Study On Preparation And Properties Of UV Curable Antibacterial Polyurethane Composites

Microorganisms such as bacteria can adhere to and multiply on the surface of biomedical materials,eventually forming highly organized bacterial biofilms on the surface of the materials.The presence of biofilms may lead to chronic and recurrent infections and cause bacterial drug resistance.In recent years,with the frequent use of medical materials,the problem of medically acquired infections caused by pathogenic bacteria adhering to the surface of medical devices or implanted biomaterials has become the greatest threat to patients’ health worldwide.The construction of surface antimicrobial coatings is one of the most effective strategies to address this type of healthcare-acquired infection.Therefore,the design of effective methods to construct polyurethane coatings with antibacterial functions has great practical significance in the realization and application of functional materials,especially biomedical materials.In this work,a new type of UV-curable antimicrobial polyurethane composites was prepared based on the prepared anionic waterborne polyurethane by combining electrostatic interactions.The preparation process and material properties of the polyurethane composites were analyzed and investigated.The details of the study are as follows.(1)Firstly,a series of anionic waterborne polyurethane with different DMPA dosage were synthesized using polycarbonate diol(PCDL),isophorone diisocyanate(IPDI),2,2-dimethylolpropionic acid(DMPA),and hydroxyethyl acrylate(HEA)as raw materials.With the increase in the amount of DMPA,the hydrophilicity of polyurethane molecules increased.At the same time,its particle size gradually decreased,the coating state became more stable.In addition,the surface’s water contact angle,water absorption,tensile strength,and adhesion of the polyurethane coatings was increased,but the elongation at break was decreased.When the amount of DMPA was above 5.0%the anionic waterborne polyurethane prepared with this formulation had good stability and the polyurethane coatings had good comprehensive properties.(2)Based on the prepared anionic waterborne polyurethane,a series of UV curable polyurethane composites were prepared by combining cationic antimicrobial agents with polyurethane molecules through electrostatic assembly,hydrophobic and hydrogen bonding interactions.In this work,three common cationic antimicrobial agents were selected.The introduction of antimicrobial agents significantly improved the antimicrobial ability of the polyurethane material,with antimicrobial effects of over 99%for both E.coli and S.aureus,as well as showing long-lasting antimicrobial properties.In addition,the polyurethane composites antibacterial agent is equivalent to introducing long hydrophobic alkane chains into the structure,thereby improving the water resistance,tensile strength,and adhesion of the waterborne polyurethane coatings compared to the previous modification.This work provides a simple and effective strategy to prepare polyurethane materials with good mechanical properties and durable antibacterial performances.The resulting polyurethane composites can be applied to a wide range of substrates,demonstrating potential applications in the fields of medical consumables,medical devices and other health-related applications.