Light scattering study of solubilization of organic molecules by block copolymer micelles in aqueous media

Block copolymers, when dissolved in a selective solvent, form spherical micelles. These micelles can selectively solubilize organic molecules otherwise insoluble in the pure solvent. In this study, we report solubilization of organic molecules by styrene-methacrylic acid block copolymer micelles in aqueous buffers. A light scattering technique was developed to determine the extent of micellar solubilization. Our results indicate that the extent of micellar solubilization depends on the chemical nature of organic molecules, specifically, on the interactions between the organic compound and polystyrene. A thermodynamic model has been developed to describe micellar solubilization. The theoretical calculation agrees reasonably well with the experimental results for two micellar samples examined. ©1995 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.     

Rodlike micelles of dimethyloleylamine oxide in aqueous NaCl solutions,and their flexibility and size distribution

Angular dependence of light scattering from aqueous NaCl solutions of dimethyloleylamine oxide has been measured in the presence of NaCl from 5×10^–4 M to 10^–1 M at 25 °C. The molecular weight and radius of gyration of micelles increase with increasing micelle concentration and reach constant values, suggesting occurrence of the sphere-rod equilibrium dependent on the micelle concentration. With increasing NaCl concentration, rodlike micelles are larger in molecular weight and become longer. The micelles formed at NaCl concentrations higher than 10^–3 M are nearly monodisperse when the micelle concentration is high.Rodlike micelles of dimethyloleylamine oxide in 10^–2 M and 5 × 10^–2 M NaCl solutions have molecular weights of 4,760,000 and 6,900,000, respectively, and behave as semi-flexible or wormlike chains. In 5×10^–2 M NaCl they have a contour length of 5750 Å and a persistence length of 1760 Å. These micelle parameters correspond to the end-to-end distance of 3780 Å and the number of Kuhn's statistical segments of 1.64. The large aggregation number of the rodlike micelles is induced by the strong cohesion of long hydrocarbon chains in solution, and their flexibility is caused by the hydration of amine oxide groups.     

Scattering properties,stability analysis,and phase separation of polyelectrolyte mixtures

The conditions of stability for weakly charged polyelectrolyte mixtures are analyzed from a scattering theory developed previously. In the thermodynamic limit of zero wave vector q = 0, it is found that electrostatic interaction induces a compatibility enhancement which is discussed for various cases of charge distributions. The condition of microphase separation transition at the wave vector for which the scattering is a maximum is also discussed. © 1993 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.     

Phase separation in dilute polymer solutions at high‐rate extension

In this article the demixing instability and phase segregation in unentangled polymer solutions of semiflexible chains at high‐rate uniaxial extension above the coil to stretched coil transition was studied. Orientation of the stretched chains was described in terms of an effective potential field. Based on the free energy analysis it was shown that the flow‐induced orientation of polymer segments could drastically reduce the energy of their steric repulsion. As a result attraction between the chains gain more importance, and this effect lead to the demixing process and eventual segregation of polymer from the solvent if the strain rate exceeds some critical value. A mean‐field theory was developed to study this flow‐induced phase separation effect. The phase diagrams of the system showing the spinodal and binodal transitions at different extension rates were calculated and discussed. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Polym. Sci., Part B: Polym. Phys. 2016 , 54, 1066–1073     

Laser speckle analysis on correlation between gelation and phase separation in aqueous methyl cellulose solutions

Structure formation by coupling between formation of crosslinking points and liquid–liquid phase separation was investigated for aqueous methyl cellulose solution by small‐angle X‐ray scattering (SAXS) and light scattering (LS) techniques. The sol–gel phase diagram and the SAXS results suggested that the liquid–liquid phase separation occurred before gelation. By LS measurements, the structure due to the liquid–liquid phase separation was directly observed. By applying speckle analysis on the LS profiles, it was suggested that the gelation and the phase separation strongly coupled each other: the increase in the apparent molecular weight by crosslinking induced the liquid–liquid phase separation. © 2009 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part B: Polym Phys 48: 168–174, 2010     

Self-organization in aqueous solutions of thermosensitive statistical copolymers based on N-(dimethylamino)ethyl methacrylate

Thermo- and pH-responsive statistical copolymers of N-(dimethylamino)ethyl methacrylate and lauryl methacrylate were synthesized by free radical copolymerization. Obtained samples differed in content of hydrophobic components (3 and 6?mol. %). Their molar masses were close to 30,000?g/mol. Self-organization in buffer solutions of copolymers were studied using light scattering and turbidimetry. It was found that copolymers as well as of poly(N-(dimethylamino)ethyl methacrylate) were thermosensitive at pH?>?7. Phase separation temperatures of investigated solutions decreased with dilution and pH increasing. Growth of lauryl methacrylate content in copolymers caused the decrease in phase separation temperatures.     

Enthalpies of solution and dilution of butanol and pentanol in dodecyltrimethylammonium bromide micellar solutions

The enthalpies of solution and of dilution of 1-butanol and 1-pentanol were measured in micellar solutions of dodecyltrimethylammonium bromide by systematically changing the concentration of alcohols and surfactant. The enthalpies of solution at infinite dilution of alcohols at each surfactant concentration were evaluated from a linear plot. This quantity increases with surfactant concentration (up to 0.8m) with a curvature which depends on the alcohol alkyl chain length. The difficulties arising for a quantitative treatment of both the enthalpies of dilution and of solution at finite alcohol concentrations are discussed. The dependence on the surfactant concentration of the standard enthalpies of solution and the enthalpies of dilution for m0 are rationalized. From the resulting equations the distribution constant, standard enthalpy of transfer, standard enthalpy of solution, and the alcohol-alcohol interaction parameter in the micellar phase are evaluated. The enthalpies of transfer obtained using this technique agree well with those previously reported from enthalpies of mixing. The distribution constants also agree with those reported in the literature from several approaches: mixing enthalpies, partial molar volumes, and the dependence of the cmc on added alcohol.     

Phase separation in mixtures of ionic liquids and water

The phase separation of ionic liquids (ILs) in water is studied by laser light scattering (LLS). For the ILs with longer alkyl chains, such as [C(8)mim]BF(4) and [C(6)mim]BF(4) (mim = methylimidazolium), macroscopic phase separation occurs in the mixture with water. LLS also reveals the coexistence of the mesoscopic phase, the size of which is in the order of 100-800 nm. In aqueous mixtures of ILs with shorter alkyl chains, such as [C(4)mim]BF(4), only the mesoscopic phase exists. The mesoscopic phase can be effectively removed by filtration through a 0.22 μm filter. However, it reforms with time and can be enhanced by lowering the temperature, thus indicating that it is controlled by thermodynamics. The degree of mesoscopic phase separation can be used to evaluate the miscibility of ILs with water. This study helps to optimize the applications of ILs in related fields, as well as the recycling of ILs in the presence of water.     

Cd(II) determination in the presence of aqueous micellar solutions

The equilibrium constants and molar absorptivities for the fast formation of a 1:3 complex between cadmium(II) (Cd(II)) and dithizonate anion, in the presence of cationic and non-ionic surfactants, allowed a simple and fast spectrophotometric determination of total cadmium. Indeed, the molar absorptivities of the Cd(II)-dithizone (Dz) complex formed in the presence of the neutral Triton X-100 and cationic cetyltrimethylammonium bromide (CTAB) surfactants are almost twice the value observed in the standard method and the maxima of absorption are shifted by about 40 nm when compared with the standard method. Clearly, the use of neutral and cationic surfactants promotes a higher value of the molar absorptivities of the complex, resulting in an increase in the sensitivity of the method. Application of the method to the desorption of Cd(II) ions from clays is illustrated.     

Composition dependence of ordered structures in mixed micellar aqueous solutions of hydrophobically modified poly(ethylene glycol)s

Ordered structures of micellar aqueous solutions of poly(ethylene glycol) (PEG) monododecylether mixtures [octaethylene glycol monododecylether (C12E8) and poly(ethylene glycol) monododecylether (C12E25)] have been investigated as a function of the C12E8/C12E25 composition by means of X‐ray scattering. C12E8 and C12E25 have different chain lengths of corona PEG, that is, 8 and 25 repeating units, respectively. The following results have been obtained. First, in the C12E8‐rich and C12E25‐rich regions, the mixtures take hexagonal and cubic phases, respectively. The hexagonal phase remains over a wider range of compositions and is more stable for the mixing of the other component than the cubic phase. Second, in the C12E8‐rich region of the cylindrical hexagonal packing, the nearest‐neighbor micellar distance increases, whereas the association number density remains constant, with an increasing amount of mixed C12E25 possessing longer corona chains. Third, in contrast to this, the nearest‐neighbor micellar distance of the body‐centered cubic packing exhibits almost no change, whereas the association number increases as C12E8 of shorter corona chains is increasingly incorporated. Fourth, self‐consistent field calculations reasonably reproduce the experimental findings of the second and third observations. We discuss the phase stability and the structural changes with the composition in terms of differences in the PEG corona‐chain length. © 2005 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part B: Polym Phys 43: 2474–2483, 2005     

Light scattering and fluorescence photobleaching recovery study of poly(amidoamine) cascade polymers in aqueous solution

Diffusion coefficients of polyamidoamine cascade polymers (PAMAMs) were measured in aqueous solutions by dynamic light scattering and, after labeling with fluorescein isothiocyanate, by fluorescence photobleaching recovery. The dynamic light scattering results depended weakly on pH at a high salt concentration, but varied strongly with the concentration of added salt in the low-salt limit. The fluorescence photobleaching recovery values were almost independent of salt concentration. The difference between the two techniques is that thermodynamic nonideality strongly affects light scattering at the concentrations that are experimentally accessible. The hydrodynamic sizes from fluorescence photobleaching recovery were somewhat smaller than those from dynamic light scattering in the high-salt limit, despite attachment of the dye. Nevertheless, fluorescently tagged PAMAMs should make suitable markers and diffusion probes. © 1996 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.     

Phase behaviors of poly(sulfobetaine methacrylate) in various concentrations of NaCl aqueous solutions at critical transparent state

The phase behaviors of poly(sulfobetaine methacrylate) (polySBMA) in various concentrations of NaCl aqueous solutions at critical transparent state were investigated utilizing UV–vis analytical techniques. The effects of the molecular weight and temperature on the phase behavior of polySBMA at the critical transparent state were discussed in detail depending on the relationship between the concentration of NaCl, the concentration of critical polySBMA structural unit, and the molar ratio (R_C) of NaCl to the critical polySBMA structural unit. The results demonstrate that there exists a positive polymer concentration effect on the transparency. A relationship between the molecular weight, the concentration of NaCl, and the concentration of critical polySBMA structural unit was obtained, which provides a new method for measurement of the molecular weight of polySBMA. The polymer concentration effect for the polySBMA solutions at lower temperature was remarkable, which was similar to that for the polySBMA solutions with higher molecular weight.     

Water-induced micellar structures of block copoly(oxyethylene-oxypropylene-oxyethylene) in o-xylene

We previously reported the water-induced micelle formation of copoly(oxyethylene-oxy-propylene-oxyethylene), Pluronic L64, in o-xylene. The micellar properties could be controlled by varying the water to EO ratio (Z) in micelles. in micelles. In this paper, laser light scattering, transient electric birefringence (TEB), and synchrotron small-angle x-ray scattering (SAXS) were used to study the micellar structure at different Z values. Both TEB and SAXS results further confirmed the micellar shape transition from that of a sphere to a nonspherical shape. A comparison between TEB and dynamic light-scattering results as well as the SAXS experiments showed an ellipsoidal shape for micelles when Z > 1.3 with the oblate being the more reasonable form for fitting all the experimental parameters. The degree of asymmetry appeared to be not high. © 1993 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.     

Dilute solution properties of poly(dimethyldiallylammonium chloride) in aqueous sodium chloride solutions

MW fractions of poly(dimethyldiallylammonium chloride) (PDMDAAC) were prepared by preparative size-exclusion chromatography and characterized by static and dynamic light scattering, viscometry, size-exclusion chromatography, and electrophoretic light scattering, in 0.50M NaCl solution. The behavior of fractions with MW < 2 × 10⁵ was as expected for a strong polyelectrolyte in a good solvent, with a Mark-Houwink exponent of ca. 0.8, and MW-dependencies of the hydrodynamic radius and the radius of gyration of corresponding magnitude. At higher MW, curvature appears in the MW-dependencies, which can be best explained by the presence of branching. While this notably lowers the intrinsic viscosity at high MW, the electrophoretic mobility is unchanged regardless of molar mass. Thus, the branched polymers display the electrophoretic free-draining behavior characteristic of linear polyelectrolytes. ©1995 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.     

Chain dimensions and transport coefficients of sodium poly(isoprenesulfonate) in aqueous sodium chloride

Sodium poly(isoprenesulfonate) (NaPIS) fractions consisting of 1,4‐ and 3,4‐isomeric units (0.44:0.56) and ranging in molecular weight from 4.9 × 10³ to 2.0 × 10⁵ were studied by static and dynamic light scattering, sedimentation equilibrium, and viscometry in aqueous NaCl of a salt concentration (C_s) of 0.5‐M at 25 °C. Viscosity data were also obtained at C_s = 0.05, 0.1, and 1 M. The measured z‐average radii of gyration 〈S²〉_z^1/2, intrinsic viscosities [η], and translational diffusion coefficients D at C_s = 0.5‐M showed that high molecular weight NaPIS in the aqueous salt behaves like a flexible chain in the good solvent limit. On the assumption that the distribution of 1,4‐ and 3,4‐isomeric units in the NaPIS chain is completely random, the [η] data for high molecular weights at C_s = 0.5 and 1 M were analyzed first in the conventional two‐parameter scheme to estimate the unperturbed dimension at infinite molecular weight and the mean binary cluster integral. By further invoking a coarse‐graining of the NaPIS molecule, all the [η] and D data in the entire molecular weight range were then analyzed on the basis of the current theories for the unperturbed wormlike chain combined with the quasi‐two‐parameter theory. It is shown that the experimental 〈S²〉_z, [η], and D are explained by the theories with a degree of accuracy similar to that known for uncharged linear flexible homopolymers. © 2001 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. J Polym Sci Part B: Polym Phys 39: 2071–2080, 2001     

Copper(II) oxide solubility behavior in aqueous sodium phosphate solutions at elevated temperatures

A platinum-lined, flowing autoclave facility is used to investigate the solubility behavior of copper(II) oxide (CuO) in aqueous sodium phosphate solutions at temperatures between 19 and 262°C. Copper solubilities are observed to increase continuously with temperature and phosphate concentration. The measured solubility behavior is examined via a Cu(II) ion hydrolysis/complexing model and thermodynamic functions for the hydrolysis/complexing reactions are obtained from a leastsquares analysis of the data. Altogether, thermochemical properties are established for five anionic complexes: Cu(OH) ₃ ^– , Cu(OH) ₄ ^2– , Cu(OH) ₂ (HPO ₄ ) ^2– , Cu(OH) ₃ (H ₂ PO ₄ ) ^2– , and Cu(OH) ₂ (PO ₄ ) ^3– . Precise thermochemical parameters are also derived for the Cu(OH)⁺ hydroxocomplex based on CuO solubility behavior previously observed (Ref. 3) for pure water at elevated temperatures. The relative ease of Cu(II) ion hydrolysis is such that Cu(OH) ₃ ^– species become the preferred hydroxocomplex for pH9.4.Prepared for presentation at the Fourth International Symposium on solubility Phenomena, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, August 1990.     

Dynamic and electrophoretic light scattering of poly(dimethyldiallylammonium chloride) in salt-free solutions

Dynamic and electrophoretic light scattering were used to study the diffusion and electrophoretic mobility of poly(dimethyldiallylammonium chloride) as a function of polymer molecular weight in salt-free solutions. Two relaxation modes characterized as fast diffusion (D_f) and slow diffusion (D_s) were obtained from dynamic light scattering. Although the slow diffusion coefficient D_s strongly depends on molecular weight (M_w), the fast diffusion coefficient D_f was found to be independent of M_w over the range in the study. The fast diffusion was considered as the diffusion of a part of the polymer chain; the slow diffusion was interpreted by multichain diffusion. Electrophoretic light scattering results in the salt-free solution show that the electrophoretic mobility of the polymer is independent of M_w. © 1996 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.     

Poly(dimethylaminoethyl methacrylate)‐b‐poly(hydroxypropyl methacrylate) copolymers: Synthesis and pH/thermo‐responsive behavior in aqueous solutions

The synthesis and self‐assembly properties in aqueous solutions of novel amphiphilic block copolymers composed of one hydrophilic, pH and temperature responsive poly(dimethyl amino ethyl methacrylate) (PDMAEMA) block and one weakly hydrophobic, water insoluble, potentially thermoresponsive poly(hydroxy propyl methacrylate) (PHPMA) block, are reported. The block copolymers were prepared by RAFT polymerization and were molecularly characterized by size exclusion chromatography, NMR, and FTIR spectroscopies. The PDMAEMA‐b‐PHPMA amphiphilic block copolymers self‐assemble in different nanostructured aggregates when inserted in aqueous media. The effects of different solubilization protocols, as well as the effects of solution temperature and pH on the structure of the aggregates, are studied by light scattering and fluorescence spectroscopy measurements. Experimental results indicate that there is a number of solution preparation and physicochemical parameters that allow the control and manipulation of the structure and thermoresponsive properties of PDMAEMA‐b‐PHPMA aggregates in aqueous media. © 2018 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Polym. Sci., Part A: Polym. Chem. 2018 , 56, 1962–1977     

Poly(2-[dimethylamino]ethyl methacrylate)-b-poly(hydroxypropyl methacrylate)/DNA polyplexes in aqueous solutions

This study involves the investigation of the complexation ability of poly(2-[dimethylamino]ethyl methacrylate)-b-poly(hydroxypropyl methacrylate) (PDMAEMA-b-PHPMA) amphiphilic pH and thermoresponsive block copolymers, and their quaternized counterparts QPDMAEMA-b-PHPMA, toward short DNA in aqueous solutions. The PDMAEMA-b-PHPMA amphiphilic block copolymers present various self-assembly characteristics when inserted into aqueous media, depending on the composition, the solubilization protocol, the acidity and the temperature of the aqueous media. Copolymer aggregates-DNA interactions and nanostructure formation after complexation are investigated by dynamic light scattering and intensity measurements in aqueous solutions in a fixed temperature range, utilizing two different solubilization protocols for the copolymers. Ethidium bromide assays by fluorescence spectroscopy and ζ-potential measurements were also utilized to investigate the structure and properties of the DNA/copolymer polyplexes. The interpretation of such physicochemical characterization provides extra comprehension of the novel (Q)PDMAEMA-b-PHPMA copolymers self-assembly characteristics and assesses their ability for DNA complexation, stabilization, and delivery.