Nanodroplet formation and exclusive homogenously nucleated crystallization in confined electrospun immiscible polymer blend fibers of polystyrene and poly(ethylene oxide)

Preparation and characterization of salicylic acid grafted chitosan electrospun fibers

Chitosan (chi) and its modified forms as electrospun nanofibers have potential applications in advanced water treatment and biomedicine. Polyethylene oxide (PEO) is an additive commonly used to facilitate the formation of chitosan electrospun fibers because PEO (Mw ≥ 400 kDa) affords chain entanglement that stabilize the electrospinning jet, leading to enhanced formation of chi-based electrospun fibers. Herein, we report on the preparation of chitosan grafted with salicylic acid and its utility to afford improved electrospun fibers with low molecular weight (LMw) PEO (Mw » 100 kDa). A comparison of the interactions between original and grafted chitosan with PEO reveals that stable supramolecular assemblies are established between grafted chitosan and PEO, which provides support that such supramolecular interactions favor formation of chitosan electrospun fibers. Moreover, a porous chitosan electrospun nanofiber was prepared through physical treatment that reveals notably higher (ca. 4-fold) dye uptake than the pristine (unmodified) chitosan electrospun nanofibers.

Self-Seeding Procedure for Obtaining Stacked Block Copolymer Lamellar Crystals in Solution

We examined the formation of self-seeded platelet-like crystals from polystyrene-block-polyethylene oxide (PS-b-PEO) diblock copolymers in toluene as a function of polymer concentration (c), crystallization temperature (TC), and self-seeding temperature (TSS). We showed that the number (N) of platelet-like crystals and their mean lateral size (L) can be controlled through a self-seeding procedure. As (homogeneous) nucleation was circumvented by the self-seeding procedure, N did not depend on TC. N increased linearly with c and decayed exponentially with TSS but was not affected significantly by the time the sample was kept at TSS. The solubility limit of PS-b-PEO in toluene (c*), which was derived from the linear extrapolation of Nc→ 0 and from the total deposited mass of the platelets per area (MCc→0), depended on TC. We have also demonstrated that at low N, stacks consisting of a (large) number (η) of uniquely oriented lamellae can be achieved. At a given TC, L was controlled by N and η as well as by ∆c=c−c∗. Thus, besides being able to predict size and number of platelet-like crystals, the self-seeding procedure also allowed control of the number of stacked lamellae in these crystals.

Long PEO-based nanoribbons generated in a polystyrene matrix through reaction-induced microphase separation followed by a fast crystallization process

A dispersion of elongated nanostructures with a high aspect ratio in polymer matrices has been reported to provide a material with valuable properties such as mechanical strength, barrier effect and shape memory, among others. In this study, we show the procedure to achieve a distribution of elongated crystalline nanodomains in a PS matrix employing the self-assembly of amphiphilic block copolymers (BCP). The selected BCP was polystyrene-block-polyethylene oxide (PS-b-PEO). It was dissolved at 10 wt% in a styrene (St) monomer and the blend was slowly photopolymerized over four days at room temperature, until the reaction was arrested by vitrification. This blend was initially homogeneous and nanostructuration took place in an early stage of the polymerization as a result of the microphase separation (MS) of PEO blocks. Due to its high tendency to crystallize, demixed PEO blocks crystallized almost concomitantly with MS triggering the growing of the nanostructures. Thus, the time window between the onset of crystallization and the vitrification of the matrix was almost four days, allowing all micelles to have the opportunity to couple to a growing nanostructure. As a result, a population of nanoribbons with average lengths surpassing 10 μm dispersed in a PS matrix was obtained. It was demonstrated that these ribbon-like nanostructures are preserved as long as the heating temperature is located below the Tg of the matrix. If the material is heated above this temperature, softening of the matrix allows the breakup of the molten PEO nanoribbons due to Plateau-Rayleigh instability.

Electrospinning of Polystyrene/Polyhydroxybutyrate Nanofibers Doped with Porphyrin and Graphene for Chemiresistor Gas Sensors

Structural and functional properties of polymer composites based on carbon nanomaterials are so attractive that they have become a big challenge in chemical sensors investigation. In the present study, a thin nanofibrous layer, comprising two insulating polymers (polystyrene (PS) and polyhydroxibutyrate (PHB)), a known percentage of nanofillers of mesoporous graphitized carbon (MGC) and a free-base tetraphenylporphyrin, was deposited onto an Interdigitated Electrode (IDE) by electrospinning technology. The potentials of the working temperature to drive both the sensitivity and the selectivity of the chemical sensor were studied and described. The effects of the porphyrin combination with the composite graphene⁻polymer system appeared evident when nanofibrous layers, with and without porphyrin, were compared for their morphology and electrical and sensing parameters. Porphyrin fibers appeared smoother and thinner and were more resistive at lower temperature, but became much more conductive when temperature increased to 60⁻70 °C. Both adsorption and diffusion of chemicals seemed ruled by porphyrin according its combination inside the composite fiber, since the response rates dramatically increased (toluene and acetic acid). Finally, the opposite effect of the working temperature on the sensitivity of the porphyrin-doped fibers (i.e., increasing) and the porphyrin-free fibers (i.e., decreasing) seemed further confirmation of the key role of such a macromolecule in the VOC (volatile organic compound) adsorption.

Thermally Driven Selective Nanocomposite PS-PHB/MGC Nanofibrous Conductive Sensor for Air Pollutant Detection

The potentials to use the working temperature to tune both the sensitivity and the selectivity of a chemical sensor based on a nanostructured and nanocomposite polymer layer have been investigated and described. Thus, in a single step, a peculiar chemical layer was grown up onto IDE (Interdigitated Electrode) microtransducers by electrospinning deposition and using a single-needle strategy. The 3-component nanofibers, obtained from a mixture of polystyrene and polyhydroxibutyrate (insulating thermoplastics) and a known concentration of mesoporous graphitized carbon nanopowder, appeared highly rough on the surface and decorated with jagged islands but homogeneous in shape and diameter, with the nanofillers aggregated into clusters more or less densely packed through the fibers. The resulting sensor was conductive at room temperature and could work between 40 and 80°C without any apparent degradation. As the fibrous sensing layer was heated, the current increased and the sensitivity to some classes of VOCs such as an oxidizing gas drastically changed depending on the working temperature. More in detail, the sensor resulted highly sensitive and selective to acetic acid at 40°C but the sensitivity fell down, decreasing by 96%, when the sensor operated at 80°C. On the other hand, although an increase in temperature caused a general decrease in sensitivity to the tested VOCs (with a maximum of 14, 81, and 78% for amine, acetone and toluene, respectively) and water vapors (with a maximum of 55%), higher temperature affected only slightly the amine permeation, thus modifying the partial selectivity of the sensor to these chemicals. Conversely, when the operating temperature increased, the sensitivity to the detected gas, NO2, increased too, reporting a ~2 ppb limit of detection (LOD), thus confirming that the temperature was able to drive the selectivity of nanocomposite polymeric sensors.

Block copolymer compatibilization driven frustrated crystallization in electrospun nanofibers of polystyrene/poly(ethylene oxide) blends

The confined crystallization behaviour of poly(ethylene oxide) (PEO) has been studied in electrospun nanofibers of the phase-separated blends of polystyrene (PS) and PEO compatibilized with polystyrene-block-poly(ethylene oxide) (PS-b-PEO) block copolymer. The PS was present as the majority component such that the electrospun nanofibers consisted of PEO domains dispersed in the PS matrix. The phase separation in the blend occurred under the radial constraint of the nanofibers which led to the formation of small-sized fibrillar PEO domains. The use of block copolymer compatibilizer resulted in a noticeable decrease in the PEO domain size in the as-spun nanofibers. Moreover, the decrease in the domain size and domain connectivity was more substantial in the thermally annealed blend nanofibers due to the suppression of the domain coalescence mechanism resulting from the localization of the PS-b-PEO block copolymer at the interface. Consequently, the fraction of PEO domains crystallizing via homogeneous nucleation increased in the compatibilized blend nanofibers due to the presence of higher number of heterogeneity free PEO domains and disruption in their spatial connectivity. Interestingly, in the compatibilized blend nanofibers consisting of low molecular weight PEO, additional crystallization event attributed to surface nucleation was observed. The surface nucleation, plausibly, resulted from the formation of wet-brush structures where the PEO homopolymers homogeneously wet the PEO blocks present at the interface. In such a scenario, the PEO crystallization occurred via surface nucleation at the domain interface. The surface nucleated crystallization was absent in the compatibilized blend nanofibers composed of high molecular weight PEO presumably due to the formation of morphology with dry-brush structures.

Confined crystallization behaviour of poly(ethylene oxide) (PEO) was studied in electrospun nanofibers of the phase-separated blends of polystyrene (PS) and PEO compatibilized with polystyrene-block-poly(ethylene oxide) (PS-b-PEO) block copolymer.

On the crystallization behavior of a poly(stearyl methacrylate) comb-like polymer inside a nanoscale environment

A “soft” or “hard” nanoscale template illustrates the confined processes of a poly(stearyl methylacrylate) comb-like polymer, indicating that reduced chain relaxation and mobility influence the crystallization behavior.

How Chain Intermixing Dictates the Polymorphism of PVDF in Poly(vinylidene fluoride)/Polymethylmethacrylate Binary System during Recrystallization: A Comparative Study on Core⁻Shell Particles and Latex Blend

In the past few decades, Poly(vinylidene fluoride)/Polymethylmethacrylate (PVDF/PMMA) binary blend has attracted substantial attention in the scientific community due to possible intriguing mechanical, optical and ferroelectric properties that are closely related to its multiple crystal structures/phases. However, the effect of PMMA phase on the polymorphism of PVDF, especially the relationship between miscibility and polymorphism, remains an open question and is not yet fully understood. In this work, three series of particle blends with varied levels of miscibility between PVDF and PMMA were prepared via seeded emulsion polymerization: PVDF–PMMA core–shell particle (PVDF@PMMA) with high miscibility; PVDF/PMMA latex blend with modest miscibility; and PVDF@c–PMMA (crosslinked PMMA) core–shell particle with negligible miscibility. The difference in miscibility, and the corresponding morphology and polymorphism were systematically studied to correlate the PMMA/PVDF miscibility with PVDF polymorphism. It is of interest to observe that the formation of polar β/γ phase during melt crystallization could be governed in two ways: dipole–dipole interaction and fast crystallization. For PVDF@PMMA and PVDF/PMMA systems, in which fast crystallization was unlikely triggered, higher content of β/γ phase, and intense suppression of crystallization temperature and capacity were observed in PVDF@PMMA, because high miscibility favored a higher intensity of overall dipole–dipole interaction and a longer interaction time. For PVDF@c–PMMA system, after a complete coverage of PVDF seeds by PMMA shells, nearly pure β/γ phase was obtained owing to the fast homogeneous nucleation. This is the first report that high miscibility between PVDF and PMMA could favor the formation of β/γ phase.

Crystalline and Spherulitic Morphology of Polymers Crystallized in Confined Systems

Due to the effects of microphase separation and physical dimensions, confinement widely exists in the multi-component polymer systems (e.g., polymer blends, copolymers) and the polymers having nanoscale dimensions, such as thin films and nanofibers. Semicrystalline polymers usually show different crystallization kinetics, crystalline structure and morphology from the bulk when they are confined in the nanoscale environments; this may dramatically influence the physical performances of the resulting materials. Therefore, investigations on the crystalline and spherulitic morphology of semicrystalline polymers in confined systems are essential from both scientific and technological viewpoints; significant progresses have been achieved in this field in recent years. In this article, we will review the recent research progresses on the crystalline and spherulitic morphology of polymers crystallized in the nanoscale confined environments. According to the types of confined systems, crystalline, spherulitic morphology and morphological evolution of semicrystalline polymers in the ultrathin films, miscible polymer blends and block copolymers will be summarized and reviewed.

Fine dispersion morphology of polystyrene/poly(ethylene terephthalate glycol) blending generation for controlled foaming behavior

Polystyrene/poly(ethylene terephthalate glycol) (PS/PETG) blends with different PETG contents were prepared using a Haake internal mixer at 190 °C.

Crystallization behaviour of poly(ethylene oxide) under confinement in the electrospun nanofibers of polystyrene/poly(ethylene oxide) blends

We have studied the confined crystallization behaviour of poly(ethylene oxide) (PEO) in the electrospun nanofibers of the phase-separated blends of polystyrene (PS) and PEO, where PS was present as the major component. The size and shape of PEO domains in the nanofibers were considerably different from those in the cast films, presumably because of the nano-dimensions of the nanofibers and the extensional forces experienced by the polymer solution during electrospinning. The phase-separated morphology in turn influenced the crystallization behaviour of PEO in the blend nanofibers. At a PEO weight fraction of ≥0.3, crystallization occurred through a heterogeneous nucleation mechanism similar to that in cast blend films. However, as the PEO weight fraction in the blend nanofibers was reduced from 0.3 to 0.2, an abrupt transformation of the nucleation mechanism from the heterogeneous to predominantly homogenous type was observed. The change in the nucleation mechanism implied a drastic reduction of the spatial continuity of PEO domains in the nanofibers, which was not encountered in the cast film. The melting temperature and crystallinity of the PEO crystallites developed in the nanofibers were also significantly lower than those in the corresponding cast films. The phenomena observed were reconciled by the morphological observation, which revealed that the phase separation under the radial constraint of the nanofibers led to the formation of small-sized fibrillar PEO domains with limited spatial connectivity. The thermal treatment of the PS/PEO blend nanofibers above the glass transition temperature of PS induced an even stronger confinement effect on PEO crystallization.

Fractionated crystallization, polymorphism and crystal transformation of poly(butylene adipate) confined in electrospun immiscible blend fibers with polystyrene

Utilizing electrospun immiscible blend fibers of poly(butylene adipate) (PBA) and polystyrene (PS) and following coating by the high glass transition temperature poly(4-tert-butylstyrene) (P4tBS), confined PBA specimens in nanometer space were effectively prepared.

Morphology evolution and the tri-continuous morphology formation of a PVDF/PS/HDPE ternary blend in melt mixing

Manipulate the perfect tri-continuous structure of the PVDF/PS/HDPE system successfully and it can allow preparation for the functionalization of tri-continuous morphology!

Imparting superhydrophobicity to biodegradable poly(lactide-co-glycolide) electrospun meshes

The synthesis of a family of new poly(lactic acid-co-glycerol monostearate) (PLA-PGC18) copolymers and their use as biodegradable polymer dopants is reported to enhance the hydrophobicity of poly(lactic acid-co-glycolic acid) (PLGA) nonwoven meshes. Solutions of PLGA are doped with PLA-PGC18 and electrospun to form meshes with micrometer-sized fibers. Fiber diameter, percent doping, and copolymer composition influence the nonwetting nature of the meshes and alter their mechanical (tensile) properties. Contact angles as high as 160° are obtained with 30% polymer dopant. Lastly, these meshes are nontoxic, as determined by an NIH/3T3 cell biocompatibility assay, and displayed a minimal foreign body response when implanted in mice. In summary, a general method for constructing biodegradable fibrous meshes with tunable hydrophobicity is described for use in tissue engineering and drug delivery applications.