Polyelectrolyte complex nanoparticles from chitosan and poly(acrylic acid) and Polystyrene‐block‐poly(acrylic acid)

Interpolymer polyelectrolyte complexes of chitosan (CS) with poly(acrylic acid) homopolymers and polystyrene‐block‐poly(acrylic acid) diblock copolymers were prepared and characterized. The influence of the positive/negative charge balance (charge ratio), pH, and ionic strength were thoroughly studied by dynamic light scattering. The existence of a strong polyelectrolyte effect was also highlighted in this study. Domains of stability, in which nanoparticle sizes are smaller than 100 and 200 nm for complexes of CS with the homopolymer and copolymer, respectively, were identified and confirmed by scanning electron microscopy and atomic force microscopy. The charged nature of the surface of the nanoparticles was evidenced by Zeta potential measurements. © 2012 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part A: Polym Chem, 2012     

(S,S)‐Lactoyllactic acid and (S,S,S)‐lactoyllactoyllactic acid

The dimeric condensation product of lactic acid, namely (S,S)‐2‐[(2‐hydroxypropanoyl)oxy]propanoic acid, C₆H₁₀O₅, (I), crystallizes with two independent molecules in the asymmetric unit, which both have an essentially planar backbone. The trimeric condensation product, namely (S,S,S)‐3‐hydroxybut‐3‐en‐2‐yl 2‐[(2‐hydroxypropanoyl)oxy]propanoate, C₉H₁₄O₇, (II), has one molecule in the asymmetric unit and consists of two essentially planar parts, with the central C—O bond in a gauche conformation. Both molecules of the dimer are involved in intermolecular hydrogen bonds, forming chains with a C(8) graph set. These chains are connected by D(2) hydrogen bonds to form a two‐dimensional layer. The trimer forms hydrogen‐bonded C(10) and C₂²(6) chains, which together result in a two‐dimensional motif. The Hooft method [Hooft, Straver & Spek (2008). J. Appl. Cryst. 41 , 96–103] was successfully applied to the determination of the absolute structure of (I).     

(2‐Hydroxy isobutyric) acid containing poly(glycolic acid): Structure–properties relationship

Poly(glycolic acid) (PGA) and a series of novel random copolymers of PGA containing 2‐hydroxyisobutyrric acid (PGAPHIB) (HIB unit content from 1.5 to 7.4 mol %) were synthesized and characterized in terms of chemical structure and molecular weight. Afterward, the polyesters were examined by thermogravimetric analysis, differential scanning calorimetry, and X‐ray diffraction techniques. The copolymers, which displayed a better thermal stability than PGA, at room temperature appeared as semicrystalline materials: the main effect of copolymerization was a lowering in the amount of crystallinity and a decrease of the melting temperature with respect to homopolymer PGA. Baur's equation described well the T_m‐composition data. X‐ray diffraction measurements allowed the identification of the PGA crystalline structure in all cases. After melt quenching, semicrystalline samples were obtained with the exception of PGAPHIB7.4 copolymer. The introduction of HIB units decreased the crystallization rate compared with pure PGA. © 2010 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part B: Polym Phys 48: 1901–1910, 2010     

X‐(Diiodoarsanyl)benzoic acid (X = 3 and 4)

The title compounds, 4‐(diiodoarsanyl)benzoic acid, (I), and 3‐(diiodoarsanyl)benzoic acid, (II), both [As(C₇H₅O₂)I₂], which possess a –COOH coordinating group, form molecular crystal structures composed of hydrogen‐bonded dimers, the packing differences of which are caused by the relative position of the diiodoarsanyl groups. The para isomer, with Z′ = 1, crystallizes in a layered structure with shortened contacts of the As atoms to only the arene rings of adjacent molecules. In contrast, the meta isomer, with Z′ = 3, forms separate rectangular blocks of three ribbons, each composed of dimeric molecular units positioned almost directly above each other and with the As atoms possessing only two As...I contacts to the I atoms of neighbouring molecules.     

(R)‐Mandelic acid (S)‐alanine hemihydrate

Crystals of the title complex, C₃H₇NO₂·C₈H₈O₃·0.5H₂O, were obtained from an aqueous solution containing racemic mandelic acid and (S)‐alanine. The unit cell includes two independent molecular complexes and one water molecule. The structure formed by (R)‐mandelic acid and (S)‐alanine in a 1:1 molar ratio shows the successful optical separation of racemic mandelic acid. Strong hydrogen bonding, with a rather short O?O separation of 2.494 (3) Å, is observed between the carboxyl and carboxyl­ate groups. A structural comparison suggests that the strong hydrogen bonding affects the neighbouring covalent bond.     

Poly(lactic acid) composites with poly(lactic acid)‐modified carbon nanotubes

This work reports the study of the effect of chemical functionalization of carbon nanotubes on their dispersion in poly(lactic acid). The nanotubes were functionalized by the 1,3‐dipolar cycloaddition reaction, generating pyrrolidine groups at the nanotube surface. Further reaction of the pyrrolidine groups with poly(lactic acid) was studied in solution and in the polymer melt. The former involved refluxing the nanotubes in a dimethylformamide/polymer solution; the latter was carried out by direct melt mixing in a microcompounder. The carbon nanotubes collected after each process were characterized by thermogravimetry and by X‐ray photoelectron spectroscopy, showing evidence of polymer bonded to the nanotube surface only when the reaction was carried out in the polymer melt. The composites with polymer modified nanotubes present smaller average agglomerate area and a narrower agglomerate area distribution. In addition, they show improved tensile properties at low CNT concentration and present lower electrical resistivity. © 2013 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Polym. Sci., Part A: Polym. Chem. 2013, 51, 3740–3750     

Enantioselective synthesis of (−)-pinellic acid

An enantioselective convergent approach toward the total synthesis of pinellic acid 1 from 1,9-nonanediol is described. The synthetic strategy features iterative Sharpless asymmetric dihydroxylation, Sonogashira coupling and Birch reduction.     

Stereoselective Interaction between Isotactic and Optically Active Poly(lactic acid) and Phenyl‐Substituted Poly(lactic acid)

Isotactic and optically active poly(D ‐lactic acid) (PDLA) and phenyl‐substituted poly(lactic acid)s (Ph‐PLAs), i.e., poly(D ‐phenyllactic acid) (Ph‐PDLA) and poly(L ‐phenyllactic acid) (Ph‐PLLA), were synthesized and stereospecific interactions between the synthesized polymers were investigated by their thermal properties and crystallization behavior using differential scanning calorimetry (DSC). The DSC measurements indicated that PDLA is miscible with Ph‐PLAs and that the attractive interaction between PDLA and L ‐configured Ph‐PLA is higher than that between PDLA and D ‐configured Ph‐PDLA. In other words, the latter result means that poly(lactic acid) (PLA) has a higher stereoselective attractive interaction with Ph‐PLA with the reverse configuration than with Ph‐PLA of the same configuration. These results strongly suggest that PLA‐based materials with a wide variety of physical properties and biodegradability can be fabricated by blending them with substituted PLAs with the reverse and same configurations.

     

Enantioselective synthesis of (−)-galantinic acid

An efficient enantioselective synthesis of (−)-galantinic acid 1, a non-proteogenic amino acid is described using Sharpless asymmetric epoxidation, dihydroxylation and the regioselective nucleophilic opening of a cyclic sulfite as the key steps.     

Total synthesis of (−)-martinellic acid

An enantioselective formal total synthesis of the pyrrolo[3,2-c]quinoline natural product martinellic acid has been achieved. The key steps involve a Pd-catalyzed aryl amidation reaction of a pyrroglutamate derivative, an intramolecular [3+2] azomethine ylide-alkene cycloaddition and a reductive ring opening reaction.     

Local acid environment in poly(ethylene‐ran‐methacrylic acid) ionomers

The local environment of unneutralized carboxylic acid groups in poly(ethylene‐ran‐methacrylic acid) (E/MAA) ionomers neutralized with monovalent (Li and Na) and divalent (Ca and Zn) ions has been investigated with Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy. These unneutralized acid groups interact with one another to form acid dimers, and they associate with existing neutralized complexes. At room temperature, no free acids can be detected for any system, not even for pure E/MAA. With the acid dimer peak (1700 cm^?1) and a known unneutralized acid concentration, the concentration of acids associated with a neutralized complex can be determined. This concentration of associated acids increases with increasing neutralization, reaches a maximum below 50% neutralization, and then decreases toward zero near 80% neutralization. This behavior is perhaps due to the increased driving force for aggregation of the neutralization acids. Although Li, Na, and Ca contain similar concentrations of associated acids over the range of neutralizations, the Zn system contains far fewer associated acids (i.e., more acid dimers) at any particular neutralization level. These results are confirmed by an analysis of the absorbance in the neutralized region (1650–1500 cm^?1). © 2002 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part B: Polym Phys 41: 2833–2841, 2002     

Light Scattering Study of the Antibody–Poly(methacrylic acid) and Antibody–Poly(acrylic acid) Conjugates in Aqueous Solutions

The effect of the conformational state of the polymer coil on the properties of protein–polymer conjugates has been studied for the conjugates of antibody (monoclonal antibody from 6C5 clone against inactivated rabbit muscle glyceraldehyde‐3‐phosphate dehydrogenase; Ab) with poly(methacrylic acid) (PMAA) or poly‐(acrylic acid) (PAA). The pH‐dependencies of molecular properties and structural parameters of aqueous solutions (radius of gyration, intensity of scattered light, hydrodynamic diameter, and polydispersity index) of Ab, PMAA, and PAA and their conjugates, i. e., Ab‐PMAA and Ab‐PAA, have been studied using static and dynamic light scattering techniques. While free Ab aggregates in solution and precipitates at its isoelectric point, the covalent attachment of a charged polymer to Ab prevents its association and shifts the precipitation point towards more acidic values (from pH 5.95 for Ab to pH ˜ 4.8 for Ab‐PMAA). The predominant role of the conformational status of the polymer in the process of conjugate precipitation has been considered. Contrary to the precipitation of Ab‐PMAA, the formation of stable colloidal particles was suggested for Ab‐PAA at pH < 4.8. In the conjugates, polymer chains surround the protein globule in an extremely compact manner while Ab significantly affects the polymer conformation. The essentially larger hydrodynamic radii of conjugates, when compared with their radii of gyration, confirm the strong interaction of conjugates with solvent molecules.     

Poly(N‐phenylmaleimide‐co‐acrylic acid)–copper(II) and poly(N‐phenylmaleimide‐co‐acrylic acid)–cobalt(II) complexes: Synthesis,characterization, and thermal behavior

The free‐radical copolymerization of N‐phenylmaleimide (N‐PhMI) with acrylic acid was studied in the range of 25–75 mol % in the feed. The interactions of these copolymers with Cu(II) and Co(II) ions were investigated as a function of the pH and copolymer composition by the use of the ultrafiltration technique. The maximum retention capacity of the copolymers for Co(II) and Cu(II) ions varied from 200 to 250 mg/g and from 210 to 300 mg/g, respectively. The copolymers and polymer–metal complexes of divalent transition‐metal ions were characterized by elemental analysis, Fourier transform infrared, ¹H NMR spectroscopy, and cyclic voltammetry. The thermal behavior was investigated with differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) and thermogravimetry (TG). The TG and DSC measurements showed an increase in the glass‐transition temperature (T_g) and the thermal stability with an increase in the N‐PhMI concentration in the copolymers. T_g of poly(N‐PhMI‐co‐AA) with copolymer composition 46.5:53.5 mol % was found at 251 °C, and it decreased when the complexes of Co(II) and Cu(II) at pHs 3–7 were formed. © 2005 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part A: Polym Chem 43: 4933–4941, 2005