The present disclosure describes a strategy to create self-healing, slippery self-lubricating polymers. Lubricating liquids with affinities to polymers can be utilized to get absorbed within the polymer and form a lubricant layer (of the lubricating liquid) on the polymer. The lubricant layer can repel a wide range of materials, including simple and complex fluids (water, hydrocarbons, crude oil and bodily fluids), restore liquid-repellency after physical damage, and resist ice, microorganisms and insects adhesion. Some exemplary applications where self-lubricating polymers will be useful include energy-efficient, friction-reduction fluid handling and transportation, medical devices, anti-icing, optical sensing, and as self-cleaning, and anti-fouling materials operating in extreme environments.

The invention relates to the field of antimicrobial materials, in particular to implantable and other medical devices exhibiting antimicrobial activity. Provided is a method for providing a substrate with an antimicrobial coating by immobilizing a quaternary ammonium compound onto the surface of said substrate, comprising the polycondensation of AB.sub.2 monomers comprising a secondary amine as A-group and blocked isocyanates as B-groups to obtain a low number average molecular weight polyurea of at least 2500 Da, contacting said polyurea with a surface grafted with coupling agent to covalently anchor the polyurea, and continuing polycondensation to obtain a hyperbranched polyurea coating; followed by immobilizing onto said coating a hydrophobic N-alkylated polyethylenimine (PEI) having antimicrobial properties.

The invention relates to a multilayer structure comprising at least one layer of supramolecular material and one layer of rigid material, to a method for producing such a structure by casting a composition comprising a precursor of the supramolecular material, and to the uses of the structures produced, especially for applications where a dampening of impacts, vibrations and/or sound waves is desired, for example for producing locomotion vehicles such as automotive, rail, nautical, aeronautical or aerospace vehicles, or for the construction industry.

A composite structure is provided, which includes a support, an active layer wrapping the support, a dendrimer grafted to the active layer through covalent bondings, and a plurality of anti-fouling groups, wherein each of the anti-fouling groups is grafted to terminals of the dendrimer through covalent bondings. The terminals of the dendrimer include amino group, hydroxyl group, or thiol group.

The properties of a thermoformed polymeric article are modified by incorporation of an additive in a thermoplastic/thermoplastic elastic host matrix. The additive comprises a polydispersed hyperbranched polymer (HBP) or a branched monodispersed dendritic polymer (DP). The HBP or DP is linked to a plurality of oligomer chains. The additive migrates to the surface of the article during the thermoforming process.

To provide a photochromic coating composition comprising (A) a polyrotaxane having a composite molecular structure formed by an axial molecule and a plurality of cyclic molecules clathrating the axial molecule, (B) a photochromic compound and (C) a polyurethane resin and/or precursor thereof.

This composition provides a laminate which exhibits excellent photochromic properties (color optical density and fading speed), moldability and surface hardness.

An article, comprising a substrate and a polymer film attached to the substrate is provided, the polymer film comprising a first layer of a first polymer functionalized by a first functionalization compound covalently bound to said first polymer and bearing at least one catecholic group being present on a surface of the first layer. The polymer film is a layered film, a top layer of which is formed by the first layer, the layered film comprising at least one further layer of at least one further polymer functionalized by a further functionalization compound covalently bound to said further polymer and bearing at least one catecholic group being present on a surface of the at least one further layer, wherein an average ratio of catecholic groups per polymer molecule is equal to or less than 1 in case of the first polymer and greater than 1 in case of the further polymer.

The present disclosure relates to a hybrid nanoparticle comprising a metallic core and at least one lipophilic dendron attached to the surface of the metallic core, and methods of producing such hybrid nanoparticles. The present disclosure also relates to films containing the hybrid nanoparticles described herein.

The present disclosure describes a strategy to create self-healing, slippery self-lubricating polymers. Lubricating liquids with affinities to polymers can be utilized to get absorbed within the polymer and form a lubricant layer (of the lubricating liquid) on the polymer. The lubricant layer can repel a wide range of materials, including simple and complex fluids (water, hydrocarbons, crude oil and bodily fluids), restore liquid-repellency after physical damage, and resist ice, microorganisms and insects adhesion. Some exemplary applications where self-lubricating polymers will be useful include energy-efficient, friction-reduction fluid handling and transportation, medical devices, anti-icing, optical sensing, and as self-cleaning, and anti-fouling materials operating in extreme environments.

A coating composition includes a flexible hyperbranched polyol preparable by (a) reacting a polyol comprising at least three hydroxyl groups with an aliphatic dicarboxylic acid having from 6 to 36 carbon atoms or an esterifiable derivative of the aliphatic dicarboxylic acid to form a hydroxyl-functional first intermediate product; (b) reacting the first intermediate product with a cyclic carboxylic acid anhydride to form a carboxylic acid-functional second intermediate product; and (c) reacting the second intermediate product with an epoxide-functional compound having one epoxide group to form the hyperbranched polyol. The coating composition may be cured to a coating layer having excellent flexibility.