AgNP Hybrid Organosilicon Antifouling Coating with Spontaneous Self-Healing and Long-Term Antifouling Properties

Marine biological fouling has become a major obstacle to the development of marine industry. Silicone coating is becoming a promising environmental protection and antifouling material because of its nontoxic, harmless, and low surface energy. Herein, double-ended hydroxypropyl polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) and polytetrahydrofuran (PTMG) were used as the main chain, 2-hydroxyethyl disulfide (HEDS) and dimethylglyoxime (DMG) were used as chain extenders, and Cu2+ was used as the coordination metal. Then, by introducing silver nanoparticles (AgNPs), a AgNP hybrid silicone antifouling coating with spontaneous self-healing and long-term antifouling properties was constructed. The interaction of disulfide bonds, oxime urethane bonds, metal coordination bonds, and hydrogen bonds endowed a self-healing efficiency of 91.7%. As the reinforced effect of AgNPs, the mechanical properties of the coating could reach up to 2.75 MPa. The surface energy of the coating was controlled below 25 mJ·m–2, which had good dirt release performance and self-cleaning ability. Due to the excellent antibacterial activity of AgNPs, the resistance to marine bacteria Pseudomonas was up to 97.8%, which effectively inhibited the formation of biofilms. This work provided guidance for the development of marine antifouling coatings with self-healing, pollution-free, and long-term antifouling abilities.