Self-Sealing and Puncture Resistant Breathable Membranes for Water-Evaporation Applications

Martin Rother; Jonas Barmettler; Andreas Reichmuth; Jose V Araujo; Christian Rytka; Olfa Glaied; Uwe Pieles; Nico Bruns

doi:10.1002/adma.201502761

Self-Sealing and Puncture Resistant Breathable Membranes for Water-Evaporation Applications

Adv Mater. 2015 Nov;27(42):6620-4. doi: 10.1002/adma.201502761. Epub 2015 Sep 29.

Authors

Martin Rother¹, Jonas Barmettler², Andreas Reichmuth², Jose V Araujo¹, Christian Rytka³, Olfa Glaied⁴, Uwe Pieles⁴, Nico Bruns^{2

1}

Affiliations

¹ Adolphe Merkle Institute, University of Fribourg, Chemin des Verdiers 4, 1700, Fribourg, Switzerland.
² Department of Chemistry, University of Basel, Klingelbergstrasse 80, 4056, Basel, Switzerland.
³ Institute of Polymer Engineering, School of Engineering, University of Applied Sciences and Arts Northwestern Switzerland, Klosterzelgstrasse 2, 5210, Windisch, Switzerland.
⁴ Institute of Chemistry and Bioanalytics, School of Life Sciences, University of Applied Sciences and Arts Northwestern Switzerland, Gründenstrasse 40, 4132, Muttenz, Switzerland.

PMID: 26418974
DOI: 10.1002/adma.201502761

Abstract

Breathable and waterproof membranes that self-seal damaged areas are prepared by modifying a poly(ether ester) membrane with an amphiphilic polymer co-network. The latter swells in water and the gel closes punctures. Damaged composite membranes remain water tight up to pressures of at least 1.6 bar. This material is useful for applications where water-vapor permeability, self-sealing properties, and waterproofness are desired, as demonstrated for a medical cooling device.

Keywords: amphiphilic polymer co-networks; bio-inspired materials; breathable and waterproof membranes; medical skin cooling garment; self-healing materials.