Issue 4, 2012

Amphiphilic liquid-crystal block copolymer nanofibers via RAFT-mediated dispersion polymerization

Abstract

Well-defined, cholesteryl-based, amphiphilic block copolymer nanofibers have been obtained in a simple, one-pot, ethanol/water dispersion polymerization process using poly((meth)acrylic acid-co-(poly(ethylene glycol) (meth)acrylate) copolymers end-functionalized by a reactive trithiocarbonate end-group as macromolecular reversible addition–fragmentation chain transfer agents (macroRAFT agents). The resulting highly concentrated dispersions were analyzed by TEM (transmission electron microscopy), cryo-TEM, SAXS (small angle X-ray scattering) and SANS (small angle neutron scattering), which allowed the shape and size of the nanoobjects formed in situ to be fully characterized and which revealed moreover the presence of a smectic order in the hydrophobic cores. Due to this particular substructure, the nanofiber organization was observed over a broad composition range of the amphiphilic block copolymers.

Graphical abstract: Amphiphilic liquid-crystal block copolymer nanofibers via RAFT-mediated dispersion polymerization

Supplementary files

Article information

Article type
Paper
Submitted
22 Aug 2011
Accepted
27 Oct 2011
First published
24 Nov 2011

Soft Matter, 2012,8, 1130-1141

Amphiphilic liquid-crystal block copolymer nanofibers via RAFT-mediated dispersion polymerization

X. Zhang, S. Boissé, C. Bui, P. Albouy, A. Brûlet, M. Li, J. Rieger and B. Charleux, Soft Matter, 2012, 8, 1130 DOI: 10.1039/C1SM06598J

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