Superhydrophobic and luminescent cotton fabrics prepared by dip-coating of APTMS modified SrAl2O4:Eu2+,Dy3+ particles in the presence of SU8 and fluorinated alkyl silane

An organic-inorganic composite dip-coating method was adopted in order to obtain ideal water repellent cotton fabrics. To be specific, a dual-functional coating with both superhydrophobic and luminescent properties was prepared on cotton fabric by using a dip-coating solution comprising (3-aminopropyl) trimethoxysilane (APTMS) modified SrAl2O4:Eu2+,Dy3+ particles, SU8, and fluorinated alkyl silane (FAS). The micro/nano-scale roughness generated by SrAl2O4:Eu2+,Dy3+ particles, together with low-surface-energy FAS, rendered the cotton fabric superhydrophobic with a water contact angle of about 160 degrees and a sliding angle as small as 2 degrees. The coated fabric could withstand at least 100 cycles of standard laundry. The emission spectra of the coated fabric showed two emission peaks at 440 and 520 nm, which belonged to the blue and yellow-green color areas, respectively. The afterglow duration of the coated fabric was mainly influenced by the different depths of the trap levels in the SrAl2O4: Eu2+, Dy3+.