A Facile Route to Bio-Inspired Supramolecular Oligo(Ethylene Glycol) Catecholates

A particularly facile synthetic route to mussel-inspired oligo(ethylene glycol) catecholates is described, yielding high purity materials with minimal purification. The oligocatecholates show remarkable thermal and rheological properties for their actual chain length, suggesting the operation of non-covalent interactions between their l-DOPA-bearing chain ends. This end-group effect is more pronounced in the shorter oligomers (M-n of ethylene glycol chain of 200 and 400 Da), where the end-group density is higher. Various surfaces (glass, stainless steel) are modified with the oligocatecholates, using a dip-coating approach from dilute aqueous solutions. Water contact angle measurements and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy confirm the presence of a hydrophilic surface coating layer. The potential of these materials for application as antifouling coatings and viscosity modifiers is highlighted.