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Shi X, Wang L, Yan N, Wang Z, Guo L, Steinhart M, Wang Y. Fast Evaporation Enabled Ultrathin Polymer Coatings on Nanoporous Substrates for Highly Permeable Membranes. Innovation (N Y) 2021; 2:100088. [PMID: 34557742 PMCID: PMC8454551 DOI: 10.1016/j.xinn.2021.100088] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/17/2020] [Accepted: 01/31/2021] [Indexed: 11/18/2022] Open
Abstract
Thin polymer coatings covering on porous substrates are a common composite structure required in numerous applications, including membrane separation, and there is a strong need to push the coating thicknesses down to the nanometer scale to maximize the performances. However, producing such ultrathin polymer coatings in a facile and efficient way remains a big challenge. Here, uniform ultrathin polymer covering films (UPCFs) are realized by a facile and general approach based on rapid solvent evaporation. By fast evaporating dilute polymer solutions spread on the surface of porous substrates, we obtain ultrathin coatings (down to ∼30 nm) exclusively on the top surface of porous substrates, forming UPCFs with a block copolymer of polystyrene-block-poly(2-vinyl pyridine) at room temperature or a homopolymer of poly(vinyl alcohol) (PVA) at elevated temperatures. Upon selective swelling of the block copolymer and crosslinking of PVA, we obtain highly permeable membranes delivering ∼2–10 times higher permeance in ultrafiltration and pervaporation than state-of-the-art membranes with comparable selectivities. We have invented a very convenient but highly efficient process for the direct preparation of defective-free ultrathin coatings on porous substrates, which is extremely desired in different fields in addition to membrane separation. Fast solvent evaporation is developed to produce UPCFs on porous substrates Selective swelling to cavitate block copolymers to form interconnected mesopores UPCFs enable the preparation of highly permeable membranes
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Affiliation(s)
- Xiansong Shi
- State Key Laboratory of Materials-Oriented Chemical Engineering, College of Chemical Engineering, Nanjing Tech University, Nanjing, Jiangsu 211816, P.R. China
| | - Lei Wang
- State Key Laboratory of Materials-Oriented Chemical Engineering, College of Chemical Engineering, Nanjing Tech University, Nanjing, Jiangsu 211816, P.R. China
| | - Nina Yan
- State Key Laboratory of Materials-Oriented Chemical Engineering, College of Chemical Engineering, Nanjing Tech University, Nanjing, Jiangsu 211816, P.R. China
| | - Zhaogen Wang
- State Key Laboratory of Materials-Oriented Chemical Engineering, College of Chemical Engineering, Nanjing Tech University, Nanjing, Jiangsu 211816, P.R. China
| | - Leiming Guo
- Institut für Chemie neuer Materialien, Universität Osnabrück, Barbarastr. 7, 49069 Osnabrück, Germany
| | - Martin Steinhart
- Institut für Chemie neuer Materialien, Universität Osnabrück, Barbarastr. 7, 49069 Osnabrück, Germany
- Corresponding author
| | - Yong Wang
- State Key Laboratory of Materials-Oriented Chemical Engineering, College of Chemical Engineering, Nanjing Tech University, Nanjing, Jiangsu 211816, P.R. China
- Corresponding author
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Muanchan P, Kurose T, Ito H. Replication of Mesoscale Pore One-dimensional Nanostructures: Surface-induced Phase Separation of Polystyrene/Poly(vinyl alcohol) (PS/PVA) Blends. Polymers (Basel) 2019; 11:E1039. [PMID: 31212801 PMCID: PMC6630784 DOI: 10.3390/polym11061039] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/26/2019] [Revised: 06/03/2019] [Accepted: 06/07/2019] [Indexed: 01/18/2023] Open
Abstract
Mesoscale pore one-dimensional (1D) nanostructures, or vertically aligned porous nanostructures (VAPNs), have attracted attention with their excellent hydrophobic properties, ultra-high surface area, and high friction coefficient, compared to conventional vertically aligned nanostructures (VANs). In this study, we investigate the replication of VAPNs produced by the thermal nanoimprint process using anodic aluminum oxide (AAO2) templates (100 nm diameter). Polystyrene/poly(vinyl alcohol) (PS1/PVA) blends, prepared by the advanced melt-mixing process with an ultra-high shear rate, are used to investigate the formation of porosity at the nanometer scale. The results reveal that domain size and mass ratios of PVA precursors in the PS matrix play a dominant role in the interfacial interaction behavior between PS1-PVA-AAO2, on the obtained morphologies of the imprinted nanostructures. With a PVA nanodomain precursor (PS1/PVA 90/10 wt%), the integration of PVA nanodroplets on the AAO2 wall due to the hydrogen bonding that induces the phase separation between PS1-PVA results in the formation of VAPNs after removal of the PVA segment. However, in the case of PVA microdomain precursors (PS1/PVA 70/30 wt%), the structure transformation behavior of PS1 is induced by the Rayleigh instability between PVA encapsulated around the PS1 surfaces, resulting in the PS1 nanocolumns transforming into nanopeapods composed of nanorods and nanospheres.
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Affiliation(s)
- Paritat Muanchan
- Graduate School of Organic Materials Science, Yamagata University, 4-3-16 Jonan, Yonezawa, Yamagata 992-8510, Japan.
| | - Takashi Kurose
- Research Center for GREEN Materials and Advanced Processing (GMAP), Yamagata University, 4-3-16 Jonan, Yonezawa, Yamagata 992-8510, Japan.
| | - Hiroshi Ito
- Graduate School of Organic Materials Science, Yamagata University, 4-3-16 Jonan, Yonezawa, Yamagata 992-8510, Japan.
- Research Center for GREEN Materials and Advanced Processing (GMAP), Yamagata University, 4-3-16 Jonan, Yonezawa, Yamagata 992-8510, Japan.
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León-Boigues L, von Bilderling C, Pietrasanta LI, Azzaroni O, Giussi JM, Mijangos C. A Patterned Butyl Methacrylate- co-2-Hydroxyethyl Acrylate Copolymer with Softening Surface and Swelling Capacity. Polymers (Basel) 2019; 11:E290. [PMID: 30960274 PMCID: PMC6419064 DOI: 10.3390/polym11020290] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/15/2019] [Accepted: 02/02/2019] [Indexed: 11/19/2022] Open
Abstract
The tunable swelling and mechanical properties of nanostructures polymers are crucial parameters for the creation of adaptive devices to be used in diverse fields, such as drug delivery, nanomedicine, and tissue engineering. We present the use of anodic aluminum oxide templates as a nanoreactor to copolymerize butyl methacrylate and 2-hydroxyethyl acrylate under radical conditions. The copolymer obtained under confinement showed significant differences with respect to the same copolymer obtained in bulk conditions. Molecular weights, molecular weight dispersities, Young's modulus, and wetting behaviors were significantly modified. The combination of selected monomers allowed us to obtain nanopillar structures with an interesting softening surface and extraordinary swelling capacity that could be of special interest to surface science and specifically, cell culture.
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Affiliation(s)
- Laia León-Boigues
- Instituto de Ciencia y Tecnología de Polímeros, ICTP-CSIC, Juan de la Cierva 3, 28006 Madrid, Spain.
| | - Catalina von Bilderling
- Instituto de Investigaciones Fisicoquímicas Teóricas y Aplicadas (INIFTA)⁻Departamento de Química⁻Facultad de Ciencias Exactas-Universidad Nacional de La Plata⁻CONICET, 1900 La Plata, Argentina.
- Departamento de Física, Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales, Universidad de Buenos Aires, C1428EHA Buenos Aires, Argentina.
| | - Lía I Pietrasanta
- Departamento de Física, Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales, Universidad de Buenos Aires, C1428EHA Buenos Aires, Argentina.
- Instituto de Física de Buenos Aires (IFIBA-CONICET), C1428EHA Buenos Aires, Argentina.
| | - Omar Azzaroni
- Instituto de Investigaciones Fisicoquímicas Teóricas y Aplicadas (INIFTA)⁻Departamento de Química⁻Facultad de Ciencias Exactas-Universidad Nacional de La Plata⁻CONICET, 1900 La Plata, Argentina.
| | - Juan M Giussi
- Instituto de Investigaciones Fisicoquímicas Teóricas y Aplicadas (INIFTA)⁻Departamento de Química⁻Facultad de Ciencias Exactas-Universidad Nacional de La Plata⁻CONICET, 1900 La Plata, Argentina.
| | - Carmen Mijangos
- Instituto de Ciencia y Tecnología de Polímeros, ICTP-CSIC, Juan de la Cierva 3, 28006 Madrid, Spain.
- Donostia International Physics Center (DIPC), Paseo Manuel Lardizabal 4 and Centro de Fisica de Materiales, CFM-CSIC/UPV-EHU Paseo de Manuel Lardizabal 5, 20018 Donostia-San Sebastian, Spain.
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Yan N, Liu X, Zhang Y, Sun N, Jiang W, Zhu Y. Confined co-assembly of AB/BC diblock copolymer blends under 3D soft confinement. SOFT MATTER 2018; 14:4679-4686. [PMID: 29634055 DOI: 10.1039/c8sm00486b] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/08/2023]
Abstract
Compared to synthesizing a new block copolymer, blending of two types of block copolymers or a block copolymer and a homopolymer is a simple yet effective approach to create new self-assembled nanostructures. Here, we apply Monte Carlo (MC) simulations to mimic the co-assembly of AB/BC diblock copolymer blends within a three-dimensional (3D) soft confined space, which corresponds to the co-assembly confined in an emulsion droplet in experiment. The confined co-assemblies of four types of block copolymer blends at different block ratios, i.e., A8B8/B8C8, A6B10/B10C6, A12B4/B4C12 and A12B4/B10C6, are investigated by MC simulations. The simulation results reveal that the ratio of different types of blocks and the polymer-solvent interactions between the different blocks and the solvent determine the final self-assembled nanostructures. By tailoring these two controlling parameters, we not only reproduced some classic nanostructures, i.e., pupa-, onion-, and bud-like particles, but also predicted some unconventional nanostructures, such as patch-, Janus-, peanut-, disc- and snowman-like particles via MC simulations.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nan Yan
- State Key Laboratory of Polymer Physics and Chemistry, Changchun Institute of Applied Chemistry, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Changchun 130022, P. R. China.
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Liu CT, Tsai CC, Chu CW, Chi MH, Chung PY, Chen JT. Dewetting of polymer thin films on modified curved surfaces: preparation of polymer nanoparticles with asymmetric shapes by anodic aluminum oxide templates. SOFT MATTER 2018; 14:2772-2776. [PMID: 29620121 DOI: 10.1039/c8sm00318a] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/08/2023]
Abstract
We study the dewetting behaviors of poly(methyl methacrylate) (PMMA) thin films coated in the cylindrical nanopores of anodic aluminum oxide (AAO) templates by thermal annealing. Self-assembled monolayers (SAMs) of n-octadecyltrichlorosilane (ODTS) are introduced to modify the pore surfaces of the AAO templates to induce the dewetting process. By using scanning electron microscopy (SEM), the dewetting-induced morphology transformation from the PMMA thin films to PMMA nanoparticles with asymmetric shapes can be observed. The sizes of the PMMA nanoparticles can be controlled by the original PMMA solution concentrations. The dewetting phenomena on the modified nanopores are explained by taking into account the excess intermolecular interaction free energy (ΔG). This work opens a new possibility for creating polymer nanoparticles with asymmetric shapes in confined geometries.
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Affiliation(s)
- Chih-Ting Liu
- Department of Applied Chemistry, National Chiao Tung University, Hsinchu 30010, Taiwan
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Chi MH, Su CH, Cheng MH, Chung PY, Peng CH, Chen JT. Shaping the Light: The Key Factors Affecting the Photophysical Properties of Fluorescent Polymer Nanostructures. Macromol Rapid Commun 2016; 37:2037-2044. [DOI: 10.1002/marc.201600529] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/26/2016] [Revised: 10/02/2016] [Indexed: 12/18/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Mu-Huan Chi
- Department of Applied Chemistry; National Chiao Tung University; Hsinchu 30010 Taiwan
| | - Chun-Hsien Su
- Department of Chemistry and Frontier Research Center on Fundamental and Applied Sciences of Matters; National Tsing Hua University; Hsinchu 30013 Taiwan
| | - Ming-Hsiang Cheng
- Department of Applied Chemistry; National Chiao Tung University; Hsinchu 30010 Taiwan
| | - Pei-Yun Chung
- Department of Applied Chemistry; National Chiao Tung University; Hsinchu 30010 Taiwan
| | - Chi-How Peng
- Department of Chemistry and Frontier Research Center on Fundamental and Applied Sciences of Matters; National Tsing Hua University; Hsinchu 30013 Taiwan
| | - Jiun-Tai Chen
- Department of Applied Chemistry; National Chiao Tung University; Hsinchu 30010 Taiwan
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Muanchan P, Suzuki S, Kyotani T, Ito H. One-dimensional polymer nanofiber arrays with high aspect ratio obtained by thermal nanoimprint method. POLYM ENG SCI 2016. [DOI: 10.1002/pen.24403] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/06/2023]
Affiliation(s)
- Paritat Muanchan
- Research Center for GREEN Materials and Advanced Processing (GMAP), Graduate School of Science and Engineering; Yamagata University 4-3-16 Jonan; Yonezawa Yamagata 992-8510 Japan
| | - Shohei Suzuki
- Research Center for GREEN Materials and Advanced Processing (GMAP), Graduate School of Science and Engineering; Yamagata University 4-3-16 Jonan; Yonezawa Yamagata 992-8510 Japan
| | - Takashi Kyotani
- Institute of Multidisciplinary Research for Advanced Materials, Tohoku University 2-1-1, Katahira; Aoba-Ku Sendai 980-8577 Japan
| | - Hiroshi Ito
- Research Center for GREEN Materials and Advanced Processing (GMAP), Graduate School of Science and Engineering; Yamagata University 4-3-16 Jonan; Yonezawa Yamagata 992-8510 Japan
- Graduate School of Organic Materials Science; Yamagata University 4-3-16 Jonan; Yonezawa Yamagata 992-8510 Japan
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Zhang H, Xu L, Lai Y, Shi T. Influence of film structure on the dewetting kinetics of thin polymer films in the solvent annealing process. Phys Chem Chem Phys 2016; 18:16310-6. [PMID: 27254136 DOI: 10.1039/c6cp02447e] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/07/2023]
Abstract
On a non-wetting solid substrate, the solvent annealing process of a thin polymer film includes the swelling process and the dewetting process. Owing to difficulties in the in situ analysis of the two processes simultaneously, a quantitative study on the solvent annealing process of thin polymer films on the non-wetting solid substrate is extremely rare. In this paper, we design an experimental method by combining spectroscopic ellipsometry with optical microscopy to achieve the simultaneous in situ study. Using this method, we investigate the influence of the structure of swollen film on its dewetting kinetics during the solvent annealing process. The results show that for a thin PS film with low Mw (Mw = 4.1 kg mol(-1)), acetone molecules can form an ultrathin enriched layer between the PS film and the solid substrate during the swelling process. The presence of the acetone enriched layer accounts for the exponential kinetic behavior in the case of a thin PS film with low Mw. However, the acetone enriched layer is not observed in the case of a thin PS film with high Mw (Mw = 400 kg mol(-1)) and the slippage effect of polymer chains is valid during the dewetting process.
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Affiliation(s)
- Huanhuan Zhang
- State Key Laboratory of Polymer Physics and Chemistry, Changchun Institute of Applied Chemistry, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Changchun 130022, P. R. China.
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