Fabrication of a BOC-Protected 2-Hydroxyethyl Methacrylate Brush and Deprotection of the BOC Group to Control the Surface Hydrophilicity

Yasuhito Suzuki; Ayuka Matsunami; Hina Morito; Yusuke Kanaoka; Kazuo Satoh; Akikazu Matsumoto

doi:10.1021/acs.langmuir.3c02259

Fabrication of a BOC-Protected 2-Hydroxyethyl Methacrylate Brush and Deprotection of the BOC Group to Control the Surface Hydrophilicity

Langmuir. 2023 Dec 5;39(48):17216-17221. doi: 10.1021/acs.langmuir.3c02259. Epub 2023 Nov 20.

Authors

Yasuhito Suzuki^{1

2}, Ayuka Matsunami¹, Hina Morito¹, Yusuke Kanaoka³, Kazuo Satoh³, Akikazu Matsumoto^{1

2}

Affiliations

¹ Department of Applied Chemistry, Graduate School of Engineering, Osaka Metropolitan University, 1-1 Gakuen-cho, Naka-ku, Sakai599-8531, Osaka, Japan.
² Department of Applied Chemistry, Graduate School of Engineering, Osaka Prefecture University, 1-1 Gakuen-cho, Naka-ku, Sakai599-8531, Osaka, Japan.
³ Osaka Research Institute of Industrial Science and Technology, 2-7-1 Ayumino, Izumi 594-1157, Osaka, Japan.

PMID: 37984531
DOI: 10.1021/acs.langmuir.3c02259

Abstract

Fabrication of functional surfaces with designed patterns of different hydrophilicity has potential applications in active control of water droplets and water harvesting. For practical applications, the fabrication process needs to be applied to a large area in a cost-effective manner. Herein, we report the fabrication of a polymer brush of 2-(tert-butoxycarbonyloxy)ethyl methacrylate having a BOC-protected hydroxy group. The deprotection of the BOC group converts poly(2-(tert-butoxycarbonyloxy)ethyl methacrylate) (PBHEMA) into poly(2-hydroxyethyl methacrylate) (PHEMA) and hence changes the hydrophilicity. The chemical transformation changes the refractive index and thickness of the brush. This simple chemistry enables easy formation of the boundary of different hydrophilicity. Last, we demonstrate that the shape of the water droplet can be manipulated on the designed surface having different hydrophilicity.