Nanofibers Enhance Sports Shoes Performance
A new succesfull commercial application of nanofibers emerged in sporting goods market. Replacement insoles with nanofibers provide outstanding slip resistance, which helps prevent a wearer’s foot from sliding inside a shoe. It also boasts high moisture absorbency and diffusion for added comfort, making it an ideal material for insoles.The product named Nanofront comes from Teijin Fibers Limited, the core company of the Teijin Group’s polyester fibers business.
Teijin Fibers announced that it is supplying its high-strength polyester nanofiber Nanofront for use in replacement insoles for running shoes made by New Balance. The insoles will be marketed by New Balance Japan and sold in its directly owned shops in Tokyo and Osaka, as well as other sports retail stores nationwide beginning this month.
Nanofront is a high-strength polyester fiber with a thickness of just 700 nanometers, or 7,500 times smaller than the cross section of human hair. Nanosized bumps on the surface of Nanofront raise frictional force and produce a surface area dozens of times greater than that of regular fiber, resulting in highly superior slip resistance.
Nanofront is also used in shoelaces and socks made by New Balance Japan.
Teijin Fibers started commercial production of Nanofront in 2008 and has been developing applications in areas such as innerwear, sportswear and industrial materials. Teijin (TSE 3401) is a technology-driven global group offering advanced solutions in the areas of sustainable transportation, information and electronics, safety and protection, environment and energy, and healthcare. Its main fields of operation are high-performance fibers such as aramid, carbon fibers & composites, healthcare, films, resin & plastic processing, polyester fibers, products converting and IT.