Fibrous Sphere Architectures for Efficient Daytime Radiative Cooling and Moisture Management

A radiative cooling nanofabric was designed to reflect incoming solar light, exhibit strong emissivity, and simultaneously provide moisture-wicking properties, making it suitable for personal thermal management in hot outdoor environments. We developed a nanofabric with fibrous sphere architecture, consisting of polyacrylonitrile-SiO2 and poly(vinylidene fluoride-co-hexafluoropropylene)-TiO2-Al2O3 as hydrophilic and hydrophobic layers, complementing high solar reflectivity and directional water transport as well as promising thermal and moisture management capabilities. The fibrous sphere architecture possessed excellent solar reflectivity (93%) and strong emissivity (∼0.95). In outdoor conditions under direct sunlight, the nanofabric was shown to reduce skin temperature by 15 °C compared to the cotton textile. Furthermore, the nanofabric exhibited a subambient radiative cooling capacity of 5 °C at noon and 2 °C at nighttime. This nanofabric architecture provides a promising pathway for the development of radiative cooling nanofabrics with integrated sweat/moisture management, enabling personal cooling technologies and heat control in daily life.