A new class of self-healable hydrophobic materials based on ABA triblock copolymer via RAFT polymerization and Diels-Alder “click chemistry”

Abstract

This investigation reports the preparation of a new self-healing ABA tri-block copolymer (BCP) poly(furfuryl methacrylate-b-poly(dimethyl siloxane)-b-poly(furfuryl methacrylate) (PFMA-b-PDMS-b-PFMA) (FDF) via RAFT polymerization using PDMS-CTA as macro-RAFT agent. The formation of FDF triblock copolymer was confirmed by 1H NMR, GPC and DSC analyses. The phase segregated domain morphology of the synthesized BCP films as a function of PFMA fraction was studied via an AFM. In this BCP, Diels-Alder (DA) click reaction was carried out between the reactive furfuryl group in PFMA unit as diene with different maleimides as dienophile. While the presence of the PFMA unit makes the triblock copolymer thermally amendable and the PDMS present in the matrix makes the BCP ideally suited for hydrophobic self-healing applications. The hydrophobic nature of the triblock copolymer was studied by water contact angle (WCA) measurement and the self-healing property was studied by DSC and SEM analyses.