Issue 3, 2020

Sphere-to-worm morphological transitions and size changes through thiol–para-fluoro core modification of PISA-made nano-objects

Abstract

Postpolymerization modification is a powerful strategy to change the chemical functionality of pre-made polymers, but only limited approaches exist to modify functionality as well as the shape and behaviour of nano-particles. Herein, poly[poly(ethylene glycol) methyl ether methacrylate]-poly(2,3,4,5,6-pentafluorobenzyl methacrylate) nano-objects (pPEGMA-pPFBMA) prepared via RAFT dispersion polymerization with concurrent polymerization-induced self-assembly (PISA) in ethanol with either spherical or worm-shaped morphology were modified, post-synthesis, with a selection of 15 different thiols through thiol–para-fluoro substitution reactions in the nano-object cores. Depending on the choice of thiol, spherical nano-objects underwent an order–disorder transition to form unimers, increased in size, or underwent an order–order transition to form worm-shaped nano-objects. The core solvophobicity was found to be more important in driving a morphological transition than the modification efficiency, mass increase of the core block, or the glass transition temperature of the (partially) modified cores. These findings are relevant to the development of a “universal nanoparticle precursor” approach that allows the tuning of functionality, behaviour, size, and shape of a pre-made nano-object sample on demand.

Graphical abstract: Sphere-to-worm morphological transitions and size changes through thiol–para-fluoro core modification of PISA-made nano-objects

Supplementary files

Article information

Article type
Paper
Submitted
21 oct. 2019
Accepted
19 nov. 2019
First published
20 nov. 2019

Polym. Chem., 2020,11, 704-711

Sphere-to-worm morphological transitions and size changes through thiol–para-fluoro core modification of PISA-made nano-objects

N. Busatto, J. L. Keddie and P. J. Roth, Polym. Chem., 2020, 11, 704 DOI: 10.1039/C9PY01585J

To request permission to reproduce material from this article, please go to the Copyright Clearance Center request page.

If you are an author contributing to an RSC publication, you do not need to request permission provided correct acknowledgement is given.

If you are the author of this article, you do not need to request permission to reproduce figures and diagrams provided correct acknowledgement is given. If you want to reproduce the whole article in a third-party publication (excluding your thesis/dissertation for which permission is not required) please go to the Copyright Clearance Center request page.

Read more about how to correctly acknowledge RSC content.

Social activity

Spotlight

Advertisements