Nature-inspired Engineered Plasma Textured Repellent Assembly

Objective

The replacement of PFAS (Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances) as non-adhesive/repellent agents in coatings industry is an urgent concern. Indeed, PFAS are poorly degradable and extremely persistent, leading to their accumulation in both environment and living organisms, raising health risks. Although alternative coatings already exist and are improving, their fabrication processes are restraining their elaboration at higher scale for specific applications. The NEPTRA project is built on the recent achievements of the host group in the processing of complex molecules by nanosecond-pulsed atmospheric pressure plasma (APP) discharges for the deposition of thin polymer coatings, which will initiate the applicant to a new research area. By combining both the expertise of the applicant and the supervisor, the investigation of the polymerisation and deposition of textured coatings using nature-based molecules (i.e. fatty acids) through NEPTRA will surpass the state-of-the-art of the coating’s deposition by APP. Although, fatty acids possess attractive surface properties, including low surface energy chemical groups, they remain rarely exploited as monomer in APP polymerisation approach. The broad knowledge of the applicant in coatings elaboration, and more specifically her expertise in the field of nano-structured coatings, will be key for the design and study of unique repellent PFAS-free coatings deposited by APP. The proposed NEPTRA deposition approach using nanosecond-pulsed APP will enable PFAS-free and sustainable-by-design coatings based on repellent textured assemblies. Beyond this objective, NEPTRA will also open a new research area in the polymerisation of complex macromolecules by APP for the design and large-scale generation of robust, structured and functional coatings.