Direct Functionalization of Polyethylene Surfaces with High-Density Polymer Brushes

Introducing functionality onto PE surfaces is a longstanding challenge in polymer science, driven by the need for polymer materials with improved adhesion and antifouling properties. Herein, we report surface-initiated hydrogen atom transfer-reversible addition-fragmentation chain transfer (SI HAT-RAFT) as a robust method to grow high-density brush polymers from PE surfaces. We demonstrate that, under mild conditions, direct initiation from the C-H bonds of PE surfaces allows for the graft polymerization of a variety of (meth)acrylate monomers. The resulting polymer brushes reached several hundred nanometers in thickness with densities of