Fluoropolymer Coatings with Inherent Resistance to Biofouling

摘要

An alternative to chemical attack on established colonies (bleaches, detergents) and to toxic surfaces (antibiotics, copper, organotin additives to paints) is to utilise surfaces of environmentally-friendly, non-toxic polymeric materials onto which marine colonisers will not adhere; essentially to inhibit settlement by removing the ability of the surface to form a permanent bond with the microorganism. In this paper, the molecular design considerations for the fabrication of smooth film structures of such materials will be described, together with some observations of their ability to resist fouling organisms.