Schibli, Eric M.; Wright, Andrew G.; Holdcroft, Steven; Frisken, Barbara J.
Morphology of Anion-Conducting Ionenes Investigated by X-ray Scattering and Simulation
We have studied the morphology of a novel series of benzimidazole-based ionenes, methylated poly(hexamethyl-p-terphenylbenzimidazolium) (HMT-PMBI), in halide form. Materials with anion-exchange capacities ranging from 0 to 2.5 mequiv/g were studied. X-ray scattering reveals three length scales in the materials: ion–polymer spacing (4 Å), polymer–polymer interchain spacing (6 Å), and an…
CPAP3 proteins in the mineralized cuticle of a decapod crustacean
Abehsera, Shai; Zaccai, Shir; Mittelman, Binyamin; Glazer, Lilah; Weil, Simy; Khalaila, Isam; Davidov, Geula; Bitton, Ronit; Zarivach, Raz; Li, Shihao; Li, Fuhua; Xiang, Jianhai; Manor, Rivka; Aflalo, Eliahu D.; Sagi, Amir
The pancrustacean theory groups crustaceans and hexapods (once thought to comprise separate clades within the Arthropoda) into a single clade. A key feature common to all pancrustaceans is their chitinous exoskeleton, with a major contribution by cuticular proteins. Among these, are the CPAP3’s, a family of cuticular proteins, first identified…
Readily available titania nanostructuring routines based on mobility and polarity controlled phase separation of an amphiphilic diblock copolymer
Hohn, Nuri; Schlosser, Steffen J.; Bießmann, Lorenz; Grott, Sebastian; Xia, Senlin; Wang, Kun; Schwartzkopf, Matthias; Roth, Stephan V.; Müller-Buschbaum, Peter
The amphiphilic diblock copolymer polystyrene-block-polyethylene oxide is combined with sol–gel chemistry to control the structure formation of blade-coated foam-like titania thin films. The influence of evaporation time before immersion into a poor solvent bath and polarity of the poor solvent bath are studied. Resulting morphological changes are quantified by scanning…
Influence of Solvent Additive 1,8-Octanedithiol on P3HT:PCBM Solar Cells
Wang, Weijia; Song, Lin; Magerl, David; González, Daniel Moseguí; Körstgens, Volker; Philipp, Martine; Moulin, Jean-François; Müller‐Buschbaum, Peter
Processing solvent additives in polymer:fullerene bulk heterojunction systems are known as a promising method to enhance photovoltaic performance. It is generally agreed that solvent additives enable polymers to have a high degree of molecular order which increases the device performance. However, the understanding of the efficiency enhancement is not complete.…
RGD-presenting peptides in amphiphilic and anionic β-sheet hydrogels for improved interactions with cells
Green, Hodaya; Ochbaum, Guy; Gitelman-Povimonsky, Anna; Bitton, Ronit; Rapaport, Hanna
RSC Advances, 2018, vol 8, 18, pp. 10072-10080DOI:10.1039/C7RA12503HVisit the full articleBack to the overview
Structural and magnetic properties of cobalt iron disulfide (Co x Fe 1−x S 2 ) nanocrystals
Gabold, Henrik; Luan, Zhongyue; Paul, Neelima; Opel, Matthias; Müller-Buschbaum, Peter; Law, Matt; Paul, Amitesh
We report on synthesis and investigation of nanocrystalline cobalt-iron-pyrites with an emphasis on nanocrystal structure, morphology and magnetic behavior. The nanocrystals (NCs) were 5–25 nm in diameter as characterized using scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and transmission electron microscopy (TEM). With an increase in Fe fraction, X-ray diffraction and small-angle-X-ray scattering (SAXS)…
High Stiffness Cellulose Fibers from Low Molecular Weight Microcrystalline Cellulose Solutions Using DMSO as Co-Solvent with Ionic Liquid
Zhu, Chenchen; Koutsomitopoulou, Anastasia F.; Eichhorn, Stephen J.; Duijneveldt, Jeroen S. van; Richardson, Robert M.; Nigmatullin, Rinat; Potter, Kevin D.
There is a need to develop high-performance cellulose fibers as sustainable replacements for glass fibers, and as alternative precursors for carbon filaments. Traditional fiber spinning uses toxic solvents, but in this study, by using dimethyl sulfoxide (DMSO) as a co-solvent with an ionic liquid, a novel high-performance fiber with exceptional…
Hydrogelation Kinetics Measured in a Microfluidic Device with in Situ X-ray and Fluorescence Detection
Seibt, Susanne; With, Sebastian; Bernet, Andreas; Schmidt, Hans-Werner; Förster, Stephan
Efficient hydrogelators will gel water fast and at low concentrations. Small molecule gelling agents that assemble into fibers and fiber networks are particularly effective hydrogelators. Whereas it is straightforward to determine their critical concentration for hydrogelation, the kinetics of hydrogelation is more difficult to study because it is often very…
Structure of the Crystalline Core of Fiber-like Polythiophene Block Copolymer Micelles
Hayward, Dominic W.; Lunn, David J.; Seddon, Annela; Finnegan, John R.; Gould, Oliver E. C.; Magdysyuk, Oxana; Manners, Ian; Whittell, George R.; Richardson, Robert M.
The internal structure and cross-sectional geometry of fiber-like poly(3-hexylthiophene)-based block copolymer micelles has been determined using small- and wide-angle X-ray scattering (SAXS and WAXS, respectively) techniques alongside electron and atomic force microscopies. WAXS of concentrated micellar solutions demonstrated that the block copolymers form crystalline-core micelles in solvents…
Viscoelastic properties and reinforcement of non-aggregated and aggregated nanocomposites
Pirner, Daniela; Dulle, Martin; Förster, Stephan
We investigate the properties of polymer nanocomposites consisting of narrow disperse spherical nanoparticles that are coated with narrow disperse polymers. These nanoparticles can be homogeneously dispersed in a polymer matrix. The structure of the polymer-coated nanoparticles was examined by using small angle X-ray scattering (SAXS) and transmission electron microscopy (TEM),…