Solvent-induced morphological transition in core-cross-linked block copolymer micelles.
Microwave-assisted polymerization has been utilized to synthesize amphiphilic poly(2-ethyl-2-oxazoline-block-2-"soy alkyl"-2-oxazoline) diblock copolymers (PEtOx-PSoyOx). The amphiphilic block copolymers have been used to prepare aqueous spherical micelles consisting of a PEtOx corona and a PSoyOx core, which have been further cross-linked by UV irradiation. The morphology of these cross-linked micelles has been shown to reversibly change from spheres to short rods referred to as rice grains whenever the micelles were transferred from water into acetone, a nonselective solvent for the constituent blocks. This morphological transition has been attributed to the swelling of the slightly cross-linked PSoyOx core.
Unité de Chimie des Matériaux Inorganiques et Organiques, and Research Center in Micro- and Nanoscopic Materials and Electronic Devices, Université catholique de Louvain, Place Pasteur 1, 1348 Louvain-la-Neuve, Belgium.
Haiying
H
Huang
Richard
R
Hoogenboom
Mark A M
MA
Leenen
Pierre
P
Guillet
Alain M
AM
Jonas
Ulrich S
US
Schubert
Jean-François
JF
Gohy