Recyclable Biomass-Derived Polyethylene-Like Materials as Functional Coatings for Commercial Fabrics: Toward Upcycling of Waste Textiles

Abstract

Bio-based polymers are recognized as promising alternatives to fossil-based counterparts. However, the inferior material performance of bio-based polymers is a serious restriction to their application fields. Herein, renewable polyethylene-like materials (PLMs) are used as surface coatings for commercial fabrics. First, α,ω-diene monomers were synthesized by the downstream products of sugar and castor oil derivatives. Subsequently, biomass-derived polymers were generated via acyclic diene metathesis (ADMET) (co)polymerization of these monomers followed by exhaustive hydrogenation. The obtained long-chain aliphatic polyesters are considered remarkable polyethylene mimics in that these hydrophobic and semicrystalline materials show unique features such as hydrolysis resistance and recyclability. On the other hand, PLM nanoparticles were prepared by the nanoprecipitation method and then drop-cast on commercial fabric surfaces. Hydrophobically modified fabrics show repellency to various water droplets and the capability of oil/water separation as well as anti-icing and anticorrosive characteristics. Moreover, photoinduced contaminant removal and wettability change are realized by fabrics with a hybrid coating layer composed of PLM and titanium dioxide (TiO2) nanoparticles. These polyethylene-mimetic materials not only meet the requirements of sustainability in terms of renewability and recyclability but also show great prospects in surface functionalization of commercial fabrics and upcycling of waste textiles.