Clicked into Place: Biomimetic Copolymer Adhesive for Covalent Conjugation of Functionalities.

Polydopamines (PDA) are a popular class of materials and promising candidates as adhesives for new fastening techniques. PDA layers can be formed on a wide range of substrates in various environments. Here, we present a novel method for functionalizing PDA-based copolymer films by using click chemistry.

Endoplasmic Reticulum Stress Induces Vasodilation in Liver Vessels That Is Not Mediated by Unfolded Protein Response.

There is a growing body of evidence that ER stress and the unfolded protein response (UPR) play a key role in numerous diseases. Impaired liver perfusion and ER stress often accompany each other in liver diseases. However, the exact impact of ER stress and UPR on the hepatic perfusion is not fully understood.

Suppression of the Coffee Ring Effect in a Single Solvent-Based Silicon Nanoparticle Ink.

Silicon (Si) is made printable by dispersing Si nanoparticles in a single organic solvent. Viscoelastic properties of the prepared inks as well as the uniformity of inkjet-printed thin films are investigated in dependence on the Si volume fraction. It has been demonstrated that no ink additives are needed to completely suppress the occurrence of the coffee ring effect.

Engineering of Adhesion at Metal-Poly(lactic acid) Interfaces by Poly(dopamine): The Effect of the Annealing Temperature.

Control over adhesion at interfaces from strong bonding to release between thermoplastic polymers (TPs) and metal oxides is highly significant for polymer composites. In this work, we showcase a simple and inexpensive method to tune adhesion between a TP of growing interest, poly(lactic acid) (PLA), and two commercial metal alloys, based on titanium and stainless steel. This is realized by coating titanium and stainless steel wires with polydopamine (PDA), thermally treating them under vacuum at temperatures ranging from 25 to 250 °C, and then comolding them with PLA to form pullout specimens for adhesion tests.

Dopamine-Based Copolymer Bottlebrushes for Functional Adhesives: Synthesis, Characterization, and Applications in Surface Engineering of Antifouling Polyethylene.

Nonpolar materials like polyolefins are notoriously challenging substrates for surface modification. However, this challenge is not observed in nature. Barnacle shells and mussels, for example, utilize catechol-based chemistry to fasten themselves onto all kinds of materials, such as boat hulls or plastic waste.