Nanocomposites are known for their unique properties with many potential applications. In the present work, porous anodic aluminum oxide (AAO) thin films were processed on glass substrates and subsequently photo-grafted with a zwitterionic anti-biofouling polymer. This allows to fabricate scratch-resistant, transparent anti-biofouling films. The microstructure and how it is affected by nanomechanical testing are investigated by scanning electron microscopy and atomic force microscopy. It is shown that the polymer forms a thin layer on the pore walls and in deionized water, the pore diameter changes due to swelling of the polymer. The nanomechanical and scratch resistance properties are studied using a nanoindenter testing system. The experimental results are validated via numerical calculations. The values of the elastic modulus and hardness are shown to be in good agreement with the numerical ones, and under dry conditions, higher values were obtained in comparison to wet films. There is also a large agreement between modeling and microscopic deformation behavior of the films. Finally, the critical loads in dry and wet conditions for the non-coated AAO samples are approximately the same, while for the coated samples, the critical load is reached rapidly in wet condition in comparison to the dry one.
The data presented in this article affords insight into the fabrication and ensuing microstructure of the supported porous anodic aluminum oxide (AAO) and TiO
2
-nanotubes (NT) films that are used for the subsequent grafting of antifouling poly(oligo ethyleneglycol) methylether methacrylate (POEGMA) and poly acrylamide (PAAm) brushes. The experimental procedure for the grafting of POEGMA and PAAm via atom transfer radical polymerization (ATRP) is described in Wassel et al. (2019)
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.matdes.2018.107542
[1]. The FTIR spectra of the porous oxides before and after attachment of (3-Aminopropyl)trimethoxysilane (APTMS) are presented. Microscopic images of thick POEGMA films and PAAm on AAO are displayed, and an FTIR spectrum of AAO/PAAm is shown. An EDX mapping of carbon is shown on an AAO/POEGMA sample. The adsorption behavior of Fluorescein isothiocyanate (FITC) marked bovine serum albumin (BSA) on patterned porous TiO
2
-NT films is documented. Finally microscopic images are presented to compare the scratch resistance behavior of pristine porous films with those functionalized with POEGMA.
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