent, and the treated cotton fabric is placed on a heating table at 70-75℃ to evaporate the excess water, thus obtaining a hydrophobic cotton fabric.

[0047] S2. Use air plasma to hydrophilicate one side of the surface of the hydrophobic cotton fabric to obtain the unidirectional moisture-wicking fever-reducing patch.

[0048] The cotton fabric used in the following examples is a 100% pure cotton fabric with an area of ​​3 x 3 cm². 2 The thickness is 0.5mm.

[0049] Example 1

[0050] A method for preparing a one-way hygroscopic fever-reducing patch includes the following steps:

[0051] S1. The cotton fabric (CF) was soaked in Glaco reagent (Glaco Mirror Coat Zero, Soft 99 Ltd, Japan) for 20 minutes. The treated cotton fabric was then placed on a heating table at 70°C to evaporate excess water, resulting in a hydrophobic cotton fabric.

[0052] S2. Hydrophilic treatment is performed on one side of the hydrophobic cotton fabric using oxygen plasma for 2.5 minutes and 700W power, to obtain the unidirectional moisture-wicking fever-reducing patch.

[0053] Example 2

[0054] A method for preparing a one-way hygroscopic fever-reducing patch includes the following steps:

[0055] S1. Cotton fabric (CF) is sprayed with Glaco reagent 1 to 3 times, and the treated cotton fabric is placed on a heating table at 70°C to evaporate excess moisture to obtain hydrophobic cotton fabric.

[0056] S2. Hydrophilic treatment is performed on one side of the hydrophobic cotton fabric using oxygen plasma for 2.5 minutes and 700W power, to obtain the unidirectional moisture-wicking fever-reducing patch.

[0057] Comparative Example 1

[0058] A method for preparing a fever-reducing patch includes the following steps:

[0059] Glaco reagent was sprayed onto one side of a cotton fabric (CF), and the treated cotton fabric was placed on a heating table at 70°C to evaporate excess moisture, thus obtaining the fever-reducing patch.

[0060] Test Example 1

[0061] The unidirectional hygroscopic fever-reducing patch prepared in Example 1 and the fever-reducing patch prepared in Comparative Example 1 were subjected to morphological characterization tests. Figure 1This is a SEM image of the hydrophobic surface of the unidirectional moisture-wicking fever-reducing patch prepared in Example 1. Figure 2 This is a SEM image of the hydrophilic surface of the unidirectional hygroscopic fever-reducing patch prepared in Example 1. Figure 3 This is the XPS image of the hydrophilic surface of the unidirectional hygroscopic fever-reducing patch prepared in Example 1. Figure 4 This is the SEM image of the fever-reducing patch prepared in Comparative Example 1. Characterization by SEM revealed that, as... Figure 1 As shown, the surface of the hydrophobically treated cotton fibers is covered with a dense layer of hydrophobic silica particles; as Figure 2 As shown, after oxygen plasma hydrophilically modifies one side of the surface of a hydrophobic cotton fabric, the morphology of the fiber surface does not change; Figure 3 As shown, the Si-OH groups on the hydrophilic surface are significantly increased, indicating that oxygen plasma imparts hydrophilic -OH groups to silica; Figure 4 As shown, both sides of the cotton fabric have hydrophobic silica particles. This is because the liquid hydrophobic reagent has a penetrating effect, and the selected cotton fabric is only 0.5 mm thick. Therefore, it is not possible to construct a hydrophobic two-layer structure on a single piece of cotton fabric using only hydrophobic reagent.

[0062] Figure 5 This is a diagram showing the contact angle changes of the hydrophilic and hydrophobic sides of the unidirectional humidifying fever-reducing patch prepared in Example 1. The measurement results show that the contact angle of the surface irradiated by oxygen plasma is less than 30°, exhibiting hydrophilic properties; while the contact angle of the unirradiated surface is greater than 120°, exhibiting hydrophobic properties, proving that this application has successfully prepared a unidirectional humidifying fever-reducing patch.

[0063] Test Example 2

[0064] This application employs air plasma to hydrophilize one side of a hydrophobic cotton fabric. The parameters of the hydrophilic treatment are tested using the following method: Glaco reagent is sprayed onto the cotton fabric, and the treated cotton fabric is placed on a heating platform at 70°C to evaporate excess moisture, resulting in a hydrophobic cotton fabric. Oxygen plasma is then used to hydrophilize one side of the hydrophobic cotton fabric. The hydrophilic treatment times are 0.5, 1.5, 2.5, and 3.5 min, and the hydrophilic treatment power is 500, 600, 700, and 800 W, resulting in different fever-reducing patches.

[0065] Test results are as follows Figure 6 As shown, Figure 6The graph shows the test results of fever-reducing patches prepared with different hydrophilic treatment parameters. Checkmarks indicate that a fever-reducing patch with a wetting gradient can be constructed, while crosses indicate that it cannot. The graph shows that if the oxygen plasma time or power is too low, the irradiated surface of the cotton fabric cannot be modified to be hydrophilic; while if the oxygen plasma time or power is too high, the non-irradiated surface (reverse side) of the cotton fabric will be modified to be hydrophilic.

[0066] Test Example 3

[0067] The evaporation effect of the one-way hygroscopic fever-reducing patch (JAP) and the original cotton fabric (CF) prepared in Example 1 was tested. The test method was as follows: the evaporation experiment was carried out in an environment with a temperature of 28.2±1℃ and a humidity of 52±5%. First, two drops of 0.1g water were placed on a glass plate, and JAP and CF were respectively covered on one drop of water. The samples were then sealed with tape. Then, the prepared samples were placed on a heating stage at 40℃ to simulate a high-fever environment. Finally, the weight of the samples was measured every 5 minutes to observe the evaporation effect of different samples.

[0068] Test results are as follows Figure 7 As shown, Figure 7 This is a comparison of the evaporation of the one-way hygroscopic fever-reducing patch (JAP) prepared in Example 1 and the original cotton fabric (CF). As can be seen from the figure, the JAP prepared in this invention can achieve faster evaporation than CF (the evaporation rate of JAP is 0.0058 g / min, while that of CF is only 0.0038 g / min).

[0069] Test Example 4

[0070] The cooling effects of the one-way moisture-wicking fever-reducing patch (JAP), virgin cotton fabric (CF), and medical fever-reducing patch (MAP) prepared in Example 1 were tested on a heating platform. The test method was as follows: the cooling test was conducted in an environment with a temperature of 26.2±1℃ and a humidity of 40±5%. First, three K-type thermocouples were placed on the heating platform, and then each of the three samples was covered on one K-type thermocouple. In the experiment, the heating platform was set to 40℃. If the sample under test had no cooling effect, the temperature measured by the thermocouple was 40℃; if the sample under test had a cooling effect, the temperature measured by the thermocouple was lower than 40℃.

[0071] Test results are as follows Figure 8 As shown, Figure 8This image shows a comparison of the real-time cooling effects of the one-way hygroscopic fever-reducing patch (JAP), the original cotton fabric (CF), and the medical fever-reducing patch (MAP) prepared in Example 1 on a heating platform. The experimental results show that the cooling effect of the medical fever-reducing patch deteriorates with increasing usage time, and the cooling effect completely disappears after 4 hours. The one-way hygroscopic fever-reducing patch of this invention has a significant cooling effect, not only about 1.5°C lower than the original cotton fabric, but also achieving highly efficient cooling for up to seven hours by spraying 0.3–0.5 g of water every 20 minutes.

[0072] Test Example 5

[0073] The cooling effects of the one-way moisture-wicking fever-reducing patch (JAP), the original cotton fabric (CF), and the medical fever-reducing patch (MAP) prepared in Example 1 were tested in actual use. The test method was as follows: a K-type thermocouple was attached to the forehead of the volunteer to monitor the volunteer's body temperature; then the sample to be tested was covered on the K-type thermocouple. As the sample to be tested began to cool down, the temperature of the volunteer's forehead began to change, and the real-time temperature change was recorded for 7 hours.

[0074] Test results are as follows Figure 9 As shown, Figure 9 This is a comparison of the real-time cooling effects of the one-way moisture-wicking fever-reducing patch (JAP), the original cotton fabric (CF), and the medical fever-reducing patch (MAP) prepared in Example 1 during actual use. The test results show that the cooling effect of the medical fever-reducing patch fluctuates greatly during use, and the cooling effect gradually deteriorates with the extension of the use time, disappearing after 4 hours of actual use (less than the seven-hour cooling time stated on the product label). Ordinary cotton fabric can also achieve prolonged cooling by spraying 0.3-0.5g of water at 20-minute intervals; however, the cooling effect of ordinary cotton fabric is significantly lower than that of the one-way moisture-wicking fever-reducing patch of this invention, with a temperature difference of 0.5℃.

[0075] In summary, this invention prepares a unidirectional moisture-wicking cotton fabric that is hydrophilic on one side and hydrophobic on the other by using a hydrophobic reagent for hydrophobic treatment and air plasma for hydrophilic treatment. The degree of hydrophilicity and the thickness of hydrophilicity can be precisely controlled by adjusting the time and power of the hydrophilic treatment. The preparation method is simple and easy to operate. The resulting unidirectional moisture-wicking fever-reducing patch has a significant cooling effect, not only about 1.5°C lower than the original cotton fabric, but also achieving efficient cooling for up to seven hours by spraying water every 20 minutes.

[0076] Obviously, the above embodiments are merely illustrative examples for clear explanation and are not intended to limit the implementation. Those skilled in the art will recognize that other variations or modifications can be made based on the above description. It is neither necessary nor possible to exhaustively list all possible implementations here. However, obvious variations or modifications derived therefrom are still within the scope of protection of this invention.

Claims

1. A one-way moisture-wicking fever-reducing patch, characterized in that, The preparation method includes the following steps: S1. A hydrophobic treatment is applied to a cotton fabric to obtain a hydrophobic cotton fabric; the thickness of the cotton fabric is 0.4~0.6mm; the hydrophobic treatment is performed by spraying or soaking the cotton fabric with a hydrophobic reagent, wherein the hydrophobic reagent is Glaco reagent; S2. The surface of one side of the hydrophobic cotton fabric is hydrophilicized using air plasma to obtain the unidirectional moisture-wicking fever-reducing patch; the hydrophilic treatment time is 0.5~3.5min; the hydrophilic treatment power is 500~800W; The unidirectional moisture-wicking fever-reducing patch has its hydrophilic side attached to the side of the skin closest to the high temperature. It utilizes the unidirectional liquid transport property of the patch to transfer moisture to the side of the patch closest to the skin.

2. The one-way moisture-wicking fever-reducing patch according to claim 1, characterized in that, Hydrophobic treatment also includes a step of removing excess water.

3. The one-way moisture-wicking fever-reducing patch according to claim 2, characterized in that, The removal of excess moisture specifically involves evaporating the excess moisture at 70~75℃.

4. The one-way moisture-wicking fever-reducing patch according to claim 1, characterized in that, In step S2, the air plasma is selected from one or more of oxygen, nitrogen, and argon.

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