This article reports on the synthesis of thermo- and light-sensitive hydrophilic block copolymers, poly(ethylene oxide)-b-poly(ethoxytri(ethylene glycol) acrylate-co-o-nitrobenzyl acrylate), and the study of their micellization/dissociation transitions in water in response to temperature changes and UV irradiation. The block copolymers with controlled molecular weights and narrow polydispersities were synthesized by atom transfer radical polymerization of a mixture of ethoxytri(ethylene glycol) acrylate and o-nitrobenzyl acrylate with a molar ratio of 100:10 from a PEO macroinitiator. Dynamic light scattering and fluorescence spectroscopy studies showed that these copolymers were molecularly dissolved in water at lower temperatures and self-assembled into micelles with the thermosensitive block associating into the core and the PEO block forming the corona when the temperature was above the lower critical solution temperature (LCST) of the thermosensitive block. Upon UV irradiation, the o-nitrobenzyl group was cleaved and the LCST of the thermosensitive block was increased, causing the dissociation of micelles into unimers and the release of encapsulated fluorescent dye Nile Red into water. Further increasing the temperature induced the formation of micelles again and the re-encapsulation of Nile Red. The thermo-induced formation and dissociation of micelles were reversible.

We report the synthesis and thermosensitive properties of well‐defined water‐soluble polyacrylates and polystyrenics with short pendant oligo(ethylene glycol) groups. Four monomers, methoxydi(ethylene glycol) acrylate (DEGMA), methoxytri(ethylene glycol) acrylate (TEGMA), α‐hydro‐ω‐(4‐vinylbenzyl)tris(oxyethylene) (HTEGSt), and α‐hydro‐ω‐(4‐vinylbenzyl)tetrakis(oxyethylene) (HTrEGSt), were prepared and polymerized by nitroxide‐mediated radical polymerization with 2,2,5‐trimethyl‐3‐(1‐phenylethoxy)‐4‐phenyl‐3‐azahexane as an initiator. Kinetics and gel permeation chromatography analysis showed that the polymerizations were controlled processes yielding polymers with controlled molecular weights and narrow polydispersities. All polymers could be dissolved in water, forming transparent solutions, and undergo phase transitions when the temperature was above a critical point. The thermosensitive properties were studied by turbidimetry and variable‐temperature 1H NMR spectroscopy. The cloud points of the polymers of DEGMA, TEGMA, HTEGSt, and HTrEGSt were around 38, 58, 13, and 64 °C, respectively. For all four polymers, the cloud point increased with decreasing concentration and increasing molecular weight in the studied molecular weight range of 5000–30,000 g/mol. The removal of the nitroxide group from the polymer chain end resulted in a higher cloud point. © 2006 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part A: Polym Chem 44: 2454–2467, 2006

A polymer gel electrolyte using AlCl3 complexed acrylamide as a functional monomer and acidic ionic liquid based on a mixture of 1-ethyl-3-methylimidazolium chloride (EMImCl) and AlCl3 (EMImCl-AlCl3, 1-1.5, in molar ratio) as a plasticizer has been successfully prepared for the first time via free radical polymerization. Aluminum deposition is successfully achieved using a polymer gel electrolyte containing 80 wt% ionic liquid. The polymer gel electrolytes are also good candidates for rechargeable aluminum ion batteries.

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