Yuki Terayama

Wettability and Antifouling Behavior on the Surfaces of Superhydrophilic Polymer Brushes

The surface wettabilities of polymer brushes with hydrophobic and hydrophilic functional groups were discussed on the basis of conventional static and dynamic contact angle measurements of water and hexadecane in air and captive bubble measurements in water. Various types of high-density polymer brushes with nonionic and ionic functional groups were prepared on a silicon wafer by surface-initiated atom-transfer radical polymerization. The surface free energies of the brushes were estimated by Owens-Wendt equation using the contact angles of various probe liquids with different polarities. The decrease in the water contact angle corresponded to the polarity of fluoroalkyl, hydroxy, ethylene oxide, amino, carboxylic acid, ammonium salt, sulfonate, carboxybetaine, sulfobetaine, and phosphobetaine functional groups. The poly(2-perfluorooctylethyl acrylate) brush had a low surface free energy of approximately 8.7 mN/m, but the polyelectrolyte brushes revealed much higher surface free energies of 70-74 mN/m, close to the value for water. Polyelectrolyte brushes repelled both air bubbles and hexadecane in water. Even when the silicone oil was spread on the polyelectrolyte brush surfaces in air, once they were immersed in water, the oil quickly rolled up and detached from the brush surface. The oil detachment behavior observed on the superhydrophilic polyelectrolyte brush in water was explained by the low adhesion force between the brush and the oil, which could contribute to its excellent antifouling and self-cleaning properties.

Friction behavior of high-density poly(2-methacryloyloxyethyl phosphorylcholine) brush in aqueous media

Super-hydrophilic polymer brushes were prepared by surface-initiated atom transfer radical polymerization of 2-methacryloyloxyethyl phosphorylcholine (MPC) on initiator-immobilized silicon wafers. The graft density was estimated to be 0.22 chains nm based on the linear relationship between and the layer thickness. The contact angle against water was very low, and air bubbles in water hardly attached onto the brush surface, indicating a super-hydrophilic surface. Neutron reflectivity measurements of the poly(MPC) brush showed that the grafting polymer chains extended a fair amount in the vertical direction from the substrate in a good solvent such as water, while they shrunk in a poor solvent. Frictional properties of the poly(MPC) brushes were characterized by sliding a glass ball probe in air and various solvents under a load of 0.49 N at a sliding velocity of 90 mm min. An extremely low friction coefficient of the poly(MPC) brush was observed in humid atmosphere because water molecules adsorbed into the brush layer acted as a lubricant.

Chain dimensions and surface characterization of superhydrophilic polymer brushes with zwitterion side groups

Zwitterionic polymers constitute a unique class of polyelectrolytes which have not been studied systematically because of the difficulty in their controlled synthesis and precise physicochemical characterization. The salt-concentration dependence of the chain dimensions and swollen brush structures of polyzwitterions, namely poly(2-methacryloyloxyethylphosphorylcholine) (PMPC) and poly[3-(N-2-methacryloyloxyethyl-N,N-dimethyl)ammonatopropanesulfonate] (PMAPS), in aqueous solutions of various ionic strengths was characterized by static light scattering, dynamic light scattering, atomic force microscopy (AFM), neutron reflectivity (NR), contact angle measurements, and macroscopic friction tests by sliding a glass ball under a load of 0.49 N. The hydrodynamic radius RH of PMPC was independent of NaCl concentration, whereas the RH of PMAPS markedly increased with the ionic strength. AFM and NR measurements also showed the independence of NaCl concentration of the swollen thickness of the PMPC brush in aqueous solution and significant changes in the swollen thickness of the PMAPS brush in aqueous NaCl solution. Both PMPC and PMAPS brushes showed oil detachment behavior in water and aqueous NaCl solutions. The PMPC brush had a significantly low friction coefficient (0.02–005) at a sliding velocity of 10−2 to 10−1 m s−1 in water even under a high normal pressure of 139 MPa.

Synthesis of TiO2 nanocoral structures in ever-changing aqueous reaction systems.

A far-from-equilibrium strategy is developed to synthesize coral-like nanostructures of TiO(2) on a variety of surfaces. TiO(2) nanocoral structures consist of anatase base film and rutile nanowire layers, and they are continuously formed on substrates immersed in aqueous TiOSO(4)-H(2)O(2). The sequential deposition of TiO(2) starts with hydrolysis and condensation reactions of titanium peroxocomplexes in the aqueous phase, resulting in deposition of amorphous film. The film serves as adhesive interface on which succeeding growth of rutile nanowires to occur. This initial deposition reaction is accompanied by shift in pH of the reaction media, which is favorable condition for the growth of rutile nanocrystals. During the growth of rutile nanocoral layers, the amorphous base films are transformed to anatase phase. These sequential deposition reactions occur at temperatures as low as 80 °C, and the mild synthetic condition allows the use of a wide range of substrates such as ITO (indium tin oxide), glass, and even organic polymer films. The thickness of nanocoral layer is controllable by repeating the growth reaction of rutile nanocorals. TiO(2) nanocorals show photocatalytic activity as demonstrated by site-specific reduction of Ag(I) ions, which proceeds preferentially on the rutile nanowire layer. The rutile nanowire layer also shows photocatalytic decomposition of acetaldehyde, which is promoted upon increase of the thickness of the nanowire layer. The use of temporally transforming reaction media allows the formation of biphasic TiO(2) nanocoral structures, and the concept of nonequilibrium synthetic approach would be widely applicable to developing structurally graded inorganic nanointerfaces.

Chain dimensions in free and immobilized brush states of polysulfobetaine in aqueous solution at various salt concentrations

The chain dimensions of free and immobilized polysulfobetaine in aqueous solution at various salt concentrations were investigated by size-exclusion chromatography with multiangle light scattering and neutron reflectivity measurement, respectively. The dependence of the z-average mean square radius of gyration ( z1/2) on the weight-average molecular weight (Mw) of free poly(3-(N-2-methacryloyloxyethyl-N,N-dimethyl)ammonatopropanesulfo-nate) (MAPS) in aqueous solution at salt concentrations of 74, 100, 200, and 500 mM was described by the perturbed wormlike chain model using the chain stiffness parameter λ−1 the molar mass per unit contour length ML, and the excluded volume effect B. B increased from 0 to 1.8 nm with increasing salt concentration to 500 mM due to the screening of attractive electrostatic interaction between ammonium cations and sulfonyl anions by salt ions. The swollen structure of the poly(MAPS) brush in D2O changed from a shrunken state to a relatively extended state with increasing salt concentration from 0 to 500 mM NaCl/D2O solution. The thickness of the swollen poly(MAPS) brush in 500 mM NaCl/D2O was 9.0 times greater than 2 z1/2 of free poly(MAPS) due to high osmotic pressure generated by the excluded volume effect of densely grafted polymer chains.

Characterization of Swollen Structure of High-density Polyelectrolyte Brushes in Salt Solution by Neutron Reflectivity

Zwitterionic and cationic polyelectrolyte brushes on quartz substrate were prepared by surface-initiated atom transfer radical polymerization of 2-(methacryloyloxy)ethyl phosphorylcholine (MPC) and 2-(methacryloyloxy)ethyltrimethylammonium chloride (METAC), respectively. The effects of ionic strength on brush structure and surface properties of densely grafted polyelectrolyte brushes were analysed by neutron reflectivity (NR) measurements. NR at poly(METAC)/D2O and poly(MPC)/D2O interface revealed that the grafted polymer chains were fairly extended from the substrate surface, while the thickness reduction of poly(METAC) brush was observed in 5.6 M NaCl/D2O solution due to the screening of the repulsive interaction between polycations by hydrated salt ions. Interestingly, no structural change was observed in poly(MPC) brush even in a salt solution probably due to the unique interaction properties of phosphorylcholine units.

Influence of salt concentration on swelling states of poly(sulfobetaine) brush at aqueous solution interface

Swelling states of poly(3-dimethyl(methacryloyloxyethyl)ammonium propane sulfonate) (DMAPS) brush in aqueous solutions with different salt concentrations were investigated by atomic force microscopy (AFM) and neutron reflectivity measurement. The thickness of swollen poly(DMAPS) brush evaluated by AFM was increased from 212 nm up to 352 nm with an increase in salt concentration from 0 to 0.5 M. Poly(DMAPS) brush chains formed shrunk structure in a pure water due to the attractive electrostatic inter- and intra-chain interaction of sulfobetaine groups, while the brush chains in NaCl aqueous solution were stretched up because the hydrated salt ions screened the attractive interaction.

Polystyrene-based blend nanorods with gradient composition distribution

The polystyrene-based polymer blends, partially miscible poly(bisphenol A carbonate)/polystyrene (PC/PS) and completely miscible poly(2,6-dimethylphenylene oxide)/polystyrene (PPO/PS), in nanorods with gradient composition distribution were discussed. The polymer blend nanorods were prepared by infiltrating the polymer blends into nanopores of anodic aluminum oxide (AAO) templates via capillary action. Their morphology was investigated by micro-Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (micro-FTIR) and nano-thermal analysis (nano-TA) with spatial resolution. The composition gradient of polymer blends in the nanopores is governed by the difference of viscosity and miscibility between the two polymers in the blends and the pore diameter. The capillary wetting of porous AAO templates by polymer blends offers a unique method to fabricate functional nanostructured materials with gradient composition distribution for the potential application to nanodevices.

Effect of Charged Group Spacer Length on Hydration State in Zwitterionic Poly(sulfobetaine) Brushes

Effect of alkyl chain spacer length between the charged groups (CSL) in zwitterionic poly(sulfobetaine) (PSB) brushes on the hydration state was investigated. PSB brushes with ethyl (PMAES), propyl (PMAPS), or butyl (PMABS) CSL were prepared by surface-initiated atom transfer radical polymerization on silicon wafers. Hydration states of the PSB brushes in aqueous solutions and/or humid vapor were investigated by contact angle measurement, infrared spectroscopy, AFM observation, and neutron reflectivity. The PSB brushes are swollen in humid air and deionized water due to the hydration of the charged groups leading to the reduction of hydrated PSB brushes/water interfacial free energy. The hydrated PSB brushes exhibit clear interface with low interfacial roughness due to networking of the PSB brush chains through association of the SBs. The hydrated PSB brushes produce diffusive swollen layer in the presence of NaCl because of the charge screening followed by SB dissociation by the bound ions. The ionic strength sensitivity in the hydration got more significant with increasing the CSL in SBs because of the augmentation in partial charge by charged group separation.

Precise Design of Surface Nano-texture and Surface Chemistry of Polymeric Solids

Surface properties of polymeric materials were controlled by fabrication of nano-structure and submicronorder structure of poly(fluoroalkyl acrylate) using the chemical and physical surface modification techniques. The relationship between the ordered structure of fluoroalkyl (R f) groups and water repellency mechanism was precisely investigated by grazing-incidence X-ray diffraction, water contact angle measurements and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy. It was revealed that poly{2-(perfluorooctyl)ethyl acrylate} (PFA-C8) was crystallized and formed ordered structure to result in high water repellency. Surface nano-texturing onto PFA-C8 film surface was carried out using an anodic aluminum oxide (AAO) membrane as a mold. The nano-texture of AAO mold with a pore diameter of 200 nm was transformed onto the PFA-C8 film surface to fabricate nano-structure, which revealed high water and oil repellency. On the other hand, various types of monomers were grafted on the solid surface through surface-initiated atom transfer radical polymerization to result in high-density polymer brushes. Hydrophobic PFA-C8brush surface revealed a low friction coefficient and a good wear resistance. Water lubrication and low friction were observed on the hydrophilic polymer brush. These polymer brushes were successfully introduced on the commercial fluoropolymer, which has inherent radical initiator functional groups. These results indicated that nano-layer immobilization through surface-initiated polymerization and surface texturing are promising methods to control the surface chemistry and surface structure at dimensions in the nano-meter range.