Fabrication of UV-curable Anti-fouling coating based on fluorinated polyoxetane and long Side-Chain Polysilcone

Abstract

In this paper, a novel antifouling coating cured by UV irradiation was prepared. The coating is composed of two novel UV curable resins, one is 9-functional double bond telechelic polyoxetane (P3F-N) resin which is synthesized from trihydroxy-terminated polyoxetane resin (P3F-O), trimethylcyclohexyl isocyanate (IPDI) and pentaerythritol triacrylate (PETA); the other is trifunctional double bond single telechelic polysiloxane resin (8861-G) which is synthesized from mono hydroxyl-terminated polysiloxane resin (8861), IPDI and PETA. The structure of P3F-N, P3F-O, 8861, and 8861-G were confirmed by Fourier infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR), and gel permeation chromatography (GPC). Furthermore, the optimal content percent of 8861-G resin used to improve antifouling performance was discussed. Moreover, the coatings’ UV curing process, surface properties, and basic properties were also investigated. Results show that the coatings present highly percent conversion of C = C double bonds and the surface energy was as low as 21.98 mN/m with excellent antifouling performance. XPS results announced that the migration and alignment of fluorine and silicone groups to the surface are significant factor in low surface energy. AFM tests characterized the coating surface flatness. Besides, the coating also demonstrates exceptional transparency, chemical resistance and flexibility. This study shows that the UV-curable antifouling coating has significant industrial potential application in many areas.