Synthesis and characterization of poly(fluorinated styrene-acrylate)/silica nanocomposites

• Surface composition of fluorinated poly(fluorinated styrene-acrylate)/silica hybrid film was investigated.
• The effect of silica content on abrasion performance of the hybrid film was measured.
• The hybrid film surface morphology was studied and correlated to silica content.

Poly(fluorinated styrene-acrylate)/silica (PFSA/SiO2) nanocomposite latexes with different content of silica were prepared by seeded emulsion polymerization. Chemical composition of the PFSA nanocomposite was evaluated by Fourier transform infrared (FT-IR) spectrometry and energy dispersive spectrometry (EDS) analyses, respectively. Thermal performance of the nanocomposite particles was characterized by differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) and thermogravimetry (TG). Micromorphology of the nanocomposite latex film formed on glass substrate was observed by atomic force microscope (AFM). Furthermore, surface hydrophobicity of the latex film was examined by measurement of water contact angle. The results showed that although only small amount (no more than 1.0 wt% based on the PFSA nanocomposite) of silica contained in the composite, abrasion resistance and thermal properties of the PFSA films were improved significantly. More silica content will cause instability of polymerization. Moreover, dynamic light scattering (DLS) analysis revealed that the presence of silica nanoparticles led to smaller composite particle size as compared with pure PFSA latex particles containing no silica.

Poly(fluorinated styrene-acrylate)/silica (PFSA/SiO2) nanocomposite latexes with different content of silica were prepared by seeded emulsion polymerization. Surface morphology and composition of the films were investigated. Abrasion property of the film containing silica was evaluated. The results showed that only small amount (no more than 1.0 wt% based on the PFSA nanocomposite) of silica contained in the composite, abrasion resistance and thermal properties of the PFSA films were improved significantly. The presence of silica nanoparticles led to smaller composite particle size as compared with pure PFSA latex particles containing no silica.Figure optionsDownload as PowerPoint slide