http://experimentationlab.berkeley.edu/sites/default/files/AFMImages/butt_AFM.pdf

Force measurements with the atomic force microscope: Technique, interpretation and applications

Polymer surface modification for the attachment of bioactive compounds

Grafting: a versatile means to modify polymers Techniques, factors and applications

In vitro and in vivo degradation of films of chitin and its deacetylated derivatives

Polymer surface with graft chains

Surface modification of polyethylene balloon catheters for local drug delivery.

A new method omitting oxygen removal procedures from polymerization mixtures was developed for graft polymerization of acrylamide (AAm) onto the surface of poly(ethylene terephthalate) (PET) film with the simultaneous UV irradiation method without photo-sensitizer. UV irradiation of the PET film with a high pressure mercury lamp under immersion in the 10 wt % aqueous solution of AAm containing an appropriate quantity of periodate (NaIO4) was found to give a highly hydrophilic surface with a water contact angle of about 20°. The original PET film had a contact angle of 75°. In the concentration range of NaIO4 below 1 × 10−4M and above 1 × 10−2M, polymerization did not take place, whereas polymerization was found to proceed to a significant extent when the NaIO4 concentration ranged between 3 × 10−4 and 5 × 10−3M. Based on the concentration change of O2 dissolved in the solution during polymerization and the UV spectra of the aqueous AAm solution containing NaIO4 exposed to UV radiation, a reaction mechanism was proposed for the graft polymerization conducted without degassing in the presence of NaIo4.

A novel method for graft polymerization onto poly(ethylene terephthalate) film surface by UV irradiation without degassing

Graft polymerization of 2-acryl-amide-2-methylpropane sulfonic acid, acrylic acid, N,N-dimethy aminopropyl acrylamide and dimethyl aminoethyl methacrylate was performed onto the surface of poly(ethylene terephthalate) (PET) film with a simultaneous UV irradiation method, but using no photo-sensitizer. The PET film was immersed in an aqueous solution containing a monomer and NaIO 4 of appropriate concentrations, followed by UV irradiation without degassing. Graft polymerization took place, not merely on the outermost surface, but also within the thin surface region of the PET film without any change in bulk properties

Surface graft polymerization of ionic monomers onto poly(ethylene terephthalate) by UV‐irradiation without degassing

To improve the low water wettability of poly(ethylene terephthalate) (PET), graft polymerization of acrylamide (AAm) by UV irradiation was performed onto the surface of a PET film with the simultaneous irradiation method without using a photo sensitizer. The PET film immersed in a 10 wt % deaerated aqueous solution of AAm was found to become highly hydrophilic upon UV irradiation. Optical microscopy on cross sections of grafted films showed that localization of the graft polymerization was restricted to a thin surface region of the film. Both the low concentration of polymer radicals formed by UV irradiation and the monomer penetration limited to the film surface would be responsible for localization of the grafted layer to the film surface region. Pretreatment of the PET film with benzyl alcohol was effective for enhancement of the graft polymerization. Retention of high hydrophilicity of the surface even after rigorous extraction of homopolymer and a comparative study of polymerization without UV irradiation strongly suggested that UV irradiation of the PET film under immersion in the deaerated AAm aqueous solution would lead to formation of the true graft copolymer.

Surface graft polymerization of acrylamide onto poly(ethylene terephthalate) film by UV irradiation

The topography of water-soluble polymer chains immobilized on a rigid polymer surface underwater was studied using atomic force microscopy (AFM). As the substrate polymer a smooth poly(ethylene terephthalate) (PET) film was employed and polymer chains of various lengths were chemically immobilized by surface graft polymerization of 2-(dimethylamino)ethyl methacrylate onto the film using the UV-induced graft polymerization method. The degree of polymerization (N) of graft chains ranged from 28 to 960. Except for the shortest chains (N = 28) the graft polymer chains were found to stretch out on the substrate underwater, forming a brush structure. The graft layers exhibited inhomogeneous structure, that is, clusters. This cluster formation was ascribed to substantially poor solvency of water for the graft polymer chain. AFM scanning performed at varying loads from 0.25 to 10 nN underwater revealed that, with the increasing graft chain length, AFM images underwater exhibited deformation (tilting) of the clust...

Emiko Uchida

Papers

Surface modification of polyethylene balloon catheters for local drug delivery.

A novel method for graft polymerization onto poly(ethylene terephthalate) film surface by UV irradiation without degassing

Surface graft polymerization of ionic monomers onto poly(ethylene terephthalate) by UV‐irradiation without degassing

Surface graft polymerization of acrylamide onto poly(ethylene terephthalate) film by UV irradiation

Topography of polymer chains grafted on a polymer surface underwater