MULTIFUNCTIONAL PROTECTIVE FABRIC

Abstract

The present invention is directed toward a multifunctional protective fabric and yarn. The fabric has a double knit interlock material of the yarns. The yarns include: a first filament being a liquid crystal polymer filament; and a second filament being selected from the group consisting of: modacrylic, polyacrylonitrile, nylon, glass, aramid, olefins, and combinations thereof. The weight ratio of the first filament to the second filament ranges from 20:80 to 99:1.

Description

RELATED APPLICATION

This application claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional application Ser. No. 61/289,021 filed Jan. 22, 2009.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The instant invention relates to fabrics, and more particularly, to multifunctional protective fabrics used in protective garments and accessories, including particular fibers and materials and methods for making the fabrics.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

The instant invention relates to multifunctional protective fabrics for protective garments and accessories made from high strength fibers and materials, as well as methods for making such multifunctional protective fabrics. In particular, the fabrics may be formed of high strength fibers that can be incorporated with other materials to produce comfortable garments and accessories that are resistant to abrasion, penetration, laceration, impact and are thermal and flame resistant.

Most protective fabrics used in protective garments, and accessories are generally of low single purpose effectiveness, and limited comfort. Protective garments and accessories made of conventional commercially available fabrics that are touted as puncture, laceration, abrasion and/or impact resistant are often of questionable wearability, or at least suffer from bulkiness, denseness, rigidity, and quite often, ineffectiveness.

The multipurpose protective fabric or fabric composites of the instant invention may be used in many different garments and accessories. These may include, but are not limited to, garments for: amphibious use including water based activities such as sport and commercial diving, surfing, kite boarding, the fishing industry, etc.; military, public safety, and law enforcement use in apparel, equipment, upholstery and accessories; and any other products or accessories that are intended for protection against abrasion, penetration, laceration, impact, thermal and FR threats.

Regarding aquatic use, the most common garments used are wetsuits and drysuits. Other marine garments or accessories include, but are not limited to, full or partial coverage body suits, rash guards, gloves, footwear, buoyancy compensators (inflatable air bladders) etc. Modern wetsuits are formed primarily out of neoprene, a closed-cell foam that contains tiny bubbles of nitrogen gas. The nitrogen gas has low thermal conductivity, which reduces heat drawn from the body, and reduces heat drawn from water that becomes trapped between the body and the wetsuit. A drysuit, on the other hand, provides at least passive thermal protection while keeping its wearer dry in wet, typically colder, conditions. Drysuits are usually made with a water impermeable layer in addition to a thermal insulation base layer. Drysuits as such, are designed to not “breathe” well (i.e. allow in or out passing of air) which can be uncomfortable for the wearer. The water impermeable layer is commonly made of compressed neoprene, butyl or vulcanized rubber, laminated nylon, sealed latex rubber or other form of thin impermeable laminate. While some wetsuit and drysuit manufacturers are bonding thermally insulating materials, such as wool, nylon, or titanium to primary construction materials, modern wetsuits and drysuits offer little to zero protection against abrasion, penetration, and laceration, limiting their effectiveness and becoming even dangerous in adverse conditions. Environmental factors including reef or rock substrates, marine animals, such as coral, barnacles, stingrays, predators, or even man-made factors such as abrasive or sharp edge materials, and penetrating objects, can compromise the integrity of the suit, garment or accessory, and therefore it's utility. Protective garments, such as shark-resistant suits, are heavy because they are made of metal, and therefore, are negatively buoyant in the water. Thus, there is a need for a multipurpose multifunctional protective fabric for use in protective aquatic garments, equipment and accessories.

Regarding military and law enforcement use, truly protective garments and accessories are commonly limited to body armor. Conventional body armor is bulky, heavy, cumbersome, and uncomfortable to wear. Conventional body armor is usually tailored to stop blunt-force objects and ballistic threats, but can be ineffective against other hazards such as sharp edged weapons, or other objects. Further due to the constraints of commercially available materials (bulk, rigidity etc.), conventional body armor is limited from protective coverage of broader areas of the body beyond the torso of the wearer. Thus, a need exists for a form of protective fabric/composite useful in both uniforms, apparel AND body armor that is lighter, tougher, breathable, multifunctional and can protect more parts of the body against abrasion, penetration, laceration, impact and FR threats while remaining comfortable to wear.

Regarding other uses for the protective fabric, the protective fabric may be used in any application where either personnel or equipment require protection against abrasion, penetration, laceration, impact, or FR threats. Such uses may include, but are not limited to, fabrics for use in inflatable hulls, containment bags, or any other inflatable and pressurized objects.

The instant invention is designed to address the above mentioned problems and provide a new multifunctional protective fabrics that will meet new and emerging needs of the industry.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The instant invention includes a multifunctional protective fabric and yarn. The fabric has a knitted or woven material of the yarns. The yarns include: a first filament being a liquid crystal polymer filament; and a second filament being selected from the group consisting of: modacrylic, polyacrylonitrile, aramids, nylon, glass, olefins, and combinations thereof. The weight ratio of the first filament to the second filament ranges from 20:80 to 99:1.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

The instant invention includes a multifunctional protective fabric in a single layer or composite form that provides abrasion resistance, penetration resistance, laceration resistance, impact resistance, thermal resistance and flame resistance (FR). The protective fabric may be made by any type of weave, knit, etc. In one embodiment, the protective fabric may include a double knit interlock material of yarns. The yarns may include multiple filament yarns. In one embodiment, the yarns may include at least a first filament yarn and a second filament yarn.

The first filament yarn may be a liquid crystal polymer filament. Vectran® is a manufactured fiber, spun from a liquid crystal polymer created by Celanese Acetate LLC and now manufactured by Kuraray Co., Ltd. Chemically it is an aromatic polyester. Other equivalent high strength fibers could also be substituted for the first filament yarn. The liquid crystal polymer filaments of the protective fabric may be any size filaments including any amount of denier per filament. In one embodiment, the liquid crystal polymer filaments may have a denier of between 0.5 denier per filament and 30 denier per filament. In one embodiment, the liquid crystal polymer filaments may have a denier of between 2 denier per filament and 8 denier per filament. In another embodiment, the liquid crystal polymer filaments may have a denier of 5 denier per filament.

The second filament yarn may be a copolymer or other similar fibers. The copolymer of the second filament may be any copolymer or other similar fibers, including, but not limited to modacrylic, polyacrylonitrile, rayon, nylon, aramid, olefins, carbon, glass, polyethylene including ultra high molecular weight polyethylene (UHMWPE), and combinations thereof. In one embodiment, the second filament may be a modacrylic and/or a polyacrylonitrile. Modacrylic (MOD) is a synthetic copolymer. Modacrylics are soft, strong, resilient, and dimensionally stable. They can be easily dyed, show good press and shape retention, and are quick to dry. Polyacrylonitrile (PAN) is a resinous, fibrous, or rubbery organic polymer. Almost all polyacrylonitrile resins are copolymers made from mixtures of monomers; with acrylonitrile as the main component. PAN fibers are the chemical precursor of high-quality carbon fiber. Other equivalent fibers may also be substituted for the second filament yarns. In addition to the first and second filaments, other filaments may be included in the fabric, depending on the desired end use. As examples, rayon, nylon, aramids, olefins, carbon, glass, M5, glass etc. may be included in the fabric for enhancing particular properties of the fabric for the desired end use.

The protective fabric may have a weight ratio of the first filaments to the second filaments. The weight ratio of the first filaments to the second filaments may range from 20:80 to 99:1. In one embodiment, the weight ration of the first filaments to the second filaments may range from 50:50 to 99:1. In one embodiment, the weight ration of the first filaments to the second filaments may range from 80:20 to 98:2. In another embodiment, the weight ratio of the first filaments to the second filaments may range from 90:10 to 95:5. In some embodiments the need to limit expensive fibers like the liquid crystal polymer fibers to as low as 10 or 20 percent may be desired. For example, in some commercial applications, higher ratio (greater than 50% weight ratio) fibers would be one or more of the following fibers: nylon, olefins, carbon, glass, aramids, cotton, UHWMPE rayon etc., and liquid crystal polymer fibers will be present in the fabric at less than 50% weight ratio.

The multifunctional protective fabric of the instant invention may have a basis weight. The basis weight may be between 5 ounces per square yard and 30 ounces per square. In one embodiment, the basis weight may be between 10 ounces per square yard and 20 ounces per square yard. In another embodiment, the protective fabric may have a basis weight of approximately 18 ounces per square yard.

The multifunctional protective fabric of the instant invention may be used for any garment, accessory, or product that requires a form of abrasion, penetration, laceration, impact, thermal and/or FR resistance. The term multifunctional fabric, as used herein, includes a fabric having multiple functions, like, abrasion, penetration, laceration, impact, thermal FR resistance, and any combination thereof.

In one embodiment, the multifunctional protective fabric of the instant invention may be utilized as a single layer or soft fabric composite for military battle dress uniform (BDU) or other specific items of clothing such as shirts, pants, undergarments or base layers, vests, gloves, socks, shoes, hats, belts, bags, protective covers/barriers, rope and other items. The fabric of the instant invention, or a flexible composite of the instant fabric, may be used as a wearable protective apparel that may provide a wearer near complete coverage and protection from physical threats, like threatening objects. The wearable protective apparel may include multiple components that are connected together by an articulation mechanism point or may be a composite of the instant fabric. The composite components can include: carbon fiber, liquid crystal polymer fiber, aramids, UHMWPE, olefins or any other strong resilient fiber, or combination thereof, that is woven, formed, composited or laminated into a platen OR soft panel. The plate or soft panel can be molded or curved to accommodate the shape of the body part being covered by the component, for localized and directed protection of strategically-important body parts. The components can be detachable or connected together. The composite components can also be connected to a base clothing layer. The base clothing layer may essentially be formed as a body suit to which the components are attached either inside or outside, and which functions to properly place the components over the strategically-important locations of the body of the wearer.

In another embodiment, the protective fabric may be utilized in a buoyant, impact resistant, amphibious protective suit. The amphibious protective suit may be a wetsuit, drysuit, or other close fitting garment, for use in water based activities including scuba diving, surfing, kite boarding, rescue swimmers, survival suits, water-based industrial, military or public safety exercises, etc. The amphibious protective suit will provide a high level of protection from lacerations, abrasions, cuts, puncture, and other physical hazards, while still providing a suit that is buoyant, flexible and comfortable to the wearer. In one embodiment, the amphibious protective suit may be formed of a base layer of material, such as neoprene or other water-accommodative material, and one or more layers of the multifunctional protective fabric of the instant invention. The fabric of the instant invention may be applied to one side of the base layer (i.e. the inside or outside) or may be applied to both sides of the base layer, generally within the same shape or area. In addition, the fabric of the instant invention may be used as a garment itself with no other materials attached to it. The multifunctional protective fabric may be incorporated by attachment of the base layer of material as shaped and molded panels, by being molded to the base layer of material, by being fused to the base layer, or by any other attachment means known in the art, including multiple forms of attachment. Besides molding, the protective fabric may also be quilted into multiple connected or semi-connected layers as a quilted composite material. The quilted material can be cut into panels of various patterns or shapes for application to the base layer, with small gaps there between to allow flexibility of the base layer and suit in general. The quilted material may be strategically patterned, or biomorphically shaped to replicate human musculature, providing an appearance of athletic fitness. The one or more protective fabric layers can be loosely connected together by stitching, molding, thermal bonding, gluing, or layering, and can include a soft flotation material or interstitial material such as foam, gel, or other thin buoyant, impact resistant, or flexible material.

In another embodiment, the protective fabric may be composited and utilized in an inflatable hull, or an inflatable boat. An inflatable hull, or an inflatable boat is a lightweight boat constructed with its sides and bow made of flexible tubes containing pressurized air or gas. A rigid-inflatable boat (RIB) or rigid-hulled inflatable boat, (RHIB) is a light-weight but high performance and high capacity boat constructed with a solid, shaped hull and flexible tubes at the gunwale. The design is stable and seaworthy. The inflatable collar allows the vessel to maintain buoyancy even if a large quantity of water is shipped aboard due to bad sea conditions. The RIB is a development of the inflatable boat. Uses include work boats (supporting shore facilities or larger ships) in trades that operate on the water, as well as use as lifeboats and military craft, where they are used in patrol roles and to transport troops between vessels or ashore.

In yet another embodiment, the protective fabric may be utilized in a pressurized container or vessel. A pressurized container or vessel may be used in a variety of applications in both industry and the private sector. Examples of pressure containers include, but are not limited to: diving cylinders, recompression chambers, distillation towers, autoclaves and many other vessels in mining or oil refineries and petrochemical plants, nuclear reactor vessels, aero space vehicles, submarines, pneumatic reservoirs, hydraulic reservoirs under pressure, rail vehicle airbrake reservoirs, road vehicle airbrake reservoirs, and storage vessels for liquified gases such as ammonia, chlorine, propane, butane and LPG.

The instant invention also included a protective garment which may comprise one or more layers of the multifunctional protective fabric described above. Various embodiments of the protective fabric may be combined together to create the protective garment. The protective garment could be any type of protective garment, including, but not limited to, public safety/law enforcement armor, or any other environment where either personnel or equipment might be exposed to abrasion, penetration, laceration, impact, thermal or FR hazards.

The instant invention also includes a multifunctional protective yarn or yarns. The yarn or yarns may be utilized in making the multifunctional protective fabric, described above. The yarn or yarns may comprise at least a first filament and a second filament. The yarn may also include any additional fibers or filaments. The first filament may be a liquid crystal polymer filament. The second filament may be a copolymer. The copolymer may be any copolymer, including, but not limited to, modacrylic, polyacrylonitrile, rayon, nylon, aramid, carbon, glass, olefins, carbon, glass, polyethylene including ultra high molecular weight polyethylene (UHMWPE), and combinations thereof. In one embodiment, the second filaments may be modacrylic and/or polyacrylonitrile.

The yarn may have a weight ratio of the first filaments to the second filaments. The weight ratio of the first filaments to the second filaments may range from 20:80 to 99:1. In one embodiment, the weight ration of the first filaments to the second filaments may range from 50:50 to 99:1. In one embodiment, the weight ration of the first filaments to the second filaments may range from 80:20 to 98:2. In another embodiment, the weight ratio of the first filaments to the second filaments may range from 90:10 to 95:5. In some embodiments the need to limit expensive fibers like the liquid crystal polymer fibers to as low as 10 or 20 percent may be desired. For example, in some commercial applications, higher ratio (greater than 50% weight ratio) fibers would be one or more of the following fibers: nylon, olefins, carbon, glass, aramids, cotton, UHWMPE rayon etc., and liquid crystal polymer fibers will be present in the yarns at less than 50% weight ratio.

The liquid crystal polymer filaments of the yarn may be any size and have any amount of denier per filament. In one embodiment, the liquid crystal polymer filaments of the yarn may have a denier of between 0.5 denier per filament and 30 denier per filament. In another embodiment, the liquid crystal polymer filaments may have a denier of between 2 denier per filament and 8 denier per filament. In yet another embodiment, the liquid crystal polymer filaments may have a denier of 5 denier per filament.

The multifunctional protective yarn of the instant invention may be any type of yarn, i.e., the yarn may be made out of multiple constructions. For example, the yarn may be a spun yarn, a twisted yarn, a plaited yarn, a chopped yarn, a filament yarn, and a jet blown yarn. In a preferred embodiment, the yarn may be a core wrapped yarn or core spun yarn. A core wrapped or core spun yarn is a yarn made by twisting the fibers around a filament or a previously spun yarn, thus, concealing the core.

EXAMPLES

Three different multifunctional fabrics were produced according to the instant invention as described above. The first fabric, INV1 (may also be referred to as Neptech 28), is a gray knitted material four way stretch material. The second fabric, INV2 (may also be referred to as Neptech 29), is a black knitted material four way stretch material (lycra or spandex in appearance only). The third fabric, INV3 (may also be referred to as Neptech 33), is a blonde non-stretch knitted material (canvas looking in appearance). These three first generation fabrics were successfully tested and found to have excellent physical properties. The physical properties evaluated included weight, tear strength, break strength (tensile), abrasion resistance, burst strength, cut resistance and puncture propagation. Table 1 below is a summary of the results of the testing.

	TABLE 1
			Average	Average	Abrasion	Average	Average	Average
			Tear	Break	Resistance	Burst	Cut	Resistance
			Strength	Strength	(pass or fail at	Strength	Resistance	to Puncture
			of 5	of 5	300, 450, 600 and	of 3	of 3	of 12
	Weight		Specimens	Specimens	1000 cycles)	Specimens	Specimens	Measurements
Material	(oz/yd2)		(lbs)	(lbf)	300	450	600	1000	(lbf)	(grams)	(lbf)
Neptech 28	18.29	Wales	26.02	260.38	Pass	N/A	Pass	Pass	590.03	516	5.69
		Courses	44.22	349.51
Neptech 29	22.86	Wales	35.20	367.49	Pass	N/A	Pass	Pass	707.47	529	6.72
		Courses	52.94	457.60
Neptech 33	18.29	Wales	23.22	263.65	Pass	Pass	Fail	N/A	877.76	521	24.85
		Courses	32.36	700.98

All testing was conducted in a textile laboratory at standard conditions of 65% relative humidity at 70° F. Weight was measured in accordance with ASTM 03776, a standard test method for Mass Per Unit Area (Weight) of fabric. Tear strength testing was conducted in accordance with ASTM 01424, a standard test method for tearing strength of fabrics by a falling-pendulum type (Elmendorf) apparatus. Break strength testing was conducted in accordance with ASTM D5034, a standard test method for breaking strength and elongation of textile fabrics (grab test). Abrasion resistance testing was conducted in accordance with ASTM 03884, a standard test method for abrasion resistance of textile fabrics (Rotary platform, double-head method). Bursting strength testing was conducted in accordance with ASTM 03787, a standard test method for bursting strength of textiles-constant-rate-of-traverse (CRT) ball burst test since these submissions were knitted fabrics. Cut resistance testing was conducted in accordance with ASTM F1790, a standard test method for measuring cut resistance of materials used in protective clothing. Puncture propagation testing was conducted in accordance with ASTM 02582, a standard test method for puncture-propagation tear resistance of plastic film and thin sheeting (no puncture occurred, i.e., no damage to the fabric and the probe was inserted cleanly between yarns for INV1 and INV2).

In addition to the three above described fabrics, an additional fabric was made according to the instant invention with flame resistant (FR) fibers. This fourth fabric, INV4 (may also be referred to as Neptech 28FR), is a flame resistant (FR) version of the first fabric, INV1, described above. INV4 contains 8.9% FR fibers. The results of the flame resistance of INV4 were excellent and are summarized below in Table 2.

	TABLE 2
	Specimen/Burn
INV 4	1	2	3	4	5	Average
Char	Wales	0.7	0.5	0.5	N/A	0.5	0.6
Length	Courses	0.7	0.5	0.5	N/A	0.5	0.6
(inches)
After	Wales	3.3	3.4	4.3	>120	3.8	3.7
Flame	Courses	3.8	3.4	4.5	>120	4.0	3.8
(seconds)
After	Wales	3.3	3.4	4.3	N/A	3.8	3.7
Glow	Courses	3.8	3.4	4.5	N/A	4.0	3.9
(seconds

Flame resistance was conducted in accordance with ASTM D6413, a standard test method for flame resistance of textiles (Vertical Test).

Additional embodiments of the instant invention were manufactured according to the instant invention and compared to nylon and regular nylon for fabric break strength or tensile strength. Two versions of the instant invention, INV5 and INV6 (also referred to as Neptech 1 and Neptech 2), were made according to the instant invention and provided in 1 inch form. Another version of the instant invention, INV7 (also referred to as Neptech 3) was made according to the instant invention and provided in 3 inch form. For comparison, purposes two 3 inch forms of nylon fabric were tested (Nylon 1 and Nylon 2) and one 3 inch forms of coated nylon fabric were tested (Coated Nylon 1). The results of that test and comparison are shown in Table 3 below:

	TABLE 3
			Maximum Load
	Test Sample	Form	(kfg)
	INV5	3 inch	600.98
	INV6	3 inch	607.91
	INV7	1 inch	186.40
	Nylon 1	3 inch	303.49
	Nylon 2	3 inch	341.21
	Coated Nylon 1	3 inch	343.83

Fabric break strength, or tensile strength of the fabric, was conducted in accordance with STM 41 Fabric Break (Tensile). The specimen holders used were rubber-faced (2×3 in) grips using a grip pressure of 5 bars. The load cell was 50 kN and the test speed was 300 mm/min.

Further samples of the instant multifunctional protective fabric were created according to the instant invention, INV8. The samples of INV8 were provided in base form and coated form and combined together in various layer constructions. These layered samples were tested for impact energy and penetration resistance. These samples were compared against various layers of coated and noncoated Cordura and Barrday 1011-STF. The results of this testing is shown in Table 4 below:

	Total		Blade
	No. of		(P1, S1,	Velocity	Impact Energy	Penetration
Sample-layers	Layers	Level	Spike)	(m/s)	(J)	(mm)
INV8-6	6	L1E1	P1B	5.067	24.3	full
			Knife
coated INV8-4	10	L1E1	P1B	5.055	24.2	47
INV8-6			Knife
coated INV8-4	10	L1E1	P1B	5.055	24.2	46
INV8-6			Knife
coated INV8-7	15	L1E1	P1B	5.055	24.2	19
INV8-8			Knife
coated INV8-14	14	L1E1	P1B	5.055	24.2	0
			Knife
coated INV8-14	14	L1E2	P1B	6.233	36.8	16
			Knife
coated Cordura-8	8	L1E1	P1B	5.106	24.7	full
			Knife
Cordura(heavy)-14	14	L1E1	P1B	5.093	24.6	47
			Knife
INV8-14	14	L1E1	Spike	5.118	24.8	11
coated INV8-14	14	L1E1	Spike	5.106	24.7	16
Barrday 1011-STF-8	8	L1E2	Spike	6.233	36.8	0
Barrday 1011-STF-8	8	L1E2	Spike	7.309	50.6	full
Barrday 1011-STF-10	10	L1E2	Spike	7.309	50.6	0

The present invention may be embodied in other forms without departing from the spirit and the essential attributes thereof, and, accordingly, reference should be made to the appended claims, rather than to the foregoing specification, as indicated the scope of the invention.

Claims

1. A multifunctional protective fabric comprising:

a woven or knitted material of yarns including: a first filament being a liquid crystal polymer filament; and a second filament being selected from the group consisting of: modacrylic, polyacrylonitrile, rayon, nylon, aramid, olefins, carbon, glass, and polyethylene including ultra high molecular weight polyethylene (UHMWPE);

wherein, the weight ratio of said first filament to said second filament ranging from 20:80 to 99:1.

2. The multifunctional protective fabric of claim 1 wherein said second filaments being a copolymer selected from the group consisting of: modacrylic and polyacrylonitrile.

3. The multifunctional protective fabric of claim 1 wherein said fabric being a double knit interlock material of said yarns.

4. The multifunctional protective fabric of claim 1 wherein the weight ratio of said first filaments to said second filaments ranging from 90:10 to 95:5.

5. The multifunctional protective fabric of claim 1 having a basis weight between 5 ounces per square yard and 30 ounces per square yard.

6. The multifunctional protective fabric of claim 1 having a basis weight of between approximately 18 ounces per square yard and 23 ounces per square yard.

7. The multifunctional protective fabric of claim 5 including:

a tear strength of greater than 20 pounds as tested in accordance with ASTM 01424;

a break strength of greater than 200 pound-force as tested in accordance with ASTM 05034;

an abrasion resistance of greater than 300 cycles to failure as tested in accordance with ASTM D3884;

a burst strength of greater than 500 pounds-force as tested in accordance with ASTM D3787;

a cut resistance of greater than 500 grams as tested in accordance with ASTM F1790; and

a resistance to puncture of greater than 5 pounds-force as tested in accordance with ASTM D2582.

8. The multifunctional protective fabric of claim 7 further including a flame resistance, said flame resistance including:

a char length of less than 1.0 inches as tested in accordance with ASTM D6413;

an after flame of less than 5.0 seconds as tested in accordance with ASTM D6413; and

an after glow of less than 5.0 seconds as tested in accordance with ASTM D6413.

9. The multifunctional protective fabric of claim 1 wherein said liquid crystal polymer filaments having a denier of between 0.5 denier per filament and 30 denier per filament.

10. The multifunctional protective fabric of claim 1 wherein said liquid crystal polymer filaments having a denier of 5 denier per filament.

11. The multifunctional protective fabric of claim 1 providing abrasion resistance, penetration resistance, laceration resistance, impact resistance, thermal resistance, and flame resistance.

12. The multifunctional protective fabric of claim 1 being a composite soft protective fabric.

13. The multifunctional protective fabric of claim 1 wherein said yarns being selected from the group consisting of:

spun yarns, twisted yarns, plaited yarns, chopped yarns, filament yarns, core wrapped yarns, jet blown yarns, and combinations thereof.

14. A multifunctional protective yarn comprising:

a first filament being a liquid crystal polymer filament; and

a second filament being a copolymer selected from the group consisting of: modacrylic, polyacrylonitrile, rayon, nylon, aramid, olefins, carbon, glass, and polyethylene including ultra high molecular weight polyethylene (UHMWPE);

wherein, the weight ratio of said first filaments to said second filaments ranging from 20:80 to 99:1.

15. The multifunctional protective yarn of claim 14 wherein said second filament being a copolymer selected from the group consisting of: modacrylic and polyacrylonitrile.

16. The multifunctional protective yarn of claim 14 wherein the weight ratio of said first filaments to said second filaments ranging from 90:10 to 95:5.

17. The multifunctional protective yarn of claim 14 wherein said liquid crystal polymer filaments having a denier of between 0.5 denier per filament and 30 denier per filament.

18. The multifunctional protective yarn of claim 14 wherein said liquid crystal polymer filaments having a denier of 5 denier per filament.

19. The multifunctional protective yarn of claim 14 having a construction being selected from the group consisting of: a spun yarn, a twisted yarn, a plaited yarn, a chopped yarn, a filament yarn, a core wrapped yarn, and a jet blown yarn.

20. The multifunctional protective yarn of claim 19 having a core wrapped yarn construction.