Degradable Polymer Stars Based on Tannic Acid Cores by ATRP

New plant polyphenol-derived tannic acid-based chromium-free tanning agent for sustainable and clean leather production

This study aimed to prepare a new bio-based chromium-free tanning agent. The green epoxide monocase ethylene glycol diglycidyl ether (EGDE) was grafted with tannic acid (TA) derived from natural plant using the one-pot method to synthesize new plant polyphenol-derived tannic acid-based chromium-free tanning agents (TA-EGDE) with abundant terminal epoxides. FTIR, 1H NMR, XPS, GPC, SEM, and other analytical techniques were used to characterize tanning agents. These consequences manifested that EGDE was successfully grafted with the phenol hydroxyl group of TA. The epoxide value of TA-EGDE showed a tendency to increase and then decrease with increasing EGDE dosage, and the epoxide value of TA-EGDE-2 attained a maximum of 0.262 mol/100 g. GPC analysis showed that the formula weight of the prepared TA-EGDE was partially distributed above 5000 Da. The tanning experiment demonstrated that the shrinkage temperatures (Ts) of the TA-EGDE-tanned leathers were all higher than 81.5 °C. Compared with the traditional commercial chromium-free tanning agent (F-90, TWS), TA-EGDE-tanned leathers exhibited higher Ts and better mechanical properties. The TA-EGDE prepared in this study not only has ecological environmental protection but also provides finished leather with good moisture, heat resistance, and mechanical properties.

Adsorbents prepared from epoxy-based porous materials of microcrystalline cellulose for excellent adsorption of anionic and cationic dyes

It reported a porous material prepared from microcrystalline cellulose (MCC), to achieve rapid preparation of adsorbents. The porous material was characterized by several tools including 1H NMR, FTIR, XPS, and SEM. Two adsorbents were prepared and subjected to adsorption experiments. Dye adsorption experiments show that the adsorption driving is electrostatic interactions and the process is chemisorption. The maximum capacity of Microcrystalline cellulose-g-Poly (glycidyl methacrylate)-Tannins (MPT) reached 191.3 (Methylene blue), 123.7 mg g-1 (Rhodamine B), and Microcrystalline cellulose-g-Poly (glycidyl methacrylate)-Lysine (MPL) attained 425.8 (Methylene blue), 480.7 mg g-1 (Methyl orange). The results were followed the pseudo-second-order (PSO) and agreed with the Langmuir fit model. Adsorption-desorption cycling experiments further indicate that the adsorbent possesses outstanding reproducibility. At last, epoxidized bio-porous materials are positive in the preparation of dye adsorbents with critical adsorption properties.

Toward Green Atom Transfer Radical Polymerization: Current Status and Future Challenges

Reversible-deactivation radical polymerizations (RDRPs) have revolutionized synthetic polymer chemistry. Nowadays, RDRPs facilitate design and preparation of materials with controlled architecture, composition, and functionality. Atom transfer radical polymerization (ATRP) has evolved beyond traditional polymer field, enabling synthesis of organic-inorganic hybrids, bioconjugates, advanced polymers for electronics, energy, and environmentally relevant polymeric materials for broad applications in various fields. This review focuses on the relation between ATRP technology and the 12 principles of green chemistry, which are paramount guidelines in sustainable research and implementation. The green features of ATRP are presented, discussing the environmental and/or health issues and the challenges that remain to be overcome. Key discoveries and recent developments in green ATRP are highlighted, while providing a perspective for future opportunities in this area.

Controlled Release of Exosomes Using Atom Transfer Radical Polymerization-Based Hydrogels

Exosomes are 30-200 nm sized extracellular vesicles that are increasingly recognized as potential drug delivery vehicles. However, exogenous exosomes are rapidly cleared from the blood upon intravenous delivery, which limits their therapeutic potential. Here, we report bioactive exosome-tethered poly(ethylene oxide)-based hydrogels for the localized delivery of therapeutic exosomes. Using cholesterol-modified DNA tethers, the lipid membrane of exosomes was functionalized with initiators to graft polymers in the presence of additional initiators and crosslinker using photoinduced atom transfer radical polymerization (ATRP). This strategy of tethering exosomes within the hydrogel network allowed their controlled release over a period of 1 month, which was much longer than physically entrapped exosomes. Exosome release profile was tuned by varying the crosslinking density of the polymer network and the use of photocleavable tethers allowed stimuli-responsive release of exosomes. The therapeutic potential of the hydrogels was assessed by evaluating the osteogenic potential of bone morphogenetic protein 2-loaded exosomes on C2C12 and MC3T3-E1 cells. Thus, ATRP-based exosome-tethered hydrogels represent a tunable platform with improved efficacy and an extended-release profile.

Thermally Degradable Poly(n-butyl acrylate) Model Networks Prepared by PhotoATRP and Radical Trap-Assisted Atom Transfer Radical Coupling

Model poly(n-butyl acrylate) (PBA) networks were prepared by photoinduced atom transfer radical polymerization (photoATRP), followed by curing of polymer stars via atom transfer radical coupling (ATRC) with a nitrosobenzene radical trap. The resulting nitroxyl radical installed thermally labile alkoxyamine functional groups at the junctions of the network. The alkoxyamine crosslinks of the network were degraded back to star-like products upon exposure to temperatures above 135 °C. Characterization of the degraded products via gel permeation chromatography (GPC) confirmed the inversion of polymer topology after thermal treatment.

Enhanced Chemical and Electrochemical Stability of Polyaniline-Based Layer-by-Layer Films

Polyaniline (PANI) has been widely used as an electroactive material in various applications including sensors, electrochromic devices, solar cells, electroluminescence, and electrochemical energy storage, owing to PANI’s unique redox properties. However, the chemical and electrochemical stability of PANI-based materials is not sufficiently high to maintain the performance of devices under many practical applications. Herein, we report a route to enhancing the chemical and electrochemical stability of PANI through layer-by-layer (LbL) assembly. PANI was assembled with different types of polyelectrolytes, and a comparative study between three different PANI-based layer-by-layer (LbL) films is presented here. Polyacids of different acidity and molecular structure, i.e., poly(acrylic acid) (PAA), polystyrene sulfonate (PSS), and tannic acid (TA), were used. The effect of polyacids’ acidity on film growth, conductivity, and chemical and electrochemical stability of PANI was investigated. The results showed that the film growth of the LbL system depended on the acidic strength of the polyacids. All LbL films exhibited improved chemical and electrochemical stability compared to PANI films. The doping level of PANI was strongly affected by the type of dopants, resulting in different chemical and electrochemical properties; the strongest polyacid (PSS) can provide the highest conductivity and chemical stability of conductive PANI. However, the electrochemical stability of PANI/PAA was found to be better than all the other films.

Stimuli-Responsive Rifampicin-Based Macromolecules

This paper presents the modification of the antibiotic rifampicin by an anionic polyelectrolyte using a simplified electrochemically mediated atom transfer radical polymerization (seATRP) technique to receive stimuli-responsive polymer materials. Initially, a supramolecular ATRP initiator was prepared by an esterification reaction of rifampicin hydroxyl groups with α-bromoisobutyryl bromide (BriBBr). The structure of the initiator was successfully proved by nuclear magnetic resonance (1H and 13C NMR), Fourier-transform infrared (FT-IR) and ultraviolet-visible (UV-vis) spectroscopy. The prepared rifampicin-based macroinitiator was electrochemically investigated among various ATRP catalytic complexes, by a series of cyclic voltammetry (CV) measurements, determining the rate constants of electrochemical catalytic (EC') process. Macromolecules with rifampicin core and hydrophobic poly (n-butyl acrylate) (PnBA) and poly(tert-butyl acrylate) (PtBA) side chains were synthesized in a controlled manner, receiving polymers with narrow molecular weight distribution (Mw/Mn = 1.29 and 1.58, respectively). "Smart" polymer materials sensitive to pH changes were provided by transformation of tBA into acrylic acid (AA) moieties in a facile route by acidic hydrolysis. The pH-dependent behavior of prepared macromolecules was investigated by dynamic light scattering (DLS) determining a hydrodynamic radius of polymers upon pH changes, followed by a control release of quercetin as a model active substance upon pH changes.