How to measure thermal effusivity of automotive interiors?
Reaching from A to B isn’t the measure of a good vehicle. Right from hatchbacks to luxurious cars, the aesthetics and interior layout play a big role on the perception of the buyer. Material used in the car’s interior shouldn’t just be sleek but also offer comfort to the customer exuding that the car is well-crafted. Hence, high quality composites are used in the interiors of a car. They offer good durability, low weight and better production efficacy. However, customers usually go for natural materials like leather for seat and wood for panels.
When consumers feel that the composites are made to feel like natural material yet they are of plastic, questions about the quality emerges which negatively affect their purchasing decision. This touch feeling is quantified in terms of thermal effusivity of automotive interiors of the materials.
One of the examples which you can easily relate to is the use of fabric upholstery and synthetic leather upholstery. While leather signifies a higher class vehicle, but in hot weather condition, the touch feel of hot leather may not appear good and fabric upholstery may prove to be a better alternative.
The thermal effusivity characterization equipment has a solution to test your needs. It helps you to analyze which materials should be used in your automobile.
The significance of choosing the right vehicle material is gaining great importance because automobile companies are constantly designing and researching new technologies which become sustainable with time. The aim is to lower the amount of fuel needed for production and displacement of hot and cold air. You can gain it by enhancing the efficacy of a material with high quality energy saving specs.
Some other aspects to consider are price, durability and environmental impact. One of the important spec of fabric upholstery which affects its overall performance is its thermal property. The properties comprise of thermal effusivity, conduction, resistance and emission.
Foam or polymer fabrics have low thermal effusivity and hence are perfect to be used for automobile interior while leather has low thermal properties and is costlier and harmful to environment. Some other factors to be kept in mind when choosing a material are texture and color of the material. It helps to lower energy waste and put less strain on the engine of the vehicle. Though it depends on the personal preference of the consumer but still these factors should be considered to measure the thermal effusivity of the material to be used in the interior of your car to make it comfortable and aesthetically better.
