LUNA INNOVATIONS INCORPORATED — Department of Defense SBIR Phase I: N202-130

Description

Wetsuits become a key aspect of managing operator safety and performance in the complex and challenging marine environment. Water absorbs heat more efficiently than air, and its movement causes rapid convection of heat away from the body. As a result, wetsuits must have high heat-insulating capacity while also not restricting body movements. Protection during cold-water diving specifically has been a research focus for decades, yet most Special Operations Forces (SOF) training and operations still utilize wetsuits made of neoprene. The thermal insulation neoprene provides is variable, particularly at depths where neoprene becomes compressed. This represents a severe risk to both the safety (e.g. hypothermia) and function (e.g. altered mission profile, reduced endurance) of the SOF divers in a cold-water environment. Towards discovery of an innovative wetsuit with improved insulative properties, to the standards required for cold-water (35 °F) diving, Luna Innovations proposes the development of DuraKNIT. In combination with strategic material layers and a physiologic-inspired design, the proposed approach is expected to provide improved cold-water diver protection compared to the current neoprene-based wetsuits.