Molecular and nanoscale factors governing pressure‐sensitive adhesion strength of viscoelastic polymers

Pressure‐sensitive adhesives (PSAs) are finding increasing applications in various areas of industry and medicine. PSAs are a special class of viscoelastic polymers that form strong adhesive joints with substrates of varying chemical nature under application of light external bonding pressures (1–10 Pa) over short periods of time (1–5 s). To be a PSA, a polymer should possess both high fluidity under applied bonding pressure, to form good adhesive contact, and high cohesive strength and elasticity, which are necessary for resistance to debonding stresses and for dissipation of mechanical energy at the stage of adhesive bond failure under detaching force. For rational design of novel PSAs, molecular insight into mechanisms of their adhesive behavior is necessary. As shown in this review, strength of PSA adhesive joints is controlled by a combination of diffusion, viscoelastic, and relaxation mechanisms. At the molecular level, strong adhesion is the result of a narrow balance between two generally conflicting properties: high cohesive strength and large free volume. These conflicting properties are difficult to combine in a single polymer material. Individually, high cohesive interaction energy and large free volume are necessary but insufficient prerequisites for PSA strength. Evident correlations are observed between the adhesive bond strengths of different PSAs, and their relaxation behaviors are described by longer relaxation times. Innovative PSAs with tailored properties can be produced by physical mixing of nonadhesive long‐ and short‐chain linear parent polymers, with groups at the two ends of the short chains complementary to the functional groups in the recurring units of the long chains. Although chemical composition and molecular structure of such innovative adhesives are unrelated to those of conventional PSAs, their mechanical properties and adhesive behaviors obey the same general laws, such as the Dahlquist's criterion of tack. © 2012 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part B: Polym Phys, 2012     

Effect of Polymer Concentration on the Surface Properties of Polyacid–Poly(N-vinylpyrrolidone) Complexes

The effect of polymer concentration on the surface properties of equimolar interpolymer complexes of polyacrylic and polymethacrylic acids with poly(N-vinylpyrrolidone) is studied at 298 K by measuring surface tension, conductivity, and viscosity, as well as by the potentiometric titration of mixed polymer solutions. The surface activity and the standard free energy of the adsorption of the individual polyelectrolytes and interpolymer complexes are calculated from the surface tension isotherms. Complexation is shown to increase the surface activity and decrease the standard free energy of the adsorption of macromolecules.     

Quantitative studies of interaction between complementary polymers and oligomers in solutions

A theoretical model for interpolymer reaction of the type: matrix + oligomer ? polycomplex has been considered. Matrix and oligomer are complementary macromolecules with the matrix chain length substantially greater than that of the oligomer chain. Theoretical relations connecting the conversion degree in the interpolymer reaction with temperature, oligomer length and oligomer concentration are developed. The limits for application of the considered theoretical model are indicated. High selectivity of the interpolymer reaction with respect to the oligomer chain length is predicted theoretically. The validity of the theoretical relations is demonstrated by the reactions between polycarboxylic acids and polyethylene glycol in aqueous and water-methanol media. The selectivity of the interpolymer reactions with respect to chain length is experimentally proved for the example of fractionated relatively low molecular poly-N-vinyl pyrrolidone complexing with polyacrylic acid.     

SCIENTIFIC PRINCIPLES FOR MODIFICATION OF WATER-SOLUBLE POLYMERS. FORMATION OF MACROMOLECULAR COMPLEXES

The study of nanosecond dynamics of macromolecules with the lumines-cent methods make it possible to investigate the formation and functioning of polymericcomplexes, polymeric conjugates and macromolecular metal complexes, which are widelyused for solving many practical tasks. The nanosecond dynamics of macromolecules are ahighly sensitive indicator of interpolymer complexes (IPC) formation. It enables us to solvethe problems of studying IPC formation and stability and to investigate the interpolymerreactions of exchange and substitution. The investigation of changes in the rotational mo-bility of globular protein molecules as a whole makes it possible to determine the complexcomposition and its stability, and to control the course of polymer-protein conjugate forma-tion reaction. The nanosecond dynamics of polymers interacting with surfacants' ions (S)are the sensitive indicator of the S-polymer complex formation. A method for determin-ing the equilibrium constants of the S-polymer complex formation was developed on thebasis of the study of polymer chains mobility. It is established that nanosecond dynamicsinfluences the course of chemical reactions in polymer chains. Moreover, the marked effectof the nanosecond dynamics is also revealed in the study of photophysical processes (theformation of excimers and energy migration of electron excitation) in polymers with pho-toactive groups. It was found that the efficiency of both processes increases with increasingthe mobility of side chains, the carriers of photoactive groups.     

Strong Protein Adhesives through Lanthanide-enhanced Structure Folding and Stack Density

Generating strong adhesion by engineered proteins has the potential for high technical applications. Current studies of adhesive proteins are primarily limited to marine organisms, e.g., mussel adhesive proteins. Here, we present a modular engineering strategy to generate a type of exotic protein adhesives with super strong adhesion behaviors. In the protein complexes, the lanmodulin (LanM) underwent α-helical conformational transition induced by lanthanides, thereby enhancing the stacking density and molecular interactions of adhesive protein. The resulting adhesives exhibited outstanding lap-shear strength of ≈31.7 MPa, surpassing many supramolecular and polymer adhesives. The extreme temperature (−196 to 200 °C) resistance capacity and underwater adhesion performance can significantly broaden their practical application scenarios. Ex vivo and in vivo experiments further demonstrated the persistent adhesion performance for surgical sealing and healing applications.     

Interpolymer complexes of poly(N-vinylpyrrolidone) with copolyimide-grafted side chains of poly(methacrylic acid)

The process of formation and structural organization of interpolymer complexes formed by macromolecules of poly(N-vinylpyrrolidone) and poly(methacrylic acid) chains grafted onto polyimide in solution is investigated via the method of polarized luminescence. A luminescent label of anthracene structure is covalently bound to both polymers. Relaxation times characterizing intramolecular mobility of each of the components in their interpolymer complex are measured in relation to the composition of the system.     

Interpolymer interaction in insulin-chitosan complexes

Our team conducted theoretical calculations and experimental studies of interpolymer interactions in insulin-chitosan complexes based on the spatial orientation of chitosan and insulin macromolecules using Langmuir film balance at various pH values. The most optimal conditions for interpolymer interactions between insulin and chitosan chains occur at pH value of 5.4, which corresponds to the isoelectric point of insulin. For the similar pH values of 4.2 and 6.0, the free energy of coordination between chitosan and insulin was estimated by molecular dynamic simulations as of 1.1 and 5.8 kcal mol^?1, respectively.     

Solvent effects on the formation of nanoparticles and multilayered coatings based on hydrogen-bonded interpolymer complexes of poly(acrylic acid) with homo- and copolymers of N-vinyl pyrrolidone

The formation of hydrogen-bonded interpolymer complexes between poly(acrylic acid) and poly(N-vinyl pyrrolidone) as well as amphiphilic copolymers of N-vinyl pyrrolidone with vinyl propyl ether has been studied in aqueous and organic solutions. It was demonstrated that introduction of vinyl propyl ether units into the macromolecules of the nonionic polymer enhances their ability to form complexes in aqueous solutions due to more significant contribution of hydrophobic effects. The complexation was found to be a multistage process that involves the formation of primary polycomplex particles, which further aggregate to form spherical nanoparticles. Depending on the environmental factors (pH, solvent nature), these nanoparticles may either form stable colloidal solutions or undergo further aggregation, resulting in precipitation of interpolymer complexes. In organic solvents, the intensity of complex formation increases in the following order: methanol < ethanol < isopropanol < dioxane. The multilayered coatings were developed using layer-by-layer deposition of interpolymer complexes on glass surfaces. It was demonstrated that the solvent nature affects the efficiency of coating deposition.     

Studies on the structural transitions and self-organization behavior of polyacrylic acids with complementary polymers in aqueous solution by laser flash photolysis method using the triplet state of covalently bound phenosafranine

The conformational transition of polyacrylic acids and the formation of interpolymer complexes with synthetic polymers in aqueous solution are investigated using the triplet state of the cationic dye phenosafranine covalently attached to the polymer chain. Laser excitation of the phenosafranine dye covalently bound to polymethacrylic acid at 532 nm shows that the absorption spectrum of the triplet state shifts to red region by 40 nm as compared to that of the free dye in aqueous solution and the triplet state lifetime is enhanced by 20-fold. Laser flash excitation shows that the environment of the triplet state of the dye bound to the polyelectrolyte at pH ?5.5 in aqueous solution is more rigid and less polar resulting in a highly compact globular nature of the polymer. The decay of the triplet state of the dye bound to the polymer is attributed to the quenching of the excited state by the carboxylate groups of polyacrylic acids and to the decay process of the triplet in the tightly coiled polymer environment in the pH range 2.0–5.0. The spectra of the triplet dye molecules bound to the polymer at different degree of ionization of the polyelectrolyte suggest that the structural transition from compact globular structure to stretched rod like structure is cooperative involving a series of structural transitions. The observation of diprotonated triplet state of the PMAA bound dye at higher pH (i.e. pH ∼7.0) reveals the existence of an intermediate structure akin to a micellar segment in PMAA prior to the formation of elongated linear chain. The self-organization of PMAA adduct formation with complementary macromolecules, PVP, PEO and PVA primarily due to hydrogen bonding makes the environment of the dye in the adduct more compact and rigid; in particular poly(vinylpyrrolidone), PVP, has the tendency to form more compact interpolymer complex at pH 4.5 than poly(vinyl alcohol), PVA, and poly(ethylene oxide), PEO as revealed from the laser flash photolysis studies of the polymer bound dye using triplet state of the phenosafranine as the marker.     

Complexation thermodynamics of free and graft oligomers with complementary polymers

The dilute solution complexation equilibrium between linear macromolecules and smaller complementary oligomers is considered when: (1) the oligomers are free in solution; and (2) the oligomers are covalently attached at one end to the polymer. A general statistical mechanical framework is developed and is illustrated using a simple random walk model for polymer conformation. The statistical mechanical partition functions are formulated using a generating function technique, allowing thermodynamic averages in the complexed state to be calculated. Loops, trains, and tails of all possible length are allowed in the conformation of a complexed oligomer. Simulation results for the free oligomer case are compared with those obtained for oligomers covalently attached to the polymeric molecular. The model provides a theoretical explanation for the experimentally observed enhancement of complexation of oligomers grafted to the complementary polymers.     

Dynamics of membrane adhesion: the role of polyethylene glycol spacers, ligand-receptor bond strength, and rupture pathway

Biological adhesion typically occurs through discrete cross bridges between complementary molecules on adjacent membranes. Here we report quantitative measurements of the binding distance between a lipid membrane functionalized with ligands on flexible polymer tether chains and a second membrane bearing complementary receptors using the surface force apparatus technique. The binding distance is shown to increase as a function of polymer tether length. Upon separation, adhesive failure occurs not at the strong ligand-receptor bond but primarily through the mechanical pullout of cross-bridging polymer tethers from the membrane. We summarize these measurements of complementary membrane adhesion dynamics using an energy-state diagram that encompasses the energetics of the polymer tether, ligand-receptor bond strength, and number of cross bridges formed.     

Photoreactive UV-crosslinkable solvent-free acrylic pressure-sensitive adhesives containing copolymerizable photoinitiators based on benzophenones

The design and development of new, tailor-made, novel photoreactive acrylic pressure-sensitive adhesives, which can cope with both the technical and ecological demands, is therefore a continuing challenge for industrial research and development. Progress in the coating technology and the development of improved photoreactive acrylic adhesive will open the door for new applications and an extended market penetration of UV-crosslinkable acrylic adhesive raw materials containing unsaturated copolymerizable photoinitiators incorporated into the polymer backbone. They are characterized by good tack, good adhesion, excellent cohesion and very high shrinkage resistance. In this paper it is shown the application of H-abstractor such as 4-acryloyloxy benzophenone to obtain of the UV-crosslinked acrylic PSA.The presented novel UV-crosslinkable acrylic hotmelt PSA combines the economic advantages of the hotmelt coating technology with the high performance characteristics of the acrylic chemistry, including an excellent aging resistance, optical transparency and heat resistance.     

Sequence-defined positioning of amine and amide residues to control catechol driven wet adhesion

Catechol and amine residues, both abundantly present in mussel adhesion proteins, are known to act cooperatively by displacing hydration barriers before binding to mineral surfaces. In spite of synthetic efforts toward mussel-inspired adhesives, the effect of positioning of the involved functional groups along a polymer chain is not well understood. By using sequence-defined oligomers grafted to soft hydrogel particles as adhesion probes, we study the effect of catechol–amine spacing, as well as positioning relative to the oligomer terminus. We demonstrate that the catechol–amine spacing has a significant effect on adhesion, while shifting their position has a small effect. Notably, combinations of non-charged amides and catechols can achieve similar cooperative effects on adhesion when compared to amine and catechol residues. Thus, these findings provide a blueprint for the design of next generation mussel-inspired adhesives.

The catechol driven adhesion of precision macromolecules on glass surfaces is quantified by soft colloidal probe readout. Catechol moieties are shown to synergize with amine and amide residues depending on residue spacing and residue order.     

SCATTERING FUNCTION OF POLYMER BLENDS

For a system of flexible polymer molecules, the concepts of two concentrations, namely the segmental and the molecular concentrations, have been proposed in this paper. The former is equivalent to the volume fraction. The latter can be defined as the number of the gravity centers of macromolecules in a unit volume. The two concentrations should be correlated with each other by the conformational function of the polymer chain and should be discussed in different thermodynamic equations. On the basis of these concepts it has been proved that the Flory-Huggins entropy of mixing should be the result of the mixing “ideal gases of the gravity centers of macromolecules“. The general correlation between the free energy of mixing and the scattering function (structural factor) of polymer blends has been studied based on the general fluctuation theory. When the Flory-Huggins free energy of mixing is adopted, the de Gennes scattering function of a polymer blend can be derived.     

Electrostatic free energy of weakly charged macromolecules in solution and intermacromolecular complexes consisting of oppositely charged polymers

When oppositely charged polyelectrolytes are mixed in water, attraction between oppositely charged groups may lead to the formation of polyelectrolyte complexes (associative phase separation, complex coacervation, interpolymer complexes). Theory is presented to describe the electrostatic free energy change when ionizable (annealed) (macro-)molecules form a macroscopic polyelectrolyte complex. The electrostatic free energy includes an electric term as well as a chemical term that is related to the dissociation of the ionic groups in the polymer. An example calculation for complexation of polyacid with polybase uses a cylindrical diffuse double layer model for free polymer in solution and electroneutrality within the complex and calculates the free energy of the system when the polymer is in solution or in a polyelectrolyte complex. Combined with a term for the nonelectrostatic free energy change upon complexation, a theoretical stability diagram is constructed that relates pH, salt concentration, and mixing ratio, which is in qualitative agreement with an experimental diagram obtained by Bungenberg de Jong (1949) for complex coacervation of arabic gum and gelatin. The theory furthermore explains the increased tendency toward phase separation when the polymer becomes more strongly charged and suggests that complexation of polyacid or polybase with zwitterionic polymer (e.g., protein) of the same charge sign (at the "wrong side" of the iso-electric point) may be due (in part) to an induced charge reversal of the protein.     

Composites obtained via matrix and pseudo-matrix processes (polymerization and new phase formation)

A variety of composites comprising complexes between macromolecules and growing species such as macromolecules or particles may be prepared using matrix or pseudo-matrix processes. Matrix polycondensation of silica acid in the presence of poly(ethylene glycol) and other polymers in benzene resulting in formation of interpolymer complex (IPC) poly(silica acid)-matrix or composites including the IPC is regarded as an example of matrix processes providing the possibility to synthesize an IPC or composite which cannot be (or hardly may be) obtained by other ways: Theoretical aspects of pseudo-matrix processes in which pseudo-matrix macromolecule recognizes (i.e., forms a complex with) a particle of forming new phase and terminates its subsequent growth are discussed. Experimental data dealing with reduction of Ni(II) in polymer solutions and formation of nano-composites ‘polymer - metallic nickel’ including small particles (3–5 nm in diameter) with narrow size distribution are presented.     

Intrinsic Surface‐Drying Properties of Bioadhesive Proteins

Sessile marine mussels must “dry” underwater surfaces before adhering to them. Synthetic adhesives have yet to overcome this fundamental challenge. Previous studies of bioinspired adhesion have largely been performed under applied compressive forces, but such studies are poor predictors of the ability of an adhesive to spontaneously penetrate surface hydration layers. In a force‐free approach to measuring molecular‐level interaction through surface‐water diffusivity, different mussel foot proteins were found to have different abilities to evict hydration layers from surfaces—a necessary step for adsorption and adhesion. It was anticipated that DOPA would mediate dehydration owing to its efficacy in bioinspired wet adhesion. Instead, hydrophobic side chains were found to be a critical component for protein–surface intimacy. This direct measurement of interfacial water dynamics during force‐free adsorptive interactions at solid surfaces offers guidance for the engineering of wet adhesives and coatings.     

“Recognition” of copolymers and stereoisomers in macromolecule complexation reactions in dilute solutions

Theoretical relationships have been obtained describing the dependence of selectivity (or molecular “recognition”) on the length of reacting polymer chains in reactions between complementary macromolecules. The possibility of highly efficient separation of mixtures of macromolecules, differing little in chemical structure, was predicted as well as of fractionation of compositionally inhomogeneous copolymers by means of polymer-polymer interactions. Experimentally it has been found that polyethylene glycol mixed with polymethacrylic acid stereoisomers is selectively bound in a polycomplex with macromolecules enriched with iso-triads; polyvinylpyrrolidone is selectively bound to those poor in iso-triads. Polyvinylpyrrolidone selectively binds polymethacrylic acid in mixtures with copolymers of acrylic and methacrylic acids. The degree of “recognition” of a macromolecule of given chemical structure by an oligomer increases with increasing oligomer chain length and is in a quantitative agreement with the theoretical equation. It has been shown that, in aqueous solution for interaction of polyacrylic acid with compositionally inhomogeneous copolymer of 4-vinylpyridine and N-ethyl-4-vinylpyridinium bromide (partially quaternized polyvinylpyridine), the polyacrylic acid binds selectively the fractions rich in non-alkylated units. This result can be explained quantitatively in terms of the theory.     

Interpolymer Complexes and Polymer Compatibility

A reliable method to decide whether two polymers A and B are miscible or incompatible would be very helpful in many ways. In this contribution we demonstrate why traditional procedures cannot work. We propose to use the intrinsic viscosities [η] of the polymer blends instead of the composition dependence of the viscosities as a criterion for polymer miscibility. Two macromolecules A and B are miscible because of sufficiently favorable interactions between the two types of polymer segments. For solutions of these polymers in a joint solvent, this Gibbs energetic preference of dissimilar intersegmental contacts should prevail upon dilution and lead to the formation of interpolymer complexes, manifesting themselves in deviations from the additivity of intrinsic viscosities.     

Mechanism of adhesion of polyurethane/polymethacrylate simultaneous interpenetrating networks adhesives to polymer substrates

Polyether-based polyurethane/poly (methyl methacrylate-co-ethyleneglycol dimethacrylate) interpenetrating polymer networks [PU/P (MMA–co–EGDMA)-IPNs] were synthesized and used as adhesives to adhere vulcanized natural rubber (NR) and soft polyvinyl chloride (PVC). The structure and morphology of the IPN adhesives in bulk and near the adhesive/substrate interfaces were investigated. A new mechanism of adhesion called conjugate interpenetration of networks across interfaces, which is suitable for IPN adhesives and polymer substrates, was put forward. According to this mechanism, while forming simultaneous interpenetrating networks in the adhesive, the monomers in the IPN adhesive can permeate polymer substrates and polymerize in situ to form gradient IPNs, thereby producing conjugate three-component IPNs near the adhesive/substrate interfaces. It is the conjugate interpenetration of the networks across the interfaces that strengthens interfacial combination remarkably and results in high bond strength of IPN adhesives. © 1994 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.