Pigment printing of polyester fabric using a single step synthesized PDMS-modified polyurethane-acrylic/pigment hybrid emulsion

A novel, waterborne polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS)-modified polyurethane-acrylic (Si-PUA)/pigment hybrid emulsion was synthesized by one-step miniemulsion polymerization for the pigment printing of polyester fabric. The phase structure, hydrophobicity, and thermal and mechanical properties of the formed films with different PDMS contents from the hybrid emulsion were investigated. The results indicated that the pigment particles were uniformly distributed in the homogeneous phase polymer substrate without phase separation occurring between the PDMS phase and polyurethane-acrylic. The hydrophobicity and toughness of the Si-PUA/pigment hybrid latex films gradually increased with the increase of PDMS content. Moreover, the obtained hybrid emulsion was used as a self-curable hybrid pigment that was applied to polyethylene terephthalate fabric for pigment printing. This showed that the Si-PUA/pigment hybrid latex particles yielded similarly good values in terms of color strength, and dry- and wet-rubbing fastness to the PDMS-free hybrid latex particles. Furthermore, use of the Si-PUA/pigment hybrid latex avoided certain problems related to printed fabric, such as poor air permeability and softness.