Abstract
Bio-inspired surfaces with superamphiphobic properties are well known as effective candidates for antifouling technology. However, the limitation of large-area mastering, patterning and pattern collapsing upon physical contact are the bottleneck for practical utilization in marine and medical applications. In this study, a roll-to-plate nanoimprint lithography (R2P NIL) process using Morphotonics’ automated Portis NIL600 tool was used to replicate high aspect ratio (5.0) micro-structures via reusable intermediate flexible stamps that were fabricated from silicon master molds. Two types of Morphotonics’ in-house UV-curable resins were used to replicate a micro-pillar (PIL) and circular rings with eight stripe supporters (C-RESS) micro-structure onto polycarbonate (PC) and polyethylene terephthalate (PET) foil substrates. The pattern quality and surface wettability was compared to a conventional polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) soft lithography process. It was found that the heights of the R2P NIL replicated PIL and C-RESS patterns deviated less than 6% and 5% from the pattern design, respectively. Moreover, the surface wettability of the imprinted PIL and C-RESS patterns was found to be superhydro- and oleophobic and hydro- and oleophobic, respectively, with good robustness for the C-RESS micro-structure. Therefore, the R2P NIL process is expected to be a promising method to fabricate robust C-RESS micro-structures for large-scale anti-biofouling application.
Highlights
Si master molds of both the PIL and circular rings with eight stripe supporters (C-RESS) micro-structure were fabricated by a conventional photolithography and deep reactive ion etching (DRIE) process [34,36]
The A.R. of these PIL and C-RESS Si micro-structures are 1.25 and 2.50, respectively, which are lower than of the PIL and CRESS micro-structures on the Si master molds used for the R2P NIL replication processes
The pattern heights are the same so that a comparison between the replication quality and pattern fidelity of the PDMS soft lithography and R2P NIL fabrication processes can be done to this extent
Summary
Biofouling from colonization of various organisms, pathogens and inorganic macromolecules (mostly proteins) is the unwanted accumulation of biological and inorganic matters on wetted surfaces [1]. The contamination of surfaces, such as marine infrastructure, medical devices and other engineering components, has been a global issue with significant impact on the environment, health risks and economics [1,2]. Nanomaterials 2021, 11, 339 deaths worldwide [1]. Surfaces of a ship hull are exposed to thousands of species of fouling organisms such as barnacles, mussels and seaweed. Issues include marine corrosion and increased ship hull drag, which result in reduced speed, increased fuel consumption and emissions of greenhouse gases (CO2 , NOx , and SO2 ) [3]
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