Amphiphilic miktoarm star copolymers can self-assemble into micelle-like aggregates in nonselective solvents: a case study of polyoxometalate based miktoarm stars

Hierarchical self-assembly of miktoarm star copolymers with pathway complexity

“…The width ranged from 60 to 120 nm, which was much larger than the total width of the cylindrical micelle formed in THF (15.4 nm). 53 In the meantime, the energy dispersive X-ray (EDX) spectrum indicated the existence of tungsten in the nanofibers (Fig. 2d).…”

“…Very recently, we reported a series of cluster-based supramolecular star block copolymers 52 and miktoarm star copolymers 53 which could self-assemble into micelle-like aggregates in nonselective good solvents. These unexpected self-assembly behaviors are attributed to the topological restrictions leading to appropriately increasing incompatibility between different arms.…”

“…1 and Table 1). 53 Upon adding methanol into the micelle solutions above, the solvent quality for PS n and PEG m arms can be weakened and improved, respectively (Tables S1-S3 †). 54 When dispersed in the selective THF/methanol and toluene/methanol mixture solvents, SEW-2-5 self-assemble to create a series of hierarchical architectures, such as bundled fibers, sheetlike assemblies, and hollow spheres.…”

Triblock Copolymer/Polyoxometalate Nanocomposite Electrolytes with Inverse Hexagonal Cylindrical Nanostructures

“…Besides the aforementioned ionic additives for block copolymers, polyoxometalates (POMs), the nanosized, anionic molecularly defined clusters of metal oxides have attracted much attention for their abilities in inducing phase transitions as multi‐charged ions and fabricating functional hybrid polymer materials as typical inorganic moieties. [ 23–36 ] Recently, their high proton conductivity, thermal stability and water‐retention capability have been appealing for nanostructured proton‐conducting polymer hybrid electrolytes. [ 37–40 ] For example, Guiver et al.…”

“…[20] Moreover, HEX′ could be obtained through the combination of both covalent and non-covalent methods such as sulfonated and phosphonated PS-b-PMB containing ionic liquids reported by Park et al [21,22] Besides the aforementioned ionic additives for block copolymers, polyoxometalates (POMs), the nanosized, anionic molecularly defined clusters of metal oxides have attracted much attention for their abilities in inducing phase transitions as multi-charged ions and fabricating functional hybrid polymer materials as typical inorganic moieties. [23][24][25][26][27][28][29][30][31][32][33][34][35][36] Recently, their high proton conductivity, thermal stability and water-retention capability have been appealing for nanostructured proton-conducting polymer hybrid electrolytes. [37][38][39][40] For example, Guiver et al constructed a magnetic field induced composite proton exchange membrane with aligned POM-containing nanoarrays…”