Asymmetrical Morphology and Performance of Composite Colloidal Particles Controlled via Hydrophilic Comonomer Addition Time in the Presence of Polyvinylidene Fluoride Latex

Abstract

Anisotropic composite latex particles with heteromorphous bowl-like and popcorn-like shapes were fabricated by a general approach: seeded emulsion polymerization. The morphologies of polyvinylidene fluoride@poly(styrene-co-butyl acrylate-co-3-trimethoxysilyl propyl methacrylate) composite particles [PVDF@P(St-co-BA-co-MPS)] could be efficiently controlled by varying the feeding time of hydrophilic MPS. The deformation mechanism of bowl-like particles was largely attributed to the diverse rigidities of the P(St-co-BA-co-MPS) phase from the inhomogeneous cross-linking density formed through changes in the MPS feeding time. During the polymerization, the PVDF crystallization behaviors demonstrated an obvious transformation from unconfined to confined crystallization. Additionally, the chemical properties and morphologies of the particles’ surface greatly impacted the hydrophilic–hydrophobic character of the particle films. After the capping of the hydrophilic functional groups of the surface, the contact ang...