Ambiguous anti‐fouling surfaces: Facile synthesis by light‐mediated radical polymerization

Abstract

ABSTRACT:In an attempt to create a polymer brush-based platform for the systematic study for anti-biofouling surfaces, the benefits of surface initiated, visible light-mediated radical polymerization are utilized to fabricate well-defined, chemically ambiguously patterned surfaces. A variety of analytical tools are used to illustrate the precise tuning of surface chemistry and thoroughly characterize spatially well-defined, hydrophilic/ hydrophobic surfaces composed of poly(ethylene glycol methacrylate) and poly(trifluoroethyl methacrylate) with chemical definition on the micron scale. Advantages of both visible light-mediated photopolymerization and traditional coppercatalyzed atom transfer radical polymerization are combined to achieve both high spatial control and expanded monomer tolerance. V C 2015 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Polym. Sci., Part A: Polym. Chem. 2016, 54, 253-262

Model Amphiphilic Block Copolymers with Tailored Molecular Weight and Composition in PDMS-Based Films to Limit Soft Biofouling

“…It has been hypothesized that the combination of polar (PEG) and non-polar (fluoroalkyl/PDMS) units 4 creates an "ambiguous" surface, in which the fouling species encounters a surface that spontaneously alternates between polar and non-polar character. 50,51 The PEG was incorporated as a hydrophilic component (PEGMA) to control the settlement of fouling organisms, a property which is widely known for PEG and the reason it is frequently used in AF applications. 44,51 The fluorinated component (AF6) was exploited as a surface-directing group for the block copolymer during film curing and furthermore it has been shown to be one of the few surface segregating species within a PDMS matrix, thus bringing both the fluoroalkyl segment and PEG to the coating surface.…”

Engineering Surfaces through Sequential Stop‐Flow Photopatterning

“…To address this limitation, the covalent attachment of polymers has emerged as a viable strategy for the preparation of multifunctional surfaces, either by grafting polymers to, or growing them from a surface via surface‐initiated controlled radical polymerization (SI‐CRP) . Here, external regulation of SI‐CRP, e.g., via light, plays a crucial role in controlling the distribution of surface functional groups . Such topographically and/or chemically patterned polymer brushes are valuable for a plethora of interdisciplinary applications .…”

Aza‐Michael Addition Chemistry for Tuning the Phase Separation of PDMS/PEG Blend Coatings and Their Anti‐Fouling Potentials

“…So far, researchers have proposed several ways of creating lateral phase heterogeneity at a surface, including annealing of copolymers deposited on the substrates,16 chemical modification of substrates,17 and coating of self‐synthesized amphiphilic polymeric resins 13,14. However, the synthesis of raw materials, which often involves block or grafted copolymers, represents the “bottle neck” of this technique, due to its intricate and time‐consuming process.…”