Polymeric Fluorocarbon-Coated Polyester Substrates for Waterproof Breathable Fabrics

Abstract

Fluorocarbon (FC) coatings are applied to poly(ethylene terephthalate) (PET) fabrics by ion beam sputtering of polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE) under different conditions. The range of the adhesion work of the coated fabrics is 5-75 10-3N.M-1 . After a washing and wearing test, most of the original coating grains remain on the fabrics, exhibiting good hydrophobicity. From XPS and ATR-FTIR analysis and property experiments, the adhesion work decreases with increasing energy due to increased fluorine content in the coatings, while it basically increases with increasing pore diameter and porosity of the specimens, probably due to the decrease in the real water-coating contact areas and roughness. For most of the just-coated specimens, no yellowing is observed due to high fluorine content. The coated fabric generally exhibits the original moisture permeability of the uncoated fabric because the PC coating covers only the fiber surfaces and most of the original pores in the fabrics remain.