We investigated the ring opening polymerization (ROP) of di- and tri-ethylene glycol monomethyl ether functionalized L-glutamate N-carboxyanhydrides (NCAs) using hexamethyldisilazane (HMDS) as primary initiator and 1,5,7-triazabicyclo-[4.4.0]dec-5-ene (TBD) as co-initiator. The binary initiator system afforded a living ROP for these pegylated NCAs, and a series of homopolypeptides with controlled molecular weight (MW) and low polydispersity were obtained. We then systematically studied the helical content and clouding point (CP) dependence on polypeptide MW using circular dichroism (CD) spectroscopy and turbidity measurements, respectively. We found that the helical content of both homopolypeptides increased with MW, but the triethylene glycol functionalized poly-L-glutamate (poly-L-EG₃Glu) intended to form more stable α-helical structure than diethylene glycol functionalized counterpart (poly-L-EG₂Glu) at similar MW. Accordingly, the CP of poly-L-EG₂Glu with known end group has strong dependence on its helical content, which is essentially determined by MW. Our results suggested that the thermal responsive properties of these unique pegylated poly-L-glutamates not only rely on their chemical structure but also on their secondary structures, which is different from conventional thermal responsive polymers.

Current-voltage electrical behavior of in situ microfibrillar carbon black (CB)/poly(ethylene terephthalate) (PET)/polyethylene (PE) (m-CB/PET/PE) composites with various CB concentrations at ambient temperatures was studied under a direct-current electric field. The current-voltage (I-V) curves exhibited nonlinearity beyond a critical value of voltage. The dynamic random resistor network (DRRN) model was adopted to semi-qualitatively explain the nonlinear conduction behavior of m-CB/PET/PE composites. Macroscopic nonlinearity originated from the interfacial interactions between CB/PET micro fibrils and additional conduction channels. Combined with the special conductive networks, an illustration was proposed to interpret the nonlinear I-V characteristics by a field emission or tunneling mechanism between CB particles in the CB/PET microfibers intersections.

Two pH-responsive amphiphilic diblock copolymers, namely polyisobutylene-block-poly[2-(N,N-dimethylamino) ethyl methacrylate] (PIB-b-PDMAEMA) and polyisobutylene-block-poly(metharylic acid) (PIB-b-PMAA), were synthesized via oxyanion-initiated polymerization, and their multiple self-assembly behaviors have been studied. An exo-olefin-terminated highly reactive polyisobutylene (HRPIB) was first changed to hydroxyl-terminated PIB (PIB-OH) via hydroboration-oxidation of C=C double bond in the chain end, and then reacted with KH to yield a potassium alcoholate of PIB (PIB-O⁻K⁺). PIB-O⁻K⁺ was immediately used as a macroinitiator to polymerize DMAEMA monomer, resulting in a cationic diblock copolymer PIB-b-PDMAEMA. With the similar synthesis procedure, the anionic diblock copolymer PIB-b- PMAA could be prepared via a combination of oxyanion-initiated polymerization of tert-butyl methacrylate (tBMA) and subsequent hydrolysis of tert-butyl ester groups in PtBMA block. The functional PIB and block copolymers have been fully characterized by ¹H-NMR, FT-IR spectroscopy, and gel permeation chromatography (GPC). These samples allowed us to systematically investigate the effects of block composition on the pH responsivity and various self-assembled morphologies of the copolymers in THF/water mixed solvent. Transmission electron microscopy (TEM) images revealed that these diblock copolymers containing small amount of original PIB without exo-olefin-terminated group are able to self-assemble into micelles, vesicles with different particle sizes and cylindrical aggregates, depending on various factors including block copolymer composition, solvent polarity and pH value.

As a part of a serial work about the annealing inducing improvement of fracture toughness of polypropylene (PP) articles, in this work, a highly efficient mobilizer was introduced into PP and the injection-molded samples were annealed at different temperatures. The mobility of chain segments of PP was investigated by measuring the glass transition temperature. Differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) and wide angle X-ray diffraction (WAXD) were used to characterize the variation of crystalline structure of PP during the annealing process. The fracture behaviors including notched Izod impact fracture and universal tensile fracture were investigated to detect the mechanical properties in response to the variations of both chain segments mobility and crystalline structures. It was found that the mobilizer greatly improved the chain segments mobility. Further results showed that the mobilizer also induced apparent changes of the glass transition temperature and the degree of crystallinity of PP during the annealing process. Consequently, the annealed PP samples containing a few amount of mobilizer exhibited largely increased fracture toughness.

Chloranil through condensation reaction with vicinal diamine such as diaminomaleonitrile produced heterocyclic monomer, p-benzoquinonebis[2,3-b; 2′,3′-b′]pyrazine-5,6-dinitrile. The tetranitrile monomer was cyclo-tetramerised using lithium/pentanol and acetic acid affording the corresponding tetra p-benzoquinone bis[2,3-b; 2′,3′-b′]pyrazinoporphyrazine)]- based network polymer (2H-Pz). The tetranitril monomer was cyclo-tetramerised using metal salt and quinoline affording the corresponding porphyrazinato-metal II-based network polymers (M-Pz), M = Co, Ni or Cu. Elemental analytical results, IR and NMR spectral data of the prepared molecules are consistent with their assigned formulations. Molecular masses and metal contents of the synthesized polymers proved to be of high molecular masses which confirm the efficiency of tetramerization polymerization and complexation reactions. The prepared pyrazinoporphyrazines were used as efficient catalysts for the oxidation of thiophenol and benzylthiol to their disulfides in the presence of air atmosphere. The results of oxidation of thiophenol and benzylthiol show that after 15 min the maximum yield of the corresponding disulfides reached 95%, 91%, respectively.

Self-healing poly(urea-urethane)s (PUUs) showing a tolerance to mechanical damage are particularly desirable for high-performance elastomeric biomaterials. In this study a kind of biodegradable PUUs was synthesized from poly(ε-caprolactone) diol with L-lysine ethyl ester diisocyanate (LDI) extended with L-lysine ethyl ester dihydrochloride (LEED) in DMF, characterized by using ¹H-NMR, FTIR, DSC, XRD, SEM, tensile tests. Interestingly, they exhibited a self-healing characteristic upon exposure to 37℃ for as short as 30 min with the tensile strength keeping at 4.23 MPa and the elongation at break reaching to 627%. It is revealed that increasing the hard segment content in PUUs benefits the self-healing performance, and on the opposite increasing the soft segment content contributes to the biodegradability.

The sol-gel transition of methylcellulose (MC) solutions in the presence of ortho-methoxycinnamic acid (OMCA) or cetyltrimethylammonium bromide (CTAB) and in the coexistence of OMCA and CTAB was determined by the rheological measurement. It has been found that the sol-gel transition temperature of MC solutions increases linearly with the concentration of either OMCA or CTAB in solution, respectively. However, in the coexistence of OMCA and CTAB, the sol-gel transition temperature of MC solutions remains invariable, independent of the concentration of CTAB in solution. The experimental results show that OMCA has priority to adsorb on the methyl group of MC chains to form polymer-bound aggregates. In particular, these aggregates inhibit the hydrophobic interaction between CTAB and the methyl group of MC chains completely. Taking into account the fact that OMCA is almost insoluble in MC-free solutions but dissolves very well in aqueous MC solutions, we propose the formation of the core-shell architecture prompted by OMCA and the methyl group of MC chains, with the methyl group of MC chains serving as the core and the self-assembly of OMCA molecules serving as the shell. Obviously, the formation of the core-shell structure increases the solubility of OMCA, improves the stability of methyl groups of MC chains at high temperatures and inhibits the hydrophobic interaction between CTAB and the methyl group of MC chains in solution. The abnormal behavior relating to the sol-gel transition of MC solutions in the presence of OMCA or in the coexistence of OMCA and CTAB is therefore explained. Upon UV irradiation, the sol-gel transition temperature of MC solutions in the presence of OMCA, or in the coexistence of OMCA and CTAB, decreases notably. However, the dependence of the sol-gel transition temperature of MC solutions as a function of OMCA concentration, or CTAB concentration in the presence of OMCA, does not change after UV irradiation.

In the present work, structure changes during stretching of isotactic polypropylene (iPP) and iPP/silicon dioxide (SiO₂) composites have been investigated systematically. The α-form crystal structure of both iPP and iPP/SiO₂ composites is destroyed and transforms into the mesophase as the samples are stretched at a low temperature (35℃), while stretching at high temperatures (90℃ and 120℃) can restrain the appearance of defects and keep the perfection of crystal structure. FTIR results reveal that the stretching temperatures show no obvious difference of the effect on the orientation of pure iPP, however, the orientation of iPP/SiO₂ composites is greatly changed by the tensile temperature. In the case of micron-sized SiO₂ particles (average particle diameter d > 1 μm), the orientation of the composites is lower than that of pure iPP at all stretching temperatures. The above results suggest that the stretching temperature and the SiO₂ particle size have great influence on the structure variation and orientation behavior of iPP/SiO₂ composites.

To improve the hydrophilicity of poly(styrene-b-isobutylene-b-styrene) (SIBS), this study focuses on the synthesis of novel functional ABA triblock copolymer thermoplastic elastomers (TPEs) with polyisobutylene (PIB) as rubbery segments. The precursor poly{(styrene-co-4-[2-(tert-butyldimethylsiloxy) ethyl]styrene)-b-isobutylene-b-(styrene-co-4-[2-(tert-butyldimethylsiloxy)ethyl]styrene)}(P(St-co-TBDMES)-PIB-P(St-co-TBDMES)) triblock copolymer was first synthesized by living sequential cationic copolymerization of isobutylene (IB) with styrene (St) and 4-[2-(tert-butyldimethylsiloxy) ethyl]styrene (TBDMES) using 1,4-di(2-chloro-2-propyl)benzene (DiCumCl)/titanium tetrachloride (TiCl₄)/2,6-di-tert-butylpyridine (DtBP) as the initiating system. Then, P(St-co-TBDMES)-PIB-P(St-co-TBDMES) was hydrolyzed in the presence of tetra-butylammonium fluoride to yield poly{[styrene-co-4-(2-hydroxyethyl)styrene]-bisobutylene-b-[styrene-co-4-(2-hydroxyethyl)styrene]} (P(St-co-HOES)-PIB-P(St-co-HOES)) with pendant hydroxyl groups. P(St-co-HOES)-PIB-P(St-co-HOES) used as the paclitaxel carrier was also investigated in this study. Comparing with SIBS, P(St-co-HOES)-PIB-P(St-co-HOES) has exhibited better compatibility with paclitaxel and higher release rate.

Single-hole hollow polymer nanospheres were fabricated by raspberry-like template method using "graft-from" strategy through atom transfer radical polymerization (ATRP). Nanometer-sized silica spheres were covalently attached onto the surfaces of micrometer-sized silica spheres. Crosslinked polymer shells on the nano-sized spheres outside the attached area were formed by "graft-from" strategy through ATRP. After removal of the silica cores, single-hole hollow crosslinked polymer nanospheres were obtained. In this strategy, most of ATRP monomers may be used and thus many functional groups can be easily incorporated into the single-hole hollow crosslinked polymer nanospheres.

Synthesis and ion transport properties of hot-pressed solid polymer electrolytes (SPEs), (1−x) PEO: x KI, where x is the content of KI in wt%, are reported. A hot-press technique has been used for the formation of the polymeric membranes in place of the usual solution cast method. The composition (80 PEO:20 KI) was identified as the highest conducting polymer electrolyte on the basis of compositional dependent conductivity studies of PEO:KI films. A conductivity enhancement of more than two orders of magnitude from that of the pure PEO was achieved. Materials characterization and ion transport mechanism were explained by using various experimental techniques.

To improve the performances of HDPE-based separators, polyether chains were incorporated into HDPE membranes by blending with poly(ethylene-block-ethylene glycol) (PE-b-PEG) via thermally induced phase separation (TIPS) process. By measuring the composition, morphology, crystallinity, ion conductivity, etc, the influence of PE-b-PEG on structures and properties of the blend separator were investigated. It was found that the incorporated PEG chains yielded higher surface energy for HDPE separator and improved affinity to liquid electrolyte. Thus, the stability of liquid electrolyte trapped in separator was increased while the interfacial resistance between separator and electrode was reduced effectively. The ionic conductivity of liquid electrolyte soaked separator could reach 1.28 × 10⁻³ S⋅cm⁻¹ at 25℃, and the electrochemical stability window was up to 4.5 V (versus Li⁺/Li). These results revealed that blending PE-b-PEG into porous HDPE membranes could efficiently improve the performances of PE separators for lithium batteries.

Polyion complex (PIC) micelles were spontaneously formed in aqueous solutions through electrostatic interaction between two oppositely charged block copolymers, poly(N-isopropylacrylamide)-b-poly(L-glutamic acid) and poly(N-isopropylacrylamide)-b-poly(L-lysine). Their controlled synthesis was achieved via the ring opening polymerization of N-carboxyanhydrides (NCA), ε-benzyloxycarbonyl-L-lysine (Lys(Z)-NCA) or γ-benzyl-L-glutamate (BLG-NCA) with amino-terminated poly(N-isopropylacrylamide) macroinitiator and the subsequent deprotection reaction. The formation of PIC micelles was confirmed by dynamic light scattering and transmission electron microscopy. Turbidimetric characterization suggested that the formed PIC micelles had a concentration-dependent thermosensitivity and their phase transition behaviors could be easily adjusted either by the block length of coplymers or the concentration of micelles.

Nano-sized rod-like titanium dioxide (TiO₂) filled rigid poly(vinyl chloride) (PVC) nanocomposites were prepared by using injection-molding method. Vicat, Charpy impact and tensile tests as well as thermogravimetric and dynamic mechanical analyses were used to characterize the structure and properties of the nanocomposites. The results showed that nano-TiO₂ could improve Vicat softening temperature and also improve thermal stability of PVC during the stages of dehydrochlorination and formation of carbonaceous conjugated polyene sequences, which can be ascribed to restriction of the nanoparticles on the segmental relaxation as being evidenced by raises in glass transition and β-relaxation temperatures of PVC upon filling TiO₂. Addition of TiO₂ nanoparticles less than 40 phr (parts per hundreds of resin) could significantly improve impact strength of the composites while the TiO₂ agglomeration at high contents leads to a reduction in impact toughness.

The effects of the spin coating process parameters on the thickness of the SiO_x layer of the BOPP/SiO_x composite film were investigated. When the concentration of tetraethoxysilane (TEOS) increased from 12.5 vol% to 55% vol%, the SiO_x thickness increased from about 80 nm to 470 nm. In the sol time range of 1.5 h to 5 h the SiO_x layer thickness reached a maximum at about 4 h and the change of the thickness roughly matched the change of the silica colloidal sphere sizes in sol. When the spin-coating speed of the dispensing stage increased from 450 r/min to 500 r/min, the SiO_x layer thickness drastically decreased from about 1.67 μm to 400 nm. While the spin-coating speed of the thinning and drying stage went up to 1200 r/min, the SiO_x layer thickness was in the range of 330 nm to 390 nm. It was also found that the SiO_x layer thickness was almost increased linearly from about 500 nm to 1.02 μm with the ratio of the commercial silica colloidal to the TEOS from 0.2 to 1.0. The water contact angles decreased to about 23.0° for the BOPP/Si-Sol composite film with 1.67 μm SiO_x layer and about 4.0° for the BOPP/mixing Si-Sol composite film with 1.02 μm SiO_x layer. Compared to BOPP, the light transparency of the BOPP/Si-Sol composite films decreased by about 5.5% with the SiO_x layer from about 80 nm to 1.67 μm and by 7.0% for the BOPP/mixing Si-Sol composite film with the SiO_x layer from about 350 nm to 1.02 μm respectively.

Vinyl acetate radical emulsion polymerization in water with GF51 silane co-monomer was performed by semi continuous way. The GF51 impacts on dispersion rheology as well on films and bonding strength properties were determined. It should be stated that even low quantities of GF51 (up to 6% from VAc) determined high viscosity of dispersions. The GF51 modified films have low water absorption and high affinity to glass. Molecular mass and thermal properties of GF51 modified polymers were determined accordingly.

Acyclic diene metathesis polymerization (ADMET) enables convenient transfer of sequential information of the designed monomers to the corresponding sequence-regulated copolymers. In this study, two structurally symmetric monomers, M1 and M2, were synthesized via atom transfer radical addition (ATRA) of diethyl meso-2,5-dibromohexanedioate with 1,5-hexadiene and 1,7-octadiene, respectively. Thus, sequenced segment of VB-EA-EA-VB (VB and EA represent vinyl bromide and ethyl acrylate, respectively) was incorporated into the ADMET diene monomers. ADMET polymerization of these two monomers with Grubbs first generation catalyst (Grubbs-I) was performed in CH₂Cl₂ at 40℃ for 5 days under nitrogen purge. Effects of catalyst amount, monomer concentration and methanol precipitation on the M_p and PDI of polymers were investigated by GPC, and the structures of the formed polymers were characterized by NMR. Our results indicate that using 3.0 mol% of Grubbs-I to monomer can afford polymers with high M_p. Moreover, selective precipitation in methanol enables complete removal of low molecular weight components from the crude products. Meanwhile, M2 exhibits higher ADMET polymerization reactivity than M1 due to its capability of suppressing negative neighboring group effect.

In this study, a UV-curable polysiloxane methacrylate (PSMA) was synthesized by a one-step method. The reaction was catalyzed by chloroplatinic acid between polymethylhydrosiloxane (PMHS) and hydroxyethyl methacrylate (HEMA), as proved by FTIR and ¹H-NMR. The preliminary results indicate that the obtained UV-cured PSMA film has very good thermal stability, excellent transparency and satisfactory tensile strength. Our work provides a simple but efficient way to prepare UV-curable PSMA, which may find potential applications in UV-curing optical fiber, metal and glass coating and other fields.