Stretchable Gas Barrier Achieved with Partially Hydrogen-Bonded Multilayer Nanocoating

• Published in: Macromolecular rapid communications. Vol. 35; no. 10; pp. 960 - 964
• Main Authors: Holder, Kevin M., Spears, Benjamin R., Huff, Molly E., Priolo, Morgan A., Harth, Eva, Grunlan, Jaime C.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Weinheim Blackwell Publishing Ltd 01.05.2014; Wiley
• Subjects: Applied sciences; Assembly; Barriers; Bentonite - chemistry; Brittleness; Clay (material); Composites; Exact sciences and technology; Forms of application and semi-finished materials; gas permeation; Gases - chemistry; Hydrogen Bonding; layer-by-layer assembly; Nanostructure; Nanostructures - chemistry; Oxygen - chemistry; oxygen transmission; Polyethyleneimine - chemistry; Polymer industry, paints, wood; Propylene Glycols - chemistry; Strain; stretchable; Stretching; Surface Properties; Technology of polymers; Thin films; Clay; Oxygen; stretchable; Transport properties; Montmorillonite; Multiple layer; Experimental study; Functional polymer; Thin film; Alcohol polymer; Gas permeability; hydrogen bonding; Cyclic ether polymer; Oriented polymer; Morphology; Aliphatic polymer; oxygen transmission; Barrier material; layer-by-layer assembly; Dip coating; Manufacturing; gas permeation; Polyethylene imine
• ISSN: 1022-1336; 1521-3927
• DOI: 10.1002/marc.201400104

Super gas barrier nanocoatings are recently demonstrated by combining polyelectrolytes and clay nanoplatelets with layer‐by‐layer deposition. These nanobrick wall thin films match or exceed the gas barrier of SiOx and metallized films, but they are relatively stiff and lose barrier with significant stretching (≥10% strain). In an effort to impart stretchability, hydrogen‐bonding polyglycidol (PGD) layers are added to an electrostatically bonded thin film assembly of polyethylenimine (PEI) and montmorillonite (MMT) clay. The oxygen transmission rate of a 125‐nm thick PEI‐MMT film increases more than 40x after being stretched 10%, while PGD‐PEI‐MMT trilayers of the same thickness maintain its gas barrier. This stretchable trilayer system has an OTR three times lower than the PEI‐MMT bilayer system after stretching. This report marks the first stretchable high gas barrier thin film, which is potentially useful for applications that require pressurized elastomers. A stretchable, clay‐filled thin film that imparts oxygen barrier is produced using layer‐by‐layer assembly of electrostatic and hydrogen‐bonding polymers/platelets. This stretchable nanocoating is compared with a brittle film of the same thickness on PET. The brittle film is initially a better barrier, but after 10% strain its barrier properties are diminished by 4350%. The stretchable film retains its original barrier and is three times better than the brittle film after stretching.