Hindawi Publishing Corporation BioMed Research International Volume 2013, Article ID 253473, 7 pages http://dx.doi.org/10.1155/2013/253473 Research Article Microwave-Assisted Surface Modification of Metallocene Polyethylene for Improving Blood Compatibility Hemanth Mohandas, 1 Gunalan Sivakumar, 1 Palaniappan Kasi, 1 Saravana Kumar Jaganathan, 1 and Eko Supriyanto 2 1 Department of Research and Development, PSNA College of Engineering and Technology, Kothandaraman Nagar, Dindigul, Tamil Nadu 624 622, India 2 Cardiovascular Engineering Centre, Faculty of Bioscience and Medical Engineering, Universiti Technologi Malaysia, 81310, Johor Bahru, Johor, Malaysia Correspondence should be addressed to Saravana Kumar Jaganathan; jaganathaniitkgp@gmail.com Received 18 April 2013; Accepted 26 May 2013 Academic Editor: Xiupeng Wang Copyright © 2013 Hemanth Mohandas et al. Tis is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited. A wide number of polymers are being used for various medical applications. In this work, microwave-assisted surface modifcation of metallocene polyethylene (mPE) was studied. FTIR analysis showed no signifcant changes in the chemical groups afer treatment. Contact angle analysis revealed a decrease in contact angle of the treated samples insinuating increasing hydrophilicity and better biocompatibility. Qualitative analysis of treated samples using scanning electron microscope (SEM) depicted increasing surface roughness and holes formation further corroborating the results. Coagulation assays performed for estimating prothrombin time (PT) and activated partial thromboplastin time (APTT) showed an increase in the clotting time which further confrmed the improved blood compatibility of the microwave-treated surfaces. Further, the extent of hemolysis in the treated sample was lower than the untreated one. Hence, microwave-assisted surface modifcation of mPE resulted in enhanced blood compatibility. Improved blood compatibility of mPE may be exploited for fabrication of artifcial vascular prostheses, implants, and various blood contacting devices. 1. Introduction One of the most versatile classes of biomaterials is polymers. It has been widely used in medicine and biotechnology as well as in the food and cosmetics industries [1]. Polymer applications include surgical devices, implants, and support- ing materials (e.g., artifcial organs, prostheses, and sutures), drug-delivery systems, carriers of immobilized enzymes and cells, biosensors, components of diagnostic assays, bio- adhesives, ocular devices, and materials for orthopedic appli- cations [2]. Most of the polymers have the desired bulk physical and mechanical properties to be used as implants but many of them do not have the desired blood compatibility. Te best method to enhance the blood compatibility of the polymer is to undergo proper surface treatments on the polymer. Recent developments in metallocene single-site catalyst technology produced a new class of polyolefns having improved performance properties like enhanced toughness, sealability, clarity, and elasticity [3]. Metallocene polyethy- lene (mPE) is one among these polyolefns processed using metallocene. Metallocene consists of two cyclopentadienyl anions (Cp, C 5 H 5 − ) bound to a metal center (M) with the oxidation state II, resulting in a general formula (C 5 H 5 ) 2 M [3, 4]. Tese materials have a high potential as replacements for fexible PVC in the coming years as their flm density is approximately 30% lower than that of PVC, creating a lower volume of waste material from disposable medical devices [5]. Current medical applications of mPE include disposable bags, storage bottles, blood bags, and syringe tubes. mPE has an excellent permeability to oxygen and acts as a barrier towards ammonia and water makes mPE