Which winter coat insulation is
the most effective?
Purpose
To find out which material would be best for a
winter coat.
Research
• Wool fabric and polyester fabric insulate most effectively.
• The tightly woven fibers from polyester fibers prevent moisture
from getting through the fabric.
• Wool is a fine soft wavy hair that forms all or part of the
protective coat of a sheep.
• Since ancient times it was harvested to provide clothing and is
an important part in textile trade because of its insulation.
• Wool fibers would make the warmest winter coat.
• Fabrics like cotton and silk are breathable fabrics, meaning they
allow a great deal of heat to escape.
• Insulators have high resistance levels.
• In insulators, the valence electrons are tightly held together;
this prevents them from moving.
Hypothesis
If denim, cotton, wool fabric, silk and without insulator are tested
to see which one retains the most heat, then wool fabric will
retain the most heat because it comes from the protective coat
of sheep who need to stay warm and also keeps heat close to the
body by trapping still or dead air within the fibers.
Variables
Independent Variable- different kinds of materials
Dependent Variable- material that will keep the warmest
Control- a jar with no insulation
Constant- jar size, amount of water, length of each materials,
amount of time
Experimental Group- denim, cotton, wool, silk
Materials
1.Denim
2.cotton T-shirt material
3.wool fabric, silk fabric
4.Thermometer
5.Watch
6.Hot water
7.5 same size mason jars
8.Tea kettle
9.Thread
10.Needle
11.Scissors
12.Ruler
Procedure
1.First, measure out an equal amount of each insulating
materials.
2. Next, use needle and thread to sew the bottom of each
materials.
3. Boil enough water to fill all of the jars.
4. Fill each jar about 1 liter with the boiling water using a
measuring cup.
5. Warp one jar with a wool fabric, another jar with cotton and so
on.
6. Make sure that the tops and the bottoms are covered with
insulation as well.
7. Leave one jar without any insulation as the control.
Procedure (continued)
8. Measure the starting temperature with thermometer for all
the jars.
9. Leave the jars for 15 minutes without checking on them.
10. Unwrap each jar for as little time as possible and measure
the temperature of the water using a thermometer. Rewrap the
jar and record the measurement in a chart.
11. Repeat this process after 30,45, and 60 minutes.
12. If the starting temperature and the ending temperature have
the lowest difference, then it is the most effective winter coat.
13. Finally, analyze your data to figure out which material
insulates the most effectively.
14. Repeat the entire process another time to get accurate
results.
Data Table
Starting
15 minutes
30 minutes
45 minutes
1 hour
temperature
Differences
in
temperature
Denim
182.9 °F
160.6 °F
146.5 °F
135.2 °F
125.9 °F
57.0 °F
Wool
181.6 °F
163.6 °F
152.6 °F
143.7 °F
135.3 °F
46.3 °F
Silk
181.5 °F
154.0 °F
138.8 °F
127.8 °F
117.8 °F
63.7 °F
Cotton
184.3 °F
159.3 °F
144.7 °F
132.1 °F
121.7 °F
62.6 °F
Jar with no
182.3 °F
156.9 °F
139.1 °F
126.9 °F
115.2 °F
67.1 °F
insulation
Data Table (continued)
Starting
15 minutes
30 minutes
45 minutes
1 hour
temperature
Differences of
temperature
Denim
181.8 °F
159.9 °F
145.8 °F
134.7 °F
125.5 °F
56.3 °F
Wool
178.5 °F
160.5 °F
149.6 °F
140.2 °F
133.4 °F
45.1 °F
Silk
180.0 °F
154.8 °F
139.7 °F
130.4 °F
118.2 °F
61.8 °F
Cotton
182.3 °F
155 °F
145.8 °F
130.1 °F
122.2°F
60.1 °F
Jar with
180.5 °F
158.4 °F
142.1 °F
129.4 °F
115.1 °F
65.4 °F
no
insulation
Graph
Trial 1
Insulating Materials
Temperature (Fahrenheit)
200
180
160
140
120
100
80
60
40
20
0
Starting Temp.
15 Min.
30 Min.
45 Min.
Time (Minutes)
Denim
Wool
Silk
Cotton
Jar withno insulation
60 Min.
Graph
Trial 2
Insulating Materials
Temperature (Fahrenheit)
200
180
160
140
120
100
80
60
40
20
0
Starting Temp.
15 Min.
30 Min.
45 Min.
Time (Minutes)
Denim
Wool
Silk
Cotton
Jar with no insulation
60 Min.
Pictures
Pictures
Conclusion
In this experiment, I aim to find out which materials are
the best insulators. This experiment involves investigating what
kind of materials are best at keeping us warm. I tested on
denim, silk, cotton, and wool. During the experiment, the
temperature of each materials dropped at different temperatures
and I had to measure it every 15 minutes. I collected my data by
finding the differences in temperature of the materials. The
independent variable is the different kind of materials and the
dependent variable is the material that will keep the warmest.
The control group in this experiment is the jar without insulator
and the experimental group are denim, silk, cotton and wool. The
experiment was chosen to see which clothing insulator retains
the most heat.
Conclusion (continued)
I predicted that wool would retain the most heat. My
hypothesis was proven correct. Fibers in the wool trap pockets of
air to create an insulating layer in between the fibers and makes
wool an excellent insulator. The data showed that wool has the
lowest differences while the jar without insulation has the biggest
differences in temperature. Fabrics like cotton and silk are
breathable fabrics and allows a great deal of heat to escape. The
differences in temperature of silk is 63.7 °F while cotton is 62.6
°F. This experiment would help people since many wonder what
to wear to stay as warm as possible, but they are not sure what
material will keep them warmest.
Conclusion (continued)
There are some improvements that could be made if I
had to redo the experiment. One improvement might be keeping
the starting temperature the same for all the materials to make
the graph easier to read. I could also do at least one more trial to
make the results more accurate. To further expand on this topic,
I could choose more materials to test and possibly find the most
effective winter coat insulation that will keep the people
warmest. Insulation in homes another area where further
research could be useful. I learned that wool is the best material
in this experiment, and I hope to learn about other insulators and
their uses.
Bibliography
• "Why Should I Use Wool?" Sheep Wool Insulation -. N.p., n.d.
Web. 26 Mar. 2015.
• "Why Wool?" Why Wool? N.p., n.d. Web. 26 Mar. 2015.
• "The Advantages of Sheep Wool Insulation - TheGreenAge."
TheGreenAge Atom. N.p., 28 Mar. 2014. Web. 26 Mar. 2015.
• Ring, Jessica. "What Fabrics Make Good Insulators?" Demand
Media, 09 Mar. 2011. Web. 11 Feb. 2015.