Preventing
microbial adhesion onto membranes is a crucial issue
that determines the durability of the membrane. In this Research Article,
we prepared aromatic polyimides (extensively employed for the elaboration
of ultrafiltration membranes) containing PEO branches. Four polyimide-g-PEO copolymers were prepared from 6F dianhydride and a
novel aromatic diamine containing PEO-550 side groups. The copolymers
were designed to have variable PEO content, and were characterized
by their spectroscopic and physical properties. The Breath Figure
technique was successfully applied to create an ordered surface topography,
where the PEO chains were preferentially located on the surface of
the micrometer size holes. These unique features were explored to
reduce bacterial adhesion. It was established that surface modified
polyimide membranes have a high resistance to biofouling against Staphylococcus aureus. In particular, we observed that an
increase of the PEO the content in the copolymer produced a decrease
in the bacterial adhesion.