title: Giant wormlike rubber micelles
abstract: A low molecular weight poly(ethyleneoxide)-poly(butadiene) (PEO-PB) diblock copolymer containing 50 weight percent PEO forms gigantic wormlike micelles at low concentrations (<5 percent by weight) in water. Subsequent generation of free radicals with a conventional water-based redox reaction leads to chemical cross-linking of the PB cores without disruption of the cylindrical morphology, as evidenced by cryotransmission electron microscopy and small-angle neutron scattering experiments. These wormlike rubber micelles exhibit unusual viscoelastic properties in water.
authors.affiliation: Department of Chemical Engineering and Materials Science, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, MN 55455, USA.
authors.initials: YY
authors.lastname: Won
authors.initials: HT
authors.lastname: Davis
authors.initials: FS
authors.lastname: Bates