Structure-property relationship of polyhedral oligomeric silsesquioxanes/polydimethylsiloxane superhydrophobic coatings for cotton fabrics

Abstract

Cotton fabrics are extensively utilized in daily life due to striking advantages such as softness, breathability, skin-friendliness, and cheapness. However, they are susceptible to being contaminated owing to inherent amphiphilicity, severely affecting service lifespan and aesthetic perception. To address this issue, three distinct types of the POSS/PDMS composite coatings are explored, and applied to cotton fabrics, respectively. Subsequently, the correlations between structures of POSS and properties of the composite coatings on the modified cotton fabrics are discussed. The results show that the three types of the POSS/PDMS composite coatings impart the modified fabrics with robust superhydrophobicity even in harsh environments including mechanical damage, chemical corrosion and UV-irradiation. Notably, the damaged POSS/PDMS composite coatings on cotton fabrics can exhibit excellent superhydrophobic self-healing capability by simple heating. Meanwhile, the modified fabrics also show excellent performances in self-cleaning, anti-fouling, anti-icing and oil-water separation applications. Additionally, due to multifunctional groups of MTPOSS, the cotton fabric treated by the MTPOSS/PDMS composite coating exhibits more excellent thermal, mechanical, and UV protection properties without significantly compromising its air permeability as compared to those of the other coated cotton fabrics. This work will pave the way to exploitation and applications of novel multifunctional textiles.