Ozone-Degradable Fluoropolymers on Textile Surfaces for Water and Oil Repellency

Resistant and functional coatings on surfaces have been of growing interest recently. Functional textiles featuring water- and oil-repellent properties can be achieved by convenient coating of textiles with highly fluorinated polymers. Recently, concerns about (per)fluorinated molecules have been reported due to the high persistence and accumulation capabilities in nature, driving the textile market to develop alternatives and novel strategies. Within this study an ozone-degradable fluorinated polymer for water and oil repellency on various textiles is reported. The monomer 2-((1,1,2-trifluoro-2-(perfluoropropoxy)ethyl)thio)ethyl acrylate is capable of side-chain degradation upon ozone treatment due to the presence of chemically cleavable moieties. The degradable fluorine-containing polymer is accessible via radical polymerization in emulsion polymerization and can be directly applied onto various textiles, e.g., polyamide, polyester, Nomex, or cotton, by using a foulard. To investigate the homogeneous coating performance on the respective textiles, a model polymer featuring a fluorescent monomer as part of the polymer chain is prepared, enabling the investigation of the polymer distribution via confocal microscopy. Finally, the effect of the fluorine moieties and the molar mass of the polymers is investigated, and the ozone-induced degradation is elucidated. The herein-described fluorinated polymers are envisaged to be a promising and nonpersistent platform for the preparation of omniphobic textile coating.