A detailed surface analytical study of degradation processes in (meth)acrylic polymers

The present study investigates the degradation behavior of various high‐molecular‐weight acrylic polymers (50,000 < M_n/g mol^?1 < 100,000), namely poly(methyl methacrylate) (PMMA), poly(n‐butyl methacrylate) (PBMA), poly(n‐butyl acrylate) (PBA), and poly(lauryl methacrylate) (PLMA), under extreme environmental conditions. These polymers were synthesized via various polymerization techniques to create different end‐groups. The polymers chosen are readily applicable in the formulation of surface coatings and were degraded under conditions which replicate the harsh Australian climate, where surface coatings may reach temperatures of up to 95 °C and are exposed to broad‐spectrum UV radiation of up to 1 kW m^?2. The degradation behavior of the polymeric materials on their surface was followed via ATR‐IR spectroscopy, high resolution FTIR microscopy, and X‐ray photoelectron spectroscopy. The extent of the observed thermal and photo‐oxidation is directly related to the length of the ester side group, with the degradation susceptibility decreasing in the order of PLMA > PBMA/PBA > PMMA, with PMMA still stable even after 5 months exposure to the harshest condition used (UV light at 95 °C). The general degradation mechanism involves the loss of the ester side groups to form methacrylic acid followed by cross‐linking. The effect of the variable end groups was found to be minimal. The results from this study are in good agreement with previous studies of low‐molecular‐weight model polymers under identical conditions. © 2012 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part A: Polym Chem, 2012     

Preparation of polymer optical fibers doped with nonlinear optical active organic chromophores

We synthesized two novel organic nonlinear optical chromophores—chiral S(+)‐N‐[p‐(4‐nitrostyryl) phenyl] prolinol and non‐chiral [p‐(4‐nitrostyryl) phenyl] piperdine—as potential laser‐active dyes for photonic applications. Both materials show good optical transmittance in the telecommunication frequency region, desirable solubility in acrylic polymer optical fiber matrices, and attractive fluorescence properties that are advantageous for laser‐gain materials and devices. Subsequently, these two chromophores were incorporated into poly(methyl methacrylate) and poly(ethyl methacrylate) and drawn into polymer optical fibers. The relevant properties of these organic dye‐doped fibers have been studied, revealing essential attributes of laser‐active characteristics. © 2001 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. J Polym Sci Part B: Polym Phys 39: 1794–1801, 2001     

Dual Photo‐functionalized Amphiphile for Photo‐reversible Liquid Crystal Alignments

Without the conventional polymer‐based liquid crystal (LC) alignment process, a newly synthesized dual photo‐functionalized amphiphile (abbreviated as ADMA₁) was successfully applied as a robust photo‐reversible LC alignment layer by self‐assembly and photo‐polymerization. The LC alignment layer constructed by directly adding dual photo‐functionalized amphiphiles into LC media significantly cuts the manufacturing cost as well as opens new doors for the fabrication of novel electro‐optical devices.     

Electro‐optical characteristics in phase separated liquid crystal/photo‐curable acrylic monomer mixture system

One of the main objectives of the experiment was to achieve the vertical aligned (VA) effect. To accomplish this, we employed liquid crystal (LC)/photo‐curable acrylic monomers mixture systems to prepare vertical alignment copolymer film (VACOF) for LC molecules with the photo‐polymerization induce phase separation (PIPS) process. From previous experimental results, we successfully fabricated LC devices without the micro‐protrusion structure. After the application of a saturated voltage, the LC molecules actually exhibited such interesting phenomena as uniaxial orientation, uniform single‐domain display state, etc. In this study, to obtain VACOF with smooth surface, we similarly controlled appropriate experimental conditions such as UV light exposure intensity and curing temperature, and altered process parameters such as the cell thickness, chemical structure length of the main chain type biphenol acrylic monomer [to simulate the main chain function of the traditional vertical alignment type polyimide (PI)], etc. During the experiment, we discovered that regardless of the cell thickness, this photo‐alignment system would yield the VACOF instead of the polymer disperse liquid crystal (PDLC) film morphology. Another notable finding was that the contrast ratio was heavily influenced by the length of the main chain type acrylic monomer structure for LC/monomer mixture systems, with enhancement of up to ～56%. Therefore, we further investigated the display effects, electro‐optical properties, etc. for these two main chain type acrylic monomer systems with different lengths and cell thicknesses. Copyright © 2011 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Synthesis of novel fluoroalkyl end‐capped oligomers/silica gel polymer hybrids possessing antibacterial activity

New fluoroalkyl end‐capped oligomers/silica gel polymer hybrids‐low‐molecular weight biocide (hibitane) composites were prepared by the reactions of tetraethoxysilane (TEOS) with fluoroalkyl end‐capped N‐(1,1‐dimethyl‐3‐oxobutyl)acrylamide oligomer, N,N‐dimethylacrylamide oligomers, and acrylic acid oligomers in methanol under acidic conditions at room temperature. The presence of hibitane in the composites was clarified by the use of elementary analyses of nitrogen in fluorinated acrylic acid oligomer composite and thermogravimetric analysis (TGA) of these fluorinated composites. Thermal stability of fluorinated composites thus obtained were found to increase significantly compared to those of the parent fluorinated oligomers. Thermal stability of fluorinated N,N‐dimethylacrylamide oligomer, acrylic acid oligomer/silica gel polymers hybrid‐hibitane composites decreased compared to those of the corresponding fluorinated oligomers/silica gel polymer hybrids; however, the thermal stability of fluorinated N‐(1,1‐dimethyl‐3‐oxobutylacryl)amide oligomer/silica gel polymer hybrid‐hibitane composite increased significantly compared to that of the corresponding fluorinated oligomer hybrid. The sol methanol solutions of these fluorinated composites were applied to the surface modification of glass to exhibit not only a strong oleophobicity imparted by end‐capped fluoroalkyl groups in oligomers but also a good hydrophilicity on the glass surface. Fluorinated oligomers/silica gel polymer hybrids‐hibitane composites were found to exhibit high anti‐bacterial activity against Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Staphylococcus aureus. Therefore, these fluorinated hibitane composites are suggested to have high potential for new attractive functional materials through not only their excellent surface active property imparted by fluorine and their thermal stability but also through their anti‐bacterial activity. Copyright © 2005 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Thermal stability of sol–gel derived methacrylate oligosiloxane-based hybrids for LED encapsulants

Methacrylate oligosiloxane-based hybrid materials (methacrylate hybrimers) were fabricated by curing the methacrylate oligosiloxane resins synthesized by sol–gel condensation reaction of 3-(trimethoxysilyl)propyl methacrylate (MPTS) and diphenylsilanediol (DPSD) for the LED encapsulant application. The fabricated hybrimers are optically transparent and have a high refractive index up to 1.565 depending on the precursor composition. The lower DPSD content hybrimer, which is the more polymerized and heated in a vacuum to remove the non-polymerized methacrylate groups, produces higher optical transmittance and thermal stability. This behavior is interpreted by thermal degradation of methacylate groups in the hybrimers.     

Preparation of magnetic nanoparticles by the use of self-assembled fluorinated oligomeric aggregates—A new approach to the dispersion of magnetic particles on poly(methyl methacrylate) film surface

Fluoroalkyl end-capped acrylic acid oligomer-encapsulated magnetic nanoparticles were prepared by the coprecipitation of aqueous ferric and ferrous ions in the presence of the corresponding oligomers under alkaline conditions. The dynamic light scattering measurements showed that these fluorinated oligomer magnetic nanoparticles were encapsulated in the self-assemblies of fluoroalkyl end-capped oligomers. Fluoroalkyl end-capped oligomer-encapsulated magnetic nanoparticles thus obtained were applied to the dispersion of magnetic particles on the poly(methyl methacrylate) film surface to exhibit not only the surface active property imparted by fluorine but also magnetic behavior toward a permanent magnet.     

Aminimide derived from benzoylformic acid ester as photolatent base/radical initiator

An aminimide possessing a benzoyl substituent, 1,1‐dimethyl‐1‐(2‐hydroxypropyl)amine benzoylformimide (BFI), proved to serve as an excellent photobase catalyst. BFI decomposes smoothly by the UV irradiation to give products containing tertiary amines. The effective nature of BFI as a photo/thermal dual‐base catalyst was convinced by the thermal and photoinduced polymerization of epoxide/thiol system. Based on the facts that the mixture of BFI and epoxide/thiol exhibit a long pot life in dark and that it undergoes smooth polymerization by UV irradiation and heating, it was supported that BFI serves as an efficient photo/thermal latent dual‐base catalysts. It was also found that BFI initiates the free radical polymerization of vinyl monomers such as 2‐hydroxylethyl methacrylate (HEMA) under the UV irradiation while the mixture of BFI and HEMA also exhibit a long pot life in dark, indicating the excellent ability of BFI as a photoradical initiator. © 2012 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part A: Polym Chem, 2012     

Synthesis of a novel high sensitive photo‐radical initiator with good thermal stability based on naphthalic‐1,8‐N‐alkylimide derivatives

A new high‐sensitive photo‐radical initiator, N‐[2‐(2‐acryloyloxyethoxy)ethyl]‐1,8‐naphthalimide (NI6), with good thermal stability based on naphthylimide derivative was developed. NI6 was prepared by the condensation of N‐[2‐(2‐hydroxyethoxy)ethyl]‐1,8‐naphthalimide and acryloyl chloride in the presence of 4‐dimethylaminopyridine. The film consisting of NI6 and pentaerythritol triacrylate (PETA) showed higher photosensitivity than those containing conventional photo‐radical initiators such as acrylic acid 2‐(2‐{2‐[2‐(4‐benzoyl‐phenoxy)‐ethoxy]‐ethoxy}‐ethoxy)‐ethyl ester, cyclohexylmaleimide, and the resulting film exhibited very high transmittance over 400 nm. The thermal stability of NI6 was very high and no decomposed residues were observed from the film consisting of NI 6 after heating at 250 °C for 1 h. © 2005 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part A: Polym Chem 43: 5571–5580, 2005     

Development of photocurable compositions with special properties

New photopolymerizable compositions (PPC) based on radically curable acrylic monomers and oligomers and cationically curable epoxy oligomers are developed. The properties of these compositions are studied, and the possibility of their application in technology of 3D-prototyping and coating of fiberglass plastics is shown.     

Preparation of fluorine containing hybrid coatings: investigation of coating performance onto ABS and PMMA substrates

UV‐curable fluorinated organic–inorganic hybrid coatings were prepared by the sol–gel technique. Perfluorinated urethane modified alkoxysilane was synthesized by the reaction between perfluoro alcohol and 3‐isocyanatopropyltrimethoxysilane. The prepared formulations were applied onto poly(methyl methacrylate) (PMMA) and acrylonitrile butadiene styrene (ABS) panels and polymerized by UV‐curing. The properties of the hybrid coatings such as hardness, chemical resistance, thermal stability, surface morphology, double bond conversion, and also contact angle measurements were investigated. Contact angle measurements have shown that the addition of fluorinated silane precursor to the hybrid system improved the water repellency and increased the contact angle from 65° to 106°. Copyright © 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Synthesis and Optical Properties on a Series of Polyethers Incorporating Terfluorene Segments and Methylene Spacers

A series of polyethers consisting of a modified terfluorenediol connected with a nonconjugated spacer were synthesized and characterized in respect to their thermal, electrochemical, optical and morphological properties. The polymers were further investigated as thin deposits with the use of the FT‐IR technique after thermal (200°C for 30 min) and photo‐oxidation treatment. After thermal treatment no generation of the carbonyl stretching mode of the fluorenone moiety is observed, while after photo‐oxidation in various times (between 5 to 30 min) the appearance of the fluorenone unit is well established. Furthermore, the length of the flexible spacer used influenced the optical properties of the polyethers after thermal treatment. In particular, odd ones showed more intensely the low energy emission band at 520 nm after the thermal treatment in contrast to even ones.     

Graft copolymers having hydrophobic backbone and hydrophilic branches. III. Synthesis of graft copolymers having oligovinylpyrrolidone as hydrophilic branch

Graft copolymers were synthesized by the esterification reaction between acrylic copolymers and carboxyl group terminated vinylpyrrolidone oligomer using phase transfer catalysts. Acrylic copolymers were obtained by the radical copolymerization of β-bromoethyl methacrylate, chloromethylstyrene or glycidyl methacrylate with methyl methacrylate. Hydrophilic oligomers were prepared by the radical oligomerization of vinylpyrrolidone using β-mercaptopropionic acid as chain transfer agent. The degree of esterification increased with decreasing the molecular weight of oligomer and with increasing the number of potential grafting sites on polymer backbones. The water dispersibility of graft copolymers increased with increasing the nitrogen content and was therefore dependent on the branch oligomer content.     

氟硅协同改性丙烯酸树脂的合成与防污性能研究

以甲基丙烯酸十二氟庚酯(FMA)、甲基丙烯酸聚二甲基硅氧烷基酯(SMA)、甲基丙烯酸甲酯、丙烯酸正丁酯、甲基丙烯酸正丁酯和丙烯酸乙酯为共聚单体,通过溶液聚合反应合成出侧链含有机氟、有机硅的丙烯酸树脂.通过核磁共振氢谱(1H-NMR)、核磁共振氟谱(19F-NMR)、红外光谱(FTIR)对聚合物的结构进行了表征.通过扫描电镜(SEM)、接触角测试和生物评价等方法,探讨了FMA、SMA含量对树脂涂膜性能的影响.结果表明氟硅改性的丙烯酸树脂比单独含氟或含硅改性的丙烯酸树脂具有更低的表面能,而且氟硅改性的丙烯酸树脂涂膜比商业化的聚硅氧烷涂膜具有更好的防污性能.     

Water-soluble dual-emitting nanocrystals for ratiometric optical thermometry

Multishell semiconductor nanocrystals have been synthesized that display intrinsic dual emission with robust photo and thermal stability and attractive thermal sensitivity. Dual emission is demonstrated following phase transfer into aqueous media. These nanocrystals are suitable for diverse optical thermometric or thermographic applications in biotechnology or other areas.     

Synthesis and surface properties of novel fluorinated polyurethane base on F‐containing chain extender

A novel fluorinated chain extender, (1‐(ethyl(2‐hydroxyethyl)amino)‐3‐ ((3,3,4,4,5,5,6,6,7,7,8,8,8‐tridecafluorooctyl)oxy)propan‐2‐ol) (FPO), was synthesized and characterized by nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR), Fourier transform infrared (FTIR), and elemental analysis. Poly (ether urethane)s containing various amounts of the chain extender with fluorinated side chains (FPUs) were prepared by isophorone diisocyanate (IPDI), polytetra‐methylene‐ether‐glycol (PTMG), 3‐aminopropyltriethoxysilane (KH‐550), and 1,4‐butandiol (BDO). Films of FPUs were investigated by water absorption, contact angle, pencil hardness, adhesive force, and thermal analysis. Coating FPUs on micro‐nano concave‐convex structure plate realizes superhydrophobic performance. Scanning electron microscope (SEM) and atomic force microscopy (AFM) demonstrated that there is a lot of irregular concave‐convex structure, which forms a typical air cushion model. X‐ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) analysis showed that surface fluorine content is 165% more than that of film average fluorine content. The superhydrophobic plate with 10% or higher F‐containing FPUs coating is of outstanding chemical corrosion resistance, excellent solvent resistance, and wear resistance.     

Photocurable oligo(hemiacetal ester)s having methacrylate side chains

Two types of oligo(hemiacetal ester)s which have methacrylate units and tertiary ester linkages in the side chains were synthesized by polyaddition of corresponding dicarboxylic acid with divinyl ether. One oligomer has a ortho linked main-chain structure, and the other one has meta and para linked main-chain structure. These oligomers were applied to a photocrosslinking system having photo/thermal degradable properties. On UV irradiation at 365 nm under N₂ atmosphere, oligomer films containing methyladamantyl methacrylate (MADMA), 2,2-dimethoxy-2-phenylacetophenone (DMPA), triphenylsulfonium triflate (TPST) became insoluble in acetone. Insolubilization behavior was not influenced by the difference of main-chain structure. When the crosslinked oligomer/MADMA films were irradiated at 254 nm and followed by baking, they became soluble in acetone. The effective baking temperature depended on the oligomer structure. The cleavage of hemiacetal ester and tertiary ester linkages was confirmed by FT-IR spectroscopy.     

Branched Azobenzene Side‐Chain Liquid‐Crystalline Copolymers Obtained by Self‐Condensing ATR Copolymerization

Summary: The one step synthesis of a series of branched azobenzene side‐chain liquid‐crystalline copolymers by the self‐condensing vinyl copolymerization (SCVCP) of a methyl acrylic AB* inimer, 2‐(2‐bromoisobutyryloxy)ethyl methacrylate (BIEM), with the monomer 6‐(4‐methoxy‐azobenzene‐4′‐oxy)hexyl methacrylate (M), by atom transfer radical polymerization (ATRP) in the presence of CuBr/N,N,N′,N′,N″‐pentamethyldiethylenetriamine as a catalyst system, and in chlorobenzene solvent, is reported. The degree of branching (DB), and the molecular weights and polydispersities of the resultant polymers were determined by NMR spectroscopy and size exclusion chromatography, respectively. The phase behaviors of the branched copolymers were characterized by differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) and thermal polarized optical microscopy (POM). The degree of branching of the branched copolymers could be controlled by the comonomer ratio in the feed and influenced their liquid‐crystal properties. Liquid‐crystal properties were not exhibited when the comonomer ratio was low. Comonomer ratios greater than 8 gave polymers with a lower number of branches, which exhibited both a smectic and a nematic phase.

A polarized optical micrograph of the smectic phase texture of a polymer synthesized here with a higher comonomer feed ratio (magnification × 400).     

Crosslinkable polymers for optical waveguide devices. II. Fluorinated ether ketone oligomers bearing ethynyl group at the chain end

Fluorinated ether ketone oligomers bearing a crosslinkable ethynyl group at the chain end have been investigated for low-loss polymer optical waveguide devices. These oligomers are designed to achieve low birefringence and were synthesized by the reaction of 4,4′-(hexafluoroisopropylidene)diphenol with an excess decafluorobenzophenone, followed by reaction with (phenylethynyl)phenol or ethynylphenol. The molecular weights (M_ns) and polydispersities of the oligomers determined by GPC with polystyrene standard are in the range of 6600–8500 g/mol and 1.79–2.04, respectively. By spin coating and thermal crosslinking, the polymer solutions easily provide the good optical quality thin films. The cured films show good chemical resistance and high thermal stability up to 460°C under nitrogen. At 1.55 µm wavelength, the refractive index and birefringence of the films show in the range of 1.5104–1.5172 and 0.0078–0.0014, respectively. The propagation loss of the single-mode channel waveguide was measured to be less than 0.5 dB/cm at 1.55 µm. © 1999 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. J Polym Sci A: Polym Chem 37: 2355–2361, 1999     

Synthesis of novel moisture‐curable polyurethanes end‐capped with trialkoxysilane and their application to one‐component adhesives

Novel silane endcappers and novel polyurethanes end‐capped with trimethoxysilane (silylated polyurethanes) were developed as water‐curable materials in which the curing reaction occurred under humid conditions in the presence of dioctyltin diversatate as a curing catalyst. A variety of amine‐terminated trimethoxysilane compounds were synthesized by the Michael addition reaction of commercially available 3‐aminopropyltrimethoxysilane with acrylates, and the resulting silane endcappers were used to react with isocyanate‐terminated polyurethanes, providing the silylated polyurethanes. The moisture‐curable silylated polyurethanes were used for the preparation of novel one‐component and solvent‐free adhesives. The evaluated properties were the curing speed, the tensile shear bond strength, and the adherence to some substrates. The longer alkyl chains of the silane endcappers derived from various acrylates led to a slower curing speed, lower tensile strength at break, and longer elongation at break of the silylated polyurethanes. The tensile shear bond strength of the silylated polyurethane‐based adhesive decreased with decreasing the trimethoxysilane end‐capping ratio, whereas an increase in the adherence was observed. The adherence to the acrylic substrate was improved by changes in the main‐chain structure of the polyurethane based on the composition of poly(propylene oxide) and poly(ethylene oxide). © 2007 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part A: Polym Chem 45: 2689–2704, 2007