Programme

P.59 -- Poster, VCTP-45

Date: Tuesday, 13 October 2020

Time: 08:30 - 10:00

Aggregation of microorganisms on engineered topographic surfaces: a simulation study

Trinh X. Hoang and Nhung T. T. Nguyen

Institute of Physics, Vietnam Academy of Science and Technology

Surfaces with engineered microtopographies are potential candidates for applications as a non-toxic antifouling technology to be used in marine environment. It has been shown that the sharkskin-mimetic (Sharklet) surface reduces the attachment of zoospores of the green alga Ulva as much as 77% compared to a smooth surface. In this work, we study the aggregation of Ulva linza zoospores on the Sharklet surfaces by using Monte Carlo simulations with an extended Surface Energetic Attachment (SEA) model that includes inter-organism interactions proposed in a recent work [1]. The energy parameters in the model are optimized based on experimental attachment probabilities. In agreement with reported experiments, it is shown that engineered topographies promote smaller aggregates compared to those on the smooth surface. [1] Trinh X. Hoang, Ha T. H. Mai, Anthony B. Brennan and Ly Le, Biofouling 35, 684-695 (2019)

Presenter: Trinh Xuan Hoang

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