Polymer 4D printing: Advanced shape-change and beyond

4D printing is an exciting branch of additive manufacturing. It relies on established 3D printing techniques to fabricate objects in much the same way. However, structures which fall into the 4D printed category have the ability to change with time, hence the “extra dimension.” The common perception of 4D printed objects is that of macroscopic single-material structures limited to point-to-point shape change only, in response to either heat or water. However, in the area of polymer 4D printing, recent advancements challenge this understanding. A host of new polymeric materials have been designed which display a variety of wonderful effects brought about by unconventional stimuli, and advanced additive manufacturing techniques have been developed to accommodate them. As a result, the horizons of polymer 4D printing have been broadened beyond what was initially thought possible. In this review, we showcase the many studies which evolve the very definition of polymer 4D printing, and reveal emerging areas of research integral to its advancement.     

Hydrophobic Monomers Recognize Microenvironments in Hydrogel Microspheres during Free-Radical-Seeded Emulsion Polymerization

The three-dimensional structure of nanocomposite microgels was precisely determined by cryo-electron micrography. Several nanocomposite microgels that differ with respect to their nanocomposite structure, which were obtained from seeded emulsion polymerization in the presence of microgels, were used as model nanocomposite materials for cryo-electron micrography. The obtained three-dimensional segmentation images of these nanocomposite microgels provide important insights into the interactions between the hydrophobic monomers and the microgels, that is, hydrophobic styrene monomers recognize molecular-scale differences in polarity within the microgels during the emulsion polymerization. This result led to the formation of unprecedented multi-layered nanocomposite microgels, which promise substantial potential in colloidal applications.     

Control over Nanostructures and Associated Mesomorphic Properties of Doped Self‐Assembled Triarylamine Liquid Crystals

We have synthesized a series of triarylamine‐cored molecules equipped with an adjacent amide moiety and dendritic peripheral tails in a variety of modes. We show by ¹H NMR and UV/Vis spectroscopy that their supramolecular self‐assembly can be promoted in solution upon light stimulation and radical initiation. In addition, we have probed their molecular arrangements and mesomorphic properties in the bulk by integrated studies on their film state by using differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), variable‐temperature polarizing optical microscopy (VT‐POM), variable‐temperature X‐ray diffraction (VT‐XRD), and atomic force microscopy (AFM). Differences in the number and the disposition of the peripheral tails significantly affect their mesomorphic properties associated with their lamellar‐ or columnar‐packed nanostructures, which are based on segregated stacks of the triphenylamine cores and the lipophilic/lipophobic periphery. Such structural tuning is of interest for implementation of these soft self‐assemblies as electroactive materials from solution to mesophases.     

Polymer nanoparticles with a sensitive CO2‐responsive hydrophilic/hydrophobic surface

Poly(methyl methacrylate) (PMMA) nanoparticles with a sensitive CO₂‐responsive hydrophilic/hydrophobic surface that confers controlled dispersion and aggregation in water were prepared by emulsion polymerization at 50 °C under CO₂ bubbling using amphiphilic diblock copolymers of 2‐dimethylaminoethyl methacrylate (DMAEMA) and N‐isopropyl acrylamide (NIPAAm) as an emulsifier. The amphiphilicity of the hydrophobic–hydrophilic diblock copolymer at 50 °C was triggered by CO₂ bubbling in water and enabled the copolymer to serve as an emulsifier. The resulting PMMA nanoparticles were spherical, approximately 100 nm in diameter and exhibited sensitive CO₂/N₂‐responsive dispersion/aggregation in water. Using copolymers with a longer PNIPAAm block length as an emulsifier resulted in smaller particles. A higher concentration of copolymer emulsifier led to particles with a stickier surface. Given its simple preparation and reversible CO₂‐triggered amphiphilic behavior, this newly developed block copolymer emulsifier offers a highly efficient route toward the fabrication of sensitive CO₂‐stimuli responsive polymeric nanoparticle dispersions. © 2019 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Polym. Sci., Part A: Polym. Chem. 2019, 57, 2149–2156     

控温相变免疫分析测定雌酮

通过热引发聚合与氧化还原引发聚合，合成水凝胶，作为雌酮全抗原(E1— BSA)载体；以异硫氰基灾光素标记雌酮的单克隆抗体(McAb)作为示踪剂，建立了控温相变竞争免疫分析测定雌酮(EI)的方法并应用于分析血清样品。实验表明：以热引发聚合合成的水凝胶为载体的荧光免疫分析方法具有更高的灵敏度，它的线性范围为10-700μg/L，检出限为1μg／L(n=10，3倍空白)。经水凝胶性质的比较(包括LCST、非特异性吸附、抗原与抗体反应时间及固定化抗原活性)，证明了热引发聚合的水凝胶较氧化还原引发聚合的水凝胶更适合于作为免疫分析的载体。     

Bioengineering functional copolymers. III. Synthesis of biocompatible poly[(N‐isopropylacrylamide‐co‐maleic anhydride)‐g‐poly(ethylene oxide)]/poly(ethylene imine) macrocomplexes and their thermostabilization effect on the activity of the enzyme penicillin G acylase

Stimuli‐responsive poly[(N‐isopropylacrylamide‐co‐maleic anhydride)‐g‐poly(ethylene oxide)]/poly(ethylene imine) macrobranched macrocomplexes were synthesized by (1) the radical copolymerization of N‐isopropylacrylamide and maleic anhydride with α,α′‐azobisisobutyronitrile as an initiator in 1,4‐dioxane at 65 °C under a nitrogen atmosphere, (2) the polyesterification (grafting) of prepared poly(N‐isopropylacrylamide‐co‐maleic anhydride) containing less than 20 mol % anhydride units with α‐hydroxy‐ω‐methoxy‐poly(ethylene oxide)s having different number‐average molecular weights (M_n = 4000, 10,000, or 20,000), and (3) the incorporation of macrobranched copolymers with poly(ethylene imine) (M_n = 60,000). The composition and structure of the synthesized copolymer systems were determined by Fourier transform infrared, ¹H and ¹³C NMR spectroscopy, and chemical and elemental analyses. The important properties of the copolymer systems (e.g., the viscosity, thermal and pH sensitivities, and lower critical solution temperature behavior) changed with increases in the molecular weight, composition, and length of the macrobranched hydrophobic domains. These copolymers with reactive anhydride and carboxylic groups were used for the stabilization of penicillin G acylase (PGA). The conjugation of the enzyme with the copolymers significantly increased the thermal stability of PGA (three times at 45 °C and two times at 65 °C). © 2003 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part A: Polym Chem 41: 1580–1593, 2003     

Hydrogel nanonetworks with functional core-shell structure

Nanohydrogel particles of poly(acrylonitrile-co-N-isopropylacrylamide (p(AN-c-NIPAM)) were synthesized using a microemulsion polymerization technique. Highly monodisperse nanohydrogel particles e.g. 50-150 nm, and various morphology such as core-shell and connected beads were obtained. It was shown that the shell thickness and the size of particles can be tuned by the monomer concentrations and their ratios as well as by the utilization of different crosslinkers. The hydrophobic core monomer, AN was converted to amidoxime groups to increase the hydrophilicity of the nanogels which provide more hydrophilic character and impart new functionality to the nanonetwork. Transmission electron microscopy (TEM), and dynamic light scattering (DLS) techniques were employed for the particle size characterizations. The amidoximation reaction was confirmed by FT-IR spectroscopy.     

Fabrication of tunable colloid crystals from amine-terminated polyamidoamine dendrimers

A pH-responsive colloidal crystal was assembled using core-shell composite spheres, poly(styrene-methyl methacrylate-acrylic acid) (P(St-MMA-AA)) spheres covered by generation 4 amine-terminated polyamidoamine dendrimers. The light reflection of the colloidal crystal film can be tuned at different pH due to different protonation level of the dendrimers. The method shows a facile way to fabricate diffraction-based chemical and biological sensors by exploiting the effect of photonic crystal cooperated with tunable nanoparticles.     

Non-isothermal kinetics of dehydration of equilibrium swollen poly(acrylic acid) hydrogel</o:p>

Summary Kinetics of dehydration of equilibrium swollen poly(acrylic acid) hydrogel was investigated using methods of non-isothermal thermal analysis. Methods of Kissinger, Coats-Redfern, Van Krevelen and Horowitz-Metzger were applied for determination the kinetics parameters: activation energy (E), pre-exponent (lnA) as well as the kinetics model ƒ(69) for the process of hydrogel dehydration under different heating rates. An existence of good agreement between determined values of kinetic parameters (Eand A), which were obtained applying different methods under the same heating rate. Functional relationship between changes of kinetic parameters of dehydration and changes of heating rate was established. An existence of compensation effect is accepted and explanation of compensation effect appearance during the hydrogel dehydration is suggested.     

快速响应的温敏性聚(N-异丙基丙烯酰胺)水凝胶 Ⅰ.以CaCO_3为成孔剂制备方法、表征及动力学研究

以不同粒径的CaCO3粒子为成孔剂 ,合成了快速响应的温敏性聚 (N 异丙基丙烯酰胺 ) (PNIPA)水凝胶 .利用扫描电镜观察到水凝胶具有特殊的孔状结构 ,得到水凝胶的孔径大小为几十微米左右 .动力学研究表明 ,该水凝胶在温敏膨胀或收缩时 ,具有快速的响应速率 ,在 10min内的失水率可达 90 % .比较了干凝胶和4 0℃下失水后的凝胶两种不同状态下水凝胶的膨胀曲线 ,发现两者的溶胀动力学曲线明显不同 ,前者的曲线有拐点 .同时发现与失水收缩速率相比 ,水凝胶具有较慢的吸水膨胀速率 .