Supramolecular Structures from Lysine Peptides and Carbon Dioxide

The effect of chitosan molecular weight on CO2-triggered switching between emulsification and demulsification

The role of molecular weight as a key physical property of macromolecules in determining the CO₂-triggered switching characteristics of responsive emulsions prepared using CO₂-switchable macromolecules has not been studied and is the focus of the current study. In this work, CO₂-switchable chitosan of four different molecular weights is used to investigate the effect of molecular weight on CO₂-triggered switching of CO₂-responsive emulsions. The molecular weight of chitosan is shown to have an opposite effect on emulsification and demulsification by the CO₂ trigger. Before bubbling of CO₂, chitosan of higher molecular weight forms a more stable three-dimensional network structure in the continuous phase of oil-in-water (O/W) emulsions, which leads to the formation of a more stable emulsion. After bubbling of CO₂, the chitosan of higher molecular weight makes the continuous phase more viscous, which leads to an incomplete demulsification as compared with the chitosan of lower molecular weight. Experimental evidence from the measurement of conductivity, interfacial tension and rheological properties is provided to support the proposed mechanism. This work is of great significance in guiding the selection of desirable CO₂-switchable polymers for switchable emulsions of desired switching characteristics.

Single molecule magnet behaviors of Zn4Ln2 (Ln = DyIII, TbIII) complexes with multidentate organic ligands formed by absorption of CO2 in air through in situ reactions

Two novel Zn–Ln (Ln = Dy (1), Tb (2)) complexes showing single molecule magnet behaviors have been reported.

Functional supramolecular polymers for biomedical applications

As a novel class of dynamic and non-covalent polymers, supramolecular polymers not only display specific structural and physicochemical properties, but also have the ability to undergo reversible changes of structure, shape, and function in response to diverse external stimuli, making them promising candidates for widespread applications ranging from academic research to industrial fields. By an elegant combination of dynamic/reversible structures with exceptional functions, functional supramolecular polymers are attracting increasing attention in various fields. In particular, functional supramolecular polymers offer several unique advantages, including inherent degradable polymer backbones, smart responsiveness to various biological stimuli, and the ease for the incorporation of multiple biofunctionalities (e.g., targeting and bioactivity), thereby showing great potential for a wide range of applications in the biomedical field. In this Review, the trends and representative achievements in the design and synthesis of supramolecular polymers with specific functions are summarized, as well as their wide-ranging biomedical applications such as drug delivery, gene transfection, protein delivery, bio-imaging and diagnosis, tissue engineering, and biomimetic chemistry. These achievements further inspire persistent efforts in an emerging interdisciplin-ary research area of supramolecular chemistry, polymer science, material science, biomedical engineering, and nanotechnology.

Relationship between Diffusion and Chemical Exchange in Mixtures of Carbon Dioxide and an Amine-Functionalized Ionic Liquid by High Field NMR and Kinetic Monte Carlo Simulations

NMR exchange spectroscopy (EXSY) and NMR diffusion spectroscopy (PFG NMR) were applied in combination with kinetic Monte Carlo (MC) simulations to investigate self-diffusion in a mixture of carbon dioxide and an amine-functionalized ionic liquid under conditions of an exchange of carbon dioxide molecules between the reacted and unreacted states in the mixture. EXSY studies enabled residence times of carbon dioxide molecules to be obtained in the two states, whereas PFG NMR revealed time-dependent effective diffusivities for diffusion times comparable with and larger than the residence times. Analytical treatment of the PFG NMR attenuation curves as well as fitting of the PFG NMR effective diffusivities by KMC simulations enabled determination of diffusivities of carbon dioxide in the reacted and unreacted states. In contrast to carbon dioxide, the ion diffusivities were found to be diffusion time independent.