Preparation and characterization of a novel fluoro-silicone acrylate copolymer by semi-continuous emulsion polymerization

A novel fluoro-silicone acrylate (FSA) copolymer latex was synthesized with 2-acrylamido-2-methyl-propanesulfonic acid (AMPS), which served as a polymerizable emulsifier by semi-continuous emulsion polymerization. Methyl methacrylate (MMA), butyl acrylate (BA) and 1,3,5-trimethyltris (3,3,3-trifluoropyropyl) cyclotrisiloxane (D3F) were served as co-monomers while vinyltriethoxysilane (VTES) was used as a cross-linking agent. The structure and surface morphologies of the copolymer were characterized by FT-IR, 1H NMR, TEM, TGA and DSC. The influences of AMPS, D3F and VTES on the copolymerʹs properties of appearance, conversion rate, gel rate and solid content were discussed. The analytical results indicated that the FSA copolymer latex had a narrow particle size distribution around 100 nm with high temperature stability. The copolymer latex shows excellent water repellency with the contact angles of cotton and silk textile of 125.8° and 120.7°, respectively.