Synthesis of core-shell fluorinated acrylate copolymers and its application as finishing agent for textile

Abstract

Core-shell fluorinated acrylate copolymers emulsion was thus synthesized via the core-shell emulsion polymerization with the fluorinated monomers and acrylic monomers as the main raw materials and its properties were studied. PFMA, the fluorinated acrylate monomers, was synthesized by the esterification of perfluorooctanoyl chloride (PFOC) and hydroxypropyl methacrylate (HPMA). Then the core-shell fluorinated acrylate copolymers emulsion with a poly(MMA/BA/St) core and a poly(PFMA/MMA/BA) shell was synthesized via a starved semi-continuous core-shell emulsion polymerization method by using KPS and sodium bicarbonate as the initiator/buffer system and SDS/Twain 80 as the commixture emulsifier. Lastly, the synthesized copolymers was applied as textile finishing agent for cotton textile. The results of FT-IR and NMR indicated that PFMA had been synthesized as expected and effectively combined in the emulsion copolymerization. The GPC, zeta potential, TEM and DSC showed that the particles had uniform spherical core-shell structure with a diameter of 65-150 nm, and the distribution and emulsion stability was satisfactory. As XPS, FESEM and AFM shown, a hydrophobic structure which was similar to the structure of the lotus leaf were formed and the surface hydrophobicity of the films can be improved. Based on the analysis of DSC, thermal stabilities of the films were enhanced with the increase of fluorine content. Besides, FESEM of textiles showed that the surface of treated textiles were smooth and the edges were clear and visible, indicating significant improvement of the performance on water and oil repellent.