Electrodeposition of amine-terminatedpoly(ethylene glycol) to titanium surface

The immobilization of poly(ethylene glycol), PEG, to a solid surface is useful to functionalize the surface, e.g., to prevent the adsorption of proteins. No successful one-stage technique for the immobilization of PEG to base metals has ever been developed. In this study, PEG in which both terminals or one terminal had been modified with amine bases was immobilized onto a titanium surface using electrodeposition. PEG was dissolved in a NaCl solution, and electrodeposition was carried out at 310 K with − 5 V for 300 min. The thickness of the deposited PEG layer was evaluated using ellipsometry, and the bonding manner of PEG to the titanium surface was characterized using X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy after electrodeposition. The results indicated that a certain amount of PEG was adsorbed on titanium through both electrodeposition and immersion when PEG was terminated by amine. However, terminated amines existed at the surface of titanium and were combined with titanium oxide as N–HO by electrodeposition, while amines randomly existed in the molecule and showed an ionic bond with titanium oxide by immersion. The electrodeposition of PEG was effective for the inhibition of albumin adsorption. This process is useful for materials that have electroconductivity and a complex morphology.