High dielectric contrast polymer dielectric mirrors are used to recycle non-absorbed photons in organic luminescent solar concentrators. A 10% increase in the concentrator optical efficiency is found and retained upon doubling its size paving the way to lightweight and cheap building integrated photovoltaic systems.

An investigation of the copolymerization of cyclohexene sulfide and carbon disulfide using salphen and salen Cr complexes as catalysts and [PPN]+X– salts as cocatalysts, at different temperatures and reaction times, is reported. Both catalytic systems produce both polymer and cyclic products. For the first time, poly­(trithiocyclohexylcarbonates) (PCS) have been synthetized in high yields and high molecular weights. Salphen-based catalysts, in comparison with salen-based ones, show higher productivity and selectivity for polymers with high molecular weight up to 18 kg/mol when the reaction is carried out at 25 °C. At a higher temperature with (salphen)­CrCl, the maximum value of selectivity for copolymers (72%) was obtained at a short reaction time (3 h). At long reaction times, great amounts of cyclic by-product are observed, thus evidencing the tendency for cyclohexene sulfide and CS2 to provide cyclic products due to the stability of the trithiocyclohexylcarbonate. PCS possesses high refractive index (n > 1.72), and antimicrobial assays reveal that these materials are active against Escherichia coli and moderately active against Staphylococcus aureus. These properties along with the T g values of 80 °C make these polymers suitable for interesting applications different from those of poly­(trithiopropylencarbonate).

The synthesis of poly(S-dipentene) with a sulfur content greater than 50 wt % by catalytic inverse vulcanization in the presence of zinc-based accelerators was investigated at 140 °C for the...

Currently, the scientific community has spent a lot of effort in developing “green” and environmentally friendly processes and products, due the contemporary problems connected to pollution and climate change. Cellulose nanocrystals (CNCs) are at the forefront of current research due to their multifunctional characteristics of biocompatibility, high mechanical properties, specific surface area, tunable surface chemistry and renewability. However, despite these many advantages, their inherent hydrophilicity poses a substantial challenge for the application of CNCs as a reinforcing filler in polymers, as it complicates their dispersion in hydrophobic polymeric matrices, such as polyurethane foams, often resulting in aggregate structures that compromise their properties. The manipulation and fine-tuning of the interfacial properties of CNCs is a crucial step to exploit their full potential in the development of new materials. In this respect, starting from an aqueous dispersion of CNCs, two different strategies were used to properly functionalize fillers: (i) freeze drying, solubilization in DMA/LiCl media and subsequent grafting with bio-based polyols; (ii) solvent exchange and subsequent grafting with bio-based polyols. The influence of the two functionalization methods on the chemical and thermal properties of CNCs was examined. In both cases, the role of the two bio-based polyols on filler functionalization was elucidated. Afterwards, the functionalized CNCs were used at 5 wt% to produce bio-based composite polyurethane foams and their effect on the morphological, thermal and mechanical properties was examined. It was found that CNCs modified through freeze drying, solubilization and bio-polyols grafting exhibited remarkably higher thermal stability (i.e., degradation stages > 100 °C) with respect to the unmodified freeze dried-CNCs. In addition, the use of the two grafting bio-polyols influenced the functionalization process, corresponding to different amount of grafted-silane-polyol and leading to different chemico-physical characteristics of the obtained CNCs. This was translated to higher thermal stability as well as improved functional and mechanical performances of the produced bio-based composite PUR foams with respect of the unmodified CNCs-composite ones (the best case attained compressive strength values three times more). Solvent exchange route slightly improved the thermal stability of the obtained CNCs; however; the so-obtained CNCs could not be properly dispersed within the polyurethane matrix, due to filler aggregation.

Polyesters with a high glass transition temperature above 130 °C were obtained from limonene oxide (LO) or vinylcyclohexene oxide (VCHO) and phthalic anhydride (PA) in the presence of commercial salen-type complexes with different metals—Cr, Al, and Mn—as catalysts in combination with 4-(dimethylamino) pyridine (DMAP), bis-(triphenylphosphorydine) ammonium chloride (PPNCl), and bis-(triphenylphosphoranylidene)ammonium azide (PPNN3) as cocatalysts via alternating ring-opening copolymerization (ROCOP). The effects of the time of precontact between the catalyst and cocatalyst and the polymerization time on the productivity, molar mass (Mw), and glass transition temperature (Tg) were evaluated. The polyesters were characterized by a molar mass (Mw) of up to 14.0 kg/mol, a narrow dispersity (Tg) of up to 136 °C, and low (<3 mol%) polyether units. For poly(LO-alt-PA) copolymers, biodegradation tests were performed according to ISO 14851 using the respirometric biochemical oxygen demand method. Moreover, the vinyl double bond present in the poly(LO-alt-PA) copolymer chain was functionalized using three different thiols, methyl-3-mercaptopropionate, isooctyl-3-mercaptopropionate, and butyl-3-mercaptopropionate, via a click chemistry reaction. The thermal properties of poly(LO-alt-PA), poly(VCHO-alt-PA) and thiol-modified poly(LO-alt-PA) copolymers were extensively studied by DSC and TGA. Some preliminary compression molding tests were also conducted.

Organosulfur polymers prepared via the inverse vulcanization of elemental sulfur with olefinic comonomers represent a new class of high‐chalcogenide content organic/inorganic macromolecules. Extensive reporting on new synthetic advances and materials derived from the inverse vulcanization process have been explored in the past decade. However, detailed structural analysis of these sulfur copolymers have not been rigorously conducted, due to the poor solubility of many of these materials, coupled with the numerous side‐reactions that result in complex microstructures from these synthetic methods. In the current report, we revisit analysis of the solution 13C NMR spectral data for poly(S‐r‐Sty) and identify for the first time previously unidentified carbon peaks that offer new insights into a corrected repeating unit structure of this sulfur copolymer.