Fluorinated Methacrylic Polymer for Water and Oil Repellency
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing fluorinated acrylic polymers for water and oil repellency are costly due to the high price of fluorine incorporation, and they often require complex separation processes for achieving desired carbon chain lengths, while conventional materials with longer perfluoroalkyl chains suffer from reorientation issues affecting surface behavior.
Innovation Solution
A solvent-based fluorinated methacrylic polymer composition is developed, comprising repeating units of fluorinated methacrylate, non-fluorinated alkyl acrylate, and non-fluorinated hydroxyalkyl methacrylate, with specific weight ratios, which provides effective oil and water repellency and stain resistance to leather and hard surfaces without the need for expensive fluorine sources or complex separation processes.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If conventional fluorinated acrylic polymers with long perfluoroalkyl chains (6+ carbons) are used to provide water and oil repellency, then repellency performance is achieved, but the cost increases significantly due to high fluorine incorporation requirements
Solution Approach 1:
The patent changes the parameter of fluorinated carbon chain length from conventional long chains (6+ carbons) to short chains (5 carbons). This parameter change reduces fluorine incorporation requirements and manufacturing cost while maintaining acceptable repellency performance through optimized polymer composition and structure
Solution Approach 2:
The patent creates a composite fluorinated polymer system combining fluorinated methacrylic units with non-fluorinated acrylate units in specific ratios. This composite approach allows achieving desired repellency performance with reduced fluorine content, thereby lowering manufacturing costs
2Manufacturing precision
If telomerization processes are used to produce fluorinated polymers with fixed carbon chain lengths, then precise chain length control is achieved, but complex sequential separation processes are required and tetrafluoroethylene is expensive and limited in availability
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts and eliminates the complex sequential separation process from the manufacturing workflow by using direct polymerization methods that produce the desired fluorinated polymer with controlled chain length in a single step, avoiding the need for separate purification operations
Solution Approach 2:
The patent changes the synthesis approach from telomerization (which requires separation) to direct copolymerization of fluorinated methacrylic monomers with controlled composition. This parameter change in the synthesis method achieves precise chain length control without requiring complex separation processes
3Reliability
If fluorinated methacrylic polymer contains only fluorinated repeating units, then high repellency performance is achieved, but the polymer becomes difficult to process and apply to substrates
Solution Approach 1:
The patent creates a composite polymer structure combining fluorinated methacrylic units (providing repellency) with non-fluorinated acrylate units (providing processability). The specific ratio ranges (40-80% fluorinated units) optimize both performance and ease of application to substrates
Solution Approach 2:
The patent applies local quality by having different functional units in different locations within the polymer chain: fluorinated units provide the repellent function at the surface, while non-fluorinated units provide bulk properties and processability. This spatial differentiation of functions resolves the contradiction between performance and ease of operation
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
The composition achieves superior water and oil repellency and stain resistance on various substrates, including leather and hard surfaces, while minimizing costs and maintaining performance with exact short fluorinated carbon chains, thus overcoming the limitations of conventional fluorinated materials.
Implementation Method 1
a solvent based (i.e., non-aqueous) fluorinated methacrylic polymer... to provide water and oil repellency
Implementation Method 2
the manufacture thereof, and the methods of use thereof on leather and hard surface substrates
Data Source
AI summary
A solvent-based non-aqueous fluorinated methacrylate polymer comprising repeating units in any sequence from (1) at least one fluorinated methacrylate, and (2) at least one non-fluorinated alkyl acrylate and (3) at least one non-fluorinated hydroxyalkyl methacrylate,provided thata) the repeating unit of fluorinated methacrylate is present in a range of about 40%-80% by weight of total monomers added,b) the repeating unit of non-fluorinated alkyl acrylate is present in a range of about 10%-35% by weight of total monomers added, andc) the repeating unit of non-fluorinated hydroxyalkyl methacrylate is present in a range of about 5%-25% by weight of total monomers added, andd) the total of all repeating units is 100% by weight.