Dataset Information

New aspects in the phase behaviour of poly-N-isopropyl acrylamide: systematic temperature dependent shrinking of PNiPAM assemblies well beyond the LCST.

ABSTRACT: We investigate the phase behaviour of aqueous dispersions of poly-N-isopropyl acrylamide (PNiPAM) microgels above their lower critical solution temperature (LCST) and find that beyond a well-defined concentration the systems exhibit a peculiar behaviour: the microgels assemble into space-spanning gels that shrink in time while maintaining the shape of the container in which they have been formed. Over a wide range of concentrations this shrinking behaviour is independent of PNiPAM concentration, but systematically depends on temperature in a temperature range significantly exceeding the LCST. The overall shrinking characteristics are consistent with those expected for scaffolds made of materials that exhibit thermal contraction. However, for the PNiPAM assemblies contraction is irreversible and can be as large as 90%. Such characteristics disclose complex interactions between fully collapsed PNiPAM and water well beyond the LCST, the origin of which has yet to be elucidated.

SUBMITTER: Bischofberger I

PROVIDER: S-EPMC4616040 | biostudies-literature | 2015

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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New aspects in the phase behaviour of poly-N-isopropyl acrylamide: systematic temperature dependent shrinking of PNiPAM assemblies well beyond the LCST.

Bischofberger Irmgard I Trappe Veronique V

Scientific reports 20151023

We investigate the phase behaviour of aqueous dispersions of poly-N-isopropyl acrylamide (PNiPAM) microgels above their lower critical solution temperature (LCST) and find that beyond a well-defined concentration the systems exhibit a peculiar behaviour: the microgels assemble into space-spanning gels that shrink in time while maintaining the shape of the container in which they have been formed. Over a wide range of concentrations this shrinking behaviour is independent of PNiPAM concentration, ...[more]

PMID: 26493499

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Project description:Thermoresponsive poly((N,N-dimethyl acrylamide)-co-(N-isopropyl acrylamide)) (P(DMA-co-NIPAM)) copolymers were synthesized via reversible addition-fragmentation chain transfer (RAFT) polymerization. The monomer reactivity ratios were determined by the Kelen-Tüdős method to be rNIPAM = 0.83 and rDMA = 1.10. The thermoresponsive properties of these copo-lymers with varying molecular weights were characterized by visual turbidimetry and dynamic light scattering (DLS). The copolymers showed a lower critical solution temperature (LCST) in water with a dependence on the molar fraction of DMA in the copolymer. Chaotropic and kosmotropic salt anions of the Hofmeister series, known to affect the LCST of thermoresponsive polymers, were used as additives in the aqueous copolymer solutions and their influence on the LCST was demonstrated. Further on, in order to investigate the thermoresponsive behavior of P(DMA-co-NIPAM) in a confined state, P(DMA-co-NIPAM)-b-PS diblock copolymers were prepared via polymerization induced self-assembly (PISA) through surfactant-free RAFT mediated emulsion polymerization of styrene using P(DMA-co-NIPAM) as the macromolecular chain transfer agent (mCTA) of the polymerization. As confirmed by cryogenic transmission electron microscopy (cryoTEM), this approach yielded stabilized spherical micelles in aqueous dispersions where the PS block formed the hydrophobic core and the P(DMA-co-NIPAM) block formed the hydrophilic corona of the spherical micelle. The temperature-dependent behavior of the LCST-type diblock copolymers was further studied by examining the collapse of the P(DMA-co-NIPAM) minor block of the P(DMA-co-NIPAM)-b-PS diblock copolymers as a function of temperature in aqueous solution. The nanospheres were found to be thermosensitive by changing their hydrodynamic radii almost linearly as a function of temperature between 25 °C and 45 °C. The addition of kosmotropic salt anions, as a potentially useful tuning feature of micellar assemblies, was found to increase the hydrodynamic radius of the micelles and resulted in a faster collapse of the micelle corona upon heating.

Dataset Information

New aspects in the phase behaviour of poly-N-isopropyl acrylamide: systematic temperature dependent shrinking of PNiPAM assemblies well beyond the LCST.

Publications

New aspects in the phase behaviour of poly-N-isopropyl acrylamide: systematic temperature dependent shrinking of PNiPAM assemblies well beyond the LCST.

Similar Datasets

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