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Examining the UV-vis absorption of RAFT chain transfer agents and their use for polymer analysis
(2011)
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.
The aggregation behavior of catanionics formed by the mixture of cationic geminis derived from dodecyltrimethylammonium chloride (DTAC) and anionic sodium dodecylsulfate (SDS) was studied by means of phase studies and comprehensive small-angle neutron scattering (SANS) experiments at 25 degrees C and 50 mM overall concentration. The results are compared to those for the previously studied SDS + DTAC system. Various gemini spacers of different natures and geometries were used, but all of them had similar lengths: an ethoxy bridge, a double bond, and an aromatic ring binding the two DTACs in three different substitutions (ortho, meta, and para). SANS and SAXS data analysis indicates that the spacer has no large effect on the spheroidal micelles of pure surfactants formed at low concentration in water; however, specific effects appear with the addition of electrolytes. Microstructures formed in the catanionic mixtures are rather strongly dependent on the nature of the spacer. The most important finding is that for the hydrophilic, flexible ethoxy bridge, monodisperse vesicles with a fixed anionic/cationic charge ratio (depending only on the surfactant in excess) are formed. Furthermore, the composition of these vesicles shows that strongly charged aggregates are formed. This study therefore provides new opportunities for developing tailor-made gemini surfactants that allow for the fine tuning of catanionic structures.
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).
The thermal behavior of poly(methoxydiethylenglycol acrylate) (PMDEGA) is studied in thin hydrogel films on solid supports and is compared with the behavior in aqueous solution. The PMDEGA hydrogel film thickness is varied from 2 to 422 nm. Initially, these films are homogenous, as measured with optical microscopy, atomic force microscopy, X-ray reflectivity, and grazing-incidence small-angle X-ray scattering (GISAXS). However, they tend to de-wet when stored under ambient conditions. Along the surface normal, no long-ranged correlations between substrate and film surface are detected with GISAXS, due to the high mobility of the polymer at room temperature. The swelling of the hydrogel films as a function of the water vapor pressure and the temperature are probed for saturated water vapor pressures between 2,380 and 3,170 Pa. While the swelling capability is found to increase with water vapor pressure, swelling in dependence on the temperature revealed a collapse phase transition of a lower critical solution temperature type. The transition temperature decreases from 40.6 A degrees C to 36.6 A degrees C with increasing film thickness, but is independent of the thickness for very thin films below a thickness of 40 nm. The observed transition temperature range compares well with the cloud points observed in dilute (0.1 wt.%) and semi-dilute (5 wt.%) solution which decrease from 45 A degrees C to 39 A degrees C with increasing concentration.
Amphiphilic linear ternary block copolymers (ABC) were synthesized in three consecutive steps by the reversible addition fragmentation chain transfer (RAFT) method. Using oligo(ethylene oxide) monomethyl ether acrylate, benzyl acrylate, and 1H,1H-perfluorobutyl acrylate monomers, the triblock copolymers consist of a hydrophilic (A), a lipophilic (B), and a fluorophilic (C) block. The block sequence of the triphilic copolymers was varied systematically to provide all possible variations: ABC, ACB, and BAC. All blocks have glass transition temperatures below 0 degrees C. Self-assembly into spherical micellar aggregates was observed in aqueous solution, where hydrophobic cores undergo local phase separation into various ultrastructures as shown by cryogenic transmission electron microscopy (cryo-TEM). Selective solubilization of substantial quantities of hydrocarbon and fluorocarbon low molar mass compounds by the lipophilic and fluorophilic block, respectively, is demonstrated.
Temperature-induced self-assembly of triple-responsive triblock copolymers in aqueous solutions
(2011)
A series of triple-thermoresponsive triblock copolymers from poly(N-n-propylacrylamide) (PNPAM, A), poly(methoxydiethylene glycol acrylate) (PMDEGA, B), and poly(N-ethylacrylamide) (PNEAM, C) was synthesized by sequential reversible addition-fragmentation chain transfer polymerizations. Polymers of differing block sequences, ABC, BAC, and ACB, with increasing phase transition temperatures in the order A < B < C were prepared. Their aggregation behavior in dilute aqueous solution was investigated using dynamic light scattering, turbidimetry, and NMR spectroscopy. The self-organization of such polymers was found to dependent strongly on the block sequence. While polymers with a terminal low-LCST (lower critical solution temperature) block undergo aggregation above the first phase transition temperature at 20-25 degrees C, triblock copolymers with the low-LCST block in the middle show aggregation only above the second phase transition. The collapse of the middle block is not sufficient to induce aggregation but produces instead stable, unimolecular micelles with a collapsed middle block, as supported by NMR and fluorescence probe data. Continued heating of all copolymers led to two additional thermal transitions at 40-55 and 70-80 degrees C, which could be correlated to the phase transitions of the B and C blocks, respectively. All polymers show a high tendency for cluster formation, once aggregation is induced. The carrier abilities of the triple responsive triblock copolymers for hydrophobic agents were probed with the solvatochromic fluorescence dye Nile Red. With passing through the first thermal transition, the block copolymers are capable of solubilizing Nile Red. In the case of block copolymers with sequences ABC or ACB, which bear the low-LCST block at one terminus, notable amounts of dye are solubilized already at this stage. In contrast, the hydrophobic probe is much less efficiently incorporated by the BAC triblock copolymer, which forms unimolecular micelles. Only after the collapse of the B block, when reaching the second phase transition at about 45 degrees C, does aggregation occur and solubilization becomes efficient. In the case of ABC and ACB polymers, the hydrophobic probe seems to partition between the originally collapsed A chains and the additional hydrophobic chains formed after the collapse of the less hydrophobic B block.
In the present paper, the influence of the surfactant concentration and the degree of charge of a polymer on foam film properties of oppositely charged polyelectrolyte/surfactant mixtures has been investigated. To verify the assumption that the position of the isoelectric point (IEP) does not change the character of the foam film stabilities, the position of the IEP of the polyelectrolyte/surfactant mixtures has been shifted in two different ways. Within the first series of experiments, the foam. film properties were studied using a fixed surfactant concentration of 3 x 10(-5) M in the mixture. Due to the low surfactant concentration, this is a rather dilute system. In the second approach, a copolymer of nonionic and ionic monomer units was Used to lower the charge density of the polymer. This gave rise to additional interactions between the polyelectrolyte and the surfactant, which makes the description of the foam film behavior more complex. In both systems, the same characteristics of the foam film stabilities were found: The foam film stability is reduced toward the IEP of the system, followed by a destabilization around the IEP., At polyelectrolyte concentrations above the IEP, foam films are very stable. However, the concentration range where unstable films were formed was rather broad, and the mechanisms leading to the destabilization had different origins. The results were compared with former findings on PAMPS/C(14)TAB mixtures with an IEP of 10(-4)M.(1)
Molecular brush diblock copolymers were synthesized by the orthogonal overlay of the RAFT (reversible addition-fragmentation chain transfer), the ATRP (atom transfer radical polymerization), and the NMP (nitroxide-mediated polymerization) techniques. This unique combination enabled the synthesis of the complex amphiphilic polymers without the need of postpolymerization modifications, using a diblock copolymer intermediate made from two selectively addressable inimers and applying a sequence of four controlled free radical polymerization steps in total. The resulting polymers are composed of a thermosensitive poly(N-isopropylacrylamide) brush as hydrophilic block and a polystyrene brush as hydrophobic block, thus translating the structure of the established amphiphilic diblock copolymers known as macro surfactants to the higher size level of "giant surfactants". The dual molecular brushes and the aggregates formed on ultra flat solid substrates were visualized by scanning force microscopy (SFM).
Radical addition fragmentation chain transfer (RAFT) polymerization of ferrocenyl (meth)acrylates
(2012)
We report on the controlled free radical homopolymerization of 1-ferrocenylethyl acrylate as well as of three new ferrocene bearing monomers, namely 4-ferrocenylbutyl acrylate, 2-ferrocenylamido-2-methylpropyl acrylate, and 4-ferrocenylbutyl methacrylate, by the RAFT technique. For comparison, the latter monomer was polymerized using ATRP, too. The ferrocene containing monomers were found to be less reactive than their analogues free of ferrocene. The reasons for the low polymerizability are not entirely clear. As the addition of free ferrocene to the reaction mixture did not notably affect the polymerizations, sterical hindrance by the bulky ferrocene moiety fixed on the monomers seems to be the most probable explanation. Molar masses found for 1-ferrocenylethyl acrylate did not exceed 10,000 g mol(-1), while for 4-ferrocenylbutyl (meth) acrylate molar masses of 15,000 g mol(-1) could be obtained. With PDIs as low as 1.3 in RAFT polymerization of the monomers, good control over the polymerization was achieved.