Nanoparticle-free, Fluorine-free, and Robust Superhydrophobic Cotton Fabric Fabricated Using a Combination of Etching Method and Mist Polymerization Technology

Immobilizing inorganic or organic particles on cotton fabric to increase the surface roughness, followed by coating with low surface reagents to reduce the surface energy, are the dominant strategies to prepare the superhydrophobic cotton surface. However, the inorganic or organic particles can easily fall off the surface of the fabrics. Thus, the surface roughness of the fabric could be reduced during the process, resulting in the poor durability of the superhydrophobic fabric. In this work, the surface of the cotton fabric was etched by cellulase. Following this, the treated fabric was grafted using a diblock copolymer (poly[(methyl methacrylate)- b -(2-(dimethylamino)ethyl)] (PMMA- b -PDMAEMA)), which was synthesized following the reversible addition-fragmentation chain transfer (RAFT) polymerization process. The mist polymerization technology was used for the process. The coatings successfully endowed the cotton fabric with superhydrophobic properties. The maximum WCA value recorded was 159.9 °. The treated fabric exhibited excellent mechanical and chemical stability. Moreover, the modified cotton sample also exhibited good self-cleaning effects in the presence of solid dust and liquid contaminants. It also exhibited excellent oil-water separation properties. Therefore, the superhydrophobic fabric prepared using a combination of the etching method and mist polymerization technology can find its potential application in home and industrial areas.