TY - JOUR A1 - Geiger, Christina A1 - Reitenbach, Julija A1 - Henschel, Cristiane A1 - Kreuzer, Lucas A1 - Widmann, Tobias A1 - Wang, Peixi A1 - Mangiapia, Gaetano A1 - Moulin, Jean-François A1 - Papadakis, Christine M. A1 - Laschewsky, André A1 - Müller-Buschbaum, Peter T1 - Ternary nanoswitches realized with multiresponsive PMMA-b-PNIPMAM films in mixed water/acetone vapor atmospheres JF - Advanced engineering materials N2 - To systematically add functionality to nanoscale polymer switches, an understanding of their responsive behavior is crucial. Herein, solvent vapor stimuli are applied to thin films of a diblock copolymer consisting of a short poly(methyl methacrylate) (PMMA) block and a long poly(N-isopropylmethacrylamide) (PNIPMAM) block for realizing ternary nanoswitches. Three significantly distinct film states are successfully implemented by the combination of amphiphilicity and co-nonsolvency effect. The exposure of the thin films to nitrogen, pure water vapor, and mixed water/acetone (90 vol%/10 vol%) vapor switches the films from a dried to a hydrated (solvated and swollen) and a water/acetone-exchanged (solvated and contracted) equilibrium state. These three states have distinctly different film thicknesses and solvent contents, which act as switch positions "off," "on," and "standby." For understanding the switching process, time-of-flight neutron reflectometry (ToF-NR) and spectral reflectance (SR) studies of the swelling and dehydration process are complemented by information on the local solvation of functional groups probed with Fourier-transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy. An accelerated responsive behavior beyond a minimum hydration/solvation level is attributed to the fast build-up and depletion of the hydration shell of PNIPMAM, caused by its hydrophobic moieties promoting a cooperative hydration character. KW - co-nonsolvency KW - diblock copolymers KW - nanoswitches KW - neutron reflectometry KW - thin films Y1 - 2021 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1002/adem.202100191 SN - 1438-1656 SN - 1527-2648 VL - 23 IS - 11 PB - Wiley-VCH CY - Weinheim ER - TY - THES A1 - Henschel, Cristiane T1 - Thermoresponsive polymers with co-nonsolvency behavior T1 - Thermoresponsive Polymere mit "Co-Nonsolvency" Verhalten N2 - Despite the popularity of thermoresponsive polymers, much is still unknown about their behavior, how it is triggered, and what factors influence it, hindering the full exploitation of their potential. One particularly puzzling phenomenon is called co-nonsolvency, in which a polymer is soluble in two individual solvents, but counter-intuitively becomes insoluble in mixtures of both. Despite the innumerous potential applications of such systems, including actuators, viscosity regulators and as carrier structures, this field has not yet been extensively studied apart from the classical example of poly(N isopropyl acrylamide) (PNIPAM) in mixtures of water and methanol. Therefore, this thesis focuses on evaluating how changes in the chemical structure of the polymers impact the thermoresponsive, aggregation and co-nonsolvency behaviors of both homopolymers and amphiphilic block copolymers. Within this scope, both the synthesis of the polymers and their characterization in solution is investigated. Homopolymers were synthesized by conventional free radical polymerization, whereas block copolymers were synthesized by consecutive reversible addition fragmentation chain transfer (RAFT) polymerizations. The synthesis of the monomers N isopropyl methacrylamide (NIPMAM) and N vinyl isobutyramide (NVIBAM), as well as a few chain transfer agents is also covered. Through turbidimetry measurements, the thermoresponsive and co-nonsolvency behavior of PNIPMAM and PNVIBAM homopolymers is then compared to the well-known PNIPAM, in aqueous solutions with 9 different organic co-solvents. Additionally, the effects of end-groups, molar mass, and concentration are investigated. Despite the similarity of their chemical structures, the 3 homopolymers show significant differences in transition temperatures and some divergences in their co-nonsolvency behavior. More complex systems are also evaluated, namely amphiphilic di- and triblock copolymers of PNIPAM and PNIPMAM with polystyrene and poly(methyl methacrylate) hydrophobic blocks. Dynamic light scattering is used to evaluate their aggregation behavior in aqueous and mixed aqueous solutions, and how it is affected by the chemical structure of the blocks, the chain architecture, presence of cosolvents and polymer concentration. The results obtained shed light into the thermoresponsive, co-nonsolvency and aggregation behavior of these polymers in solution, providing valuable information for the design of systems with a desired aggregation behavior, and that generate targeted responses to temperature and solvent mixture changes. N2 - Trotz der Popularität thermoresponsiver Polymere ist noch vieles über ihr Verhalten, sowie dessen Auslöser und Einflüsse darauf unbekannt, was die volle Nutzung ihres Potenzials behindert. Ein besonders ungewöhnliches Phänomen ist die so genannte Co-Nonsolvency, bei der ein Polymer in zwei reinen Lösungsmitteln löslich ist, aber in Mischungen aus beiden unlöslich wird. Trotz der zahlreichen potenziellen Anwendungen solcher Systeme, wie z.B. Aktuatoren, Viskositätsregulatoren und als Transportmedien, ist dieses Feld, abgesehen vom klassischen Beispiel von Poly(N isopropylacrylamid) (PNIPAM) in Mischungen aus Wasser und Methanol, bisher nicht umfassend untersucht worden. Diese Arbeit untersucht daher, welche Auswirkungen die chemische Struktur der Polymere auf das thermoresponsive, Aggregations- und Co-Nonsolvency Verhalten sowohl von Homopolymeren als auch von amphiphilen Blockcopolymeren hat. Dazu wurden sowohl die Synthese der Polymere als auch deren Verhalten in Lösung untersucht. Die Homopolymere wurden durch konventionelle radikalische Polymerisation hergestellt, wogegen die Blockcopolymere durch konsekutive Reversible Addition Fragmentation Chain Transfer Polymerisationen (RAFT) synthetisiert wurden. Die Synthese der Monomere N-Isopropylmethacrylamid (NIPMAM) und N Vinylisobutyramid (NVIBAM) sowie einiger Kettenüberträger wird ebenfalls beschrieben. Mittels Trübungs-Messungen wird das thermoresponsive und Co-Nonsolvency Verhalten von PNIPMAM- und PNVIBAM-Homopolymeren mit dem bekannten PNIPAM in wässrigen Lösungen mit 9 verschiedenen organischen Co-Lösungsmitteln verglichen. Außerdem werden die Auswirkungen der Endgruppen, der Molmasse und der Konzentration der Polymere diskutiert. Trotz der Ähnlichkeit ihrer chemischen Strukturen zeigen die drei Homopolymere signifikante Unterschiede bei den Übergangstemperaturen und einige Divergenzen in ihrem Co-Nonsolvency Verhalten. Es wurden auch komplexere Systeme untersucht, nämlich amphiphile Di- und Triblock-Copolymere von PNIPAM und PNIPMAM mit hydrophoben Blöcken aus Polystyrol und Polymethylmethacrylat. Mittels dynamischer Lichtstreuung wird ihr Aggregationsverhalten in wässrigen und gemischten wässrigen Lösungen bewertet und untersucht, wie es von der chemischen Struktur der Blöcke, der Kettenarchitektur, den Co-Lösungsmitteln und der Polymerkonzentration beeinflusst wird. Die Ergebnisse dokumentieren das thermoresponsive, Co-Nonsolvency und Aggregationsverhalten dieser Polymere in Lösung und liefern wertvolle Informationen für die Entwicklung von Systemen mit einem gewünschten Aggregationsverhalten, die gezielt auf Temperatur- und Lösungsmittelgemischänderungen reagieren. KW - thermoresponsive polymer KW - co-nonsolvency KW - amphiphilic block copolymer KW - poly(N-isopropyl acrylamide) KW - poly(N-isopropyl methacrylamide) KW - poly(N-vinyl isobutyramide) KW - lower critical solution temperature KW - phase transition KW - amphiphile Blockcopolymere KW - Co-Nonsolvency KW - untere kritische Lösungstemperatur KW - Phasenübergang KW - Poly(N-Isopropylacrylamid) KW - Poly(N-Isopropylmethacrylamid) KW - Poly(N-Vinylisobutyramid) KW - thermoresponsive Polymere Y1 - 2023 U6 - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:kobv:517-opus4-577161 ER -