Living anionic polymerization of a block copolymer and the preparation of superhydrophobic surfaces based on the method of phase separation

Huang, Yanfen; Liu, Xinghai; Zhang, Fangfang; Dong, Jinfeng; Luo, Yunbai; Huang, Chi

doi:10.1038/pj.2012.137

Rapid Communication
Published: 04 July 2012

Polymer Surface and Interfaces

Living anionic polymerization of a block copolymer and the preparation of superhydrophobic surfaces based on the method of phase separation

Yanfen Huang¹,
Xinghai Liu²,
Fangfang Zhang²,
Jinfeng Dong¹,
Yunbai Luo¹ &
…
Chi Huang^1,3

Polymer Journal volume 45, pages 125–128 (2013)Cite this article

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The wettability of solid surfaces is a subject of intense research today because of its potential applications in daily life and in industry,^{1, 2, 3} such as its use in corrosion resistance, stain-resistant textiles, drag-reduction, inhibition of snow or ice adhesion, biomedical applications and anti-bacterial paints. The surfaces with water contact angles (WCAs) >150° and roll-off angles <10° are called superhydrophobic surfaces.^{4, 5, 6, 7} Many natural organisms exhibit inherent superhydrophobicity, for example, lotus leaves, rose petals, water strider legs and the skins of some types of fish.^{8, 9} A large number of artificial superhydrophobic surfaces have been prepared with our in-depth understanding of the chemical compositions and the geometric structures of these biological surfaces. For water repellency, surface roughness and low surface energy are the two essential factors.^{10, 11, 12, 13} Generally, superhydrophobic surfaces are made using the two approaches: the application of low surface-energy coatings to modify the roughness of surfaces and the fabrication of surfaces with micro-/nano-rough structures using low surface-energy materials.^{14, 15, 16}

Living anionic polymerization is an effective route to fabricate polymers with well-defined molecular architectures compared with other polymerization methods. Owing to the incorporation of functional groups into the polymer chains, these polymers always exhibit high-performance characteristics,¹⁷ such as hydrophilicity, hydrophobicity, biocompatibility and adhesion. One application of living anionic polymerization is to form block copolymers. Under the appropriate conditions, block copolymers are known to generate ordered structures with nanometer-scale periodicity through microphase-separation.¹⁸ Moreover, using selective solvent mixtures could induce these copolymers to phase separate.¹⁹ Generally speaking, the phase separation method is a simple and low-cost approach to fabricate superhydrophobic surfaces.

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Acknowledgements

This work was partially supported by the National Science and Technology Support Program of China (2009BAA23B04), National Natural Science Foundation of China (No. 60577049), Combination Project of Guangdong Province and the Ministry of Education (2011B090400397) and Luojia Young Scholars Program of Wuhan University (217273483). We thank Professor Hua Tong for providing assistance on the use of the scanning electron microscopy.

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College of Chemistry and Molecular Sciences, Wuhan University, Wuhan, PR China
Yanfen Huang, Jinfeng Dong, Yunbai Luo & Chi Huang
School of Printing and Packaging, Wuhan University, Wuhan, PR China
Xinghai Liu & Fangfang Zhang
Engineering Research Center of Organosilicon Compounds and Materials, Ministry of Education of China, Wuhan, PR China
Chi Huang

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Yanfen Huang
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Xinghai Liu
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Fangfang Zhang
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Jinfeng Dong
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Yunbai Luo
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Correspondence to Yunbai Luo or Chi Huang.

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Huang, Y., Liu, X., Zhang, F. et al. Living anionic polymerization of a block copolymer and the preparation of superhydrophobic surfaces based on the method of phase separation. Polym J 45, 125–128 (2013). https://doi.org/10.1038/pj.2012.137

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Published: 04 July 2012
Issue date: February 2013
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/pj.2012.137

Living anionic polymerization of a block copolymer and the preparation of superhydrophobic surfaces based on the method of phase separation

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