Electrospun poly(styrene-block-dimethylsiloxane) block copolymer fibers exhibiting superhydrophobicity.
Block copolymer poly(styrene-b-dimethylsiloxane) fibers with submicrometer diameters in the range 150-400 nm were produced by electrospinning from solution in tetrahydrofuran and dimethylformamide. Contact angle measurements indicate that the nonwoven fibrous mats are superhydrophobic, with a contact angle of 163 degrees and contact angle hysteresis of 15 degrees . The superhydrophobicity is attributed to the combined effects of surface enrichment in siloxane as revealed by X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy and surface roughness of the electrospun mat itself. Additionally, the fibers are shown by transmission electron microscopy to exhibit microphase-separated internal structures. Calorimetric studies confirm the strong segregation between the polystyrene and poly(dimethylsiloxane) blocks.
Ma
Minglin
M
Department of Chemical Engineering, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, 77 Massachusetts Avenue, Cambridge, Massachusetts 01239, USA.
Hill
Randal M
RM
Lowery
Joseph L
JL
Fridrikh
Sergey V
SV
Rutledge
Gregory C
GC