Preparing weathering-resistant superhydrophobic polymer/bentonite nano-composites for waterproof garment textiles via electrospinning

Abstract

Polymers can be prepared into textiles via electrospinning. However, high overall property of outdoor clothing is necessary. In this work, hybridization and electrospinning were employed to fabricate fluoropolymer@bentonite hybrid textiles. Compared with fluoropolymer textile, hybrid textiles exhibit a surface superhydrophobicity ascribed to the significantly improved surface roughness of hybrid fibers, and they display high thermal stability attributed to inorganic bentonite. After acid/alkali immersion, ultraviolet radiation, or mechanical abrasion, hybrid textiles still show high water resistance, indicating strong weathering resistance. Rational material selection and electrospinning result in low surface energy, high surface roughness, and binary micro/nano hierarchical structure. Hybrid textile (with 10 wt% bentonite) shows high overall property (water contact angle of ~ 155°; thermal stability up to ~ 400 ℃; superhydrophobicity after 48 h exposing to acid, alkali, or radiation; hydrophobicity after 100 abrasion cycles). This work might pave a road for large-scale preparation of high-performance textiles for waterproof garments.