New Chromatographic and Hyphenated Techniques for Hydrophilic Copolymers

Most synthetic polymers are distributed in more than one parameter of molecular heterogeneity. For hydrophobic copolymers there are different chromatographic techniques available to analyse these distributions. As a result of the increasing interest in hydrophilic polymers and copolymers new chromatographic techniques are developed for the characterization of these polymers as well. However, very frequently these polymers contain highly polar or charged functional groups making them soluble only in aqueous mobile phases. There are several problems related to the use of aqueous mobile phases in polymer chromatography. Even the SEC analysis of such copolymers is not straightforward. As for HPLC in aqueous mobile phases, there are only a few applications in the literature so far. In addition to the fact that only a very limited number of stationary phases is available for aqueous HPLC of polymers, the interactions of polyelectrolytes in such chromatographic systems are not well understood. The present paper addresses the problems related to the application of SEC and HPLC in aqueous mobile phases. For graft copolymers with a polyethylene oxide backbone, e.g. PEG-g-polymethacrylic acid and PEG-g-polyvinyl alcohol, it will be shown that methods can be developed that give accurate molar mass and chemical composition information. Two-dimensional chromatography where aqueous HPLC and SEC are coupled on-line will be shown to be the most powerful analysis tool for the analysis of such copolymers. The hyphenation of the chromatographic separation techniques with spectroscopic detection techniques provides further insight into the molecular complexity of these copolymers.     

Analysis of complex polymers by multidetector field-flow fractionation

Field-flow fractionation (FFF) is a powerful alternative to column-based polymer fractionation methods such as size-exclusion chromatography (SEC) or interaction chromatography (IC). The most common polymer fractionation method, SEC, has its limitations when polymers with very high molar masses or complex structures must be analysed. Another limitation of all column-based methods is that the samples must be filtered before analysis and shear degradation of large macromolecules may be caused by the stationary phase and/or the column frits. Finally, the separation of very polar polymers may be a challenge because such polymers interact very strongly with the stationary phase, causing irreversible adsorption or other negative effects. This article reviews the latest developments in field-flow fractionation of complex polymers. It is demonstrated that some of the limitations of column-based chromatography can be overcome by FFF. When appropriate, results from column-based fractionations are compared with those from FFF fractionations to highlight the specific merits and challenges of each method. In addition to the fractionations themselves, various detector setups are discussed to show that different polymer distributions require different experimental procedures. Examples are given of the analysis of molar mass distribution, chemical composition, and microstructure. Advanced detector combinations are discussed, most prominently the very recently developed coupling to ¹H NMR. Finally, analysis of polymer nanocomposites by asymmetric flow field-flow fractionation (AF4)–FTIR is presented.

Size Exclusion Chromatography of Poly(vinylpyrrolidone)

Abstract

Poly(vinylpyrrolidone) and poly(ethylene oxide) separate by hydrodynamic volume on Toyo Soda TSK-PW columns in a mixed solvent mobile phase of 50:50 (v/v) MeOH/H₂O containing 0.1M LiNO₃. From this separation a single universal calibration curve based on hydrodynamic volume [η]M can be obtained. Accurate weight average molecular weights of PVP were obtained by both SEC/LALLS and universal calibration showing good agreement between the two methods. SEC/LALLS overestimates the number average molecular weight for broad distribution polymers due largely to the lack of sensitivity of the LALLS detector to the low molecular weight portion of the polymers, while the universal calibration method slightly underestimates the number average molecular weight as compared to osmometric values.     

Size Exclusion Chromatography of Associating Systems. I. The Theoretical Model

Abstract

Block copolymers in dilute solutions in selective solvents form micelles via closed association which is characterized by equilibrium between unimer and n-mer. A simple theoretical model has been proposed describing the behavior of such a system in the size exclusion chromatography (SEC). Chromatograms have been calculated varying association number and relative rates of association and dissociation. The results are compared with those of Coll's theory for SEC of surfactants and Gilbert's theory of associating systems.     

Aging of Pressure Sensitive Adhesives. II: Use of Multidetector Sec

Abstract

The use of multiple detector size exclusion chromatography is described for the study of aging of pressure sensitive adhesive films based on styrene-isoprene-styrene block copolymers. In this preliminary investigation of thin films, room temperature oxidation resulted in the formation of an easily detected carbonyl chromophore. While the chromophore concentration was monitored with a UV detector on the chromatograph, the molecular weight distribution was measured with a differential refractometer. Several important general implications of this combination of detectors in SEC are described.     

Size exclusion chromatography of branched polymers: Star and comb polymers

Monte Carlo simulations were conducted to estimate the elution curve of size exclusion chromatography (SEC). The present simulation can be applied to various types of branched polymers, as long as the kinetic mechanism of nonlinear polymer formation is given. We considered two types of detector systems, (1) a detector that measures the polymer concentration in the elution volume to determine the calibrated molecular weights, such as by using the differential refractive index detector (RI), and (2) a detector that determines the weight‐average molecular weight of polymers within the elution volume directly, such as a light scattering photometer (LS). For polydisperse star polymers, both detector systems tend to give a reasonable estimate of the true molecular weight distribution (MWD). On the other hand, for comb‐branched polymers, the RI detector underestimates the molecular weight of branched polymers significantly. The LS detector system improves the measured MWD, but still is not exact. The present simulation technique promises to establish various types of complicated reaction mechanisms for nonlinear polymer formation by using the SEC data quantitatively. In addition, the present technique could be used to reinvestigate a large amount of SEC data obtained up to the present to estimate the true MWD.     

Synthesis of novel graft polyhydroxyalkanoates

Graft copolymers were synthesized by direct condensation of methoxy-poly(ethylene glycol) (MePEG) or methoxy-poly(lactic acid) (MePLA) onto a reactive polyhydroxyalkanoate (PHA) backbone in organic solvent. Side carboxylic groups of the PHA were coupled with end hydroxyl groups of MePEG or MePLA in the presence of N,N′-dicylohexylcarbodiimide (DCC). Graft copolymers were characterized by ¹H NMR spectroscopy and size exclusion chromatography (SEC). NMR spectra of PHA-g-PEG and PHA-g-PLA showed the presence of significant amounts of PEG and PLA, respectively. No noticeable unreacted PEG or PLA were detected in SEC chromatograms. Grafting of hydrophilic polymers chains as PEG or biodegradable oligomers as PLA onto PHA backbone will generate polyesters with a more rapid water uptake and faster biodegradation rates. These PHA polymers conjugates could be interesting for bioactive agent delivery systems.     

Characterization of Nonionic Polyacrylamides by Aqueous Size Exclusion Chromatography Using a DRI/LALLSP Detector System

Abstract

Herein is reported an experimental investigation of the molecular weight characterization of nonionic polyacrylamides by aqueous SEC with a DRI/LALLSP detector system. Methodology for the use of the DRI/LALLSP detector responses to determine the molecular weight calibration curve and the peak broadening parameter, [sgrave]² (variance of a Gaussian instrumental spreading function) over a wide molecular weight range has been developed. The method is based on the use of a broad MWD standard made by blending Polysciences broad MWD standards and a generalized analytical solution of Tung's integral equation for the detector response corrected for peak broadening. Molecular weight averages measured by SEC/DRI/LALLSP are in excellent agreement with those measured offline by LALLSP.     

An Eluent Pressure Detector for Aqueous Size Exclusion Chrohatography

Abstract

An on-line viscometer which measures the eluent pressure drop across a long capillary was developed for use in aqueous size exclusion chromatography (SEC). Intrinsic viscosities of several polymer standards were calculated from data collected by the viscometer. These viscosities agree well with the measurements made with a Ubbelohde four-bulb shear dilution viscometer. The on-line viscometer becomes more sensitive as polymer hydro-dynamic volume increases. Therefore, it can be more effective than a refractive index detector for SEC analysis of high molecular weight, water soluble polymers.     

Pyrolysis-gas chromatography-mass spectrometry for studying N-vinyl-2-pyrrolidone-co-vinyl acetate copolymers and their dissolution behaviour

Knowledge on the solubility behaviour and dissolution rate of speciality and commodity polymers is very important for the use of such materials in high-tech applications. We have developed methods for the quantification and characterization of dissolved copolymers of N-vinyl-2-pyrrolidone (VP) and vinyl acetate (VA) during dissolution in water. The methods are based on pyrolysis (Py) performed in a programmed-temperature vaporization injector with subsequent identification and quantification of the components in the pyrolysate using capillary gas chromatography–mass spectrometry (GC–MS). By injecting large volumes and applying cryo-focussing at the top of the column, low detection limits could be achieved.The monomer ratio was found to have the greatest effect on the dissolution rate of the PVP-co-VA copolymers. The material with the highest amount of VA (50%) dissolves significantly slower than the other grades. Size-exclusion chromatography (SEC) and Py–GC–MS were used to measure molecular weights and average chemical compositions, respectively. Combined off-line SEC//Py–GC–MS was used to determine the copolymer composition (VP/VA ratio), as a function of the molecular weight for the pure polymers. In the dissolution experiments, a constant VP/VA ratio across the dissolution curve was observed for all copolymers analysed. This suggests a random distribution of the two monomers over the molecules.     

Corrections for Instrumental and Secondary Broadening in the Chromatographic Analysis of Linear Copolymers

Abstract

The effects of instrumental broadening and of polymer/solvent/packing interactions (secondary broadening) are separately investigated in the context of chromatography experiments, for the characterization of linear copolymers with two types of repeating units. The problems associated to the estimation of: a) the joint molecular weight distribution - chemical composition distribution (MWD-CCD) through orthogonal chromatography; and of b) the average MWD - average CCD through standard size exclusion chromatography (SEC) with dual detection are considered. The main difficulty with the secondary broadening correction, is the calibration for this effect. In the case of standard SEC with dual detection, a simple solution was found to the instrumental broadening problem, that involves a direct extension of the calibration and deconvolution techniques developed for linear homopolymers and mass detectors.     

Size Exclusion Chromatography of Polymers With Random Tetrafunctional Branching

Abstract

The behaviour of polydisperse branched copolymers of methyl methacrylate with a small amount of randomly situated tetrafunctional ethylenedimethacrylate units was investigated by means of size exclusion chromatography (SEC). A procedure has been suggested for the conversion of apparent values of molecular parameters of real polymer branched systems (M_{n, app}; M_{w, app} obtained from SEC data by calibration of the separation system using a linear polymer) into actual values. This was made possible by off-line coupling of SEC and viscometry. The branching was characterized by the weight average number of branching sites in the macro-molecule, m_w, and the branching index, y.     

Polymer architectures via mass spectrometry and hyphenated techniques: A review

This review covers the application of mass spectrometry (MS) and its hyphenated techniques to synthetic polymers of varying architectural complexities. The synthetic polymers are discussed as according to their architectural complexity from linear homopolymers and copolymers to stars, dendrimers, cyclic copolymers and other polymers. MS and tandem MS (MS/MS) has been extensively used for the analysis of synthetic polymers. However, the increase in structural or architectural complexity can result in analytical challenges that MS or MS/MS cannot overcome alone. Hyphenation to MS with different chromatographic techniques (2D × LC, SEC, HPLC etc.), utilization of other ionization methods (APCI, DESI etc.) and various mass analyzers (FT-ICR, quadrupole, time-of-flight, ion trap etc.) are applied to overcome these challenges and achieve more detailed structural characterizations of complex polymeric systems. In addition, computational methods (software: MassChrom2D, COCONUT, 2D maps etc.) have also reached polymer science to facilitate and accelerate data interpretation. Developments in technology and the comprehension of different polymer classes with diverse architectures have significantly improved, which allow for smart polymer designs to be examined and advanced. We present specific examples covering diverse analytical aspects as well as forthcoming prospects in polymer science.     

Online Coupling of Size‐Exclusion Chromatography and IR Spectroscopy to Correlate Molecular Weight with Chemical Composition

The determination of molecular weight and correlated chemical composition is of major interest for the advanced analysis of copolymers, blends, or unknown samples. In this work, we present a new way of online coupling IR spectroscopy and SEC to achieve a chemically sensitive, universally applicable SEC detector. Our method overcomes the limitations of existing spectroscopy–SEC combinations. We solved the major problems, like huge intensity of solvent signals (polymer concentration in detector <1 g L⁻¹) and short measuring time (<30 s), by recording the IR spectra with fully optimized sensitivity and by following mathematical solvent suppression. The measuring time for a certain S/N was reduced in several optimization steps by a factor of more than 70 000. The resulting sensitivity allows online coupled IR–SEC measurements.     

Block polyelectrolytes in aqueous environments

Analogous to the self-assembly of low-molecular-weight amphiphiles in aqueous solutions, the formation of spherical micelle-like aggregates has been observed in systems of amphiphilic block copolymers in water. The aggregates, often called micelles due to structural similarities with surfactant associates, are found to exist above the critical micelle concentration (cmc). The micellization of amphiphilic block copolymers has been investigated using a wide range of techniques, such as size-exclusion chromatography (SEC), static and dynamic light scattering (SLS and DLS), small-angle x-ray scattering (SAXS), small-angle neutron scattering (SANS), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), viscometry, and steady-state fluorescence spectroscopy. The present lecture is a review of recent work in our laboratory concerning the micellization of ionic block copolymers. These high-molecular-weight amphiphiles may contain one or more of a variety of ionic blocks, such as poly(4-vinylpyridinium alkyl halides), poly(metal acrylates), poly(metal methacrylates) and sulfonated polystyrene. In water, such polymers are referred to as block polyelectrolytes, as they combine the colloidal behavior of block copolymers with the long-range electrostatic interactions of polyelectrolytes. Early work in this field has been reviewed by Selb and Gallot.¹     

Polymer characterization by interaction chromatography

Liquid chromatography (LC) is a powerful tool for the characterization of synthetic polymers, that are inherently heterogeneous in molecular weight, chain architecture, chemical composition, and microstructure. Of different versions of the LC methods, size exclusion chromatography (SEC) is most commonly used for the molecular weight distribution analysis. SEC separates the polymer molecules according to the size of a polymer chain, a well‐defined function of molecular weight for linear homopolymers. The same, however, cannot be said of nonlinear polymers or copolymers. Hence, SEC is ill suited for and inefficient in separating the molecules in terms of chemical heterogeneity, such as differences in chemical composition of copolymers, tacticity, and functionality. For these purposes, another chromatographic method called interaction chromatography (IC) is found as a better tool because its separation mechanism is sensitive to the chemical nature of the molecules. The IC separation utilizes the enthalpic interactions to vary adsorption or partition of solute molecules to the stationary phase. Thus, it is used to separate polymers in terms of their chemical composition distribution or functionality. Further, the IC method has been shown to give rise to much higher resolution over SEC in separating polymers by molecular weight. We present here our recent progress in polymer characterization with this method. © 2005 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part B: Polym Phys 43: 1591‐1607, 2005     

An efficient avenue to poly(styrene)‐block‐poly(ε‐caprolactone) polymers via switching from RAFT to hydroxyl functionality: Synthesis and characterization

The recently introduced procedure of quantitatively switching thiocarbonyl thio capped (RAFT) polymers into hydroxyl terminated species was employed to generate narrow polydispersity (PDI ≈ 1.2) sulfur‐free poly(styrene)‐block‐poly(ε‐caprolactone) polymers (26,000 ≤ M_n/g·mol^?1 < 45,000). The ring‐opening polymerization (ROP) of ε‐caprolactone (ε‐CL) was conducted under organocatalysis employing 1,5,7‐triazabicyclo[4.4.0]dec‐5‐ene (TBD). The obtained block copolymers were thoroughly analyzed via size exclusion chromatography (SEC), NMR, as well as liquid adsorption chromatography under critical conditions coupled to SEC (LACCC‐SEC) to evidence the block copolymer structure and the efficiency of the synthetic process. The current contribution demonstrates that the RAFT process can serve as a methodology for the generation of sulfur‐free block copolymers via an efficient end group switch. © 2010 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part A: Polym Chem, 2010     

Calibration of a Multipoint Sampling System Connected with a Photoacoustic Detector

Abstract

Photoacoustic detection of gases in the air phase in combination with a multipoint sampling device transfers about 100 mL of air from each sample location to the next one, causing a considerable disturbance when small systems are sampled. In reactive systems, such as trace gas exchange in soil samples, a correction is required to determine the kinetic behavior of the systems. But this kinetic behavior is required in turn to calculate the correction in a repeated sampling sequence. A model was developed for reaction kinetics (zero-order or first-order) within closed systems and the sample transfer between these systems by a CBISS MK2 multipoint sampling system, connected with a Brüel & Kjær photoacoustic detector. By regression, the reaction kinetics is determined, and by simulation of the system in the absence of sample transfer, corrected data are generated. Comparison of experimental and modeled data revealed that part of the sample is transferred directly two systems further. In addition, a slight memory effect of the detector was revealed. These effects were accounted for in the model. If the correction is not made, biased results are obtained for the reaction kinetics.     

Block Copolymerization of Vinyl Monomers with Macroiniferer

Abstract

Block copolymers composed of a polyether, such as poly(oxytetra-methylene), and vinyl polymers, such as polystyrene, poly(methyl methacrylate), poly(butyl acrylate), and poly(vinyl acetate), were prepared by photopolymerizations of vinyl monomers initiated with a polyether macroiniferter, α - (diethyldithiocarbamylacetyl) - ω - (diethyldithiocar-bamylacetoxy)-poly(oxytetramethylene). ESR spectroscopy and end-group analysis of diethyldithiocarbamyl indicated that block copolymers should be predominantly ABA-type copolymers. The block copolymers were characterized in detail by NMR, GPC, and DSC analysis.     

An Experimental Evaluation of a New Commercial Viscometric Detector for Size-Exclusion Chromatography (SEC) Using Linear and Branched Polymers

Abstract

Herein are reported some findings on the application of a new type of continuous automatic viscometer, in parallel with a differential refractometer, as a detector system for SEC. A universal calibration is required for the instrument and two methods of construction are applicable. The first is the customary peak-position calibration using polymer standards of narrow molecular-weight distribution and the second uses a single broad standard of known [Mbar]_w and [Mbar]_n. The two types of calibration are shown to give nearly-identical values of molecular weight when used to process chromatograms obtained from various linear homopolymer standards of varying chemical composition. These values compare favourably with those quoted by the suppliers of the polymer standards. One of the more powerful features of this instrumentation, namely its potential for estimating accurate molecular weights of branched polymers, is demonstrated by analysis of a series of branched polyvinylacetates prepared by a conventional bulk, free-radical polymerisation procedure. The calculation of the degree of chain branching is discussed. Another particular feature of the viscometer detector, its ability to indicate the presence of low concentrations of high-molecular-weight impurity in polymer samples, is also shown.