Preparation and characterization of superhydrophobic organic-inorganic hybrid cotton fabrics via γ-radiation-induced graft polymerization

A new kind of non-fluorine-based organic-inorganic hybrid superhydrophobic cotton fabric was successfully prepared by simultaneous radiation-induced graft polymerization of γ-methacryloxypropyl trimethoxy silane (MAPS) and subsequent end-capping modification with hexamethyldisilazane (HMDS). The chemical structure and surface topography of the pristine and modified cotton fabrics were investigated in detail by ATR-FTIR, XPS, 29Si NMR, SEM and TGA to confirm that the graft reaction and end-capping modification had taken place. The above results demonstrated that the grafting polymerization and following end-capping reaction were completed, and a grafting layer was immobilized onto the surface of the cotton fabric. Surface wettability measurement and oil-water separation showed that the modified cotton surface not only exhibited the superhydrophobicity with a water contact angle of 165°, but also afforded a high efficiency of oil-water separation (96%). In particular, this modified cotton fabric retains superhydrophobicity even after 30 laundering cycles or 400 cycles of abrasion.