Construction of Multifunctional Fabric with Structural Color by Polymer Microspheres Containing Antibacterial and Hydrophobic Functional Groups

Biomimetic construction of structural colors on materials as an environmentally friendly coloring method has received more and more attention. If the structural color of the materials has special functions, it will broaden the application field. However, functional structural colors are usually prepared through the coassembly of building units with functional agents or functional modification of structural colors. In this study, poly(2,2,3,4,4,4-hexafluorobutyl acrylate/methyl methacrylate/[3-(methyl acrylamide) propyl] trimethylammonium chloride) (PAMM) microspheres containing hydrophobic and antibacterial functional groups were prepared, which were used to construct multifunctional structural colors on black polyester fabrics through the atomization deposition method. PAMM microspheres with different particle sizes (332.1, 318.3, 302, 289.9, 257.2 nm) were successfully prepared by adjusting the amounts of monomers in the synthesis reaction, which can form different structural colors of pink, green, cyan, blue, and purple on the polyester fabrics. The fabrics with structural color can significantly inhibit the growth of E. coli and S. aureus, and the antibacterial rates of both are greater than 94%. The fabrics with structural color showed outstanding hydrophobicity with a static water contact angle greater than 140°. This research provides an idea for the preparation of multifunctional fabrics with structural colors through the synthesis of building units of polymer microspheres with multifunctional groups.