Robust water repellent treatment for woven cotton fabrics with eco-friendly polymers

A new type of water repellent treatment for woven cotton fabrics is demonstrated by using environmentally friendly non-toxic polymers. As a result of the treatment, cotton fabrics also demonstrated resistance to water penetration due to hydrostatic pressure build-up. The treatment is achieved by sequentially coating the fibers with a polymer nanocomposite comprising a C-6 perfluorinated acrylic copolymer and silica nanoparticles and acetoxy-cure silicone (PDMS) resin. Water droplets were easily repelled with corresponding roll-off angles well below 20 degrees. Even impinging small droplets (8 mu L..) could be repelled with droplet roll-off angle of 17 degrees. Additionally, treated fabrics were also able to hold a hydrostatic head pressure of 2.56 kPa (equal to 26 cm water column height) before leak. Performance of the hydrophobic cotton fabrics was tested by ultrasonic washing and wear abrasion tests. Hydrophobic fabrics resisted wear abrasion under 17.5 kPa up to 30 abrasion cycles. Moreover, the treatment was made in such a way that the open porous structured was preserved allowing breathability. The ease of application technique, industrial scale availability of the low-cost polymers and the non-toxic ingredients would allow this fabric treatment to be implemented in large scale textile treatment facilities. (C) 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.