Rapid preparation of mussel-inspired coatings with adjustable properties under electrochemical drive

Abstract

Mussel-inspired coating is widely used in surface modification technology, but its applications are limited by the time-consuming preparation. Although the coating formation can be accelerated by speeding up the precursor oxidation or polymerization process, it still takes several hours and there is a mismatch between the reaction and the deposition. In this paper, a simple method was presented — electrochemical driving rapid mussel-inspired strategy that successfully reduced the coating formation time on the conductive substrate to 300 s. The polymerization mechanism of dopamine, catechol (CAT), and caffeic acid in the presence or absence of ethylenediamine (EDA) was discussed using cyclic voltammetry, and the results demonstrated that the presence of EDA could greatly promote the polymerization reaction. In addition to CAT, other 11 catechol derivatives could form coatings with EDA, confirming the versatility of the strategy. The properties of the coatings, such as amino density, surface wettability, and self-cleaning properties, could be adjusted by the delicate selection of different precursors. To demonstrate the application of this strategy, functional carbon felts with superhydrophobic/superoleophilic properties were prepared, and the results showed that effective separation of various oil-water mixtures could be realized, indicating that this strategy can be expected to be extended to practical applications.