Surfactant-Induced Polymer Segregation To Produce Antifouling Surfaces via Dip-Coating with an Amphiphilic Polymer

Abstract

We propose a rational strategy to control the surface segregation of an amphiphilic copolymer in its dip-coating with a low-molecular-weight surfactant. We synthesized a water-insoluble methacrylate-based copolymer containing oligo­(ethylene glycol) (OEG) (copolymer <b>1</b>) and a perfluoroalkylated surfactant (surfactant <b>1</b>) containing OEG. The dip-coating of copolymer <b>1</b> with surfactant <b>1</b> resulted in the segregation of surfactant <b>1</b> on the top surface of the dip-coated layer due to the high hydrophobicity of its perfluoroalkyl group. OEG moieties of surfactant <b>1</b> were accompanied by those of copolymer <b>1</b> in its segregation, allowing the OEG moieties of copolymer <b>1</b> to be located just below the top surface of the dip-coated layer. The removal of surfactant <b>1</b> produced the surface covered by the OEG moieties of the copolymer that exhibited antifouling properties. Using this strategy, we also succeeded in the introduction of carboxy groups on the dip-coated surface and demonstrated that the carboxy groups were available for the immobilization of functional molecules on the surface