Advanced Materials Research Vols. 11-12 (2006) pp. 363-366
online at http://www.scientific.net
? (2006) Trans Tech Publications, Switzerland

Pre-Adsorption of Amphiphilic Polymers on Synthetic Surfaces for
Biofouling Retardation
Xiaonong Chen1,a and Robert Pelton2,b
1College of Materials Science and Engineering, Beijing University of Chemical Technology,
Beijing, 100029, China
2Department of Chemical Engineering, McMaster University,
1280 Main Street West, Hamilton, Ontario, Canada L8S 4L7
axnchen_99@yahoo.com, bpeltonrh@mcmaster.ca
Keywords: Surface treatment, Amphiphilic polymer, Protein adsorption

Abstract. Polystyrene (PS), polyethylene (PE), polypropylene (PP), glass and stainless steel were exposed to aqueous solutions of a series amphiphilic polymers at room temperature, including N-isopropylacrylamide (NIPAM)-based polymers, polyvinylpyrrolidone (PVP), polypropylene oxide (PPO)-polyethylene oxide (PEO) block copolymers and PEO. Dynamic contact angle measurements of the material surfaces before and after the treatment indicate that only NIPAM-based polymers can adsorb on both hydrophobic and hydrophilic surfaces. The surface morphologies of the materials

before and after polymer adsorption were investigated by profilometry. Protein adsorption on the surfaces pre-adsorbed NIPAM-based polymers was investigated by dual polarisation interferometry (DPI) and profilometry using lysozyme as the model protein. The results obtained indicate that NIPAM-based polymers can significantly improve the biofouling resistance of synthetic surfaces.