Amphiphilic ABC Triblock Copolymers Tailored via RAFT Polymerization as Textile Surface Modifiers with Dual-Action Properties

We present the synthesis and characterization of two different kinds of triblock copolymers prepared via RAFT polymerization by only two synthetic steps applying a sequential monomer addition approach. Both triblock copolymers consist of a hydrophilic, a hydrophobic and an anchor block which is located in the middle or at the end of the polymer chains. In both triblock copolymer systems the hydrophobic blocks consist of randomly polymerized tert-butylstyrene (tBS) and n-hexyl acrylate (nHA) monomers in a ratio of approximately 2:1, respectively, whereas the hydrophilic blocks were accomplished by polymerization of N,N-dimethylacrylamide (DMA). As a result of the employed synthetic approach, every anchor block contains several N-acryloxysuccinimide (NAS) units besides tBS and nHA units in the case of the triblock copolymer with the central anchor block and DMA units in the case of the triblock copolymer with the terminal anchor block. The structures as well as the compositions of all synthesized polymers were verified by means of H-1, C-13 NMR, and FT-IR analysis. Molar masses and molecular weight distributions were determined by GPC measurements The thermogravimetric measurements showed a sufficient thermal stability for all prepared polymers up to 210 degrees C, while DSC investigations revealed that the glass transition temperatures of the hydrophobic blocks of both triblock copolymers are in the targeted range between 50 and 65 degrees C. The unique design of these triblock copolymer systems combined with the special properties of their blocks (polarity, T-g) predestinate these systems for an application as a durable dual action texile finish rendered by virtue of a thermoresponsive block copolymer brush covalently attached on the texile fabric surface. The synthesis and the characterization of these triblock copolymer systems are emphasized in this paper.