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Mussel‐Inspired Polyesters with Aliphatic Pendant Groups Demonstrate the Importance of Hydrophobicity in Underwater Adhesion
Author(s) -
Xu Ying,
Liu Qianhui,
Narayanan Amal,
Jain Dharamdeep,
Dhinojwala Ali,
Joy Abraham
Publication year - 2017
Publication title -
advanced materials interfaces
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.671
H-Index - 65
ISSN - 2196-7350
DOI - 10.1002/admi.201700506
Subject(s) - adhesive , materials science , polyester , underwater , penetration (warfare) , adhesion , solvent , composite material , chemical engineering , organic chemistry , chemistry , oceanography , layer (electronics) , operations research , engineering , geology
Recognizing the potential for synthetic adhesives that can function in wet environments, elements of mussel foot proteins such as L ‐3,4‐dihydroxyphenylalanine (DOPA) and phosphoserine have been incorporated into synthetic adhesives. Such adhesives have corroborated the advantage of surface active groups like DOPA, but have not yet demonstrated superior performance in wet or underwater environments, without using organic solvents. What has been conspicuously absent from such designs is the effect of hydrophobic components in the performance of underwater adhesives. Herein it is shown that incorporation of hydrophobic groups in low modulus polyester adhesives provides very high lap‐shear strength and resistance to water penetration. In addition to the excellent performance in wet conditions, the designed adhesive can be applied underwater without any solvent, is biodegradable, and is designed from soybean oil, which is a readily available and renewable resource.