Development of a perfluoro-compound-free durable water- and oil-repellent finish for textiles

目前所有的防水夹克都使用耐久防水剂(DWR)进行处理。今天的DWR可以分为两类：含有全氟化碳(PFC)的，和不能拒油的。第一类是有问题的，因为全氟化碳对人类是有毒的，暴露在这种环境中会导致出生体重降低、妊娠并发症和儿童免疫功能低下。加拿大已经认识到这一点，到2023年将完成逐步淘汰全氟化碳。然而，今天只有含PFC的DWR表现出拒油性能。这就是为什么第二类DWR存在：一些服装制造商已经用他们服装的拒油特性来换取更好的环境和人类健康。不幸的是，防油性对于防止汗水进入衣物纤维至关重要。如果不防油，夹克很容易被弄脏，然后失去防水性能。总部位于温哥华的运动服装制造商Arc‘teryx认识到这一问题的内在困难：他们的产品既要求拒油又要求环境可持续性，目前市场上还没有解决方案。该项目的目的是开发一种表现出拒油性能的非PFC DWR。戈洛文博士在UBC的研究小组已经与Arc‘teryx合作进行了这项工作，以开发第一种不含PFC的拒油纺织品整理。戈洛文的团队最近发现，尽管典型的硅胶材料完全被油弄湿，但纳米硅树脂可以排斥油。本项目将探索纳米有机硅如何拒油，如何将这些纳米有机硅应用于纺织品，以及如何使这种新的纺织品整理足够耐用，以满足Arc‘teryx的性能需求。到这个为期36个月的项目结束时，基于纳米硅技术的不含PFC的纺织品整理剂有望在Arc‘teryx的所有纺织厂批量生产和应用。

All current waterproof jackets are treated with what is known as a Durable Water Repellent (DWR). DWRs today can be grouped into two categories: those containing perfluorocarbons (PFCs), and those that cannot repel oil. The first category is problematic because PFCs are toxic to humans, with exposure causing lowered birth weight, pregnancy complications, and immunocompromised children. Canada has recognized this, and PFCs will be completed phased out by 2023. However, today only PFC-containing DWRs exhibit oil repellency. That's why the second category of DWR exists: some apparel manufacturers have traded their clothing's oil-repellent properties for increased environmental and human health. Unfortunately, oil repellency is vital to keep sweat out of the fibres of apparel. Without oil repellency, jackets are easily soiled and then loose their waterproof properties. Arc'teryx, the Vancouver-based sportswear apparel manufacturer, recognizes the inherent difficulty in this problem: their products requite both oil repellency and environmental sustainability, for which today there is no solution on the market.The purpose of this project is to develop a non-PFC DWR that exhibits oil repellency. Dr. Golovin's research group at UBC has teamed with Arc'teryx for this endeavor, in order to develop the first oil-repellent textile finish that is PFC-free. Golovin's group has recently discovered that nano-silicones can repel oil even though typical silicone materials get completely wet by oils. This project will explore how nano-silicones can repel oils, how these nano-silicones can be applied to textiles, and how this new textile finish can be made durable enough to meet Arc'teryx's performance needs. By the end of this 36-month project it is expected that a PFC-free textile finish, based off of nano-silicone technology, will be ready for mass production and application in all of Arc'teryx's textile mills.