%0 Journal Article %A Fan, Jie %A Shang, XiaoMei %D 2013 %I Begell House %K water permeation, fractal, matrix, wool fiber %N 5 %P 465-472 %R 10.1615/HeatTransRes.2013005861 %T WATER PERMEATION IN THE BRANCHING CHANNEL NET OF WOOL FIBER %U https://www.dl.begellhouse.com/journals/46784ef93dddff27,57fc0a776619ca42,5a46f2861957e654.html %V 44 %X Wool fiber shows excellent moisture absorption and water permeation properties, which are due to its hierarchic matrix branching channel net widespread inside the fiber. The fractal derivative method is employed to build a model for predicting water permeation through the fiber. The results show that both the water permeation velocity and water flux are extraordinarily improved due to the fractal nature of the matrix water path. The water flux is about two orders of magnitude more efficient than that of the conventional water permeation process in continuous media. The mechanism underlying the water permeation behavior in the matrix hierarchic channel net of wool fiber is promising for special applications of novel hydrophilic artificial fiber. %8 2013-06-18