Preparation of Hairy Particles and Antifouling Films Using Brush-Type Amphiphilic Block Copolymer Surfactants in Emulsion Polymerization

Abstract

Two series of well-defined brush-type amphiphilic block copolymers of polystyrene-b-poly-[poly(ethylene glycol) methyl ether methacrylate] (PS-b-P(PEGMA300) and PS-b-P(PEGMA1100)) were synthesized via atom transfer radical polymerization (ATRP) and used as surfactants in emulsion polymerization. The self-assembly behavior of these block copolymers in aqueous solution was studied by dynamic light scattering and cryogenic transmission electron microscopy. The critical micelle concentration of the synthesized polymers was found to depend on the length of the PEG side chains, but neither on the molar mass of the P(PEGMA) blocks nor the temperature. All of the block copolymers form micelles in the nanometer range. Emulsion polymerizations of styrene were carried out using the obtained brush-type amphiphilic block copolymers, and the influence of the block copolymer structure, surfactant concentration, and temperature was studied. The PS-b-P(PEGMA1100) copolymers seem to be the most efficient surfactants at low polymerization temperature, providing good colloidal stability. Monodisperse hairy particles with core-shell structures (observed by cryo-TEM) were obtained using the block copolymers with the long PEG side chain and the highest molar mass. Polystyrene films prepared from the latexes, containing the brush-type copolymers, display a lower contact angle than that obtained in films with conventional low molecular weight surfactants. In addition, the incorporation of PEGMA brushes on the polystyrene particles, and hence on the films, decreases the adsorption of proteins and, in this particular case, of bovine serum albumin.

Triblock copolymers of styrene and sodium methacrylate as smart materials: synthesis and rheological characterization

“…The possibility exists to introduce responsive behavior to parameters such as pH [3][4][5], temperature [6,7] or UV irradiation [2]. The versatility in properties has resulted in an increased attention in the last decades for application in several fields including smart materials [6,7], micro emulsion stabilization [8] and polymerization [9,10], coatings [11], drug delivery [12][13][14] and enhanced oil recovery [2,3,15,16].…”

Amphiphilic glycosylated block copolypeptides as macromolecular surfactants in the emulsion polymerization of styrene

“…[36][37][38] Previously we demonstrated that hybrid amphiphilic block copolymers comprising a hydrophilic glycosylated polypeptide block and a hydrophobic polystyrene block could efficiently stabilise styrene latex formation. [36][37][38] Previously we demonstrated that hybrid amphiphilic block copolymers comprising a hydrophilic glycosylated polypeptide block and a hydrophobic polystyrene block could efficiently stabilise styrene latex formation.…”

Facile Preparation of Monodisperse Poly(2‐hydroxyethyl acrylate)‐Grafted Poly(methyl methacrylate) Microspheres via Photoinitiated RAFT Dispersion Polymerization

“…Polymer‐grafted polymeric microspheres have attracted continuing interests due to their potential applications in coating, bioseparation, molecular imprinting, Pickering emulsion, organic/inorganic composite, and biomedical analysis . One important advantage of polymer‐grafted polymeric microspheres is the possibility to include certain functional groups on the shell periphery.…”

“…This is a more straightforward and efficient approach to prepare polymer‐grafted polymeric microspheres with relatively low density of grafted polymers. A large number of functional polymers (e.g., block copolymer and macromonomer) have been explored to synthesize polymer‐grafted polymeric microspheres by emulsion polymerization, precipitation polymerization, and dispersion polymerization . Despite the tremendous progress made in this research area, many challenges still remain to be addressed.…”