Liang, Guixue; Yang, Shuo; Li, Jiang; Guo, Shaoyun
Preparation, Structure, and Properties of an Isotactic Polypropylene Film with Ultrahigh Content, Ordered, and Continuous ?-Transcrystallinity
?-Transcrystallinity (?-TC) of polypropylene (PP) is a novel kind of crystal that is of significant importance. Owing to the low content, discontinuity, and random distribution of ?-TC obtained by traditional methods, there has not been significant research on this particular crystal. Thus, its formation mechanism and growth law remain unclear…
Moebius strips of chiral block copolymers
Geng, Zhen; Xiong, Bijin; Wang, Liquan; Wang, Ke; Ren, Min; Zhang, Lianbin; Zhu, Jintao; Yang, Zhenzhong
The Moebius topology (twisted, single-sided strip) is intriguing because of its structural elegance and distinct properties. Here we report the generation of block copolymer Moebius strips via a fast self-assembly of chiral block copolymer polystyrene-block-poly(D-lactide acid) (PS-b-PDLA) in tetrahydrofuran/water mixed solvents. The Moebius strip is formed by morphological evolution from…
Transition Pathway between Gyroid and Cylindrical Morphology in Linear Triblock Terpolymer Thin Films
Guliyeva, Aynur; Vayer, Marylène; Warmont, Fabienne; Takano, Atsushi; Matsushita, Yushu; Sinturel, Christophe
A new transition between alternating gyroid (GA) structure and cylindrical morphology was observed in thin films for a poly(isoprene-block-styrene-block-(2-vinylpyridine)) (ISP) triblock terpolymer (I/S/P volume fraction = 0.20:0.66:0.14) exhibiting in bulk a Q214 (space group I4132) morphology. Thin films were organized using solvent vapor annealing (SVA) and characterized by atomic force
A unique Microfiltration membrane derived from the poly(ethylene-co-methyl acrylate)/Poly(vinylidene fluoride) (EMA/PVDF) biphasic blends and surface modification for antifouling application
Remanan, Sanjay; Chandra Das, Narayan
A new polymeric blend system is developed from the EMA and PVDF by melt-mixing at various blend compositions. Different techniques characterize the prepared blends, and especially, optical microscopy, XRD, and SAXS analyses study the blend crystallization. A microporous structure is prepared by selective solubilization of PVDF from the EMA/PVDF blends…
Structural evolution of flow-oriented high density polyethylene upon heating: In situ SAXS and WAXD studies
Liao, Tao; Zhao, Xintong; Yang, Xiao; Coates, Phil; Whiteside, Ben; Jiang, Zhiyong; Men, Yongfeng
The structural evolution of micro-injection molded high density polyethylene (HDPE) at the molecular and lamellar levels was investigated as a function of temperature during heating process using wide angle X-ray diffraction (WAXD) and small angle X-ray scattering (SAXS) techniques. The molded sample exhibits a peculiar multilayer structure of skin and…
Effect of Oleic Acid Coating of Iron Oxide Nanoparticles on Properties of Magnetic Polyamide-6 Nanocomposite
Gupta, Ranjeetkumar; Pancholi, Ketan; De Sa, Rulston; Murray, Duncan; Huo, Dehong; Droubi, Ghazi; White, Maggie; Njuguna, James
This work reports the development and testing of a magnetic polymer (Polyamide 6, PA6) nanocomposite capable of melting when exposed to an external magnetic field. Addition of high concentrations of iron oxide nanoparticles (NPs) can induce quick melting but is detrimental to the mechanical properties of the polymer. To reduce…
Correlation between mechanical properties and microscopic structures of an optimized silica fraction in silicone rubber
Liu, Dong; Song, Lixian; Song, Hongtao; Chen, Jie; Tian, Qiang; Chen, Liang; Sun, Liangwei; Lu, Ai; Huang, Chaoqiang; Sun, Guangai
The mechanical properties and the hierarchical filler structures were characterized on a series silica-filled silicone rubber with a filler fraction (?Si) varied from 0.05?phr to 80?phr (parts per hundred rubber). Uniaxial elongation measurement suggests that there is a percolation threshold between 10 and 30?phr. Moreover, an optimum ?Si range from…
A Near-Infrared Photoactuator Based on Shape Memory Semicrystalline Polymers toward Light-Fueled Crane, Grasper, and Walker
Yang, Qi; Peng, Chuang; Ren, Juntao; Zhao, Wenpeng; Zheng, Wenjie; Zhang, Chunyu; Hu, Yanming; Zhang, Xuequan
Light-driven soft actuators with adaptive shape changes, diverse geometric morphing, and reversible macroscopic movements have gained ever-increasing interest owing to their diverse applications ranging from biomedical to aerospace devices. Herein, presented is a near-infrared (NIR) light-stimulated actuator based on cis-1,4 polybutadiene-polyethylene semicrystalline copolymer. In the system, a
High-Performance Lignin-Containing Polyurethane Elastomers with Dynamic Covalent Polymer Networks
Liu, Weifeng; Fang, Chang; Wang, Shengyu; Huang, Jinhao; Qiu, Xueqing
High-performance lignin-containing polyurethane elastomers (LPUes) were successfully synthesized via partially substituting petroleum-derived polyols with depolymerized enzymatic hydrolysis lignin (DEL). The influences of DEL on the structure, thermostability, mechanical performance, and thermal reprocessability of LPUes were systematically studied. The tensile strength and toughness of PUes were
High-Performance Organic Electrochemical Transistors Based on Conjugated Polyelectrolyte Copolymers
Schmode, Philip; Ohayon, David; Reichstein, Paul M.; Savva, Achilleas; Inal, Sahika; Thelakkat, Mukundan
A new generation of polythiophene-based polyelectrolytes is reported to address fundamental issues in organic electrochemical transistors (OECTs). In such devices, the semiconductor must be able to transport and store ions and possess simultaneously a very high electronic mobility. For this, the ion-conducting 6-(thiophen-3-yl) hexane-1-sulfonate tetramethylammonium monomer (THSTMA+) is