A large-area AgNW-modified textile with high-performance electromagnetic interference shielding

Manufacturing a flexible, light, large-area, and high-efficiency electromagnetic shielding materials in a straightforward and cost-effective manner presently remains a significant challenge. In this work, we propose a conductive network design and verify its electromagnetic interference (EMI) shielding effectiveness (SE) by simulation. Using the structure and parameters obtained by simulation, we prepare a flexible EMI shielding material using silver nanowires (AgNWs)/polyvinyl butyral (PVB) ethanol solution and textile substructure via a facile immersing method. In the frequency range of 5–18 GHz, the AgNWs/PVB textile with 1.4 mm thickness achieves an EMI SE of 59 dB, which exceeds the requirements for commercial applications. Due to the low density of 56 mg/cm3, specific shielding effectiveness (SSE) of this material reaches 1053 dB m3/g. It is found that the AgNWs/PVB textile is more resistant to washing with water and oxidation than AgNWs textile without a PVB protector. As a result, the conductivity of AgNWs/PVB textile exhibits no change after washing with water and varies slightly after being kept in hot air. We find that a signal monitor is unable to detect a signal emitted by a mobile phone from a jacket lined with AgNWs/PVB textile. AgNWs/PVB textile with these properties can be mass-produced as high-efficiency EMI shielding material for commercial applications.