Hydrophobic interaction-mediated reversible adsorption–desorption of nanoparticles in the honeycomb-patterned thermoresponsive poly(N-isopropylamide) hydrogel surface

Hydrophobic interaction-mediated reversible adsorption–desorption of Ag nanoparticles in water solutions was studied in surface-tailored poly(N-isopropylacrylamide) (PNIPAAm) hydrogel film. Surface-tailoring of PNIPAAm hydrogel was performed by the preparation of the hydrogel as a honeycomb-patterned film using a honeycomb-patterned PS film as a template. The surface morphology and hydrophobic interaction of the patterned hydrogel surface were significantly altered by temperature change of the aqueous solution that came in contact with the gel. The surface of the hydrogel became hydrophobic for adsorption at a higher temperature than the lower critical solution temperature of 32 °C, but became hydrophilic with decreased adsorptivity at lower temperature condition. Adsorptivity was obtained through measuring the concentration of the silver nanoparticles using UV–vis spectroscopy in an aqueous solution. A reversible adsorption–desorption of nanoparticles dependent on the temperature in the hydrogel surface obtained in this study clearly suggested that the hydrophobic interaction was reversibly changed in the patterned temperature-responsive hydrogel surface, similar to various biological systems in nature.