(694f) Super-Hydrophilic Anti-Fogging Coatings Via Aqueous Surface-Initiated Photopolymerization

Super-hydrophilic coatings provide surfaces with vast functionality, from anti-fogging to anti-icing to self-cleaning, aiding the advancement of materials for specified applications. The use of polymer brushes to fabricate such surfaces can allow for the production of durable, covalently attached films. Historically, such hydrophilic polymer brushes have been challenging to produce in a controlled manner, particularly because of the lack of solubility of many hydrophilic monomers in common organic reaction solvents used in surface-initiated controlled radical polymerizations. Further, these techniques are highly air-sensitive, making synthetic procedures time-consuming and costly. Here, we introduce a photoinduced surface-initiated reversible addition-fragmentation chain transfer (SI-RAFT) polymerization which uses water as a solvent and can be performed in ambient air atmosphere. This procedure makes the formation of hydrophilic polymer films more easily accessible by offering a fully aqueous system with high ionic monomer solubility and eliminating the need for degassing or stringent air-free procedures. Further, the polymerizations occur under 590 nm visible light, enhancing safety over other thermally- or near-UV-light-induced systems. The cationic, anionic, and zwitterionic polymer films in focus in this study show promise as long-lasting, functional materials with potential to combat numerous challenges facing surface science today.