Oxidation Modification of Paraffin Wax and Preparation of Water-Repellent Finish Emulsion

Abstract

Applying a low surface energy water-repellent finish agents to fabric is one of the effective ways to make it obtain water-repellent function. Water-repellent finish agents are mainly divided into two categories, fluorinated and non-fluorinated, and fluorinated water-repellent agents will be gradually banned because of environmental protection issues. Organosilicons, polyacrylates, and dendritic macromolecules are the most studied types of non-fluorinated water-repellent agents, but there are some problems in the preparation and use of these non-fluorinated water-repellent agents. Here, using 58 # fully refined paraffin wax as raw material, the paraffin wax was modified by no catalytic oxidation modification method to improve its emulsification performance. The oxidation-modified paraffin wax was used as raw material to prepare a stable, uniform and good fluidity water-repellent emulsion. The oxidation-modified paraffin wax emulsion was used as a water-repellent agent, and waterborne polyurethane (WPU) was used as a crosslinking agent to finish pure cotton fabrics and polyester/cotton-blended fabrics. After water-repellent finish, the contact angle of pure cotton fabric was 135° and that of polyester/cotton-blended fabric was 145°. This study provides a useful way for exploring non-fluorinated water-repellent agent with low cost and simple production process.