Hydrophobicity control of glass surface

• Main Author: Toh, Xavier Sheng Yang
• Other Authors: Huang Changjin
• Format: Final Year Project
• Language: English
• Published: Nanyang Technological University 2024
• Subjects: Engineering; Biomaterials engineering; Manufacturing; Biological/tissue engineering
• Online Access: https://hdl.handle.net/10356/176645
• Institution: Nanyang Technological University

Surface hydrophobicity plays a crucial role in chemical and biological assays as an important surface property, as it affects the spreading of liquids on the surface. This modification of surface hydrophobicity places importance on glass materials as they are widely used in industry and will pave the way for high-throughput chemical and biological assays. This project explores a novel way to effectively modify glass surface hydrophobicity using polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS), aiming to characterize how different experimental conditions affect surface hydrophobicity. PDMS is allowed to fully cure and then cut into cut desired shapes. After placing the PDMS structures onto glass substrates, UV ozone treatment is then conducted. After removing the PDMS structures from the glass substrates, the hydrophobicity of the coated surfaces is then characterized using a contact angle measuring machine. The experiments are compared with a control set by adjusting different variables such as PDMS thickness, stiffness, washing of glass coverslips, the water droplet sizes, and the duration of UV exposure. The results show a significant increase in hydrophobicity on glass surfaces after the application of the coatings, with contact angles exceeding 100˚. As such, this study highlighted the efficacy of PDMS coatings in the modification of surface hydrophobicity of glass substrates, offering potential solutions for a wide range of applications requiring water-repellent surfaces.