Polymers with advanced architectures as emulsifiers for multi-functional emulsions

Abstract

The architecture of polymer chains can play a significant role in their behavior at interfaces.

Reconfigurable Liquids Constructed by Pillar[6]arene‐Based Nanoparticle Surfactants

“…Compartmentalizing one liquid in another immiscible liquid enables the production of biphasic systems, e.g., emulsions, that have been widely used in fields such as food processing, cosmetics and oil recovery [1–4] . Generally, the dispersed liquid domain is stabilized by surfactant, which can be small molecule, polymer or particle, [5–7] and assumes equilibrium spherical shapes to minimize the interfacial area and the free energy of the system. Recently, by using the assembly and jamming of nanoparticles surfactants (NPSs), which are formed via the interactions between nanoparticles (NPs) and polymeric ligands at the oil–water interface, a new state of matter, termed structured liquids, has been put forward [8–11] .…”

Molecular Brush Surfactants: Versatile Emulsifiers for Stabilizing and Structuring Liquids

“…Emulsions have been widely studied and applied in a broad range of fields including pharmaceutics, cosmetics, and food industries [1–3] . In general, amphiphilic small molecules, linear diblock copolymers, and colloidal particles are used as emulsifiers to stabilize the liquid‐liquid interface, reducing the interfacial energy and preventing the coalescence between emulsion droplets [4–6] . By fine‐tuning the hydrophilic‐lipophilic balance of the emulsifiers at the interface or the volume ratios of the two liquids, different types of emulsions, e.g., oil‐in‐water (o/w) and water‐in‐oil (w/o) emulsion can be achieved [7] .…”

“…[1][2][3] In general, amphiphilic small molecules, linear diblock copolymers, and colloidal particles are used as emulsifiers to stabilize the liquid-liquid interface, reducing the interfacial energy and preventing the coalescence between emulsion droplets. [4][5][6] By fine-tuning the hydrophilic-lipophilic balance of the emulsifiers at the interface or the volume ratios of the two liquids, different types of emulsions, e.g., oil-in-water (o/w) and water-in-oil (w/o) emulsion can be achieved. [7] Recently, a newly developed emulsifier, termed a nanoparticle surfactant, formed by the interactions between nanoparticles and polymeric/oligomeric ligands at the oil-water interface, has shown promising potentials in stabilizing emulsion droplets and, more attrac-tively, locking the shape of the liquids in nonequilibrium shapes by the interfacial jamming of the nanoparticle surfactants at the interface.…”

In Situ Hydrolysis of Block Copolymers at the Water‐Oil Interface

“…Similar to traditional small molecule surfactants, amphiphilic BCPs can assemble at the water‐oil interface with the hydrophobic and hydrophilic blocks solubilized in the oil and water phases, respectively, to minimize the interfacial energy. Controlling the interfacial assembly of BCPs involves manipulating the chemical functionality of the blocks to respond to external triggers or altering the chain architecture to impart specific properties to the assemblies [1a, 2a,c] . For example, triblock copolymers with a crosslinkable mid‐block, known as soft polymer Janus nanoparticles (NPs), can undergo configurational changes as the molecule approaches, and adsorbs to the interface to screen non‐favorable interactions between the two immiscible liquids [4] .…”