A Facile Activation Method for Improving the Wettability of Polyurethane Surfaces

This work reports the activation of polyurethane film surfaces in order to enrich them with polar groups such as -NH2, -OH, -COOH or radicals, which further allows immobilization of several bioactive compounds. UV-activation was used to introduce new groups on the polymer surface without affecting the bulk properties. The current arising species improve the wettability of the PU surfaces as it was observed from the static contact angle measurements. The structure and composition of the new PU surfaces were analyzed by using ATR-FTIR spectroscopy. The results suggested the possibility of modifying the PU surfaces in a shorter time periods, in order to provide many sites to attach other biomacromolecules by polar interaction or hydrogen bonding.