Are telechelic polysiloxanes better than hemi-telechelic for self-cleaning applications?

Hypothesis: Polysiloxanes are becoming new trend in self-cleaning (oil-and water-repellent) applications due to their low-cost and environmentally friendly nature. Lower phase separation of polysiloxanes in coating matrix is critical to obtain excellent self-cleaning properties. We hypothesize that telechelic polysiloxanes can bind to coating matrix at both ends and thus will suppress phase separation of polysiloxane as compared to hemi-telechelic analog and thus will offer excellent self-cleaning properties. Experiment: Eight PDMS additives were prepared via the free-radical polymerization of telechelic and hemi-telechelic methacryloxypropyl-based PDMS precursors with methylmethacrylate (MMA) and gly-cidylmethacrylate (GMA). The compositions of the prepared polysiloxane additives were optimized to obtain excellent self-cleaning performance. Findings: Our breakthrough development confirms that telechelic polysiloxanes (PDMS-T) incorporated into epoxy-based anti-smudge coatings outperform hemi-telechelic polysiloxanes (PDMS-HT) by offering excellent repellency against difficult to repel liquids. These breakthrough findings will vertically advance Science and innovations in the self-cleaning field by offering robust guidelines for choosing suitable polysiloxane for self-cleaning applications. (c) 2021 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Automated summary

Polysiloxanes are becoming a new trend in self-cleaning applications due to their low-cost and environmentally friendly nature. Our experiment demonstrates that telechelic polysiloxanes outperform hemi-telechelic polysiloxanes in epoxy-based anti-smudge coatings by offering excellent repellency against difficult to repel liquids, providing robust guidelines for selecting suitable polysiloxanes for self-cleaning applications, thereby advancing science and innovation in the field.