Metallic coloration with Cu/CuO coating on polypropylene nonwoven fabric via a physical vapor deposition method and its multifunctional properties.

A single-layer film of copper and/or copper oxide was deposited on a polypropylene nonwoven fabric substrate to prepare multifunctional textiles with a metallic color appearance. The pristine uncoated nonwoven fabric was gray, the copper film-coated fabric was orange-red, and the copper oxide film-coated fabrics were dark red and dark green. With the increase of flowing oxygen, the Cu content of the film decreased and changed into Cu₂O, after which it gradually changed to CuO. The color lightened as the color brightness increased, while the K/S value decreased as the CuO content increased. The hydrophobicity of the copper oxide film-coated samples slightly increased while the ultraviolet (UV) protection performance (UPF) was overall reduced as the oxygen flowing rate increased and the film thickness decreased. The copper film-coated sample exhibited momentary electrostatic attenuation, but the electrostatic elimination ability of the copper oxide film-coated samples decreased owing to the conversion of elemental Cu to Cu₂O and then CuO. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]