Investigation of design parameters in generating antifouling and lubricating surfaces using hydrophilic polymer brushes

Abstract

ABSTRACTLong‐term stability of hydrophilic surface coatings that prevent fouling, cell adhesion and present a lubricious interface for biomaterials has been widely investigated in recent years. As an alternative to the gold standard poly(ethylene glycol) (PEG), poly(2‐oxazoline)‐based coatings are promising due to their higher stability against oxidative degradation in comparison to PEG. In this study, we compare the antifouling and tribological properties of PEG and poly(2‐methyl‐2‐oxazoline) (PMOXA) brush structures as a function of structural design parameters such as grafting density, chain length, and the monomer solubility. Brush properties such as hydration (number of H2O molecules per monomer), shear modulus, and serum adsorption as a function of design parameters were estimated using optical waveguide lightmode spectroscopy and quartz crystal microbalance/dissipation techniques. At high monomer surface densities, PMOXA showed approximately three times higher structurally associated H2O molecules per monomer in comparison to PEG brushes, leading to stiffer PMOXA brushes. We found that the chain stiffening of PMOXA brushes lead to higher macroscopic coefficients of friction; however presented similar adsorbed serum mass (high antifouling properties) when compared to PEG brushes. © 2019 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Appl. Polym. Sci. 2019, 136, 47659.