A Review on Fluoropolymers Coatings

In recent years, coatings with special propertiessuch as hydrophobic, oleophobic, resistance to chemical, corrosion and weathering have been developed in many countries and have received more attention. One of the materials used in the manufacture of these coatings is fluoropolymers. The use of fluoropolymers in coatings has many advantages due to the unique characteristics of these polymers such as, hydrophobicity, high thermal and chemical stability, low surface energy, low dielectric constant and resistance to weathering and corrosion. The main characteristics of fluoropolymers are due to their atomic structure of fluorine and carbon and their covalent bond (C-F). The main problems of fluoropolymers for using in coatings are their very poor solubility in organic solvents and very high temperatures process. Conventional fluoropolymers used in coatings include polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE), fluorinated ethylene propylene copolymers (FEP), perfluoroalkoxy alkanes copolymers (PFA), ethylene tetrafluoroethylene copolymers (ETFE), polyvinylidene fluoride (PVDF), ethylene chlorotrifluoroethylene (ECTFE) and fluoroethylene vinyl ether (FEVE). In addition, polymer-based fluorinated olefins, especially fluoro acrylates, fluoro-silicon acrylates, fluoro-urethanes and perfluorinated polymers have special properties that have increased their application in coatings.