Marine biofouling poses persistent challenges for titanium alloys in oceanic applications, driving the demand for durable and environmentally benign antifouling strategies. Herein, we report a ligand engineering strategy employing cysteine-derived amino acids to fabricate Cu-based metal-organic framework (MOF) coatings on nanoporous titanium surfaces via coordination-driven self-assembly. Programmed etching processes generated an interlaced nanoporous structure on the titanium surface, while introducing Cu2 + into microchannels to serve as antibacterial metallic nodes. Three cysteine derivatives bearing distinct side-chain functionalities coordinate with Cu2 + to yield MOF coatings with tailored morphologies and surface properties. The embedded MOF architecture provides robust interfacial adhesion without requiring complex organic interlayers, ensuring coating integrity under marine conditions. The coatings exhibit antibacterial rates of 78%-100% within 3 h, coupled with effective inhibition of algal settlement and macrofouling organism attachment. This work elucidates the growth mechanisms of MOFs mediated by different ligands to understand how ligand side chains regulate the morphology and properties of MOF coatings, providing new perspectives and guidance for designing the next generation of marine protective coatings. (c) 2026 Published by Elsevier Ltd on behalf of The editorial office of Journal of Materials Science & Technology.

Slippery liquid-infused porous surfaces (SLIPS) coating is an environmentally friendly strategy for preventing marine biofouling. However, Conventional SLIPS face a critical limitation: their non-degradable matrices generate persistent microplastics and hinder lubricant release. This paper reports a novel biodegradable silicone-based SLIPS. The coating matrix utilizes a silicone-epoxy hybrid network, synthesized by crosslinking amino-terminated polydimethylsiloxane (NH2-PDMS-NH2) with an ester-functionalized epoxy monomer. Beyond introducing biodegradability, the incorporation of epoxy segments significantly enhanced the coating's adhesion to substrates—a common challenge for silicone-based coatings. The prepared SLIPS coating exhibits excellent antifouling properties, reducing the adhesion rate of bacteria and Chlorella by more than 98%, and effectively preventing conch dirt from covering the surface. In addition, incorporating epoxy segments significantly improves the coating's adhesion. Most importantly, the material undergoes degradation after prolonged immersion in seawater, showing a weight loss of 3.1% over four months, with its network structure disintegrating due to hydrolysis at the ester bond breakage sites, thereby reducing the formation of persistent microplastics. This work presents a robust, high-adhesion antifouling formulation that eliminates microplastic accumulation without compromising service performance.

Copper (Cu)-based catalysts exhibit considerable potential for the electrocatalytic CO2 reduction reaction (CO2RR) to multi-carbon (C2+) products; nevertheless, competitive products (e.g., formic acid) have also been produced by thermodynamic constraints. The attainment of selective C2+ products exhibiting high faradaic efficiency (FE) and current density remains a significant challenge. Here, we designed a tandem catalytic strategy and prepared a series of Janus catalysts supported by double-layered ZIF-8 with inner MN4 and outer CuN4 for C2+ products (especially n-propanol). The synthetic catalyst, NiN4@CuN4, achieved high faradaic efficiencies of 80.6% for C2+ at -1.6 V in a flow cell, with 24.4% n-propanol (CH3CH2CH2OH) and 36.6% ethanol (CH3CH2OH). In situ Raman experiments along with mechanism analysis indicate that the synergistic interaction of inner NiN4 and outer CuN4 significantly facilitates CO production and CO electroreduction, thereby greatly promoting C2+ production.

Marine biofouling severely impedes the development of marine engineering, while existing coatings suffer from inadequate environmental compatibility and insufficient long-term efficacy. To address these limitations, this study reported the fabrication of eugenol-functionalized ZnO (ZnO@Eug) via a one-pot hydrothermal approach. Subsequently, ZnO@Eug was further modified with hexadecyl trimethyl ammonium bromide (CTAB) via electrostatic interactions to yield the ZnO@Eug@CTAB composite filler, which was then incorporated into a polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) matrix to fabricate the ZnO@Eug@CTAB/PDMS (ZECP) composite coating. Benefiting from the synergistic effects of Zn2+, eugenol, and CTAB, the ZECP coating achieved 100 % antibacterial efficiency against E. coli after 24 h of co-cultivation with bacterial suspensions. Anti-algal and anti-marine organism experiments demonstrated that the ZECP coating effectively suppressed Chlorella colonization and prevented the attachment of conchs. Moreover, the ZECP coating displayed controlled Zn2+ release behavior while maintaining a high water contact angle of 121 degrees and low surface free energy of 20.2 mN.m(-1), thereby contributing to its longterm antifouling performance. Based on the dual functions of active antibacterial and anti-marine organism adhesion, the ZECP coating can be applied in the field of environmentally friendly marine antifouling coatings.

Copper (Cu)-based catalysts exhibit considerable potential for electrocatalytic CO 2 reduction reaction (CO 2 RR) to multicarbon (C 2+ ) products, nevertheless, competitive products (e.g. formic acid) have also been produced by thermodynamic constraints. The...

Marine biofouling and corrosion severely compromise the long-term reliability of ships and submerged infrastructures. Conventional silicone coatings, limited by static interfacial properties and weak adhesion, are prone to biofouling during prolonged marine exposure, as well as crevice corrosion and expansion caused by interfacial debonding. Here, a bioinspired silicone-hydrogel coating is proposed that synergistically integrates frog-skin-like hydrated microtextures with mussel-inspired, catechol-mediated adhesion to enable robust, multiscale interfacial regulation. Upon seawater immersion, the hydrogel component establishes a stable bound-water layer and enables pH-responsive, on-demand release of antifouling ions. Meanwhile, hierarchical micro-wrinkled architectures reduce effective adhesion sites, stabilize interfacial hydration layer, and promote localized enrichment of antifouling ions, thereby enhancing surface performance. The catechol-coordinated interface improves adhesion strength of the coating, efficiently suppressing corrosive ions permeation, and reducing corrosion-diffusion areas by approximately 85%. Density functional theory calculations, molecular dynamics simulations, and confocal laser scanning microscope results further reveal the formation of a dynamic and self-renewable hydration layer under continuous immersion. Field deployment for nearly five months demonstrates near-complete inhibition of barnacles and tubeworms attachment (∼100%). This dual-channel strategy, combining microstructural modulation with adaptive chemical adhesion, overcomes two critical issues of antifouling and interface stability of silicone coatings, offering an effective solution for durable antifouling and corrosion protection of marine infrastructure.

Biofouling in marine environments poses a severe threat to artificial facilities such as ship hulls, underwater structures, marine ranches, cross-sea bridges, and offshore wind power piles. Copper-containing antifouling coatings dominate the current market, but the excessive release of copper ions remains an urgent issue. Recently, slippery liquid-infused porous surfaces (SLIPS) have shown excellent potential in resisting fouling. However, the easy loss of lubricating liquids in complex marine environments limits their long-term stability. Therefore, developing novel antifouling coatings with long-term stability and environmental friendliness is crucial. To tackle these challenges, a SLIPS antifouling coating (Cu/MXene@uPDMS-oil) based on Cu/MXene composite nanofluid and a polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) matrix was designed and fabricated. The addition of MXene nanosheets not only promotes the dissolution of copper ions but also enables the controlled release of copper ions through the labyrinth effect, thereby solving the problem of “initial rapid release followed by a slow release” in copper-based coatings. Furthermore, the low surface energy of PDMS, the intrinsic antifouling property of MXene, and the toxic effect of copper ions synergistically enhance the antifouling performance significantly. The inhibition rates against bacteria, Chlorella, and conchs reach 100%, 99.46%, and 100%, respectively. Notably, the introduction of copper particles and MXene into the nanofluids increases the viscosity of the silicone oil system, making it more difficult for silicone oil to be eluted from the coating surface. This endows the Cu/MXene@uPDMS-oil coating with excellent stability and prolongs its antifouling lifespan. In addition, the coating exhibits good hydrophobicity, self-cleaning property, and self-replenishing capability. This research provided a new idea and feasible approach for the development of long-term and environmentally friendly next-generation marine antifouling coatings.

The escalating global energy demand has spurred the emergence of diverse solar-powered systems. As a typical example, photocathodic protection (PCP) is a promising technology to prevent metal corrosion via a “solar-electric-chemical” energy conversion process. However, the implementation of reported PCP systems has been greatly restricted by two key issues, that is, severe electron–hole recombination and sluggish surface water oxidation reaction. Herein, we report a high-performance bilayer PCP photoanode composed of single-domain ferroelectric PbTiO3 nanoplates at the bottom and NiCo-LDH nanosheets at the top. Controlled external poling aligns the depolarization fields of individual PbTiO3 nanoplates and adds up to a much enhanced “macroscopic electric field” through the entire photoanode, which is harnessed to steer the charge flow inside the PCP system. In addition, the integration of NiCo-LDH nanosheets on top of the PbTiO3 nanoplates not only introduces an electric field at the heterostructure interface to further promote the interfacial charge transfer, but more importantly, accelerates the oxygen evolution reaction (OER) kinetics and suppresses the electron–hole recombination. Such a rational design allows for the synergistic contribution of the ferroelectric polarization of PbTiO3 and the superior OER catalytic activities of 2D LDH to the overall energy conversion efficiency, leading to stable cathodic protection for 304 stainless steel. This work provides a feasible design strategy for efficient PCP systems through precise optimization of the core photoelectrochemical reaction steps. A “ferroelectric-catalytic” bilayer was tailored to harness synergistic contributions from the intrinsic spontaneous polarization of ferroelectrics and the superior water oxidation activity of catalysts to improve “solar-electric-chemical” energy conversion for efficient cathodic metal protection.

Due to the restricted molecular mobility of highly cross-linked epoxy networks, the development of intrinsic self-healing epoxy coatings that can maintain mechanical strength while providing corrosion protection remains a significant challenge. In this study, a thiourea-functional curing agent (D230-TU) with dynamic hydrogen-bonding sites was synthesized by reacting polyetheramine D230 with carbon disulfide. This was blended with flexible polyetheramine D400 to form a composite curing system for epoxy resin E51. The optimized formulation (EP-2/TU-2) exhibited a glass transition temperature of 10.7 °C a tensile strength of 4.5 ± 0.2 MPa, an elongation at break of 325.9 ± 13.4%, and a rebound toughness of 52%, achieving a good balance between mechanical properties and molecular chain mobility. Optical and scanning electron microscopy observations indicate that surface scratches can be almost completely repaired within 48 h at room temperature. The self-healed epoxy coating regains sufficient interfacial integrity to stably withstand a load of 500 g. Electrochemical impedance spectroscopy, immersion corrosion testing, and Raman analysis further demonstrate that the repaired coating effectively restores its barrier function and corrosion resistance. The superior self-healing performance stems from the synergistic interaction between the dynamic restructuring of thiourea hydrogen bonds and polyether chain diffusion, enabling autonomous repair of damaged interfaces and reconstruction of the protective network. This study provides an effective strategy for developing intrinsically self-healing epoxy anti-corrosion coatings with long-term durability and damage-resistant protective capabilities.

Marine engineering facilities face the dual challenges of biofouling and material corrosion over extended periods. Traditional antifouling coatings struggle to meet environmental and long-term service requirements due to excessive heavy metal ion release or a lack of self-healing capabilities. This study designed and prepared an epoxy resin-based coating (C-ZIF7@Ag/EP) incorporating C-ZIF7@Ag nanocomposites. By synergistically leveraging photothermal effects and controlled release of bactericidal ions, the coating achieved highly efficient antifouling and self-healing functionality. Under 808-nm near-infrared irradiation (150 s to reach 132 °C at 1.5 W cm-2), the coating rapidly heated up. The coating exhibited a reversible viscoelastic solid-liquid transformation, enabling effective healing of surface scratches upon near-infrared irradiation. Antibacterial tests demonstrated 99.1% and 99.4% kill rates against Escherichia coli and Pseudomonas aeruginosa, respectively, under near-infrared light. Marine biofouling tests confirmed significant inhibition of organism attachment, such as that by conchs. Furthermore, acidic environments (pH = 4-6) synergistically promoted the controlled release of Zn2+ and Ag+ when combined with photothermal stimulation. The release concentrations of Zn2+ and Ag+ after 30 days were 1.95 μg cm-2 d-1 and 0.06 μg cm-2 d-1, respectively, remaining within environmentally safe levels and posing no risk of marine pollution. Electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS) results indicated that after 30 days of immersion in artificial seawater, the |Z|0.01 Hz value of the C-ZIF7@Ag/EP coating remained at 2.48 × 108 Ω cm2. The C-ZIF7@Ag/EP coating developed in this study offers a strategy for creating eco-friendly, long-lasting, self-healing marine antifouling and anticorrosion materials, demonstrating significant engineering application value.

To overcome the limitations of traditional corrosion-resistant coatings, which rely solely on passive protection and exhibit poor durability, this study innovatively prepared a multifunctional hybrid filler, halloysite@layered double hydroxide loaded with 8-hydroxyquinoline and functionalized with 3-aminopropyltriethoxysilane (Hal@LDH-8HQ@APTES, HLQA). Specifically, calcined halloysite (Hal) was used as a template to in situ grow layered double hydroxide (LDH) loaded with 8-hydroxyquinoline (8-HQ) corrosion inhibitor, forming the Hal@LDH-8HQ (HLQ) hybrid. Subsequently, 3-aminopropyl triethoxysilane (APTES) was used for surface modification to enhance its interface compatibility with the polymer matrix. The resulting composite coating achieves a dual synergistic protective mechanism: (1) passive protection through physical shielding and prolonging the diffusion path of corrosive media; (2) active protection and self-healing functionality based on the anion exchange properties of LDH, simultaneously achieving chloride ion capture and controlled release of the 8HQ corrosion inhibitor. Electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS) test results indicate that the HLQA/EP composite coating exhibits outstanding long-term corrosion resistance. After immersion in a 3.5 wt% NaCl solution for 45 days, its low-frequency impedance modulus (|Z|0.01 Hz) remains as high as 109 Omega & sdot;cm2. Most importantly, for artificially damaged coatings, after only 12 h of immersion in a 3.5 wt% NaCl solution, the lowfrequency impedance values in the damaged areas showed a significant upward trend, strongly validating the self-healing capability of the coating. This study not only significantly enhances the comprehensive protective performance of the coating but also achieves significant progress in realizing an integrated synergistic mechanism of "passive-active-self-healing" for the coating.

Marine biofouling constitutes a pervasive biological threat that seriously impedes the sustainable development of the marine economy. Slippery liquid-infused porous surfaces (SLIPS) were typically employed as marine coatings to mitigate biofouling. However, SLIPS are often hindered by rapid lubricant leaching, short service life, and a simple antifouling strategy, thereby limiting their applicability in marine environments. To circumvent the limitations of conventional SLIPS, synergistic antifouling strategies were frequently adopted. In this study, we developed a copper/graphene nanofluid-infused porous surface (Cu/G@uPDMS-oil) utilizing the breath figure method. The nanofluid can be firmly locked into the microstructure within polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) to form a stable lubricating layer and provide a sustained release of silicone oil due to dynamic hydrogen bonding. In addition, when silicone oil is released from the coating surface, the intrinsic copper (Cu) and graphene (G) nanoparticles come into substantial contact with the surrounding solution, leading to galvanic corrosion. Galvanic corrosion produces synergistic antifouling through a dual mechanism of induced oxidative stress and copper ion (Cu2+) release. Consequently, the resulting coating exhibits high stability, continuous silicone oil leaching, and self-replenishing properties. Due to the labyrinth effect of graphene, the release rate of Cu2+ is significantly diminished to 6.2 μg·cm-2·day-1. Furthermore, this nanofluid-based smooth surface demonstrates superior antibacterial, anti-algal, and anti-conch properties. The developed Cu/G@uPDMS-oil coating holds great potential for significantly mitigating marine biofouling.

Marine biofouling and corrosion are serious impediments to the promotion and development of the marine industry. The short service life and limited application of single coatings have greatly increased the economic burden on the industry. The development of multi-functional composite coatings has become a particularly pressing issue. The combination of Cu-BTC and Ti3C2Tx as a specific resin filler represents a new strategy (Ti3C2Tx@Cu-BTC@EP). HAADF-STEM, PXRD and XPS were used to verify the successful synthesis of the materials. Ti3C2Tx@Cu-BTC@EP was able to achieve 100 % lethality of E. coli under the condition of light exposure within 24 h. In addition, the impedance modulus of the coating in the low-frequency range was increased by about 3.15 times compared to the blank group with the addition of 1 wt% filler, reaching as high as 7.06 × 108 Ω. Overall, the novel Ti3C2Tx@Cu-BTC@EP composite coating is expected to promote new advances in epoxy resin research.

The threat of fouling organisms attached to ships and offshore equipment has brought great obstacles to the development of marine undertakings. Antifouling coatings represented by Cu2O is one of the most widely used antifouling paints at present, but they are facing the situation of initial explosion and final release exhaustion of Cu ions, which make long-term antifouling become one of the bottlenecks of the current antifouling coatings. To solving the problem of controlled-release of Cu ions, in this paper, a controlled-release system based on galvanic corrosion is prepared by using reduced graphene (rGO) supported poorly soluble metal Cu as antifouling agents (rGO/Cu), and the controlled-release principle of the system is studied from the perspective of electrochemistry. Its antifouling performance is evaluated by Cu ions release rate and indoor antifouling experiment. The experimental controlled release system has the controlled-release performance of Cu ions, which benefits from the shielding effect of rGO sheet, and the stable dissolution of Cu after the formation of galvanic corrosion between poorly soluble Cu and rGO. The sample EC041 with the highest rGO content (17.70 %) has the specific surface area ratio of rGO to Cu of 462; the Cu ions release rates dispersed into the coatings have the lowest RSD value of 44.45 % during 21 days testing cycle. The experimental results show that the controlled-release system has a stable antifouling effect.

Marine biofouling is one of the biggest problems for titanium alloys and rutile TiO2 coatings in marine engineering applications. Hydrogel materials are a novel and environmentally benign antifouling strategy, but they cannot be stabilized on alloy surfaces to provide long-term protection. Focusing on the challenges of bonding at the hydrogel-alloy interface, a PAA/PHEMA composite hydrogel containing Cu2O@PEG powder was strongly bonded to the titanium alloy by forming chemical bonds with APTES. The composite hydrogel still achieves an adhesion strength of 60-70 kPa after 7 days of immersion. The samples maintained a stable copper ion leaching rate of 2.61-3.76 mu g center dot cm- 2 center dot d- 1 after 21 days of immersion. The coating-modified titanium alloys showed a 100 % bactericidal rate within three hours of contact with different bacteria and exhibited a high anti-algal adhesion rate of up to 99 %. In addition, the attachment mode of APTES on rutile TiO2 was clarified for the first time by Density Functional Theory (DFT) calculations. According to DFT calculations, the adsorption energy of APTES on Ti-TiO2 is -747.025 kJ/mol, and the adsorption energy of acrylic acid on TiO2-APTES is -535.152 kJ/mol. The chemical bonding connection between the hydrogel-alloy interface, as a novel interface bonding strategy, would be expected to broaden the application of titanium alloy in marine engineering.

Marine biofouling can cause economic, environmental and safety issues. Here the Cu-MOF/SiO2 aerogel@PDMS coatings were prepared to prevent the colonization of fouling organisms. The Cu-MOF-74 which can continuously provide copper ions was successfully synthesized through a simple method. SiO2 aerogel was employed to immobilize Cu ions (Cu-MOF) by the formation of-Si-O-Cu-O-, thereby achieving the goal of more stable release of copper ions from the coating. And the improvement of coating hydrophobicity also helps to enhance the stability of MOFs. The Cu-MOF/SiO2 aerogel@PDMS coating exhibits significant long-term antibacterial performance, with a maximum antibacterial rate of 99.5 %. And it can enhanced the long-term static anti-biofouling performance of PDMS in the local sea by effectively preventing the colonization of macrofouling organisms (e.g. barnacles, calcareous tubeworms).

While copper-based antifoulants represent effective solutions for marine biofouling prevention, their utilization efficiency remains a critical challenge. This investigation demonstrates a pH-responsive hydrogel composite through synergistic integration of poly(acrylic acid) networks with histidine-coordinated cupric nanoclusters. The main ligand configuration of histidine and Cu2+ was identified as “imidazole-dominated and carboxyl-assisted” by density functional theory (DFT) simulation, which provides theoretical support for the pH sensitivity of hydrogel. This coating releases Cu2+ precisely “on demand” in response to external pH changes, effectively preventing algae and fouling organisms from adhering and achieving high bactericidal rates against Pseudomonas aeruginosa and E. coli. The distinctive molecular design of the coating combines multiple amide motifs that self-assemble into a honeycomb network via strong hydrogen bonding, while the coordination between Cu2+ and histidine establishes a dynamic metal-ligand interaction with tunable dissociation kinetics and cohesion strength. This intelligent controlled-release composite hydrogel significantly reduces the risk of marine fouling by releasing antifouling agents precisely and efficiently, providing an innovative solution for building a sustainable marine antifouling system.

Biofouling has been a persistent challenge for offshore equipment, significantly affecting its longevity. In this study, two-dimensional (2D) ZIF-7 nanosheets were synthesized via a hydrothermal method and modified with polydopamine (PDA) to enhance their dispersibility. A multifunctional ZIF-7@PDA-CeO2 nanocomposite was then prepared through in situ growth, where CeO2 was uniformly and securely anchored onto the ZIF-7@PDA surface, facilitated by the large specific surface area and its electrostatic interactions between ZIF-7@PDA. UV-vis absorption spectra demonstrate that the ZIF-7@PDA-CeO2 exhibit haloperoxidase-like (HPO-like) catalytic activity, efficiently catalyzing the oxidation of NH4Br and H2O2 to generate HBrO. Antibacterial assays indicate that ZIF-7@PDA-CeO2 possesses strong bactericidal activity and effectively inhibits biofilm formation. Furthermore, ZIF-7@PDA-CeO2 are used as fillers to prepare ZIF-7@PDA-CeO2/EP composite coating, and the antibacterial and long-term corrosion resistance is also explored. We believe this work offers a sustainable solution to the challenges of biofouling and corrosion in marine environments.