Surface treatment agent comprising a non-fluorinated block copolymer
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional fluorine-containing water- and oil-repellent agents and block copolymers do not effectively provide liquid repellency without incorporating fluorine atoms, and acrylic block copolymers without fluorine have not demonstrated improved liquid repellency.
Innovation Solution
A fluorine-free block copolymer is developed, comprising at least one block segment with a repeating unit formed from an acrylic monomer having a long-chain hydrocarbon group of 7 to 40 carbon atoms, produced through a two-stage polymerization process, and used as a surface treatment agent in a liquid medium for enhanced liquid repellency.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If fluorine-containing compounds are used to achieve water- and oil-repellency, then liquid repellency is improved, but environmental harm and health concerns increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts and removes fluorine atoms from the water- and oil-repellent agent molecule, keeping only the hydrocarbon components that provide repellency. This eliminates the harmful fluorine substance while retaining the beneficial liquid repellency function through long-chain hydrocarbon groups (7-40 carbon atoms).
Solution Approach 2:
The patent replaces expensive and environmentally persistent fluorine-containing compounds with cheaper, biodegradable hydrocarbon-based copolymers. The hydrocarbon blocks provide the necessary repellency function temporarily without the long-term environmental persistence and toxicity of fluorine compounds.
2Object-affected harmful factors
If acrylic block copolymers without fluorine are used, then environmental safety is improved, but liquid repellency is insufficient
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies local quality by concentrating long-chain hydrocarbon groups (7-40 carbon atoms) specifically in block segments of the copolymer structure. This localized arrangement of hydrophobic blocks creates sufficient liquid repellency at the surface, while the rest of the polymer maintains environmental safety through non-fluorinated composition.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent creates a composite copolymer structure combining hydrophilic blocks (such as polyethylene oxide) with hydrophobic blocks containing long-chain hydrocarbon groups. This composite structure achieves both environmental safety (no fluorine) and adequate liquid repellency (through hydrophobic blocks), resolving the contradiction between safety and performance.
3Ease of manufacture
If random copolymers are used instead of block copolymers, then manufacturing simplicity is improved, but liquid repellency performance deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments the polymer into distinct blocks: hydrophilic blocks and hydrophobic blocks containing long-chain hydrocarbon groups. This segmentation creates phase-separated structures where hydrophobic blocks aggregate to provide liquid repellency, achieving superior performance compared to random copolymers while remaining manufacturable through standard polymerization techniques.
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 fluorine-free block copolymer exhibits excellent water- and oil-repellency, with high crystallinity and a melting point of 25°C or more, outperforming random copolymers in liquid repellency and film-forming properties.
Implementation Method 1
a fluorine-free block copolymer which comprises (A) at least one block segment, wherein the block segment (A) has a repeating unit formed from an acrylic monomer having a long-chain hydrocarbon group having 7 to 40 carbon atoms... exhibits excellent liquid repellency, that is, water-repellency and oil-repellency
Data Source
AI summary
Provided is a non-fluorinated block copolymer comprising at least one block segment (A), wherein the block segment (A) comprises a repeating unit formed from one or more types of acrylic monomer having a C7-40 long-chain hydrocarbon group, and a segment (B) constituted by at least one of: (B1) a block segment comprising a repeating unit different from that of segment (A) that is formed from an acrylic monomer having a long-chain C7-40 hydrocarbon group; (B2) a block segment comprising a repeating unit formed from an acrylic monomer not having a long-chain hydrocarbon group or a halogenated olefin; and (B3) a random segment formed from at least two types of acrylic monomers.