Efficient preparation of single-sided structural color fabrics with asymmetric wettability, angle-dependence and patternability based on liquid photonic crystals

Abstract

Liquid photonic crystals (LPCs) with structural colors have become the most promising materials for preparing structural color fabrics, which have received extensive attention in textile printing and dyeing. However, the tedious and uncontrollable preparation process for LPCs and its expensive equipment for structural color fabrics with asymmetric wettability limit the practical application of structural color materials. Herein, inspired by the Janus wettability of the unidirectional moisture transport fabric, a simple and efficient approach is reported to fabricate single-sided structural color fabrics (SSCFs) with asymmetric wettability and angle dependence. To obtain asymmetrically wetted substrate fabrics, a low-cost, high-temperature assisted spraying strategy is used to build a hydrophobic layer on one side of the fabric. The ready-to-use LPCs with target mass fraction are accurately prepared by re-dispersing the dry poly(styrene-methyl methacrylate-acrylic acid) (P(St-MMA-AA)) microsphere powder and are uniformly scraped onto the hydrophilic side of the fabric to prepare SSCFs. The as-prepared samples show a brilliant and iridescent structural color, and their color is adjusted by varying the size of the P(St-MMA-AA) microspheres. The water contact angle of the front side (with structural colors) of SSCFs treated by sintering and water bath is 37°, which facilitates further encapsulation to improve the color fastness of SSCFs. Meanwhile, the photonic crystals on the fabric remain ordered. This work provides an alternative, low-cost and practical preparation scheme for the structural coloring of textiles based on LPCs.