Facile fabrication of durable superhydrophobic films from carbon nanotube/main-chain type polybenzoxazine composites

Abstract

Superhydrophobic materials have immense applications in the fields of industry and research. However, their durability is still a cause for concern. A facile method for preparing durable superhydrophobic films from carbon nanotubes (CNTs) and the main-chain type polybenzoxazine precursors is reported herein. We used probe ultrasonicator to prepare CNT/polybenzoxazine coatings. Compared with the general sonicating dispersion process, the dispersion time was greatly reduced from a few hours to 5 minutes and the prepared suspension exhibited film-forming characteristics well. The CNT/polybenzoxazine films, which do not contain any fluorinated compounds, exhibit remarkable durability against thermal treatment, organic solvents, corrosive liquids, and sandpaper abrasion, while retaining their superhydrophobicity. Furthermore, these CNT/polybenzoxazine films also showed durable superhydrophobicity after ultraviolet (UV) irradiation for 100 h. This CNT/polybenzoxazine film can be readily used for practical applications to make durable superhydrophobic coatings.