Abstract

A series of amphiphilic copolymers with different hydrophobic side chain structures were prepared through radical copolymerization of acrylic acid and varying hydrophobic acrylate monomers which were then applied to the retanning and fatliquoring processes of chrome-tanned leather. The main properties of the processed leathers were evaluated. The results showed that this kind of copolymer could give to leather, good filling effects, softness, waterproofness and mechanical strength. The application performances of the copolymers in leather-making were obviously affected by the hydrophobic side chain structure, especially the hydrophobic side chain length of copolymers. Compared to copolymers with branched side chains, the copolymers with straight hydrophobic side chains exhibited better comprehensive performances. Most of the above mentioned properties of the treated leathers were improved significantly with the increase of side chain length. When the length of the hydrophobic side chain was more than C16, they can give leather excellent waterproofness, softness and mechanical strength. The results of dynamic mechanical analysis (DMA) and the scanning electron microscope (SEM) images also showed that the fibre bundles in the leathers were well separated and lubricated by the long hydrophobic side chains.