Selective solvent conditions influence sequence development and supramolecular assembly in step-growth copolymerization

Sequence control in synthetic copolymers remains a tantalizing objective in polymer science due to the influence of sequence on material properties and self-organization. A greater understanding of sequence development throughout the polymerization process will aid the design of simple, generalizable methods to control sequence and tune supramolecular assembly. In previous simulations of solution-based step-growth copolymerizations, we have shown that weak, non-bonding attractions between monomers of the same type can produce a microphase separation among the lengthening nascent oligomers and thereby alter sequence. This work explores the phenomenon further, examining how effective attractive interactions, mediated by a solvent selective for one of the reacting species, impact the development of sequence and the supramolecular assembly in a simple A-B copolymerization. We find that as the effective attractions between monomers increase, an emergent self-organization of the reactants causes a shift in reaction kinetics and sequence development. When the solvent-mediated interactions are selective enough, the simple mixture of A and B monomers oligomerize and self-assemble into structures characteristic of amphiphilic copolymers. The composition and morphology of these structures and the sequences of their chains are sensitive to the relative balance of affinities between the comonomer species. Our results demonstrate the impact of differing A-B monomer-solvent affinities on sequence development in solution-based copolymerizations and are of consequence to the informed design of synthetic methods for sequence controlled amphiphilic copolymers and their aggregates.

Synthesis of bottlebrush polymers based on poly(N-sulfonyl aziridine) macromonomers

We synthesized bottlebrush polymers with polyaziridine brushes and a polynorbornene backbone by a grafting-through approach. The polyaziridine macromonomer aggregates in solution, but these aggregates disperse over the course of the polymerization.

The Sequence of a Step-Growth Copolymer Can Be Influenced by Its Own Persistence Length

Synthetic copolymer sequences remain challenging to control, and there are features of even simple one-pot, solution-based copolymerizations that are not yet fully understood. In previous simulations on step-growth copolymerizations in solution, we demonstrated that modest variations in the attractions between type A and B monomers could significantly influence copolymer sequence through an emergent aggregation and phase separation initiated by the lengthening of nascent oligomers. Here we investigate how one aspect of a copolymer's geometry-its flexibility-can modulate those effects. Our simulations show the onset of strand alignment within the polymerization-induced aggregates as chain stiffness increases and demonstrate that this alignment can influence the resulting copolymer sequences. For less flexible copolymers, with persistence lengths ≥10 monomers, modest nonbonded attractions of ∼k_BT between monomers of the same type yield A and B blocks of a characteristic length and result in a polydispersity index that grows rapidly, peaks, and then diminishes as the reaction proceeds. These results demonstrate that for copolymer systems with modest variations in intermonomer attractions and physically realistic flexibilities a nascent copolymer's persistence length can influence its own sequence.

Configurationally Random Polythiophene for Improved Polymer Ordering and Charge-Transporting Ability

Random polythiophene polymers are characterized by the arbitrary sequences of monomeric units along polymer backbones. These untailored orientations generally result in the twisting of thiophene rings out of the conjugation planarity in addition to steric repulsions experienced among substituted alkyl chains. These tendencies have limited close polymer packing, which has been detrimental to charge transport in these moieties. To ameliorate charge transport in these classes of polymers, we make use of simple Stille coupling polymerization to synthesize highly random polythiophene polymers. We induced a positive microstructural change between polymer chains by attuning the ratio between alkyl-substituted and nonalkyl-substituted monomer units along the backbones. The optimized random polythiophene was found to have enhanced intermolecular interaction, increased size of crystallites, and stronger tendency to take edge orientation compared with both regiorandom and regioregular poly(3-hexylthiophene) polymers. Incorporation of the optimized random polythiophene as an active material in solid-state electrolyte-gated organic field-effect transistors exhibited better performance than the control device using regioregular poly(3-hexylthiophene), with a high hole mobility up to 4.52 cm² V^-1 s^-1 in ambient conditions.

Development of a Simple Kinetic Mathematical Model of Aggregation of Particles or Clustering of Receptors

The process of clustering of plasma membrane receptors in response to their agonist is the first step in signal transduction. The rate of the clustering process and the size of the clusters determine further cell responses. Here we aim to demonstrate that a simple 2-differential equation mathematical model is capable of quantitative description of the kinetics of 2D or 3D cluster formation in various processes. Three mathematical models based on mass action kinetics were considered and compared with each other by their ability to describe experimental data on GPVI or CR3 receptor clustering (2D) and albumin or platelet aggregation (3D) in response to activation. The models were able to successfully describe experimental data without losing accuracy after switching between complex and simple models. However, additional restrictions on parameter values are required to match a single set of parameters for the given experimental data. The extended clustering model captured several properties of the kinetics of cluster formation, such as the existence of only three typical steady states for this system: unclustered receptors, receptor dimers, and clusters. Therefore, a simple kinetic mass-action-law-based model could be utilized to adequately describe clustering in response to activation both in 2D and in 3D.