A novel waterborne fluorinated polyurethane–acrylate film for ultraviolet blocking and antiprotein fouling

Waterborne polyurethane–acrylate (WPUA) as a surface protective coating has been widely used in industrial, architectural, and textile applications. To extend the application of WPUA in the biological field, a novel ultraviolet-fluorinated waterborne polyurethane–acrylate (UV-WFPUA) film, which contains 2, 4-dihydroxybenzophenone (DHBP) as the ultraviolet (UV) absorber and dodecafluoroheptyl methacrylate (DFMA) as the fluorine monomer, was prepared. The paper discussed the effect of UV absorber and fluorine monomer on the UV adsorption performance, thermo-stability, and physical and mechanical properties of the UV-WFPUA film. Furthermore, it explored the independent and cooperative effects of UV absorber and fluorine monomer in affecting the antiprotein fouling property on a quantitative level. Results show that the antiprotein fouling performance of UV-WFPUA film significantly weakened after adding 0.4 wt.% DHPB since the average protein concentration increased from 0.14 to 0.37 mg/mL. In contrast, after adding 9 wt.% DFMA, the average protein concentration dropped from 0.37 to 0.13 mg/mL, indicating the antiprotein fouling properties improved. Therefore, the addition of fluorine monomer will contribute to antiprotein fouling and eliminate the adhesion of UV absorber with proteins. The excellent antiprotein fouling, thermal, and optical properties endow the waterborne polyurethane–acrylate films with promising applications in corneal contact lenses or intraocular lenses.