Cotton fiber modified via N-phenyl anhydride in situ ring-opening polymerization with controllable surface morphology and its wettability

A desired synthetic route of N -phenyl anhydride was proposed, and it was used as a monomer raw material. Poly(amino acid) chains were formed via in situ ring-opening polymerization of the acid anhydride, initiated by the self-assembled amine monomolecular film, and were subsequently grafted on the surface of cotton fibers to create a rough morphology and obtain a low-surface-energy surface. The effects of various experimental conditions on the rough surface structure with microspherical morphology were then studied. Moreover, the morphology of the grafted polymer on the fiber surface was observed by scanning electron and atomic force microscopy , substantiating the correlation analysis of the growth process and formation mechanism of the poly(amino acid) microspheres . On this basis, the poly(amino acid)–cotton fabric surface was modified with octyl isocyanate, which endowed the fabric with lower surface energy and superhydrophobicity. Notably, the water contact angle of the fabric reached 158.2 ± 0.8°. Self-cleaning and oil–water separation tests showed that the prepared superhydrophobic cotton fabrics displayed superior stain resistance and oil–water mixture separation performances. The prepared fabrics are highly rated for physicochemical stability and unaffected wearability, and are expected to broaden the application range of cotton fabrics.