Superamphiphobic and chemical repellent aramid fabrics for applications in protective clothing

This work aims to develop a facile two-step method for the fabrication of superamphiphobic and chemical repellent aramid fabrics. The aramid fabrics were coated with a formula consisting of waterborne polyurethane, poly(vinylidene fluoride-co-hexafluoropropylene) and fluoroalkyl silane via both a blade-coating process and an immersion technique. The wettability, surface morphology, thermal stability, chemical composition and chemical protective behaviors of the aramid fabrics were characterized. The coated fabrics showed contact angles of 157 +/- 4 degrees and 140 +/- 2 degrees for water and sunflower seed oil, respectively. No penetration was observed in coated fabrics stained with H2SO4, NaOH, and N,N-dimethylformamide for up to 150 min. The excellent repellent properties were retained after 10 washing cycles and 200 crocking cycles. Additionally, the coated fabrics showed superb restorable superamphiphobicity, demonstrating good potential to be used for chemical protective clothing.