# HUST engineers develop metafabric sunshade that cools car cabins by 17.8 °C

- Published: 2026-11-07 03:27 UTC
- Section: Machines & Making › Materials science
- Tags: metafabric sunshade, radiative cooling, post-glass spectral regulation, passive vehicle cooling
- URL: https://realtech.media/news/rt-0698b9976dead9e58b973702_hust_engineers_develop/

**Researchers built a three-layer passive cooling fabric prototype that drops interior temperatures without electricity using fluorescence and radiative cooling.**

![HUST engineers develop metafabric sunshade that cools car cabins by 17.8 °C](https://realtech.media/media/2026/11/eb827f425eed4101.jpg)
*Michael Sheehan, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY 2.0*

Engineers led by Guangming Tao and Huamin Zhou of Huazhong University of Science and Technology, alongside Cheng-Wei Qiu of the National University of Singapore, developed a passive cooling metafabric sunshade that lowered parked vehicle cabin temperatures by up to 17.8 °C in real-world summer conditions, according to EurekAlert [1].

## Photoluminescent conversion and radiative cooling

Standard automotive glass transmits visible and near-infrared radiation while trapping indoor heat. The proposed concept relies on post-glass spectral regulation via a three-layer material architecture. Fluorescent particles within the fabric absorb incoming ultraviolet photons and re-emit them as visible light with an absolute quantum yield of 16.4%, dissipating energy as light rather than thermal accumulation [1].

Simultaneously, a titanium dioxide layer reflects 94.3% of solar radiation, while the textile structure maintains a mid-infrared emissivity of 95.8% to direct heat through the atmospheric transmission window [1]. Under simulated sunlight, the composite delivered a net cooling power of 130.13 W/m², compared to 77.23 W/m² recorded for identical fabric lacking photoluminescent particles.

## Vehicle trials and physical durability

In field vehicle tests, cabins equipped with the prototype ran 17.8 °C cooler than unshaded cars and 14.4 °C cooler than those using commercial sunshades [1]. The driver's seat back and cushion recorded reductions of 5.4 °C and 3.7 °C, respectively, with similar cooling verified during a four-day test on a glass room in Wuhan [1].

The material was manufactured in 1.2-meter-wide sections via blade coating. Lab evaluations showed a thermal conductivity of 0.059 W/(m·K), roughly one-tenth that of glass [1]. After 100 abrasion cycles, solar reflectivity remained at 93.6%, and 168 hours of ultraviolet exposure under the ASTM G-154 standard resulted in a 1.85% reflectivity loss [1].

## Sources

1. [EurekAlert](https://www.eurekalert.org/news-releases/1150736)

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Source: RealTech, realtech.media — https://realtech.media/news/rt-0698b9976dead9e58b973702_hust_engineers_develop/