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Marine inspired textured materials for reduction of biofouling on surfaces

Richards, Chloe, Barrett, Alan, Maguire, Ivan, Kwiatkowska, Sandra and Regan, Fiona orcid logoORCID: 0000-0002-8273-9970 (2019) Marine inspired textured materials for reduction of biofouling on surfaces. In: OCEANS 2019, 17 - 20 June 2019, Marseilles, France.

Abstract
Biofouling on deployed in-situ sensors without regular removal or cleaning can disrupt sensor data collected. The current replacement antifouling (AF) materials under development are largely unsuited to sensor technologies as they have been developed with large scale applications in mind, such as those required by the shipping industry. Therefore, a strategy for the development of novel, sustainable, antifouling materials for sensor applications is required. Bio-inspiration refers to adapting strategies already developed in the natural world to problems encountered in modern science and technology. Engineered surfaces capable of controlling cellular behaviour under natural conditions are challenging to design due to the diversity of attaching cell types in environments such as marine waters, where many variations in cell shape, size and adhesion strategy exist. Nevertheless, understanding interactions between a cell and a potential substrate for adhesion, including topographically driven settlement cues, offers a route to designing surfaces capable of controlling cell settlement. Biomimetic design of artificial surfaces, based upon microscale features from natural surfaces, can be utilized as model surfaces to understand cell-surface interactions. In this study it was hypothesized that an AF effect could be induced through the replication of a synthetic surface. Scophthalmus rhombus (Brill) is a small flatfish occurring in marine waters of the Mediterranean as well as in Norway and Iceland. It inhabits sandy and muddy coastal waters from 5 to 80 metres. Its skin changes colour depending on the environment but is generally brownish with light and dark freckles and a creamy underside. S. rhombus is oval in shape and its flesh is white[1], [2]. In this study, the micro topography of the brill scale is characterized for the first time which may serve as a trend for the design of a marine inspired biomimetic surface texture. Natural dermal scales of S. rhombus are artificially replicated using 3-D printing and mould casting technologies. The replication methods are then tested for initial colonization of fouling species using 3 h immersion testing using diatom species, CCAP 1052/1B, Phaeodactylum tricornutum. The aim of this study was to discover the potential of using textured surfaces inspired by nature in particular marine organisms to combat fouling. This work identifies simple textures that can reduce fouling in its early stages which can contribute to antifouling coatings on sensors for monitoring in the marine environment.
Metadata
Item Type:Conference or Workshop Item (Poster)
Event Type:Conference
Refereed:Yes
Subjects:Biological Sciences > Cell biology
Biological Sciences > Microbiology
Biological Sciences > Bioinformatics
DCU Faculties and Centres:DCU Faculties and Schools > Faculty of Science and Health > School of Chemical Sciences
Copyright Information:©2019 The Authors
Funders:DCU Water Institute, SmartBay, Ireland, Marine Institute under the project NIAP-LS-16003
ID Code:23518
Deposited On:01 Jul 2019 15:23 by Chloe Richards . Last Modified 13 Aug 2020 15:23
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