TY - THES A1 - Bivigou Koumba, Achille Mayelle T1 - Design, Synthesis and Characterisation of Amphiphilic Symmetrical triblock copolymers by the RAFT process : their self-organisation in dilute and concentrated aqueous solutions T1 - Design, Synthese und Charakterisierung von amphiphilen symmetrischen Triblock-Copolymeren anhand des RAFT Prozesses : ihre Selbstorganisation in wässrigen verdünnten und höher konzentrierten Lösungen N2 - This work presents the synthesis and the self-assembly of symmetrical amphiphilic ABA and BAB triblock copolymers in dilute, semi-concentrated and highly concentrated aqueous solution. A series of new bifunctional bistrithiocarbonates as RAFT agents was used to synthesise these triblock copolymers, which are characterised by a long hydrophilic middle block and relatively small, but strongly hydrophobic end blocks. As hydrophilic A blocks, poly(N-isopropylacrylamide) (PNIPAM) and poly(methoxy diethylene glycol acrylate) (PMDEGA) were employed, while as hydrophobic B blocks, poly(4-tert-butyl styrene), polystyrene, poly(3,5-dibromo benzyl acrylate), poly(2-ethylhexyl acrylate), and poly(octadecyl acrylate) were explored as building blocks with different hydrophobicities and glass transition temperatures. The five bifunctional trithiocarbonates synthesised belong to two classes: the first are RAFT agents, which position the active group of the growing polymer chain at the outer ends of the polymer (Z-C(=S)-S-R-S-C(=S)-Z, type I). The second class places the active groups in the middle of the growing polymer chain (R-S-C(=S)-Z-C(=S)-S-R, type II). These RAFT agents enable the straightforward synthesis of amphiphilic triblock copolymers in only two steps, allowing to vary the nature of the hydrophobic blocks as well as the length of the hydrophobic and hydrophilic blocks broadly with good molar mass control and narrow polydispersities. Specific side reactions were observed among some RAFT agents including the elimination of ethylenetrithiocarbonate in the early stage of the polymerisation of styrene mediated by certain agents of the type II, while the use of the RAFT agents of type I resulted in retardation of the chain extension of PNIPAM with styrene. These results underline the need of a careful choice of RAFT agents for a given task. The various copolymers self-assemble in dilute and semi-concentrated aqueous solution into small flower-like micelles. No indication for the formation of micellar clusters was found, while only at high concentration, physical hydrogels are formed. The reversible thermoresponsive behaviour of the ABA and BAB type copolymer solutions in water with A made of PNIPAM was examined by turbidimetry and dynamic light scattering (DLS). The cloud point of the copolymers was nearly identical to the cloud point of the homopolymer and varied between 28-32 °C with concentrations from 0.01 to 50 wt%. This is attributed to the formation of micelles where the hydrophobic blocks are shielded from a direct contact with water, so that the hydrophobic interactions of the copolymers are nearly the same as for pure PNIPAM. Dynamic light scattering measurements showed the presence of small micelles at ambient temperature. The aggregate size dramatically increased above the cloud point, indicating a change of aggregate morphology into clusters due to the thermosensitivity of the PNIPAM block. The rheological behaviour of the amphiphilic BAB triblock copolymers demonstrated the formation of hydrogels at high concentrations, typically above 30-35 wt%. The minimum concentration to induce hydrogels decreased with the increasing glass transition temperatures and increasing length of the end blocks. The weak tendency to form hydrogels was attributed to a small share of bridged micelles only, due to the strong segregation regime occurring. In order to learn about the role of the nature of the thermoresponsive block for the aggregation, a new BAB triblock copolymer consisting of short polystyrene end blocks and PMDEGA as stimuli-responsive middle block was prepared and investigated. Contrary to PNIPAM, dilute aqueous solutions of PMDEGA and of its block copolymers showed reversible phase transition temperatures characterised by a strong dependence on the polymer composition. Moreover, the PMDEGA block copolymer allowed the formation of physical hydrogels at lower concentration, i.e. from 20 wt%. This result suggests that PMDEGA has a higher degree of water-swellability than PNIPAM. N2 - Die Arbeit behandelt die Synthese und das Selbstorganisationsverhalten von neuen funktionellen symmetrischen "stimuli-responsiven" Triblockcopolymeren ABA und BAB in wässrigen verdünnten und höher konzentrierten Lösungen. Neue symmetrische, bifunktionelle Bistrithiocarbonate wurden als RAFT-Agentien benutzt, um Triblockcopolymere mit langen hydrophilen (A) Innen- und kurzen hydrophoben (B) Außenblöcken zu synthetisieren. Als hydrophile A Blöcke wurden Poly(N-isopropylacrylamid) PNIPAM und Poly(methoxy diethylene glykol acrylat) PMDEGA benutzt, während als hydrophobe Blöcke B Poly(4-tert-butyl styrol), Polystyrol, Poly(3,5-dibromo benzyl acrylat), Poly(2-ethylhexyl acrylat), und Poly(octadecyl acrylat) als Bausteine mit unterschiedlicher Glasübergangstemperatur untersucht wurden. Die Selbstorganisation von ABA und BAB Copolymeren in Wasser mit A Blöcken aus PNIPAM wurde anhand von Trübungsphotometrie, dynamischer Lichtstreuung (DLS) und Rheologie untersucht. Die amphiphilen Blockcopolymere sind direkt wasserlöslich. Bei Konzentrationen von 0.01 bis 50 wt% zeigen Trübungsmessungen bei den Blockcopolymeren wie bei den Homopolymeren eine Übergangstemperatur bei 28-32 °C. Zurückzuführen ist dies auf die Bildung von Mizellen, bei der die hydrophoben Blöcke von einem direkten Kontakt mit Wasser abgeschirmt werden. DLS zeigt kleine Mizellen bei niedrigen Temperaturen und Aggregate mit großem hydrodynamischem Durchmesser bei Temperaturen oberhalb der Übergangstemperatur. Die rheologische Untersuchung von BAB Polymeren zeigt die Bildung von Hydrogelen bei höheren Konzentrationen (über 30-35 wt%). Die minimal benötigte Konzentration, bei der die von Hydrogelen auftreten, nimmt mit wachsender Glasübergangstemperatur ab, und nimmt mit der Länge der hydrophoben Blöcke B zu. Im Unterschied zu PNIPAM zeigen wässrige Lösungen von PMDEGA und seinen Blockcopolymeren reversible Übergangstemperaturen abhängig von der chemischen Struktur. Außerdem bilden PMDEGA Blockcopolymere Hydrogele bei niedriger Konzentration (ab 20 wt%). Dieses Ergebnis deutet darauf hin, dass PMDEGA stärker Wasser bindet als PNIPAM. KW - Design KW - Synthese KW - Charakterisierung KW - Triblock-Copolymere KW - RAFT KW - Design KW - Synthesis KW - Characterisation KW - Triblock Copolymers KW - RAFT Y1 - 2009 U6 - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:kobv:517-opus-39549 ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Bivigou Koumba, Achille Mayelle A1 - Kristen, Juliane A1 - Laschewsky, André A1 - Müller-Buschbaum, Peter A1 - Papadakis, Christine M. T1 - Synthesis of symmetrical triblock copolymers of styrene and N-isopropylacrylamide using bifunctional bis(trithiocarbonate)s as RAFT agents N2 - Six new bifunctional bis(trithiocarbonate)s were explored as RAFT agents for synthesizing amphiphilic triblock copolymers ABA and BAB, with hydrophilic "A" blocks made from N-isopropylacrylamide and hydrophobic "B" blocks made from styrene. Whereas the extension of poly(N-isopropylacrylamide) by styrene was not effective, polystyrene macroRAFT agents provided the block copolymers efficiently. End group analysis by H-1 NMR spectroscopy supported molar mass analysis and revealed an unexpected side reaction for certain bis(trithiocarbonate)s, namely a fragmentation to simple trithiocarbonates while extruding ethylene-trithiocarbonate. The amphiphilic block copolymers with short polystyrene blocks are directly soluble in water and self-organize into thermo-responsive micellar aggregates. Y1 - 2009 UR - http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/journal/10.1002/%28ISSN%291521-3935 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1002/macp.200800575 SN - 1022-1352 ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Wang, Weijia A1 - Kaune, Gunar A1 - Perlich, Jan A1 - Paradakis, Christine M. A1 - Bivigou Koumba, Achille Mayelle A1 - Laschewsky, André A1 - Schlage, K. A1 - Röhlsberger, Ralf A1 - Roth, Stephan V. A1 - Cubitt, Robert A1 - Müller-Buschbaum, Peter T1 - Swelling and switching kinetics of gold coated end-capped poly(N-isopropylacrylamide) thin films N2 - Thin thermoresponsive hydrogel films of poly(N-isopropylacrylamide) end-capped with n-butyltrithiocarbonate(nbc- PNIPAM) oil si I icon supports with a gold layer on top, causing an asymmetric confinement, are investigated. For two different gold layer thicknesses (nominally 0.4 and 5 rim), the swelling and switching kinetics are probed with in situ neutron reflectivity. With a temperature jump from 23 to 40 degrees C the film is switched from a swollen into a collapsed state. For the thin gold layer this switching is faster as compared to the thick gold layer. The switching is a two-step process of water release and a subsequent structural relaxation. fit swelling and deswelling cycles, aging of the films is probed. After five cycles, the film exhibits enhanced water storage capacity. Grazing-incidence small-angle X-ray scattering (GISAXS) shows that these gold coated nbc-PNIPAM films do not age with respect to the inner structure but slightly roughen at the gold surface. As revealed by atomic force microscopy, the morphology of the gold layer is changed by the water uptake and release. Y1 - 2010 UR - http://pubs.acs.org/journal/mamobx U6 - https://doi.org/10.1021/Ma902637a SN - 0024-9297 ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Adelsberger, Joseph A1 - Kulkarni, Amit A1 - Jain, Abhinav A1 - Wang, Weinan A1 - Bivigou Koumba, Achille Mayelle A1 - Busch, Peter A1 - Pipich, Vitaliy A1 - Holderer, Olaf A1 - Hellweg, Thomas A1 - Laschewsky, André A1 - Müller-Buschbaum, Peter A1 - Papadakis, Christine M. T1 - Thermoresponsive PS-b-PNIPAM-b-PS micelles : aggregation behavior, segmental dynamics, and thermal response N2 - We have studied I lie thermal behavior of amphiphilic, symmetric triblock copolymers having short, deuterated polystyrene (PS) end blocks and a large poly(N-isopropylacrylarnicle) (PNIPAM) middle block exhibiting a lower critical solution temperature (LCST) in aqueous solution. A wide range of concentrations (0.1-300 mg/mL) is investigated using it number of analytical methods such as fluorescence correlation spectroscopy (FCS), turbidimetry, dynamic light scattering (DLS), small-angle neutron scattering (SANS), and neutron spin-echo spectroscopy (NSE). The critical micelle concentration is determined using FCS to be 1 mu M or less. The collapse of the micelles at the LCST is investigated using turbidimetry and DLS and shows a weak dependence on the degree of polymerization of the PNIPAM block. SANS with contrast matching allows its to reveal the core-shell Structure of the micelles as well as their correlation as a function of temperature. The segmental dynamics of the PNIPAM shell are studied as a function of temperature and arc found to be faster in the collapsed state than in the swollen state. The mode detected has a linear dispersion in q(2) and is found to be faster in the collapsed state as compared to the swollen state. We attribute this result to the averaging over mobile and immobilized segments. Y1 - 2010 UR - http://pubs.acs.org/journal/mamobx U6 - https://doi.org/10.1021/Ma902714p SN - 0024-9297 ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Bivigou Koumba, Achille Mayelle A1 - Goernitz, Eckhard A1 - Laschewsky, André A1 - Müller-Buschbaum, Peter A1 - Papadakis, Christine M. T1 - Thermoresponsive amphiphilic symmetrical triblock copolymers with a hydrophilic middle block made of poly(N- isopropylacrylamide) : synthesis, self-organization, and hydrogel formation N2 - Several series of symmetrical triblock copolymers were synthesized by the reversible addition fragmentation chain transfer method. They consist of a long block of poly(N-isopropylacrylamide) as hydrophilic, thermoresponsive middle block, which is end-capped by two small strongly hydrophobic blocks made from five different vinyl polymers. The association of the amphiphilic polymers was studied in dilute and concentrated aqueous solution. The polymer micelles found at low concentrations form hydrogels at high concentrations, typically above 30-35 wt.%. Hydrogel formation and the thermosensitive rheological behavior were studied exemplarily for copolymers with hydrophobic blocks of polystyrene, poly(2-ethylhexyl acrylate), and poly(n-octadecyl acrylate). All systems exhibited a cloud point around 30 A degrees C. Heating beyond the cloud point initially favors hydrogel formation but continued heating results in macroscopic phase separation. The rheological behavior suggests that the copolymers associate into flower-like micelles, with only a small share of polymers that bridge the micelles and act as physical cross-linkers, even at high concentrations. Y1 - 2010 UR - http://www.springerlink.com/content/101551 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1007/s00396-009-2179-9 SN - 0303-402X ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Skrabania, Katja A1 - Miasnikova, Anna A1 - Bivigou Koumba, Achille Mayelle A1 - Zehm, Daniel A1 - Laschewsky, André T1 - Examining the UV-vis absorption of RAFT chain transfer agents and their use for polymer analysis JF - Polymer Chemistry N2 - The absorption characteristics of a large set of thiocarbonyl based chain transfer agents (CTAs) were studied by UV-vis spectroscopy in order to identify appropriate conditions for exploiting their absorbance bands in end-group analysis of polymers prepared by reversible addition-fragmentation chain transfer (RAFT) polymerisation. Substitution pattern and solvent polarity were found to affect notably the wavelengths and intensities of the pi-pi*- and n-pi*-transition of the thiocarbonyl bond of dithioester and trithiocarbonate RAFT agents. Therefore, it is advisable to refer in end group analysis to the spectral parameters of low molar mass analogues of the active polymer chain ends, rather than to rely on the specific RAFT agent engaged in the polymerisation. When using appropriate conditions, the quantification of the thiocarbonyl end-groups via the pi-pi* band of the thiocarbonyl moiety around 300-310 nm allows a facile, sensitive and surprisingly precise estimation of the number average molar mass of the polymers produced, without the need of particular end group labels. Moreover, when additional methods for absolute molar mass determination can be applied, the quantification of the thiocarbonyl end-groups by UV-spectroscopy provides a good estimate of the degree of active end group for a given polymer sample. Y1 - 2011 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1039/c1py00173f SN - 1759-9954 VL - 2 IS - 9 SP - 2074 EP - 2083 PB - Royal Society of Chemistry CY - Cambridge ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Adelsberger, Joseph A1 - Meier-Koll, Andreas A1 - Bivigou Koumba, Achille Mayelle A1 - Busch, Peter A1 - Holderer, Olaf A1 - Hellweg, Thomas A1 - Laschewsky, André A1 - Müller-Buschbaum, Peter A1 - Papadakis, Christine M. T1 - The collapse transition and the segmental dynamics in concentrated micellar solutions of P(S-b-NIPAM) diblock copolymers JF - Colloid and polymer science : official journal of the Kolloid-Gesellschaft N2 - We investigate concentrated solutions of poly(styrene-b-N-isopropyl acrylamide) (P(S-b-NIPAM)) diblock copolymers in deuterated water (D2O). Both structural changes and the changes of the segmental dynamics occurring upon heating through the lower critical solution temperature (LCST) of PNIPAM are studied using small-angle neutron scattering and neutron spin-echo spectroscopy. The collapse of the micellar shell and the cluster formation of collapsed micelles at the LCST as well as an increase of the segmental diffusion coefficient after crossing the LCST are detected. Comparing to our recent results on a triblock copolymer P(S-b-NIPAM-b-S) [25], we observe that the collapse transition of P(S-b-NIPAM) is more complex and that the PNIPAM segmental dynamics are faster than in P(S-b-NIPAM-b-S). KW - Block copolymers KW - Responsive polymers KW - Small-angle neutron scattering KW - Neutron spin-echo spectroscopy Y1 - 2011 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1007/s00396-011-2382-3 SN - 0303-402X VL - 289 IS - 5-6 SP - 711 EP - 720 PB - Springer CY - New York ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Zhong, Qi A1 - Metwalli, Ezzeldin A1 - Kaune, Gunar A1 - Rawolle, Monika A1 - Bivigou Koumba, Achille Mayelle A1 - Laschewsky, André A1 - Papadakis, Christine M. A1 - Cubitt, Robert A1 - Müller-Buschbaum, Peter T1 - Switching kinetics of thin thermo-responsive hydrogel films of poly(monomethoxy-diethyleneglycol-acrylate) probed with in situ neutron reflectivity JF - Soft matter N2 - The switching kinetics of thin thermo-responsive hydrogel films of poly(monomethoxy-diethyleneglycol-acrylate) (PMDEGA) are investigated. Homogeneous and smooth PMDEGA films with a thickness of 35.9 nm are prepared on silicon substrates by spin coating. As probed with white light interferometry, PMDEGA films with a thickness of 35.9 nm exhibit a phase transition temperature of the lower critical solution temperature (LCST) type of 40 degrees C. In situ neutron reflectivity is performed to investigate the thermo-responsive behavior of these PMDEGA hydrogel films in response to a sudden thermal stimulus in deuterated water vapor atmosphere. The collapse transition proceeds in a complex way which can be seen as three steps. The first step is the shrinkage of the initially swollen film by a release of water. In the second step the thickness remains constant with water molecules embedded in the film. In the third step, perhaps due to a conformational rearrangement of the collapsed PMDEGA chains, water is reabsorbed from the vapor atmosphere, thereby giving rise to a relaxation process. Both the shrinkage and relaxation processes can be described by a simple model of hydrogel deswelling. Y1 - 2012 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1039/c2sm25401h SN - 1744-683X VL - 8 IS - 19 SP - 5241 EP - 5249 PB - Royal Society of Chemistry CY - Cambridge ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Adelsberger, Joseph A1 - Metwalli, Ezzeldin A1 - Diethert, Alexander A1 - Grillo, Isabelle A1 - Bivigou Koumba, Achille Mayelle A1 - Laschewsky, André A1 - Müller-Buschbaum, Peter A1 - Papadakis, Christine M. T1 - Kinetics of collapse transition and cluster formation in a thermoresponsive micellar solution of P(S-b-NIPAM-b-S) induced by a temperature jump JF - Macromolecular rapid communications N2 - Structural changes at the intra- as well as intermicellar level were induced by the LCST-type collapse transition of poly(N-isopropyl acrylamide) in ABA triblock copolymer micelles in water. The distinct process kinetics was followed in situ and in real-time using time-resolved small-angle neutron scattering (SANS), while a micellar solution of a triblock copolymer, consisting of two short deuterated polystyrene endblocks and a long thermoresponsive poly(N-isopropyl acrylamide) middle block, was heated rapidly above its cloud point. A very fast collapse together with a multistep aggregation behavior is observed. The findings of the transition occurring at several size and time levels may have implications for the design and application of such thermoresponsive self-assembled systems. KW - polymer physics KW - thermoresponsive polymers KW - small-angle neutron scattering KW - time-resolved measurements Y1 - 2012 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1002/marc.201100631 SN - 1022-1336 VL - 33 IS - 3 SP - 254 EP - 259 PB - Wiley-Blackwell CY - Malden ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Adelsberger, Joseph A1 - Grillo, Isabelle A1 - Kulkarni, Amit A1 - Sharp, Melissa A1 - Bivigou Koumba, Achille Mayelle A1 - Laschewsky, André A1 - Müller-Buschbaum, Peter A1 - Papadakis, Christine M. T1 - Kinetics of aggregation in micellar solutions of thermoresponsive triblock copolymers - influence of concentration, start and target temperatures JF - Soft matter N2 - In aqueous solution, symmetric triblock copolymers with a thermoresponsive middle block and hydrophobic end blocks form flower-like core-shell micelles which collapse and aggregate upon heating through the cloud point (CP). The collapse of the micellar shell and the intermicellar aggregation are followed in situ and in real-time using time-resolved small-angle neutron scattering (SANS), while heating micellar solutions of a poly((styrene-d(8))-b-(N-isopropyl acrylamide)-b-(styrene-d(8))) triblock copolymer in D2O rapidly through their CP. The influence of polymer concentration as well as of the start and target temperatures is addressed. In all cases, the micellar collapse is very fast. The collapsed micelles immediately form small clusters which contain voids. They densify which slows down or even stops their growth. For low concentrations and target temperatures just above the CP, i.e. shallow temperature jumps, the subsequent growth of the clusters is described by diffusion-limited aggregation. In contrast, for higher concentrations and/or higher target temperatures, i.e. deep temperature jumps, intermicellar bridges dominate the growth. Eventually, in all cases, the clusters coagulate which results in macroscopic phase separation. For shallow temperature jumps, the cluster surfaces stay rough; whereas for deep temperature jumps, a concentration gradient develops at late stages. These results are important for the development of conditions for thermal switching in applications, e.g. for the use of thermoresponsive micellar systems for transport and delivery purposes. Y1 - 2013 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1039/c2sm27152d SN - 1744-683X VL - 9 IS - 5 SP - 1685 EP - 1699 PB - Royal Society of Chemistry CY - Cambridge ER -