(730e) Generation of Biomimicked Leaves for Crude Oil Bioadhesion Studies

This research focuses on the study of the surface effects of crude oil on costal plant life.  With the recent oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico, the study of crude oil’s bioadhesion to coastal plants is a topic of high interest.  However, living plant tissue makes it difficult to perform testing as it begins to dehydrate immediately on being severed from the main body.  This dehydration causes the surface topography to change and introduces time dependency into tests.  For this reason, biomimicked leaf samples were created out of polyurethane using a two stage molding process after which the epicuticular wax taken from the original biological sample was redeposited on the artificial surface.  The adaxial surface of Spartina Antiflora, a common coastal plant, was utilized for these tests.  Optical micrographs, SEM, and contact angle analysis then show that the surface chemistry and structure display a very high resolution to the original leaf.  Utilizing these biomimicks, pendant drop testing provided a mechanism to explain the oil’s adverse effects on coastal plant life which caused suffocation and eventual death.  Last, microfluidic devices were utilized to simulate dispersed oil in a controlled manner in order to validate this mechanism.