Surface-Initiated Passing-through Zwitterionic Polymer Brushes for Salt-Selective and Antifouling Materials

Abstract

The use of the traditional growing-from approach to prepare surface-initiated polymer brushes is widespread as it produces polymer brushes with higher grafting densities than grafting-to methods. In this article, we present an investigation of a passing-though approach that supplies the monomer from below the initiator-functionalized surface, inverting the concentration gradient found in the traditional growing-from technique that has been shown to increase the D̵ of brushes. Using Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy mapping combined with substrate masking, we show that the brushes incorporate only monomer diffusing from below and not from the surrounding solution. Further, we characterize these brushes with contact angle analysis, FTIR, and atomic force microscopy and compare them to brushes synthesized by the traditional growing-from approach. Finally, we demonstrate that several properties of the zwitterionic polymer brush prepared by our passing-through method, for example, wettability, grafting density, uniformity, salt permeation retardation, and fouling resistance, are superior to those of brushes prepared by the growing-from technique.

A novel PVDF hybrid membrane with excellent active–passive integrated antifouling and antibacterial properties based on a PDA guiding effect

“…Zwitterionic materials have been well proven to be highly promising antifouling compounds, due to their super antifouling properties for resisting nonspecific protein adsorption and bacterial adhesion. 23,24 l -Cysteine contains a thiol group (–SH) in its side chain and a pair of ionogenic amino (–NH 2 ) and carboxyl (–COOH) groups, and it is thought of as a natural source of zwitterions. In addition, l -cysteine is a low-cost and widely available material, and it can conjugate additional molecules through amine or carboxyl functional groups, as well as through simple and convenient reactions involving thiol chemistry.…”

Synthesis of discrete bottlebrush polymers via the iterative convergent growth technique and post-functionalization

“…Bottlebrush polymers (BBPs) possess distinct physical properties derived from oligomeric or polymeric side chains which are densely attached to their linear polymer backbone. [1][2][3] In particular, bottlebrush block copolymers (BBCPs) have recently attracted attention as macromolecular building blocks for the creation of nanostructures with large chemically distinct domains that are promising candidates for use in photonics, [4][5][6][7][8][9][10] coatings, 11,12 drug delivery, [13][14][15] imaging, [16][17][18] patterning, 19,20 and antifouling [21][22][23][24] applications.…”

Surface-Initiated Passing-Through Polymerization on a Rubber Substrate: Supplying Monomer from Swollen Substrates

“…We have introduced a passing-through SI polymerization method to address the monomer concentration gradient limitation associated with grafting-from approaches. , Passing-through inverts the monomer concentration gradient by supplying the monomer through a permeable surface on which the initiator is attached. As monomer diffuses through the substrate, the concentration of the monomer is highest near the surface, inverting the concentration gradient seen in grafting-from approaches.…”