SilCoTex: Silica coatings for sustainable antisoiling textile

Important results from the project

The goal of the project is to provide the Swedish textile industry a substitute, based on ecofriendly materials, to the current fluorine based anti-soiling technology. This will be done by integrating know-how from the painting industry in the form of two types of novel coatings for textiles. The first type will integrate silica with the purpose of reducing the soil uptake. A proof of concept has already been produced. In the second approach we will explore the possibilities of textile surface structuring. Feasibility tests have been done and will serve for further development.

Expected long term effects

Sweden, with a textile industry at the edge and a modern chemical industry, can be the first to phase out fluorinated compounds for anti-soiling in textile. Such a breakthrough will enable a drastic reduction of the environmental footprint of anti-soiling treatment and will strengthen the interactions between textile manufacturers and chemical industry. In the end, with a new technology capable of competing with current state of the art of anti-soiling treatment, we hope to open the path to new market opportunities, both nationally and internationally.

Approach and implementation

Perfluorinated compounds currently in use provide a whole series of valuable properties to the treated textiles. Our analysis has shown that it is not possible to deliver an eco-friendly alternative to match all these properties. However, it is possible, for many applications, to target only some of the properties, which gives more freedom for the development of alternatives, especially in the field of textile coatings. Therefore we will translate the know-how from anti-soiling for painting to the textile industry, using silica as a generic platform for surface properties control.