Poly(3-Hydroxybutyrate) Matrices Modified with Iron(III) Complexes with Tetraphenylporphyrin. Analysis of the Structural Dynamic Parameters

The effect of small additions of the iron(III) complex with tetraphenylporphyrin (0–5%) on the structure and properties of ultrathin fibers based on poly(3-hydroxybutyrate) (PHB) was studied by differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), X-ray diffraction analysis (XRD), EPR probe method, and scanning electron microscopy. When tetramethylporphyrin was added to the PHB fibers, the crystallinity significantly increased, and the molecular mobility in the amorphous regions of the polymer decreased. The thermal treatment of the fibers (annealing at 140°C) led to significantly increased crystallinity and decreased molecular mobility in the amorphous regions of the PHB fibers. The addition of tetramethylporphyrin to the PHB fibers led to a sharp decrease in crystallinity. Ozonolysis of the fibers at small treatment times caused a considerable decrease in their molecular mobility (to 5 h), while prolonged ozonolysis led to increased mobility. The obtained fibrous materials have bactericidal properties and will find use in the development of antibacterial and antitumor therapeutic systems.     

Conductivity and thermal stability of proton-conducting electrolytes at confined geometry of polymeric gel

The proton-conducting gel electrolytes based on poly(methyl methacrylate) (PMMA) doped by acid solutions in aprotic solvents were synthesized and discussed in this work. The gel conductivity as a function on concentrations of acid and polymer as well as of molecular mass of PMMA has been analyzed. The thermal stability of electrolytes was estimated and discussed. Extreme dependence of the conductivity on concentration is found to be for the gel (at a concentration of PMMA from 5 to 15 wt.%). The increase of electrical conductivity in the concentration range from 5 to 10 wt.% of PMMA with an increase in viscosity of the system is discussed as an indication of an involvement of the polymer matrix in increasing the mobility of the charge carriers in frame of Grotthuss mechanism.     

Electrospinning of Poly(Hydroxybutyrate-co-hydroxyvalerate) Fibrous Scaffolds for Tissue Engineering Applications: Effects of Electrospinning Parameters and Solution Properties

Electrospinning, a technology capable of fabricating ultrafine fibers (microfibers and nanofibers), has been investigated by various research groups for the production of fibrous biopolymer membranes for potential medical applications. In this study, poly(hydroxybutyrate-co-hydroxyvalerate) (PHBV), a natural, biocompatible, and biodegradable polymer, was successfully electrospun to form nonwoven fibrous mats. The effects of different electrospinning parameters (solution feeding rate, applied voltage, working distance and needle size) and polymer solution properties (concentration, viscosity and conductivity) on fiber diameter and morphology were systematically studied and causes for these effects are discussed. The formation of beaded fibers was investigated and the mechanism presented. It was shown that by varying electrospinning parameters within the processing window that was determined in this study, the diameter of electrospun PHBV fibers could be adjusted from a few hundred nanometers to a few microns, which are in the desirable range for constructing “biomimicking” fibrous scaffolds for tissue engineering applications.     

Ultrasonic degradation of aqueous carboxymethylcellulose: effect of viscosity, molecular mass, and concentration

It is well established that prolonged exposure of solutions of macromolecules to high-energy ultrasonic waves produces a permanent reduction in viscosity. It is generally agreed as well and also this study proved the hydrodynamic forces to have the primary importance in degradation. According to this study the sonolytic degradation of aqueous carboxymethylcellulose polymer or polymer mixtures is mainly depended on the initial dynamic viscosity of the polymer solution when the dynamic viscosity values are in the area range enabling intense cavitation. The higher was the initial dynamic viscosity the faster was the degradation. When the initial dynamic viscosities of the polymer solutions were similar the sonolytic degradation was dependent on the molecular mass and on the concentration of the polymer. The polymers with high molecular mass or high polymer concentration degraded faster than the polymers having low molecular mass or low polymer concentration. The initial dynamic viscosities were adjusted using polyethyleneglycol.     

Effect of molecular weight on the ultrasonic degradation of poly(vinyl-pyrrolidone)

The ultrasonic degradation of poly(vinyl-pyrrolidone) (PVP) of different initial molecular weights was studied at a fixed temperature. The effect of solution concentration on the rate of degradation was investigated. A method of viscometry was used to study the degradation behavior and kinetic model was developed to estimate the degradation rate constant. The results were indicated that the rate of ultrasonic degradation increased with increasing molecular weight. It was found that rate constant decreases as the concentration increases. The calculated rate constants correlated in terms of inverse concentration and relative viscosity of PVP solutions. This behavior in the rate of degradation was interpreted in terms of viscosity and concentration of polymer solution. With increasing solution concentration, viscosity increases and it causes a reduction in the cavitation efficiency thus, the rate of degradation will be decreased. The experimental results show that the viscosity of polymers decreased with ultrasonic irradiation time and approached a limiting value, below which no further degradation took place. This study confirms the general assumption that the shear forces generated by the rapid motion of the solvent following cavitational collapse are responsible for the breakage of the chemical bonds within the polymer. The effect of polymer concentration can be interpreted in terms of the increase in viscosity with concentration, causing the molecules to become less mobile in solution and the velocity gradients around the collapsing bubbles to, therefore, become smaller.     

Features of the Rheological Behavior of Polymer-Colloidal Dispersions Based on a Sodium Salt of Carboxymethyl Cellulose and Silver Iodide Sols

The rheological properties of aqueous solutions of a sodium salt of carboxymethyl cellulose are studied. The occurrence of a region of unstructured semidilute solutions in which the entanglement network is absent is found. The introduction of both opposite and like-charged micelles of the lyophobic sol into a semidilute polymer solution leads to its structuring due to the appearance of an additional network because of polymer adsorption on the surface of the sol. As a result of the network formation a decrease in the interval between the crossover and the formation concentration of the entanglement network and also an increase in the viscosity of the semidilute solution are observed.     

Effects of Polymer Bridging and Electrostatics on the Rheological Behavior of Aqueous Colloidal Dispersions†

Effects of a low molecular weight physically adsorbed polyethylene oxide (PEO) and the range of the electrostatic repulsion on the rheological behavior of silica dispersions (as a model system) has been investigated. Particular attention is given to the evolution of the rheological behavior with increasing the polymer concentration in the system and also effectiveness of the polymer as a dispersant under extreme conditions (high ionic strength). Results indicate that at small separation distances and low polymer coverage, the polymer chains are long enough to adsorb on the surface of two particles simultaneously causing bridging flocculation in the system and hence increasing the viscosity and linear viscoelastic functions of the dispersion. A significant increase was observed in the viscosity of the dispersion at salt concentrations high enough to eliminate electrostatics between the particles. Under these conditions,the viscosity of the system increased significantly when PEO was added to the dispersion showing that at high electrolyte concentrations, a neutral polymer such as PEO is not able to stabilize the system.     

Effect of Added Monosodium Glutamate on Characteristics of Polyamide Dope Solutions

Formic acid (FA) solutions prepared with various concentrations of polyamide 66 (PA 66) and monosodium glutamate (MSG) were evaluated in terms of properties, such as density, viscosity, and cloud point. The influence on density was insignificant, whereas the viscosity was strongly affected by the amount of PA 66 and MSG additive. The solutions were further evaluated by casting them in a flat film form and determining the demixing time in a humid atmosphere. The considered cases at lower polymer concentrations at various MSG amounts, indicated that the demixing time increased with increase in polymer concentration. The time for demixing, however, decreased for a given higher amount of polymer when the amount of additive was increased in the dope solution. Membranes were prepared at various coagulant bath temperatures. The tensile strength and degree of adsorption (DOA) of these membranes were found. The tensile strength was higher when the membranes were prepared at higher temperature. The DOA, on the other hand, was higher for the membranes formed at lower temperature.     

Low-temperature spectroscopy of organic molecules in solids by photochemical hole burning

Characteristic features of photochemical hole-burning (PHB) in the impurity spectra of low-temperature solids and PHB applications in molecular spectroscopy are considered. The evolution of a no-phonon hole and a phonon sidehole in excitation and fluorescence spectra is analysed on the basis of model calculations. Some more complex models for PHB are considered, which take into account reverse reactions, the optical thickness of the sample, the inhomogeneous dispersion of both homogeneous linewidths and transition energies of the photoproduct and quasi-static impurity-impurity interactions. The effects of PHB on fluorescence line narrowing are discussed. By PHB homogeneous linewidths of purely electronic and vibronic no-phonon lines in the spectra of some porphine and phthalocyanine derivatives in various matrices are measured and their temperature dependence is studied. The latter is found to be essentially different in polycrystalline and glassy matrices. Line-broadening mechanisms are discussed. By PHB the existence of an inhomogeneous distribution of vibrational frequencies in molecular impurities is established. The applications of PHB in the studies of photochemical reactions in solid solutions of phthalocyanine derivatives and tetracene are regarded and the mechanisms of these reactions are discussed. The results obtained by PHB for chlorophyll and its derivatives are presented.     

钇盐/聚氨酯体系流变行为及红外光谱研究

研究发现钇盐／线型聚醚基聚氨酯系列反应液的粘度随着稀土盐含量的增多呈规律性上升,认为这与稀土离子同聚氨酯体系中的极性基团产生相互作用有关,由此造成聚合物分子量、分子链排列曲向等结构形态的变化。红外光谱测定证明稀土离子与聚氨酯中的部分羰基配合,产生了新的酰胺结构,其特征吸收谱带位于1650cm^-1;对该体系的流变行为的研究,进一步证实稀土与聚氨酯间的相互作用的存在。流变学与分子光谱学相结合为高分子溶液结构的研究提供了新的手段。     

Solution Behavior of Hydrophobic Cationic Hydroxyethyl Cellulose

The hydrophobic cationic hydroxyethyl cellulose (HEC-g-DA) was prepared by grafting HEC with various alkyl ammonium chlorides (DA) in order to improve the thickening properties of cationic hydroxyethyl cellulose. The solution behavior of HEC-g-DA was studied, and showed that the apparent viscosity of HEC-g-DA increased with polymer concentration, and there existed a critical association concentration (Cp*). The alkyl chain length of DA had a great influence on Cp*, which decreased with increasing alkyl chain length; however, too long an alkyl chain of DA reduced the water solubility of the polymer, resulting in a slight increase of Cp*. The effect of temperature and electrolyte concentration on the thickening properties of HEC-g-DA was investigated; the value of viscous flow activation energy (E_a) was minimum for the sample of HEC-g-DA16 (glycidyl-N-hexadecyl–N,N-dimethyl-ammonium chloride), indicating the weakest sensitivity of the viscosity to temperature. In the whole range of shear rate investigated, the solutions of HEC-g-DA displayed the shear thinning behavior of a pseudoplastic fluid. The values of viscous index (n) from the Ostwald model simulation decreased with polymer concentration, indicating an improvement of the shear thinning property of the solution, whereas the increase of the consistency coefficient (k) indicated the enhancement of the thickening behavior of the polymer. With increasing polymer concentration, the molecular association of HEC-g-DA16 became strong, and high-shear stress was required to remove the association, while the difference between G′ and G″ became small, indicating that the elasticity of the system was enhanced at high polymer concentration. The amphiphilic structure of the HEC-g-DA16 molecules contributed to the low surface tension of the polymer.     

Viscometric Studies of Interactions between Hydrophobically Modified Acrylamide Copolymer and Poly(N-isopropylacrylamide) in Dilute Solutions

The viscosity behavior of the dilute aqueous solutions of hydrophobically modified acrylamide copolymer (HMPAM) and poly(N-isopropylacrylamide) (PNIPAM) was investigated. A negative deviation of reduced viscosity of HMPAM + PNIPAM from the theoretical values was observed. Both a conventional viscometry method and a method using an aqueous solution of one polymer as the solvent for the other polymer were used to clarify the mechanism behind the observed viscosity behavior. With the conventional method, the theoretical predictions obtained by the Δb (or α) criterion are contradictory to the experimental results and cannot be applied to describe the interaction between HMPAM and PNIPAM, where Δb is the difference of experimental interspecific interaction coefficient b_m and theoretical b_m,i and α is the difference of experimental Huggins coefficient k_m and theoretical k_m,i. The change of Δ[η]/[η]_i suggests that there is only an attractive interaction between HMPAM and PNIPAM, where Δ[η] is the difference of experimental intrinsic viscosity [η]_m and theoretical [η]_i. Results from the method using an aqueous solution of one polymer as the solvent for the other polymer confirmed the attractive interaction between HMPAM and PNIPAM and indicated that the attachment of the PNIPAM molecules to the hydrophobic groups in HMPAM can disrupt both the initial intra- and intermolecular associations between HMPAM chains simultaneously. The disruption of the original intramolecular association of HMPAM leads to an increase in the intrinsic viscosity [η], while the disruption of the original intermolecular association of HMPAM yields a negative deviation of the reduced viscosity.     

Photoluminescence of a soluble polypyrrole based on N-vinylpyrrole

Photoluminescence of a novel polypyrrole based on N-vinylpyrrole was systematically observed in organic solutions. The polymer, which has a unique molecular structure, exhibited good photoluminescence in organic solutions. The emission peak of the polymer exhibited one strong green emission band at around 510 nm in common organic solutions. The maximum fluorescence quantum yield of the polymer was found to be 0.16 in NMP solution with fluorescein as standard. At the same concentration, the photoluminescence intensity increased in the order of CHCl₃, THF, DMSO, CH₂Cl₂ and NMP. The photoluminescence spectrum had a slight red shift as the polarity of the solvents increased. The photoluminescence intensity also increased with the polarity of the solvent, except DMSO. This is because of its hygroscopicity in air and its viscosity. In THF solutions, the photoluminescence intensity increased until the concentration reached a certain weight percent (3.0×10⁻² wt.%) and then decreased with higher concentrations. This was most likely due to quenching in the aggregate phase. Furthermore, iron ion was a quencher in the DMSO solution. In a mixed solvent system of DMSO and water, water showed a typical quenching effect.     

Effect of temperature on the intrinsic viscosity of poly(ethylene glycol) in water/dimethyl sulfoxide solutions

In this work, the intrinsic viscosities of poly(ethylene glycol) with molar mass of 20 kg mol^− 1 were measured in water/dimethyl sulfoxide solutions from (298.15 to 318.15) K. The expansion factors of the polymer chains were calculated from the intrinsic viscosity data. The expansion factor were decreased by increasing temperature; therefore the chain of PEG shrinks and the end-to-end distance become smaller by increasing temperature. Perhaps the interactions of segment-segment are favored toward segment-solvent by increasing temperature; therefore the hydrodynamic volumes of the polymer coils become smaller by increasing temperature. The thermodynamic parameters (entropy of dilution parameter, the heat of dilution parameter, theta temperature and polymer-solvent interaction parameter) were derived by the temperature dependence of the polymer chain expansion factor. The thermodynamic parameters indicate that the interactions of segment-segment were increased by increasing temperature.     

Ultrasonic degradation of polymers: effect of operating parameters and intensification using additives for carboxymethyl cellulose (CMC) and polyvinyl alcohol (PVA)

Use of ultrasound can yield polymer degradation as reflected by a significant reduction in the intrinsic viscosity or the molecular weight. The ultrasonic degradation of two water soluble polymers viz. carboxymethyl cellulose (CMC) and polyvinyl alcohol (PVA) has been studied in the present work. The effect of different operating parameters such as time of irradiation, immersion depth of horn and solution concentration has been investigated initially using laboratory scale operation followed by intensification studies using different additives such as air, sodium chloride and surfactant. Effect of scale of operation has been investigated with experiments in the available different capacity reactors with an objective of recommending a suitable type of configuration for large scale operation. The experimental results show that the viscosity of polymer solution decreased with an increase in the ultrasonic irradiation time and approached a limiting value. Use of additives such as air, sodium chloride and surfactant helps in increasing the extent of viscosity reduction. At higher frequency operation the viscosity reduction has been found to be negligible possibly attributed to less contribution of the physical effects. The viscosity reduction in the case of ultrasonic horn has been observed to be more as compared to other large capacity reactors. Kinetic analysis of the polymer degradation process has also been performed. The present work has enabled us to understand the role of the different operating parameters in deciding the extent of viscosity reduction in polymer systems and also the controlling effects of low frequency high power ultrasound with experiments on different scales of operation.     

Linear and non-linear dielectric properties of a short-pitch ferroelectric liquid crystal stabilized by a polymer network

Linear and non-linear dielectric measurements were carried out on a ferroelectric liquid crystal stabilized by an anisotropic polymer network. The polymerization process was achieved at room temperature. It was performed from an achiral monomer in the ferroelectric chiral smectic C phase, exhibiting a very short helical pitch and a large polarization. The linear and non-linear dielectric spectroscopy were also completed by textural morphology as well as structural and ferroelectric characterizations. All these measurements were carried out on a pure ferroelectric liquid crystal material and on composite films containing two polymer concentrations. The increase of the polymer network density leads to a decrease of the dielectric strength determined in the linear and non-linear dielectric spectroscopy. The complementarity between the linear and non-linear dielectric measurements and their confrontation with a theoretical model allowed the simultaneous determination of some physical parameters such as macroscopic polarization, rotational viscosity and twist elastic energy. We also discuss the effect of the polymer network density on the obtained physical parameters.     

Changes in the structural parameters and molecular dynamics of polyhydroxybutyrate-chitosan mixed compositions under external influences

Differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), EPR probe analysis, large-angle X-ray diffraction (XRD), and UV spectroscopy are used to study the molecular dynamics and structure of hydroxybutyrate (PHB) copolymer, chitosan, and mixed compositions thereof upon thermal treatment in an aquatic medium. It is shown that, in mixed compositions, starting from 30% PHB, the correlation time increases by an order of magnitude, indicative of a sharp slowdown of the molecular mobility of the probe, and, concurrently, the degree of crystallinity decreases abruptly, as evidenced by DSC and XRD analyses. The diffusion coefficient of rifampicin in mixed compositions also decreases with increasing PHB content. A short-term (1 h) thermal treatment (at 70°C) in water results in an increase in the molecular mobility of the probe in the system. Crystallinity changes in complex ways.     

Poly(ɛ-caprolactone) Electrospun Scaffolds Filled with Nanoparticles. Production and Optimization According to Taguchi's Methodology

Polycaprolactone (PCL) scaffolds were produced by electrospinning. Polymeric solutions in a mix of dichloromethane (DCM) and dimethylformamide were electrospun to form fibers in the sub-micron range. Physical properties of the PCL solutions were characterized with respect to density, viscosity, conductivity and surface tension. Processing was optimized following Taguchi's methodology to select the set of processing parameters that resulted in producing fibers with the smallest diameters, minimum number of defects and with the narrowest distribution of fiber diameter. Morphology of electrospun fibers was qualitatively and quantitatively analyzed for the different sets of processing parameters. The optimum conditions found to electrospun PCL were used to process PCL solutions containing nanoparticles of hydroxyapatite (HA) or bioactive glass (BG). Bioactivity of nanocomposite electrospun membranes in simulated body fluid (SBF) was analyzed and biological response was tested by assessing proliferation and viability of MT3C3-E1 preosteoblasts cultured on PCL and its nanocomposite membranes.     

Degree of swelling and extent of crowding of flexible polymer coils in low concentration region

At infinite dilution, a flexible polymer chain is an isolated coil swollen with solvent. The situation may be treated in a manner analogous to the swelling equilibrium of a lightly crosslinked network. From the thermodynamic relation, the degree of swelling of the polymer coil may be estimated (1, 2). This value, the degree of chain extension, was found to be somewhat larger than that estimated from intrinsic viscosity. This finding was interpreted to mean that the chain segments in the periphery of the coil are more extended than the average coil extension (1). In the present work the dilute but finite concentration range was examined. In this case a polymer coil is in equilibrium with solvent containing polymer chains of the same kind. As the concentration is increased, the excess extension of the chain segments in the periphery of the coil diminishes. With further concentration increase, the polymer coil continues to decrease in size to the size defined by the theta condition, when the free solvent disappears. At that concentration adjacent polymer coils begin to interpenetrate. This behavior is described quantitatively. The input data required for this calculation are the intrinsic viscosity of the polymer-solvent system of interest, that of the polymer at the theta condition, and the thermodynamic interaction parameter as a function of temperature, concentration, and molecular weight of the polymer. Thermodynamic equations and their derivations are described.     

Tensile drawing of high and low molecular weight polyethylene terephthalate

The tensile drawing of polyethylene terephthalate fibers spun from polymer of high and low molecular weight over a range of windup speeds has been studied. An analysis of the mechanical properties, orientation, and shrinkage behavior for different draw ratios leads to two conclusions. First, the network structure is the same for both polymers and the same as that described for a medium molecular weight polymer in an earlier paper. Secondly, an increase in molecular weight has an effect similar to an increase in the windup speed on the spun fiber molecular structure, which affects the ultimate mechanical properties obtainable by the chosen processing routes.