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Qu T, Nan G, Ouyang Y, Bieketuerxun B, Yan X, Qi Y, Zhang Y. Structure-Property Relationship, Glass Transition, and Crystallization Behaviors of Conjugated Polymers. Polymers (Basel) 2023; 15:4268. [PMID: 37959948 PMCID: PMC10649048 DOI: 10.3390/polym15214268] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/04/2023] [Revised: 10/26/2023] [Accepted: 10/27/2023] [Indexed: 11/15/2023] Open
Abstract
Conjugated polymers have gained considerable interest due to their unique structures and promising applications in areas such as optoelectronics, photovoltaics, and flexible electronics. This review focuses on the structure-property relationship, glass transition, and crystallization behaviors of conjugated polymers. Understanding the relationship between the molecular structure of conjugated polymers and their properties is essential for optimizing their performance. The glass transition temperature (Tg) plays a key role in determining the processability and application of conjugated polymers. We discuss the mechanisms underlying the glass transition phenomenon and explore how side-chain interaction affects Tg. The crystallization behavior of conjugated polymers significantly impacts their mechanical and electrical properties. We investigate the nucleation and growth processes, as well as the factors that influence the crystallization process. The development of the three generations of conjugated polymers in controlling the crystalline structure and enhancing polymer ordering is also discussed. This review highlights advanced characterization techniques such as X-ray diffraction, atomic force microscopy, and thermal analysis, which provide insights into molecular ordering and polymer-crystal interfaces. This review provides an insight of the structure-property relationship, glass transition, and crystallization behaviors of conjugated polymers. It serves as a foundation for further research and development of conjugated polymer-based materials with enhanced properties and performance.
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Affiliation(s)
- Tengfei Qu
- University and College Key Lab of Natural Product Chemistry and Application in Xinjiang, School of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Yili Normal University, Yining 835000, China
| | - Guangming Nan
- University and College Key Lab of Natural Product Chemistry and Application in Xinjiang, School of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Yili Normal University, Yining 835000, China
| | - Yan Ouyang
- University and College Key Lab of Natural Product Chemistry and Application in Xinjiang, School of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Yili Normal University, Yining 835000, China
| | - Bahaerguli. Bieketuerxun
- University and College Key Lab of Natural Product Chemistry and Application in Xinjiang, School of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Yili Normal University, Yining 835000, China
| | - Xiuling Yan
- University and College Key Lab of Natural Product Chemistry and Application in Xinjiang, School of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Yili Normal University, Yining 835000, China
| | - Yunpeng Qi
- University and College Key Lab of Natural Product Chemistry and Application in Xinjiang, School of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Yili Normal University, Yining 835000, China
| | - Yi Zhang
- Anhui Key Laboratory of Spin Electron and Nanomaterials of Anhui Higher Education Institutes, School of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Suzhou University, Suzhou 234000, China
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Marcato D, Giacometti A, Maritan A, Rosa A. Phase behaviour of semiflexible lattice polymers in poor-solvent solution: Mean-field theory and Monte Carlo simulations. J Chem Phys 2023; 159:154901. [PMID: 37843062 DOI: 10.1063/5.0171911] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/11/2023] [Accepted: 09/22/2023] [Indexed: 10/17/2023] Open
Abstract
We study a solution of interacting semiflexible polymers with curvature energy in poor-solvent conditions on the d-dimensional cubic lattice using mean-field theory and Monte Carlo computer simulations. Building upon past studies on a single chain, we construct a field-theory representation of the system and solve it within a mean-field approximation supported by Monte Carlo simulations in d = 3. A gas-liquid transition is found in the temperature-density plane that is then interpreted in terms of real systems. Interestingly, we find this transition to be independent of the bending rigidity. Past classical Flory-Huggins and Flory mean-field results are shown to be particular cases of this more general framework. Perspectives in terms of guiding experimental results towards optimal conditions are also proposed.
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Affiliation(s)
- Davide Marcato
- Scuola Internazionale Superiore di Studi Avanzati (SISSA), Via Bonomea 265, 34136 Trieste, Italy
| | - Achille Giacometti
- Dipartimento di Scienze Molecolari e Nanosistemi, Università Ca' Foscari Venezia, 30123 Venezia, Italy
- European Centre for Living Technology (ECLT) Ca' Bottacin, 3911 Dorsoduro Calle Crosera, 30123 Venezia, Italy
| | - Amos Maritan
- Laboratory of Interdisciplinary Physics, Department of Physics and Astronomy "G. Galilei," University of Padova, Padova, Italy and INFN, Sezione di Padova, Via Marzolo 8, 35131 Padova, Italy
| | - Angelo Rosa
- Scuola Internazionale Superiore di Studi Avanzati (SISSA), Via Bonomea 265, 34136 Trieste, Italy
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Hsieh MC, Tsao YH, Sheng YJ, Tsao HK. Microstructural Dynamics of Polymer Melts during Stretching: Radial Size Distribution. Polymers (Basel) 2023; 15:polym15092067. [PMID: 37177214 PMCID: PMC10181331 DOI: 10.3390/polym15092067] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/08/2023] [Revised: 04/24/2023] [Accepted: 04/24/2023] [Indexed: 05/15/2023] Open
Abstract
The transient elongational viscosity ηe(t) of the polymer melt is known to exhibit strain hardening, which depends on the strain rate ε˙. This phenomenon was elucidated by the difference of chain stretching in the entanglement network between extension and shear. However, to date, the microscopic evolution of polymer melt has not been fully statistically analyzed. In this work, the radial size distributions P(Rg,t) of linear polymers are explored by dissipative particle dynamics during the stretching processes. In uniaxial extensional flow, it is observed that the mean radius of gyration R¯g(t) and standard deviation σ(t) remain unchanged until the onset of strain hardening, corresponding to linear viscoelasticity. Both R¯g and σ rise rapidly in the non-linear regime, and bimodal size distribution can emerge. Moreover, the onset of strain hardening is found to be insensitive to the Hencky strain (ε˙Ht) and chain length (N).
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Affiliation(s)
- Ming-Chang Hsieh
- Department of Chemical Engineering, National Taiwan University, Taipei 106, Taiwan
| | - Yu-Hao Tsao
- Department of Chemical Engineering, National Taiwan University, Taipei 106, Taiwan
| | - Yu-Jane Sheng
- Department of Chemical Engineering, National Taiwan University, Taipei 106, Taiwan
| | - Heng-Kwong Tsao
- Department of Chemical and Materials Engineering, National Central University, Jhongli 320, Taiwan
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Liu J, Li J, Liu B, Hamley IW, Jiang S. Mpemba effect in crystallization of polybutene-1. SOFT MATTER 2023; 19:3337-3347. [PMID: 37096363 DOI: 10.1039/d3sm00309d] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/03/2023]
Abstract
The Mpemba effect and its inverse can be understood as a result of nonequilibrium thermodynamics. In polymers, changes of state are generally non-equilibrium processes. However, the Mpemba effect has been rarely reported in the crystallization of polymers. In the melt, polybutene-1 (PB-1) has the lowest critical cooling rate in polyolefins and tends to maintain its original structure and properties with thermal history. A nascent PB-1 sample was prepared by using metallocene catalysis at low temperature, and the crystallization behavior and crystalline structure of the PB-1 were characterized by DSC and WAXS. Experimentally, a clear Mpemba effect is observed not only in the crystallization of the nascent PB-1 melt in form II but also in form I obtained from the nascent PB-1 at low melting temperature. It is proposed that this is due to the differences in the chain conformational entropy in the lattice which influence conformational relaxation times. The entropy and the relaxation time can be predicted using the Adam-Gibbs equations, whereas non-equilibrium thermodynamics is required to describe the crystallization with the Mpemba effect.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jinghua Liu
- School of Materials Science and Engineering, Tianjin University, Tianjin, 300072, China.
| | - Jingqing Li
- School of Materials Science and Engineering, Tianjin University, Tianjin, 300072, China.
| | - Binyuan Liu
- Hebei Key Laboratory of Functional Polymer Materials, School of Chemical Engineering and Science, Hebei University of Technology, Tianjin 300130, China
| | - Ian W Hamley
- School of Chemistry, Pharmacy and Food Biosciences, University of Reading, Whiteknights, Reading RG6 6AD, UK
| | - Shichun Jiang
- School of Materials Science and Engineering, Tianjin University, Tianjin, 300072, China.
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Martínez-Fernández D, Herranz M, Foteinopoulou K, Karayiannis NC, Laso M. Local and Global Order in Dense Packings of Semi-Flexible Polymers of Hard Spheres. Polymers (Basel) 2023; 15:polym15030551. [PMID: 36771852 PMCID: PMC9919756 DOI: 10.3390/polym15030551] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/29/2022] [Revised: 01/16/2023] [Accepted: 01/17/2023] [Indexed: 01/24/2023] Open
Abstract
The local and global order in dense packings of linear, semi-flexible polymers of tangent hard spheres are studied by employing extensive Monte Carlo simulations at increasing volume fractions. The chain stiffness is controlled by a tunable harmonic potential for the bending angle, whose intensity dictates the rigidity of the polymer backbone as a function of the bending constant and equilibrium angle. The studied angles range between acute and obtuse ones, reaching the limit of rod-like polymers. We analyze how the packing density and chain stiffness affect the chains' ability to self-organize at the local and global levels. The former corresponds to crystallinity, as quantified by the Characteristic Crystallographic Element (CCE) norm descriptor, while the latter is computed through the scalar orientational order parameter. In all cases, we identify the critical volume fraction for the phase transition and gauge the established crystal morphologies, developing a complete phase diagram as a function of packing density and equilibrium bending angle. A plethora of structures are obtained, ranging between random hexagonal closed packed morphologies of mixed character and almost perfect face centered cubic (FCC) and hexagonal close-packed (HCP) crystals at the level of monomers, and nematic mesophases, with prolate and oblate mesogens at the level of chains. For rod-like chains, a delay is observed between the establishment of the long-range nematic order and crystallization as a function of the packing density, while for right-angle chains, both transitions are synchronized. A comparison is also provided against the analogous packings of monomeric and fully flexible chains of hard spheres.
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Yamamoto T. Chiral selecting crystallization of helical polymers: A molecular dynamics simulation for the POM-like bare helix. J Chem Phys 2022; 157:014901. [DOI: 10.1063/5.0097112] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/14/2022] Open
Abstract
Polymer crystallization has long been a fascinating problem and is still attracting many researchers. Most of the previous simulations are concentrated on clarifying the universal aspects of polymer crystallization using model linear polymers such as polyethylene. We are recently focusing on a nearly untouched but very interesting problem of chiral selecting crystallization in helical polymers. We previously proposed a stepwise approach using two kinds of helical polymers, simple "bare" helical polymers made of backbone atoms only such as polyoxymethylene (POM) and "general" helical polymers containing complicated side groups such as isotactic polypropylene (iPP). We have already reported on the crystallization in oligomeric POM-like helix but have observed only weak chiral selectivity during crystallization. In the present paper, we investigate the crystallization of sufficiently long POM-like polymer both from the isotropic melt and from the highly stretched melt. We find in both cases that the polymer shows a clear chiral selecting crystallization. Especially the observation of a single crystal growing from the isotropic melt is very illuminating. It shows that the crystal thickness and the crystal chirality is closely correlated; thicker crystals show definite chirality while thinner ones are mostly mixtures of the R- and the L- handed stems. The single crystal is found to have a marked lenticular shape, where the thinner growth front, since being made of the mixture, shows no chiral selectivity. Final chiral crystal is found to be completed through helix reversal processes within thicker regions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Takashi Yamamoto
- Department of Physics and Informatics, Yamaguchi University, Japan
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Hamblin RL, Nguyen NQ, DuBay KH. Selective solvent conditions influence sequence development and supramolecular assembly in step-growth copolymerization. SOFT MATTER 2022; 18:943-955. [PMID: 34855930 DOI: 10.1039/d1sm01571k] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/13/2023]
Abstract
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.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ryan L Hamblin
- Department of Chemistry, University of Virginia, McCormick Road, PO Box 400319, Charlottesville, VA 22903-4319, USA.
| | - Nhu Q Nguyen
- Department of Chemistry, University of Virginia, McCormick Road, PO Box 400319, Charlottesville, VA 22903-4319, USA.
| | - Kateri H DuBay
- Department of Chemistry, University of Virginia, McCormick Road, PO Box 400319, Charlottesville, VA 22903-4319, USA.
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Buglakov AI, Vasilevskaya VV. Fibril Assembly and Gelation of Macromolecules with Amphiphilic Repeating Units. LANGMUIR : THE ACS JOURNAL OF SURFACES AND COLLOIDS 2021; 37:12377-12387. [PMID: 34637315 DOI: 10.1021/acs.langmuir.1c01953] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/13/2023]
Abstract
This paper reports the self-assembly of the fibrillar network in a concentrated solution of macromolecules with an amphiphilic structure of repeating units. The investigation of amphiphilic homopolymers and alternating copolymers with the linear and cyclic topologies, the solution with different polymer concentrations and solvent qualities, allows us to conclude that the ability to form a fibrillar gel with branched fibrils and regular subchain thickness is inherent for macromolecules with the solvophobic backbone and solvophilic pendants. The elements of the gel structure, such as the mesh size and fibrillar thickness, the number of cross-links, and their functionality, can be tuned and customized according to the requirements of their application. The results could be helpful for the directed design of the synthetic analogue of the relevant extracellular matrix, in tissue engineering, for fibrotic disease treatment and cell encapsulation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Aleksandr I Buglakov
- A. N. Nesmeyanov Institute of Organoelement Compounds RAS, Vavilova ul., 28, Moscow 119991, Russia
- Faculty of Physics, M. V. Lomonosov Moscow State University, Leninskie Gory, Moscow 119991, Russia
| | - Valentina V Vasilevskaya
- A. N. Nesmeyanov Institute of Organoelement Compounds RAS, Vavilova ul., 28, Moscow 119991, Russia
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