Polymers are long chain-like molecules that are composed of a large number of repeating units. Polyelectrolytes are polymers with repeating units that bear electrolyte groups, which become charged when dissolved in a polar solvent like water. Polyelectrolytes adsorbed/grafted to solid surfaces are used to fabricated functional films and coatings with a wide range of applications. For example, they can be used as a coating to develop surfaces with desired functionalities, e.g., controlled biofouling. They can also be used for coating and encapsulation of drugs for biomedical purposes.
In my PhD thesis, I discuss the fundamental knowledge on formation, structure, and interfacial properties of polyelectrolyte films in aqueous media. This information is of great importance not only from a fundamental point of view, but also can help researchers to develop polyelectrolyte films with desired functional properties. As a part of my studies, I investigated the formation and properties of the poly(diallyldimethylammonium chloride) (polyDADMAC) films, which are commonly utilized in wastewater treatment, paper manufacturing, and the mining industry. As another part of my research, I investigated the formation and properties of chitosan/alginate dialdehyde multilayer films. Chitosan and alginate belong to the family of polysaccharides, which are natural, non-toxic, biodegradable, and biocompatible polymers. For this reason, polysaccharide multilayer films are promising coating materials for biomedical application such as targeted drug delivery and tissue engineering.