ESD Smocks present a conductive, static shielding barrier between electrostatic discharges (ESD) emanating from your body and any electronics that you may be near.
ESD Smock Material
First, let’s look at the “static shielding” properties of ESD Clothing.
Conductive materials commonly used in static control products include aluminum, carbon, nickel, and silver.
In ESD Smock and Lab Coats, black carbon-based threads are sewn into a grid across the surface of the cotton or polyester in a patchwork pattern. This is how electricity travels through the garment.
Much like a fence protects a yard, the grid pattern of the black carbon threading prevents static electrons on your body from leaping through the smock as electrostatic discharges (ESD) and zapping nearby electronics.
This panel-to-panel continuity is how we test ESD smocks to ensure they meet the minimum definition of an “ESD Smock” per ANSI/ESD S20.20.
Photographed here at macro scale, you can see how delicately the fabrics are woven over each panel. This is why, when cleaning garments, it is essential to use only liquid non-ionic detergents suitable for similarly delicate materials such as wool.
Most garments are rated for only 100 washes, so be wary of cleaning services that offer to wash garments weekly. These services also typically overheat the carbon-based thread during mass garment drying, causing it to melt. Remember to treat your garments as a barrier that keeps static out of your products.