Lipophilic monomer tackifying hydrogel antifouling coatings prepared by soap free emulsion polymerization and its performance

Abstract

Lipophilic monomer tackifying hydrogel with good adhesion ability on organic substrates prepared in oily systems contain a large number of volatile organic compounds(VOCs). In this study, lipophilic monomer tackifying hydrogel prepolymers were fabricated in an aqueous system by soap-free emulsion polymerization to solve the above problems. The effects of reaction temperature, monomer type and comonomer ratio on soap-free emulsion polymerization were investigated. The structure of the hydrogel antifouling material was characterized by infrared spectroscopy and nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy. The adhesion properties of the lipophilic monomer tackifying hydrogel antifouling material on the organic substrate were investigated by a “static seawater immersion panel experiment” and “dynamic rotating seawater experiment”. The antifouling ability of the lipophilic monomer tackifying hydrogel was investigated by inhibiting the adhesion of microalgae and bovine serum albumin (BSA) and panels tests in a real marine environment. The results showed that the lipophilic monomer tackifying hydrogel antifouling material with good adhesion on an organic substrate was successfully prepared by soap-free emulsion polymerization. When the molar content of butyl acrylate was 30%, it did not fall off after 28 days of the dynamic rotating experiment. The change in water absorption caused by the acrylic acid content has a direct impact on protein adhesion. Panels in the real marine environment experiments displayed that the lipophilic monomer tackifying hydrogel had considerable inhibitory ability on biological attachment.