Comparing the resilience of macromolecular coatings on medical-grade polyurethane foils

Foils made from elastomeric polymers, such as polycarbonate-based polyurethane (PCU), can combine desirable properties including flexibility, durability, and compliance. Still, their usage is often limited by their strongly autohesive behavior. To overcome this issue, surface coatings can be applied. Here, dopamine-based (dopa) and carbodiimide-mediated (carbo) coatings are compared by assessing their tribological performance and surface properties after long-term sliding tests, and after storage or sterilization. Even though both coating strategies achieve very good lubricity, the dopa-coatings are less resilient than the carbo-coatings. Thus, for such applications where extended sample storage or sterilization is required, covalent coatings should be preferred.