Effects of solvent goodness and polymer concentration on rejection of polystyrene from small pores

Solutions of polystyrene of molecular weight 4.5 × 10⁶ and 8.4 × 10⁶ in mixed solvents of carbon tetrachloride/methanol were filtered through track-etched mica membranes at low membrane velocities. The unperturbed hydrodynamic radius of the polymer was always larger than the pore radius. The reflection coefficient σ, defined as the fraction of polymer held back by the membrane, was determined from material balances as a function of solvent flow rate per pore q, volume percent CCl₄ of the solvent, and polymer concentration C₀. In the dilute region (C₀ < C^*) σ was found to depend primarily on q and was essentially independent of chain size (or solvent goodness), molecular weight, and pore radius. In the semidilute region (C₀ > C^*) σ decreased significantly as C₀ was increased.     

Flow-dependent rejection of polystyrene from microporous membranes

Dilute solutions of polystyrene (molecular weight 1 × 10⁵?2 × 10⁷) in a mixed solvent of 90% carbon tetrachloride-10% methanol were filtered through track-etched porous mica membranes. The reflection coefficient σ, defined as the fraction of polymer held back by the membrane, was measured as a function of polymer size r_s, pore radius r_o, and solvent flow rate q through each pore. Polymer size was characterized by the Stokes-Einstein radius, as determined from diffusion coefficients measured by quasielastic light scattering, and chain relaxation times τ were estimated from measured intrinsic viscosities. In the case of chains whose unperturbed radius was smaller than the pore, σ depended on the ratio r_s/r_o in the manner predicted by a hard-sphere theory, as long as \documentclass{article}\pagestyle{empty}\begin{document}$ \dot \gamma \tau < < 1 $\end{document}, where \documentclass{article}\pagestyle{empty}\begin{document}$ \dot \gamma $\end{document} is the mean rate of strain of solvent at the pore entrance. However, when the polymer chains exceeded the pore in size, σ depended on flow rate and decreased from almost unity, at small q, toward zero at high q. The relationship between σ and q was nearly independent of polymer and pore size, consistent with a theory based on scaling concepts of how polymer chains deform at the entrance of a pore, but the reduction in σ as q increased was very gradual and did not exhibit the sharp transition predicted by the theory. We were able to empirically correlate all the data for σ when r_s > r_o by a single similarity variable \documentclass{article}\pagestyle{empty}\begin{document}$ \theta = {{({{r_s} \mathord{\left/ {\vphantom {{r_s} {r_0}}} \right. \kern-\nulldelimiterspace} {r_0}})} \mathord{\left/ {\vphantom {{({{r_s} \mathord{\left/ {\vphantom {{r_s} {r_0}}} \right. \kern-\nulldelimiterspace} {r_0}})} {(\dot \gamma \tau)^n}}} \right. \kern-\nulldelimiterspace} {(\dot \gamma \tau)^n}} \sim ({{r_s} \mathord{\left/ {\vphantom {{r_s} {r_0}}} \right. \kern-\nulldelimiterspace} {r_0}})^{1 - 3n} q^{- n} $\end{document}; a least-squares fit gave n = 0.33, showing that σ is insensitive to polymer size for large chains.     

Electrical and physico-chemical properties of nanolayers of Conducting polyaniline-polystyrene or camphor sulfonic acid blends

In this work we studied the physico-chemical and electrical properties of conducting blends of polyaniline (PANI) with polystyrene (PS) or camphor sulfonic acid (CSA) in an appropriate solvent such as m-cresol using various concentrations of PS. The thin films or nanolayers prepared by spin coating were analysed by ellipsometry (to measure the thickness), dynamic contact angle (to measure the surface energy), atomic force micropsopy techniques (to observe the topography and roughness of films), and by using a Keithley SMU 236 recorder under a vacuum of 10⁻³ mbar, to determine the variation of the current as a function of the voltage. Results obtained show that the variations of current I versus of the voltage V (from −15 V to +15 V) for all samples coated on silicon substrate indicate a barrier effect that becomes more and more important with the increase of the PS content, while samples prepared on a glass substrate give a linear variation of the current according to the voltage. These observations (load space limited current, Fowler-Nordheim tunneling effect, light-emitting diodes) will be described in this paper. The electrical conductivity of the PANI-CSA-PS blends at room temperature for different concentrations of polystyrene (from 0% to 50%) was measured by the four probe method as a function of the PANI weight fraction x. It seems that when x increases the electrical conductivity σ increases and reaches a threshold for x = 0.5 and σ = 8.5 S/cm.     

Diffusing probe measurements in Newtonian and elastic solutions

The diffusion coefficients of polystyrene latex spheres and hematite particles in both Newtonian and elastic liquids have been measured using dynamic light scattering. The diffusion coefficients of the latex particles measured in glycerol/water (Newtonian) solutions obey Stokes–Einstein behaviour over a range of solvent viscosities and temperatures. Two apparent diffusion coefficients for the particles are measured in visco-elastic polyacrylamide and polyacrylate solutions and are designated D_fast and D_slow. The apparent fast diffusion coefficients measured in the elastic solutions show an increase to a maximum, above that measured in the solvent water, with increasing polyelectrolyte concentration. At higher polyelectrolyte concentrations the observed D_fast values decrease below the value obtained in the solvent water. D_fast increases with the scattering vector squared (q²) while D_slow, is independent of q².     

Oxidation of fluorenes by ammonium meta vanadate—a kinetic study

The oxidation of fluorene by vanadium(V) in aqueous acetic acid containing sulfuric acid (1.0M) at 50°C produces fluorenone and 2-hydroxy diphenyl 2′-carboxaldehyde. The order with respect to each reactant is found to be 1. The order dependence on sulfuric acid concentration is 4, indicating that V(OH)₂³⁺ could be the active species. An increase in the acetic acid percentage in the solvent medium increases the rate of the reaction. The effect of solvent variation has been discussed in the light of the acidity function and the polarity of the medium. The effect of substituents on the rate has been studied for seven substituted fluorenes, and a linear relationship exists between log k versus σ values with the slope ρ = -3.2. A small isotope effect is observed for the oxidation of the parent compound (k_H/k_D = 1.2). The effect of temperature on the rate of the reaction has been studied, and the activation parameters are discussed. A mechanism involving the rate-limiting formation of a cation-radical intermediate is proposed.     

Stress overshoot of polymer solutions at high rates of shear; Polystyrene with bimodal molecular weight distribution

Overshoot of shear stress, σ, and the first normal stress difference, N₁, in shear flow was investigated for dilute solutions of polystyrene with very high molecular weight in concentrated solution of low M PS. In the case that the matrix was a nonentangled system, behavior of overshoot was similar to that of dilute solution of high M PS in pure solvent. The magnitudes of shear, γ_σm and γ_Nm, corresponding to the peaks of σ and N₁ lay on the universal functions of γ˙τ_R, respectively, proposed for dilute solutions in pure solvent. Here τ_R is the Rouse relaxation time for high M PS in the blend evaluated from dynamic modulus at high frequencies. In the case that the matrix was an entangled system, an additional σ peak was observed at high rates of shear at times corresponding to γ_σm = 2–3. This peak can be assigned to the motion of low M chains in entanglement network. When the matrix was entangled, stress overshoot was observed even at relatively low rates of shear, say γ˙τ_R < 10⁻². This is probably due to the motion of high M chains in entanglement of all the chains. In this case the γ_σm and γ_Nm values were higher than those expected for entangled chains of monodisperse polymer in pure solvent. © 2000 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. J Polym Sci B: Polym Phys 38: 2043–2050, 2000     

Stripped Charge of Ag Less than Deposited one Owing to Negative Capacitance Caused by Redox Reactions

Anodic stripping voltammetry was made in AgNO₃ solution, here Ag was deposited under long term potentiostatic conditions to evaluate the reduction charge, q_r, and then was stripped by linear sweep voltammetry to determine the oxidation charge, q_o. The charges were unbalanced, satisfying ca. q_o=0.7|q_r|, where other possible reduction charge such as by dioxygen and dichlorosilver were subtracted. The 30 % loss of the anodic charge can be ascribed to the negative capacitance by the potential sweep generation of Ag⁺. The generated Ag⁺ forms a dipole with a counter ion, of which orientation is the same as the direction of the externally applied electric field and opposite to the dipoles of solvent. The redox dipole decreases the conventional double layer capacitance caused by solvent dipoles, and high concentrations of Ag⁺ takes the capacitance to be negative values. The unbalanced charge, however, has no influence on quantitative determination of concentrations Ag⁺ by use of a calibration line.     

Phase equilibrium study of the ternary system composed of two monodisperse polystyrenes and cyclohexane

Mixtures of two “monodisperse” samples of polystyrene (M₁ = 4.53 × 10⁴, M₂ = 10.3 × 10⁴; M_w/M_n < 1.01) in cyclohexane were allowed to separate into two phases at different polymer concentrations and temperatures. The compositions in the two phases were measured by gel permeation chromatography, and used to determine isothermal binodals. From the binodal data the critical temperature and concentration were estimated as functions of the composition of the polymer mixture, and the separation factor σ for each polymer component was calculated. In contrast with typical results in the literature, σ was almost independent of molecular weight of the polymer. It is shown by deriving a general expression for σ that theoretical prediction of σ requires accurate knowledge about the Flory–Huggins interaction parameter as a function of the concentrations of individual polymer components.     

Dilute solution properties of poly(styrene acrylonitrile) alternating copolymer

Kuhn-Mark-Houwink-Sakurada relations were obtained in methyl ethyl ketone N,N-di-methylformamide and dichlorethane at 30 for (styrene acrylonitrile) alternating copolymer. The values of the unperturbed dimensions. [K₀ or (r_o^?2/M)^1/2] and conformational parameter σ have been determined, using several graphical and semiempirical methods, and the results were compared with the direct determinations in a θ solvent. The best values for K_θ were obtained using the methods of Stockmayer-Fixman and Inagaki-Suzuki-Kurata. By comparing the values of σ for polystyrene, polyacrylonitrile, random and alternating (styrene-acrylonitrile) copolymers, it is to be concluded that the short-range interactions do not markedly influence the chain dimensions in solutions for random and alternating (styrene-acrylonitrile) copolymers.     

Quasielastic scattering of neutrons from freely jointed polymer chains in dilute solutions

Starting with Kirkwood's Fokker–Planck equation for the polymer configuration-space distribution function and using the Zwanzig–Mori projection operator technique we have calculated the scattering law S_(q,w) for a freely jointed model polymer chain in a dilute solution. When memory effects are neglected, the theory predicts a Lorentzian for S_(q,w) with a halfwidth Ω_(q), which we have determined as a function of the momentum transfer q for all values of q. The results are compared with recent neutron scattering experiments on deuterated polytetrahydrofuran and polystyrene in dilute solution in CS₂. It is found that the observed q dependence of Ω(q) is represented satisfactorily by the present theory with a bond length b of about 6.3 Å for polystyrene and 3.8 Å for polytetrahydrofuran, and a friction coefficient ζ = 4πη0b where η₀ is the viscosity of the solvent.     

Matched ring diblock and linear triblock copolymers in dilute solution

A unique diblock copolymer ring and its linear triblock copolymer precursor composed of polystyrene and polydimethylsiloxane have been characterized by static and dynamic light scattering in dilute solution. The measurements were carried out with cyclohexane as the solvent over a temperature range of 12–35°C. Cyclohexane has the useful property that it is nearly isorefractive with the PDMS so that the PDMS block segments are invisible to the light-scattering technique and it is a theta solvent for polystyrene at 34.5°C. The block polymers in this work contain 35.1 wt % of styrene as determined by proton NMR. In the linear triblock polymer, the polystyrene is the center block with PDMS blocks on each side. Static light scattering measurements give 4.31 × 10⁴ for the average molecular weight of the whole polymer. Light scattering also shows that the apparent theta temperature for the linear triblock is shifted by 15°C to a value of 20°C at which point the second virial coefficient drops sharply and phase separation begins to induce aggregation. The diblock ring, however, shows a strongly positive second virial coefficient and no aggregation even at 12°C which is the limit of these experiments. The diffusion coefficients of cyclic diblock (D_c) and linear triblock copolymer (D₁) are measured by dynamic light scattering. The ratio of diffusion coefficients of cyclic and linear copolymers at 14.9°C and 30°C are D_c/D_l = 1.13 and 1.107 respectively. These compare well with prediction of 1.18 for this ratio from consideration of the hydrodynamics of matched linear and cyclic polymer chains. Dynamic light scattering quantitatively confirms that the linear copolymer experiences a solvent quality change near 20°C but the cyclic polymer remains in good solvent over the entire experimental temperature range. © 1993 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.     

Crystallization kinetics of syndiotactic polypropylene

Melting-point and spherulite growth rate measurements for a sample of syndiotactic polypropylene (S = 0.716 and η = 0.356) were analyzed for the parameters characterizing crystal formation and growth: T_m = 159 ± 2°C, σ_e = 47 erg cm ^?2, σ = 4.4 erg cm^?2, and q = 5.6 kcal per mole of folds. The q and σ_e values place syndiotactic polypropylene in the group of “unhindered” polymers. Failure of the isotactic-polypropylene spherulite growth rate data to follow current theories of crystal growth precluded a comparison of crystal parameters of the two stereoisomers. At comparable degrees of supercooling, the absolute growth rates for the two forms are of the same order of magnitude and exhibit one or more crossover(s) in relative position.     

Structure factor of a self-avoiding polymer chain at high momentum transfer

The molecular weight of a Gaussian polymer chain can be obtained from the intercept of the asymptote in a plot of the inverse structure factor 1/S(q) as a function of the square of the wave vector q². Using an ϵ expansion and scaling arguments, we show that in a good solvent the situation is more complex and that the molecular weight determination is difficult to justify. The corrections to the asymptotic behavior of the structure factor at large wave vector involve several terms that are difficult to separate experimentally. This is qualitatively explained by the nonuniform swelling of a polymer chain in a good solvent due to the existence of the chain ends.     

Dynamics of end-grafted polystyrene brushes in theta solvents

The dynamics of the concentration fluctuations in end-grafted polystyrene brushes in a theta solvent (cyclohexane) are probed by evanescent wave dynamic light scattering at different wavevectors q and temperatures. When the solvent quality changes from marginal to poor, the relaxation function C(q, t) exhibits strong effects as compared with the smooth variation of the brush density profile. From a single exponential above 50 °C, C(q, t) becomes a two-step decay function. The fast decay is still assigned to the cooperative diffusion albeit slower than in the good solvent regime whereas the slow nonexponential and nondiffusive process might relate to microsegragated and/or chain dynamics in the present polydisperse brush. The relaxation function of the present three brushes with different grafting density reveals similarities and disparities between wet brushes and semidilute polymer solutions. © 2006 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part B: Polym Phys 44: 3590–3597, 2006     

Resolution of GPC columns

A resolution index for gel-permeation chromatograph (GPC) columns is defined by the relation log (RI) = αW, where RI is the resolution index, α is the slope of the calibration curve of logarithm of molecular weight against peak position for narrow polymer fractions, and W is the width of the GPC curves for narrow fractions. This resolution index is calculated approximately for several GPC columns individually and in series combinations by using data obtained on narrow fractions of polystyrene. The index increases with number of columns and with flow rate over a limited range of flow rate, does not vary much with solvent, and does not correlate well with plate count obtained with low molecular weight molecules. It is believed that the resolution index provides an improved indication of the performance of GPC columns.     

Dilute-solution properties of ring polystyrenes

The temperature Θ_A2 at which the second virial coefficient A₂ is zero for ring polystyrenes is 28.5°C in cyclohexane, independent of molecular weight in the range 2 × 10⁴ to 4.5 × 10⁵. This cannot be explained solely by the Candau–Rempp–Benoit theory, which takes into account the effect of segment density on Θ_A2 The radius of gyration of a ring is found to be approximately one-half that of a linear polymer with the same molecular weight. The intrinsic viscosities [η] and intrinsic translational friction coefficients [f] of ring polystyrenes with molecular weights ranging from 7 × 10³ to 4.5 × 10⁵ have been measured in cyclohexane at 34.5°C (Θ, the Flory theta temperature for linear polystyrenes) and in toluene (a good solvent). The results are compared with those for linear polystyrene. It is found that the Mark–Houwink exponent is less than one-half in cyclohexane at Θ. In toluene it is 0.67 compared to 0.73 for linear polystyrene. The hydrodynamic measurements suggest that large rings are less expanded than the linear polymers with the same molecular weight, contrary to many predictions.     

Unperturbed dimensions of polystyrene derivatives. II. Poly-3,4-dichlorostyrene and poly-p-cyclohexylstyrene

The relationship of intrinsic viscosity to the number-average molecular weight has been obtained for poly-3,4-dichlorostyrene and poly-p-cyclohexylstyrene in a few solvents. Values of (〈L²〉₀/M)^1/2 have been estimated for poly-3,4-dichlorostyrene and poly-p-cyclohexylstyrene through the use of the treatment of Stockmayer and Fixman. The values of (〈L〉₀/M)^1/2 have been obtained as 2.18 ± 0.08 and 2.52 ± 0.07 for poly-3,4-dichlorostyrene and poly-p-cyclohexylstyrene, respectively. The σ value of a series of polystyrene derivatives has been found to increase with the bulk of side groups. This seems to indicate that the σ value is mainly determined by the steric repulsion between side groups.     

Synthesis of polystyenes with different stereoregularities by anionic polymerization

The stereoregularity of polystyrene prepared by anionic polymerization was determined by means of ¹³C-NMR spectroscopy. The stereoregularity changed with such polymerization conditions as catalyst, solvent, and temperature. Sodium naphthalene as catalyst gave a syndiotactic-rich polystyrene of 66–68% syndiotactic dyads independently of solvent and temperature, while potassium and cesium naphthalenes as catalyst produced polystyrenes with different stereoregularities ranging from syndiotactic-rich to isotactic-rich configurations, depending on solvent and temperature. The mechanism of anionic polymerization which caused the difference in stereoregularity was discussed from the viewpoint of growing ionic species.     

Preparation of amylose gel and probe diffusion through the gel membranes

Hydro‐swollen amylose gels were prepared by chemical crosslinking with a polyethylene glycol diglycidyl ether. The degree of swelling of the amylose gel (q_w) increases with increasing the amount of crosslinker in the preparation, which is a result contrary to other cases of chemically crosslinked polymer gels. The diffusion coefficient of a fluorescein and a fluorescein‐dextran conjugate in the gel membranes was determined by the time lag method and increases as q_w of the gels increases.     

Flow Injection Amperometric Detection at Enzyme‐Modified Gold Nanoelectrodes

Gold nanotubular electrode ensembles were prepared by using electroless deposition of the metal within the pores of polycarbonate particle track‐etched membranes. Glucose oxidase (Gox), used as a model enzyme, has been immobilized onto preformed self‐assembled monolayers (mercaptoethylamine or mercaptopropionic acid) on electroless gold via cross‐linking with glutaraldehyde or covalent attachment by carbodiimide coupling. Flow‐injection analysis systems in flow‐through or wall‐jet configurations using these Gox‐modified nanoelectrodes are described. The influence of different experimental parameters (i.e., applied potential, flow rate, interferents…?) on the analytical response of the sensor to glucose has been evaluated. Under optimized conditions, very reproducible results (standard deviations <4%, n=38) were obtained, linear calibration was achieved in the 2×10^?4 M to 3×10^?2 M concentration range and the detection limit was 2×10^?4 M. Moreover, no significant interferences from species like ascorbic and uric acids were observed at a potential of +0.9 V.