Thermoplastic Polyurethane Implant Coating for Stable Low Friction
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing ureteral stent surface treatments, such as hydrophilic coating and grafting hydrophilic polyelectrolytes, face issues of instability, complexity, and environmental hazards due to chemical initiators, complicating the process and increasing costs.
Innovation Solution
A method involving a plasma process followed by a water process using hyaluronic acid or polyvinylpyrrolidone aqueous solutions is applied to thermoplastic polyurethane, enhancing hydrophilicity and reducing friction without chemical grafting initiators.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If hydrophilic coating is applied to thermoplastic polyurethane surface, then friction between stent and muscle tissue is reduced, but the coating easily peels off resulting in poor stability
Solution Approach 1:
The patent changes the surface parameters of thermoplastic polyurethane through plasma treatment to introduce hydrophilic groups, then applies hydrophilic coating which forms stable bonds with the modified surface. This parameter modification enables both low friction and high coating stability simultaneously.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent creates a composite structure by combining thermoplastic polyurethane with plasma-induced surface modifications and hydrophilic coating layers. This composite approach integrates the low friction property of hydrophilic materials with the stability of plasma-modified polymer surfaces.
2Reliability
If hydrophilic polyelectrolytes are grafted onto thermoplastic polyurethane surface, then wettability and stability are improved, but the process requires prior chemical grafting of initiators complicating process steps and increasing costs
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts and eliminates the complex chemical grafting initiator step from the process. By using plasma treatment to directly modify the polymer surface, the method removes the need for preliminary chemical grafting of initiators, thereby simplifying the overall process while maintaining stability improvements.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent replaces chemical grafting mechanisms with plasma physics-based surface modification. Instead of using chemical initiators to graft polyelectrolytes, the method uses plasma to create hydrophilic surface groups that enable direct coating, substituting a complex chemical process with a physical plasma treatment.
3Reliability
If chemical grafting of initiators is performed on material surface, then hydrophilic polyelectrolyte grafting is enabled, but residual initiators are difficult to remove resulting in toxic process wastewater
Solution Approach 1:
The patent converts the potentially harmful residual initiators into beneficial plasma-modified surface groups. The plasma treatment process modifies the polymer surface to create hydrophilic groups that enable polyelectrolyte coating without leaving harmful residual chemicals, thereby eliminating toxic wastewater while maintaining the desired surface properties.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent uses plasma, which contains reactive oxygen species and strong oxidative capability, to modify the polymer surface. This oxidation process creates hydrophilic carboxyl and hydroxyl groups on the surface, enabling stable polyelectrolyte coating without requiring chemical grafting initiators that would produce toxic residues.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
The method achieves a thermoplastic polyurethane with a water contact angle of ≤20 degrees and friction coefficient of ≤0.5, maintaining stability for up to 180 days, simplifying the process and avoiding environmental hazards.
Implementation Method 1
a thermoplastic polyurethane is subjected to a plasma process to obtain a modified thermoplastic polyurethane
Implementation Method 2
the modified thermoplastic polyurethane is subjected to a water process with a solution to obtain the implant, wherein the solution may be a hyaluronic acid aqueous solution or a polyvinylpyrrolidone aqueous solution
Data Source
AI summary
An implant and a method for preparing the same are provided. The method for preparing the implant includes subjecting a thermoplastic polyurethane to a plasma process to obtain a modified thermoplastic polyurethane. Subsequently, the modified thermoplastic polyurethane is subjected to a water process using a solution to obtain the implant. The solution used in the process is either a hyaluronic acid aqueous solution or a polyvinylpyrrolidone aqueous solution.