Polydopamine and Its Derivative Materials: Synthesis and Promising Applications in Energy, Environmental, and Biomedical Fields

One of the greatest challenges to the sustainability of modern society is an inadequate supply of clean water. Due to its energy-saving and cost-effective features, membrane technology has become an indispensable platform technology for water purification, including seawater and brackish water desalination as well as municipal or industrial wastewater treatment. However, membrane fouling, which arises from the nonspecific interaction between membrane surface and foulants, significantly impedes the efficient application of membrane technology. Preparing antifouling membranes is a fundamental strategy to deal with pervasive fouling problems from a variety of foulants. In recent years, major advancements have been made in membrane preparation techniques and in elucidating the antifouling mechanisms of membrane processes, including ultrafiltration, nanofiltration, reverse osmosis and forward osmosis. This review will first introduce the major foulants and the principal mechanisms of membrane fouling, and then highlight the development, current status and future prospects of antifouling membranes, including antifouling strategies, preparation techniques and practical applications. In particular, the strategies and mechanisms for antifouling membranes, including passive fouling resistance and fouling release, active off-surface and on-surface strategies, will be proposed and discussed extensively.

Antifouling membranes for sustainable water purification: strategies and mechanisms

Coatings tailored to corrosion protection of metallic substrates are of the utmost relevance to ensure reliability and long-term performance of coated parts as well as the product value of the coated materials. Presently, there is a strong emphasis on the development of advanced functional and smart coatings for corrosion protection in different technological applications. On the one hand, there is a need for more advanced coatings for conventional applications and, on the other hand, there is a need to answer the requirements of several new Hi-Tech applications. Thus, this review highlights the most recent trends in the field of functional coatings for corrosion protection of metallic materials in a wide range of technical applications. Emphasis is given to self-healing coatings and smart coatings combining multiple functionalities for increased corrosion protection. Recent developments on the introduction of functionalities based on encapsulation of corrosion inhibitors, anti-fouling agents and superhydrophobic additives or modification of organic and hybrid matrices via chemical manipulation are reviewed. Special attention is dedicated to functional coatings for corrosion protection of bioresorbable metallic implants that have an important impact in biomedical applications.

Functional and smart coatings for corrosion protection: A review of recent advances

Protein adsorption is considered to be the most important factor of the interaction between polymeric biomaterials and body fluids or tissues. Water-mediated hydrophobic and hydration forces as well as electrostatic interactions are believed to be the major factors of protein adsorption. A systematic analysis of various monolayer systems has resulted in general guidelines, the so-called "Whitesides rules". These concepts have been successfully applied for designing various protein-resistant surfaces and are being studied to expand the understanding of protein-material interactions beyond existing limitations. Theories on the mechanisms of protein adsorption are constantly being improved due to the fast-developing analytical technologies. This Review is aimed at improving these empirical guidelines with regard to present theoretical and analytical advances. Current analytical methods to test mechanistic hypotheses and theories of protein-surface interactions will be discussed. Special focus will be given to state-of-the-art bioinert and biospecific coatings and their applications in biomedicine.

Protein interactions with polymer coatings and biomaterials.

More than 1000× uranium exists in the oceans than exists in terrestrial ores. With nuclear power generation expected to increase over the coming decades, access to this unconventional reserve is a matter of energy security. With origins in the mid-1950s, materials have been developed for the selective recovery of seawater uranium for more than six decades, with a renewed interest in particular since 2010. This review comprehensively surveys materials developed from 2000–2016 for recovery of seawater uranium, in particular including recent developments in inorganic materials; polymer adsorbents and related research pertaining to amidoxime; and nanostructured materials such as metal–organic frameworks, porous-organic polymers, and mesoporous carbons. Challenges of performing reliable and reproducible uranium adsorption studies are also discussed, as well as the standardization of parameters necessary to ensure valid comparisons between different adsorbents.

Materials for the Recovery of Uranium from Seawater

Fouling release coatings: a nontoxic alternative to biocidal antifouling coatings.

Well-defined graft copolymers of tert-butyldimethylsilyl methacrylate and poly(dimethylsiloxane) macromonomers synthesized by RAFT polymerization

Fouling Release Coatings are marine antifouling coatings based on silicone elastomers. Contrary to commonly used biocide-based antifouling coatings, they do not release biocides into the marine environment, however, they suffer from poor antifouling efficacy during idle periods. To improve their antifouling performances in static conditions, various amounts of hydrolyzable polymers were incorporated within a silicone matrix. These hydrolyzable polymers were chosen for the well-known hydrolytic degradation mechanism of their main chain, e.g. poly(e-caprolactone) (PCL), or of their ester pending groups, e.g. poly(bis(trimethylsilyloxy)methylsilyl methacrylate) (PMATM2). The degradation kinetics of such hydrolyzable silicone coatings were assessed by mass loss measurements during immersion in deionized water. Coatings containing PMATM2 exhibited a maximum mass loss after 12 weeks, whereas PCL-based coatings showed no significant mass loss after 24 weeks. Dynamic contact angle measurements revealed the modifications of the coatings surface chemistry with an amphiphilic behavior after water exposure. The attachment of macrofoulers on these coatings were evaluated by field tests in the Mediterranean Sea, demonstrating the short or long-term antifouling effect of these hydrolyzable polymers embedded in the silicone matrix. The settlement of A. amphitrite barnacles on the different coatings indicated inhospitable behaviors towards larval barnacles for coatings with at least 15 wt % of additives.

https://hal.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-02431954/document

Hydrolyzable Additive-Based Silicone Elastomers: A New Approach for Antifouling Coatings

Synthesis and characterization of diblock and statistical copolymers based on hydrolyzable siloxy silylester methacrylate monomers

In this work, the objective is to design an elastomer network predominantly composed of poly(dimethylsiloxane) (PDMS) with small crosslinked hydrolyzable polyesters to finally provide a new eco-friendly antifouling system. This PDMS/polyester network is expected to maintain a low surface energy during water immersion while, at the same time, ensuring a continuous renewal of its surface through an erosion process. The PDMS/polyester networks were crosslinked via a condensation reaction of a bis-silanol PDMS oil and various bis(trialkoxysilane)-terminated polyester macrocrosslinkers. Chain ends of poly(e-caprolactone), poly(e-caprolactone)-b-PDMS-b-poly(e-caprolactone) and poly( d , l -lactide-co-glycolide) were quantitatively functionalized using (3-isocyanatopropyl)trimethoxysilane as crosslinking reactant. These polyester macrocrosslinkers were highly inserted in the PDMS-based networks in quantities ranging from 12 to 40 wt.%. The microtopography of these PDMS/polyester coatings revealed relatively low roughness values for most of the coatings. Contact angle measurements highlighted an increase of hydrophilicity for PCL-based coatings contrary to the poly( d , l -lactide-co-glycolide)-based coating which demonstrated a surface hydrophobicity as well as a low surface free energy (γs ≤ 25 mJ/m²) even after 5 weeks of immersion in deionized water. The insertion of polyesters within a silicone matrix affected both the elastic modulus and the cristallinity of the network depending on the polyester nature. Finally, mass loss tests demonstrated that these PDMS/polyester coatings had the ability to erode themselves.

Marlène Lejars

Papers

Fouling release coatings: a nontoxic alternative to biocidal antifouling coatings.

Well-defined graft copolymers of tert-butyldimethylsilyl methacrylate and poly(dimethylsiloxane) macromonomers synthesized by RAFT polymerization

Hydrolyzable Additive-Based Silicone Elastomers: A New Approach for Antifouling Coatings

Synthesis and characterization of diblock and statistical copolymers based on hydrolyzable siloxy silylester methacrylate monomers

Water erodible coatings based on a hydrolyzable PDMS/polyester network