Issue 8, 2012

Fluorine-containing block copolymer particles with surface and internal hierarchical microphase separation structures

Abstract

Polymeric particles with diverse surface and internal hierarchical nanostructures were prepared by the dynamic self-assembly of a fluorine-containing diblock copolymer, poly(tert-butylacrylate)-b-poly(2-[(perfluorononenyl) oxy] ethyl methacrylate) (PtBA-b-PFNEMA) in THF/water mixtures. The surface patterns and internal structures both originated from the microphase separation of PtBA-b-PFNEMA and could be tuned by the preparation conditions. Besides, the interface limitations and geometric confinement of the particles' morphology resulted in the formation of different phase separation structures on the surface and inside the particles. By tuning the water content and preparation temperature, almost parallel cylindrical domains, twisted interconnected cylindrical domains, or spherical domains were obtained on the surface of the particles. Meanwhile, the internal structures of the particles transformed from inner stacked lamella with outer onion-like structures, inner disordered with outer onion-like structures, to bicontinuous structures as the chain mobility and incompatibility of the two blocks could be controlled by the preparation condition. Therefore, the integration of diverse cylindrical surface structures and bicontinuous or onion-like inner structures into hierarchical nanoparticles was achieved.

Graphical abstract: Fluorine-containing block copolymer particles with surface and internal hierarchical microphase separation structures

Supplementary files

Article information

Article type
Paper
Submitted
02 Nov 2011
Accepted
12 Dec 2011
First published
19 Jan 2012

Soft Matter, 2012,8, 2471-2476

Fluorine-containing block copolymer particles with surface and internal hierarchical microphase separation structures

S. Qin, H. Li, W. Z. Yuan and Y. Zhang, Soft Matter, 2012, 8, 2471 DOI: 10.1039/C2SM07088J

To request permission to reproduce material from this article, please go to the Copyright Clearance Center request page.

If you are an author contributing to an RSC publication, you do not need to request permission provided correct acknowledgement is given.

If you are the author of this article, you do not need to request permission to reproduce figures and diagrams provided correct acknowledgement is given. If you want to reproduce the whole article in a third-party publication (excluding your thesis/dissertation for which permission is not required) please go to the Copyright Clearance Center request page.

Read more about how to correctly acknowledge RSC content.

Social activity

Spotlight

Advertisements