Collaborative Research: Universal Processing Approaches for Functional Brush-like Polymer Surfaces

表面涂层广泛用于保护材料免受降解，抑制雾化和污染，或调节与细胞和微生物的相互作用。然而，目前生产涂层的方法是缓慢的多步分批工艺。该奖项支持开发通用薄膜涂层的基础研究，这些薄膜涂层可以合成具有几乎无限的功能并应用于各种表面。该研究涉及使用刷子状聚合物材料，并与低成本技术相结合，用于在金属，玻璃和塑料上沉积。这项工作有可能影响半导体制造、包装、运输和医疗等广泛的商业流程。这两个机构的研究生和REU学生将接受跨学科的培训，包括聚合物合成，聚合物加工和表面科学。PI及其团队通过休斯顿儿童博物馆参与社区外展活动，他们将设计一个新模块，展示具有功能表面（疏水和亲水）的塑料部件的3D打印。 该研究项目将建立可扩展和通用的方法来制备功能性聚合物刷涂层。目前生产刷涂涂层的方法是缓慢的、多步分批工艺。PI计划使用瓶刷聚合物（一种具有“内置”刷状结构的大分子）生成功能性涂层。瓶刷聚合物可以合成几乎无限的化学和功能，它们可以从溶液或熔融状态加工成涂料。重要的预期成果包括：i）反应性和响应性瓶刷聚合物的流涂薄膜的设计规则，其利用生物启发的交联化学（多巴胺），以确保膜的稳定性和附着力的任何表面; ii）开发用于商品或高级塑料的表面活性瓶刷聚合物添加剂，其能够在溶液沉积期间自发形成刷状表面（流涂、静电纺丝）或熔融挤出（3D打印）。

Surface coatings are widely used to protect materials from degradation, inhibit fogging and fouling, or regulate interactions with cells and micro-organisms. However, current methods to produce coatings are slow, multi-step batch processes. This award supports fundamental research into the development of universal thin film coatings that can be synthesized with nearly limitless functions and applied to a wide variety of surfaces. The research involves the use of brush-like polymeric materials and integration with low-cost techniques for deposition on metal, glass, and plastics. This work has the potential to impact a broad range of commercial processes in semiconductor manufacturing, packaging, transportation, and medical treatment. Graduate students and REU students at both institutions will receive interdisciplinary training that includes polymer synthesis, polymer processing, and surface science. The PIs and their groups are involved with community outreach through the Children's Museum of Houston, and they will design a new module that demonstrates 3D printing of plastic parts with functional surfaces (hydrophobic and hydrophilic). This research project will establish scalable and universal approaches to prepare functional polymer brush coatings. Current methods to produce brush coatings are slow, multi-step batch processes. The PIs plan to generate functional coatings using bottlebrush polymers, a class of macromolecules that have "built-in" brush structures. Bottlebrush polymers can be synthesized with nearly limitless chemistries and functions, and they can be processed into coatings from solution or melt states. Significant anticipated outcomes include: i) Design rules for flow coating thin films of reactive and responsive bottlebrush polymers, which leverages a bio-inspired cross-linking chemistry (dopamine) to ensure film stability and adhesion on any surface; ii) Development of surface-active bottlebrush polymer additives for commodity or advanced plastics, which enables the spontaneous formation of brush-like surfaces during solution deposition (flow coating, electrospinning) or melt extrusion (3D printing).