This work seeks to identify and quantify the influence of surface energetic and topographic properties on the fouling and cleaning of milk constituents. Amorphous hydrogen containing carbon coatings diamond-like carbon DLC and Si doped DLC coatings were used for the investigations. Batch-wise fouling experiments were performed with whey protein WPI, calcium phosphate SMUF and both components combined as well as raw milk at low and high initial surface temperatures of 80°C and 120°C on coated standard and electropolished stainless steel surfaces. Continuous fouling experiments were carried out in a pilot scale plate heat exchanger, which was operated at a product side flow velocity of 0.1 m/s (Re = 870), heating the solution from 62°C to 85°C. The cleaning kinetics of WPI plus SMUF soils on the coated surfaces was monitored in a flow cell using NaOH. The fouling layer formation, composition and structure, as well as its adhesion and cohesion strengths and thus its removal were affected by the surface free energy, surface roughness, the initial surface temperature, the solution composition and the flow conditions. The main surface property influencing the interactions at deposit/surface interface was the polar contribution to surface free energy, particularly the electron donor component Gamma-. A quadratic relationship between Gamma- and the final fouling resistance, deposit dry mass or protein and mineral contents could be found. Slightly more fouling built up on electropolished coated surfaces, which were also more difficult to clean, compared to unpolished coated surfaces. The influence of the Gamma- on deposition was stronger at 80°C than at 120°C. The formation of different calcium phosphate aggregates in the first fouling layers could be related to Gamma-, which possibly also contributed for deposits with different structures from the protein and SMUF-rich protein solutions. On low Gamma- surfaces, calcium phosphate will prevail, while protein will attach preferentially to high Gamma- surfaces. ...