A stable 3D sol-gel network with dangling fluoroalkyl chains and rapid self-healing ability as a long-lived superhydrophobic fabric coating

作者:Zhang, Hao; Hou, Chunping; Song, Lixun; Ma, Yong; Ali, Zafar; Gu, Junwei; Zhang, Baoliang; Zhang, Hepeng; Zhang, Qiuyu*
来源:Chemical Engineering Journal, 2018, 334: 598-610.
DOI:10.1016/j.cej.2017.10.036

摘要

Superhydrophobic films with rapid, lasting self-healing behaviors against physical and chemical damage are very useful for practical applications but remain challenging to realize. Regeneration is time-consuming or invalid as self-healing cycles increase, especially for severe physical damage. Herein, a branched thiol-ene fluoroalkyl siloxane is introduced to design a self-healing superhydrophobic 3D sol-gel network dangling fluoroalkyl chain for coating treatment. The coated fabric was highly durable to withstand at least 1000 cycles of abrasion under 45 kPa and resistant to strong acid/base (e.g., H2SO4, KOH), UV, thermal, and smudge treatments. Moreover, regardless of severe physical or chemical damage, the coating rapidly restored its super liquid-repellent properties using long dangling perfluoroalkyl arms. This robust, rapid and long-term self-healing system may promote the development of long-lived protective films for various applications.