Fluorinated/siloxane copolymer blends for fouling release: chemical characterisation and biological evaluation with algae and barnacles.
Fouling-release coatings were prepared from blends of a fluorinated/siloxane copolymer with a poly(dimethyl siloxane) (PDMS) matrix in order to couple the low modulus character of PDMS with the low surface tension typical for fluorinated polymers. The content of the surface-active copolymer was varied in the blend over a broad range (0.15-10 wt % with respect to PDMS). X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy depth profiling analyses were performed on the coatings to establish the distribution of specific chemical constituents throughout the coatings, and proved enrichment in fluorine of the outermost layers of the coating surface. Addition of the fluorinated/siloxane copolymer to the PDMS matrix resulted in a concentration-dependent decrease in settlement of barnacle, Balanus amphitrite, cyprids. The release of young plants of Ulva, a soft fouling species, and young barnacles showed that adhesion strength on the fluorinated/siloxane copolymer was significantly lower than the siloxane control. However, differences in adhesion strength were not directly correlated with the concentration of copolymer in the blends.
Dipartimento di Chimica e Chimica Industriale, UdR Pisa - INSTM, Universita di Pisa, Italy.
Ilaria
I
Marabotti
Andrea
A
Morelli
Lorenzo M
LM
Orsini
Elisa
E
Martinelli
Giancarlo
G
Galli
Emo
E
Chiellini
Einar M
EM
Lien
Michala E
ME
Pettitt
Maureen E
ME
Callow
James A
JA
Callow
Sheelagh L
SL
Conlan
Robert J
RJ
Mutton
Anthony S
AS
Clare
Aleksandra
A
Kocijan
Crtomir
C
Donik
Monika
M
Jenko
D000268:Adhesiveness; D000818:Animals; D004129:Dimethylpolysiloxanes / Q000138:chemical synthesis / Q000737:chemistry / Q000494:pharmacology; D005461:Fluorine / Q000737:chemistry / Q000494:pharmacology; D011108:Polymers / Q000138:chemical synthesis / Q000737:chemistry / Q000494:pharmacology; D012833:Siloxanes / Q000737:chemistry / Q000494:pharmacology; D013499:Surface Properties; D001468:Thoracica / Q000187:drug effects* / Q000502:physiology; D044445:Ulva / Q000187:drug effects* / Q000502:physiology
D004129:Dimethylpolysiloxanes; D011108:Polymers; D012833:Siloxanes; D005461:Fluorine; C013830:baysilon