Forcing single-chain nanoparticle collapse through hydrophobic solvent interactions in comb copolymers

Abstract

We demonstrate that we can tune the chain collapse of comb copolymers into single-chain nanoparticles upon UV irradiation through solvency control.

Synthetic Routes to Single Chain Polymer Nanoparticles (SCNPs): Current Status and Perspectives

“…on cinnamoyl, [ 23 ] coumarin, [ 24 ] and anthracene, [ 25 ] respectively, has paved the way for this approach of SCNP formations. Further works have been done on polymers containing cinnamoyl, [ 26 ] stilbene, [ 27 ] coumarin, [ 28 ] anthracene, [ 29,30 ] and styrylpyrene [ 29 ] groups. Besides this, there are the photoinduced Diels–Alder [ 31 ] and nitrile‐imine‐mediated tetrazole–ene cycloaddition (NITEC) [ 32 ] methods.…”

“…synthesized multi‐compartment SCNPs whereby comb‐polymers with a certain selective side chain were considered. [ 30 ] The ring‐opening metathesis polymerization (ROMP) of anthracen‐9‐ylmethyl bicyclo [2.2.1] hept‐5‐ene‐2‐carboxylate (NB‐An) and oxanorbornene maleimide polyisobutylene (oNBMIPIB) provided a side chain with affinity toward nonpolar solvents, i.e., polyisobutylene. The results showed that diluting the THF with n‐hexane led to an increase in anthracene dimerization by 31% without changing its content.…”

Rapid synthesis of diol homolog-based thermosets with tunable propertiesviaring-opening metathesis polymerization

“…S5, ESI †) confirmed that NB-Me polymerized completely. In the case of 1 H NMR spectrum, for example, cyclic double bond of NB-Me located at 5.92-6.18 ppm 41,42 disappeared, and the resonances of acyclic double bonds appeared at 5.33 ppm after polymerization. For FTIR, the bands corresponding to QC-H stretching vibration (3142 and 3061 cm À1 ) and cyclic CQC stretching vibration (1625 and 1571 cm À1 ) of NB-Me disappeared, and new band due to QC-H out-of-plane rocking vibration was observed at 970 cm À1 in the spectrum of PNB-Me.…”

Advances in the Multi-Orthogonal Folding of Single Polymer Chains into Single-Chain Nanoparticles

“…Recently, this strategy has been further refined by Berda and colleagues by generating α -hydrazido dipeptides within hydrazone-cross-linked SCNPs [ 84 ]. More recently, Simon and coworkers have exploited hydrophobic interactions in comb copolymers to increase its compaction to SCNPs via intra-chain photodimerization [ 85 ].…”