Soft Feel Material Coatings on the Surface of Plastic Products and Their Application Prospects in the Popular Fields: A Review

Abstract

Soft-feel material (mainly polyurethane (PU), silicone rubber (SR), and polyacrylic acid (PAA), etc.) coatings can overcome the drawbacks of common plastic products such as acrylonitrile butadiene styrene copolymer (ABS), polycarbonate (PC), and polypropylene (PP), which have cold, hard, and bright surfaces, achieving warm, soft, and matte effects, thus greatly improving the quality and price level of the products. Although these coating materials can partially meet the main requirements of the soft feel effect, their comprehensive properties, such as mechanical performance, weather resistance, and foul resistance, still have shortcomings and need to be improved. Besides, there is a lack of in-depth exploration in the literature on the design philosophy and preparation strategies of soft-feel materials. Starting from the mechanism of producing this comfortable feeling and then systematically exploring their application in popular fields with high economic added value, such as mobile phone cases, electronic cigarette cases, cosmetic containers, etc., this article attempts to systematically and meticulously review the research and development progress in the related fields in recent decades and tries to provide an open outlook on their future development directions, e.g., the employment of surface engineering and hybrid materials. This review is expected to provide some rational thinking directions and convenient practical guidance for the rapid and healthy development of soft-feel materials in the research and application fields.