Biocompatible and bioinspired polymers for multifunctional coatings

The development of versatile and multifunctional coating materials that can be applied to various surfaces is becoming increasingly necessary and in demand. These coatings should be easily functionalised to modify their properties and to adapt to different applications. Furthermore, biocompatibility and sustainability are important factors to consider when developing new materials.

The Catalan Institute of Nanoscience and Nanotechnology (ICN2) has developed a versatile and biocompatible family of bioinspired polymers that can be used as universal coatings, which are functionalized to meet the requirements of different applications.

These coatings exhibit strong adherence to various types of substrates (wood, fabric, metals, paper, polypropylene-based materials, etc.), as well as durability and long stability even in water environments.

Coatings functionalized with different (bio)molecules of interest have been produced to modulate the final properties of the coated surface, such as its wettability, charge, antibacterial capacity, fluorescence, etc. Their biocompatibility has been proved by testing in vitro. The fabrication and functionalization procedures are easy to scale-up.

Applications:

Health, anti-bacterial/virus surfaces, anti-corrosive coatings, particle entrapment, wettability modulation, etc.

Key advantages:

Adhesion in humid and underwater conditions
Easy to scale-up
Intrinsic antibacterial properties
Functionalization with (bio)molecules, such as fluorescent dyes, hydrophobic agents, etc.
Thickness control by modulating reaction conditions
Biocompatible and biodegradable
Universal to different types of substrate (wood, paper, metals, fabric, etc.)
Long durability and stability

Further research required

The technology has been applied in different use cases in different market applications

Current development status

Laboratory prototypes

Partners for future research

The ICN2 is looking for companies from the health, agriculture and paper industries, among others, to lead proof-of-concept studies and validation tests of this technology for specific applications.