Formation of CdS nanoclusters in phase‐separated poly(2‐hydroxyethyl methacrylate)‐l‐polyisobutylene amphiphilic conetworks

Abstract

Nanophase‐separated poly(2‐hydroxyethyl methacrylate)‐l‐polyisobutylene (PHEMA‐l‐PIB) amphiphilic conetworks were obtained by crosslinking α,ω‐bismethacrylate‐terminated polyisobutylene (PIB) via copolymerization with silylated 2‐hydroxyethyl methacylate, followed by the hydrolysis of the silylether groups. Morphology development of a sample containing 64% PIB was monitored by means of transmission electron microscopy (TEM), atomic force microscopy (AFM), and small‐angle X‐ray scattering. For comparison, the morphology of a sample containing 53% PIB was investigated by AFM. The dry conetworks exhibited hydrophilic and hydrophobic phases with average 8–10‐nm domain sizes and were swellable in water as well as in heptane. Swelling amphiphilic conetworks with aqueous cadmium–chloride solution followed by exposure to H2S resulted in nanosized CdS clusters located in the amphiphilic conetworks, that is, for the first time, new inorganic–organic hybrid materials composed of CdS semiconducting nanocrystals and PHEMA‐l‐PIB amphiphilic conetworks were prepared. © 2001 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. J Polym Sci B Part B: Polym Phys 39: 1429–1436, 2001

Amphiphilic single and double networks: a small-angle X-ray scattering investigation

“…Thus, they swell in both aqueous and organic solvents [6,12,15,17,24,25]. Besides, substances can be entrapped in hydrophilic and/or hydrophobic domains, and they can therefore be used for protein adsorption [4], as nanoreactors for enzymes [20] or for the formation of inorganic nanoclusters [25]. Moreover, a combination of hydrophobic and ionic units in a random sequence in the networks results in extensive swelling/deswelling upon a small environmental change, which suggests their application in modern microvalves [26].…”

“…These are two-component networks composed of hydrophilic and hydrophobic segments, forming well-defined nanostructures by microphase separation. Thus, they swell in both aqueous and organic solvents [6,12,15,17,24,25]. Besides, substances can be entrapped in hydrophilic and/or hydrophobic domains, and they can therefore be used for protein adsorption [4], as nanoreactors for enzymes [20] or for the formation of inorganic nanoclusters [25].…”

“…This is the subject of the present work, where we focus on the structural characterization of the first APCN and the corresponding DN gels with SAXS. SAXS has been used to study the mesoscopic structures of amphiphilic hydrogels [2,7,25], as an alternative to small-angle neutron scattering (SANS) [9, 22-24, 28, 29].…”

Metal Nanocrystals Embedded within Polymeric Nanostructures: Effect of Polymer-Metal Compound Interactions

“…Amphiphilic polymer networks based on poly(hydroxyethyl methacrylate) (PHEMA) with difunctional polyisobutylene used as the cross-linker have been also employed as matrices for the formation of CdS metal nanoparticles of 1-6 nm [57]. The CdS nanoparticles were formed within the 9 nm pores of the PHEMA phase of the polymer network matrix which increased to 15 nm after the nanoparticle formation.…”

Controlled synthesis of amphiphilic block copolymers based on poly(isobutylene) macromonomers

“…[4][5][6][7][8] These materials have been demonstrated to be effective for a number of applications, such as polymeric surfactants and dispersants, sealants, coatings, adhesives, and drug delivery vehicles. [9][10][11][12][13][14][15] Preparation of PIB graft copolymers and APCN rely on the synthesis of well-defined mono or multi functionalized PIB macromonomers.…”