A range of titanium doped diamond-like carbon (Ti-DLC) coatings with different Ti contents were prepared on stainless steel substrates using a plasma-enhanced chemical vapour deposition technique. It was found that both the electron donor surface energy and the surface roughness of the Ti-DLC coatings increased with increasing Ti contents in the coatings. Bacterial adhesion to the coatings was evaluated against Escherichia coli WT F1693 and Pseudomonas aeruginosa ATCC 33347. The experimental data showed that bacterial adhesion decreased with the increases of the Ti content, the electron donor surface energy and surface roughness of the coatings, while the bacterial removal percentage increased with the increases of these parameters. The Ti-DLC coatings reduced bacterial attachment by up to 75% and increased bacterial detachment from 15 to 45%, compared with stainless steel control.

Electroless Ni-P coatings have been widely used in the chemical, mechanical and electronic industries due to their excellent corrosion and wear resistance. Many studies reported that the incorporation of nanosized particles TiO2 into Ni-P matrix greatly improved their anti-corrosion and anti-wear resistance. However no studies have been reported on their anti-bacterial property. In this paper, the Ni-P-TiO2 nano-composite coatings were prepared on stainless steel 316L using electroless plating technique. The experimental results showed that the Ni-P-TiO2 coatings reduced the adhesion of three bacterial strains (Pseudomonas fluorescens, Cobetia and Vibrio) by up to 75% and 70% respectively, as compared with stainless steel and Ni-P coatings. The electron donor surface energy of the Ni-P-TiO2 coatings increased significantly with increasing TiO2 content after UV irradiation. The number of adhered bacteria decreased with increasing electron donor surface energy of the coatings. (C) 2013 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Self-assembled monolayers (SAMs) of galactoside-terminated alkanethiols have protein-resistance properties which can be tuned via the degree of methylation [Langmuir 2005, 21, 2971-2980]. Specifically, a partially methylated compound was more resistant to nonspecific protein adsorption than the hydroxylated or fully methylated counterparts. We investigate whether this also holds true for resistance to the attachment and adhesion of a range of marine species, in order to clarify to what extent resistance to protein adsorption correlates with the more complex adhesion of fouling organisms. The partially methylated galactoside-terminated SAM was further compared to a mixed monolayer of ω-substituted methyl- and hydroxyl-terminated alkanethiols with wetting properties and surface ratio of hydroxyl to methyl groups matching that of the galactoside. The settlement (initial attachment) and adhesion strength of four model marine fouling organisms were investigated, representing both micro- and macrofoulers; two bacteria (Cobetia marina and Marinobacter hydrocarbonoclasticus), barnacle cypris larvae (Balanus amphitrite), and algal zoospores (Ulva linza). The minimum in protein adsorption onto the partially methylated galactoside surface was partly reproduced in the marine fouling assays, providing some support for a relationship between protein resistance and adhesion of marine fouling organisms. The mixed alkanethiol SAM, which was matched in wettability to the partially methylated galactoside SAM, consistently showed higher settlement (initial attachment) of test organisms than the galactoside, implying that both wettability and surface chemistry are insufficient to explain differences in fouling resistance. We suggest that differences in the structure of interfacial water may explain the variation in adhesion to these SAMs.

Diamond-like carbon (DLC) and fluorinated DLC (F-DLC) coatings were deposited onto 10mm stainless steel 316L discs by radio frequency plasma-enhanced chemical vapour deposition (rf PECVD). Surface energy analysis of the F-DLC coatings revealed that with increasing F content the total surface energy decreased significantly, which was attributed to the change of the bonding nature in the coatings, in particularly increasing CF and CF2 bonds. The anti-biofouling property of F-DLC coatings was evaluated with Pseudomonas fluorescens, which is one of the most common bacteria forming biofilms on the surface of heat exchangers in cooling water systems. The experimental results showed that the incorporation of fluorine into the DLC coatings reduced bacterial attachment and increased bacterial removal. The F-DLC coatings with higher F content (39.2at.%) reduced bacterial attachment by 48.8% and increased removal by 90.2%, compared with a standard DLC coating.

Plasma-assisted chemical vapour deposition (PACVD) siloxane coatings from a mixture of hexamethyldisiloxane (HMDSO) and O2, and hybrid coatings deposited by simultaneous sputtering of silicon and plasma polymerisation of HMDSO+O2 were prepared on glass and steel substrates. The effect of the addition of sputtered silicon was investigated for coatings with different HMDSO/O2 ratios. The microstructure and composition of coatings were affected by the coating parameters used. Silicon content was roughly the same for all coatings; carbon content decreased while oxygen content and surface energy increased with decreasing HMDSO/O2 ratio in hybrid coatings. Hardness and modulus were higher for hybrid coatings and increased with decreasing HMDSO/O2 ratio. Hybrid coatings showed much better scratch and wear resistance than PACVD coatings. All coatings showed good fouling-release performance with the freshwater bacterium Pseudomonas fluorescens.

Si- and N-doped diamond-like carbon (DLC) coatings with various Si and N contents were deposited on glass slides using magnetron sputter ion-plating and plasma-enhanced chemical vapour deposition. Surface energy analysis of the DLC coatings revealed that with increasing Si content, the electron acceptor value decreased while the electron donor value increased. The antifouling property of DLC coatings was evaluated with the bacterium, Pseudomonas fluorescens, which is one of the most common microorganisms forming biofilms on the surface of heat exchangers in cooling water systems. P. fluorescens had a high value of the component (69.78 mN m−1) and a low value of the component (5.97 mN m−1), and would be negatively charged with the zeta potential of −16.1 mV. The experimental results showed that bacterial removal by a standardised washing procedure increased significantly with increasing electron donor values and with decreasing electron acceptor values of DLC coatings. The incorporation of 2%N into the Si-doped DLC coatings further significantly reduced bacterial attachment and significantly increased ease of removal. The best Si–N-doped DLC coatings reduced bacterial attachment by 58% and increased removal by 41%, compared with a silicone coating, Silastic® T2. Bacterial adhesion strength on the DLC coatings is explained in terms of thermodynamic work of adhesion.

A range of SiOx-like coatings was deposited on glass slides from a hexamethylsiloxane precursor by plasma-assisted CVD. The effect of varying deposition parameters, specifically ion cleaning time and HMDSO/O2 ratios, on the coating properties and antifouling performance was investigated. At low HMDSO/O2 ratios, the resulting coatings were close to SiO2. Carbon content in the bulk of the coatings increased with increasing HMDSO/O2 ratio. Coatings deposited at high HMDSO/O2 ratios and with the longest cleaning time (30min), elevated the relative carbon content to 25 atomic %. Surface energies (22–43mJ/m) were correlated with the degree of surface oxidation and hydrocarbon content. With the exception of the most polar coatings the apolar component of the surface energy (γLW) was the dominant component. In the most hydrophilic coatings, the Lewis base component of the surface energy (γ−) was dominant. Significantly improved antifouling performance was detected with the most reduced coatings deposited using the extended ion cleaning times. For both, the removal of sporelings of the marine green alga, Ulva linza and the initial adhesion of the freshwater bacterium, Pseudomonas fluorescens, there was a strong, positive correlation between strength of attachment and ion cleaning time. Increased ion cleaning time will elevate the deposition temperature, increasing decomposition rates and thus the crosslinking of the polymer. Increased cross-linking may render these coatings less permeable to penetration and mechanical interlocking by the adhesive polymers used by these organisms, thus reducing their adhesion. Films with improved biological performance have potential for use as coatings in the control of biofouling in applications such as heat exchangers, where thin films are important for effective thermal transfer, or optical windows where transparency is important.

This work describes the fabrication, characterization, and biological evaluation of a thin protein-resistant poly(ethylene glycol) (PEG)-based hydrogel coating for antifouling applications. The coating was fabricated by free-radical polymerization on silanized glass and silicon and on polystyrene-covered silicon and gold. The physicochemical properties of the coating were characterized by infrared spectroscopy, ellipsometry, and contact angle measurements. In particular, the chemical stability of the coating in artificial seawater was evaluated over a six-month period. These measurements indicated that the degradation process was slow under the test conditions chosen, with the coating thickness and composition changing only marginally over the period. The settlement behavior of a broad and diverse group of marine and freshwater fouling organisms was evaluated. The tested organisms were barnacle larvae (Balanus amphitrite), algal zoospores (Ulva linza), diatoms (Navicula perminuta), and three bacteria species (Cobetia marina, Marinobacter hydrocarbonoclasticus, and Pseudomonas fluorescens). The biological results showed that the hydrogel coating exhibited excellent antifouling properties with respect to settlement and removal.