Stretchable gas barrier coatings, that can maintain their barrier performance when subjected to high strain, are highly desired for flexible electronics protection, pressurized systems (e.g. tires and gas seals) and various types of food and pharmaceutical packaging. In this study, we demonstrate a stretchable high oxygen gas barrier nanocoating prepared with water-soluble and environmentally benign materials using layer-by-layer assembly. Polyethylene oxide (PEO) was alternately deposited from water with an aqueous mixture of polyacrylic acid (PAA) and montmorillonite (MMT) clay. The oxygen impermeable MMT platelets were highly exfoliated and aligned within the PEO/PAA polymer matrix. Ten bilayers of this multilayer nanocoating, with a thickness of 432 nm, improves the oxygen barrier of a 1mm polyurethane rubber by more than 50X after exposure to a 20% strain. This system, which provides the best stretchable oxygen barrier to-date in the open literature, shows great potential for use in a number of everyday products.

High gas barrier and stretchability in hydrogen-bonded multilayer nanobrick wall thin films

255th National Meeting (2018)

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