Slippery Liquid-Like Solid Surfaces with Promising Antibiofilm Performance under Both Static and Flow Conditions
Yufeng Zhu, Glen McHale, Jack Dawson, Steven Armstrong, Gary G. Wells, Rui Han, Hongzhong Liu, Waldemar Vollmer, Paul Stoodley, Nicholas S. Jakubovics, Jinju Chen
Abstract
, SOCAL significantly outperformed a typical antibiofilm slippery surface [i.e., swollen PDMS in silicone oil (S-PDMS)]. We have revealed that significant oil loss occurred after 2-7 day flow for S-PDMS, which correlated to increased contact angle hysteresis (CAH), indicating a degradation of the slippery surface properties, and biofilm formation, while SOCAL has stable CAH and sustainable antibiofilm performance after 7 day flow. The significance of this correlation is to provide a useful easy-to-measure physical parameter as an indicator for long-term antibiofilm performance. This biofilm-resistant liquid-like solid surface offers a new antibiofilm strategy for applications in medical devices and other areas where biofilm development is problematic.