Phase behavior of ethylene oxide-dimethylsiloxane PEO-PDMS-PEO triblock copolymers with water

Linear ethylene oxide-dimethylsiloxane PEO-PDMS-PEO triblock copolymers have been synthesized by hydrosilation of ,-dihydropoly(dimethylsiloxane) ) and -methyl--propargylpoly(ethylene oxide) . Studies by optical microscopy, complementary small-angle x-ray scattering (SAXS), and differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) have shown that the copolymers mixed with water are characterized by lyotropic liquid crystalline phases according to composition and temperature. The binary phase diagrams with varying copolymer composition are reported.