Washable Wool Products for Individual Protection

Domestically produced wool, a sustainable, readily available, and cost effective fiber, has the potential to significantly contribute to the need for no melt/no drip and fire resistant (FR) clothing critical to the safety and survivability of US Army Soldiers. Currently the use of wool is handicapped by wash shrinkage, an inherent property of the fiber, as there has been no domestic facility to treat wool to be shrink resistant. It is precisely this need for innovation that will be satisfied by Sheep Venture Company (SVC) in this Phase II SBIR project. During Phase I SVC investigated the potential chemistries and processes that are being practiced and researched globally. Two technologies were determined to be feasible for domestic use in short order. SVC"s Phase II research and development efforts will include production trials and full rate production runs to confirm that these technologies will successfully manufacture domestic shrink treated wool fiber. To conclusively prove that the innovative technology produces product that is suitable for use in military garments, SVC will deliver a significant number of prototype garments during Phase II to the US Army, Program Executive Office Soldier, for field testing.