Robust, Self-Healing Superhydrophobic Fabrics Prepared by One-Step Coating of PDMS and Octadecylamine

Abstract

A robust, self-healing superhydrophobic poly(ethylene terephthalate) (PET) fabric was fabricated by a convenient solution-dipping method using an easily available material system consisting of polydimethylsiloxane and octadecylamine (ODA). The surface roughness was formed by self-roughening of ODA coating on PET fibers without any lithography steps or adding any nanomaterials. The fabric coating was durable to withstand 120 cycles of laundry and 5000 cycles of abrasion without apparently changing the superhydrophobicity. More interestingly, the fabric can restore its super liquid-repellent property by 72 h at room temperature even after 20000 cycles of abrasion. Meanwhile, after being damaged chemically, the fabric can restore its superhydrophobicity automatically in 12 h at room temperature or by a short-time heating treatment. We envision that this simple but effective coating system may lead to the development of robust protective clothing for various applications.

Droplet impinging behavior on surfaces with wettability contrasts

“…Another robust and self-healing superhydrophobic poly(ethylene terephthalate) (PET) fabric was fabricated using dip-coating of the fabric in a solution of PDMS and octadecylamine (ODA). The superhydrophobic PDMS/ODA-coated PET fibers retained its superhydrophobicity even after repeated machine washes and various abrasion damages [13]. A droplet gently placed on surfaces with a wettability gradient moves toward the higher wettability region if it overcomes the resistive forces due to the contact angle hysteresis and viscosity [14–16].…”

A simple, one-step hydrothermal approach to durable and robust superparamagnetic, superhydrophobic and electromagnetic wave-absorbing wood

“…Superhydrophobic materials, because of their self-cleaning surfaces, biocompatibility and other excellent properties, are widely used in applications in waterproofing, anti-fouling, and bacteriostasis202122. Often, clouding, discolouring and checking defects in wood are caused by the hydrophilicity of the wood surface.…”

Fabrication of flower clusters‐like superhydrophobic surface via a UV curable coating of ODA and V‐PDMS

“…For ODA coating on the surface of fabric, ODA (1.00 g) was dissolved in THF (49.00 g) by heat to form the coating solution while the cotton fabric was baked at 120 °C for 30 min. There was a self‐assembly pathway when the fabric was coated by ODA …”

“…Xue et al . reported a robust, self‐healing superhydrophobic fabric fabricated by one‐step coating of polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) and octadecylamine (ODA), which would withstand 120 laundry cycles and 5000 cycles abrasion cycles without losing its superhydrophobicity . However, the tedious curing process of heating was not suitable for its large‐scale fabrication and there was no report about its application in self‐cleaning and oil–water separation.…”