A series of well-defined fluorinated block copolymers containing carboxylic acid or sodium carboxylate was prepared via atom transfer radical polymerization (ATRP), followed by hydrolysis reaction of tertiary butyl ester groups existing in the macromolecular chains. The structures and compositions of the block copolymers were characterized by GPC, ¹H NMR and FT-IR, respectively. The solubility behaviors of these block copolymers in some organic solvents or water were examined. The surface activities of the block copolymers, such as the critical micelle concentration and the occupied area per molecule, as well as the critical surface tension for such block copolymers were measured. The experimental results showed that the block copolymers exhibited the high surface activity in solution and the low surface energy of prepared films just like polytetrafluoroethylene.

Key words: atom transfer radical polymerization, fluorinated block copolymer, carboxylic group, solution behavior, surface property