title: Nanofibrillar Stimulus-Responsive Cholesteric Microgels with Catalytic Properties.
abstract: We report composite stimulus-responsive cholesteric catalytically active microgels derived from filamentous supramolecular building blocks: cellulose nanocrystals (CNCs). The variation in the microgel dimensions and pitch in response to the change in ambient conditions was governed by the polymer component. The cholesteric morphology of the microgels resulted from the self-organization of CNCs in spherical confinement. The microgels exhibited excellent structural integrity and functioned as microreactors in catalytic hydrolysis reactions and in the synthesis of metal nanoparticles. Because of these collective properties, the reported microgels show much promise for application in the design of functional responsive materials.
authors.affiliation: Department of Chemistry, University of Toronto, 80 Saint George Street, Toronto, Ontario, M5S 3H6, Canada.
authors.forename: Sangho
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Cho
authors.affiliation: Department of Chemistry, University of Toronto, 80 Saint George Street, Toronto, Ontario, M5S 3H6, Canada.
authors.forename: Yunfeng
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Li
authors.affiliation: Department of Chemistry, University of Toronto, 80 Saint George Street, Toronto, Ontario, M5S 3H6, Canada.
authors.forename: Minseok
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Seo
authors.affiliation: Department of Chemistry, University of Toronto, 80 Saint George Street, Toronto, Ontario, M5S 3H6, Canada. ekumache@chem.utoronto.ca.|Department of Chemical Engineering and Applied Chemistry, University of Toronto, 200 College Street, Toronto, Ontario, M5S 3E5, Canada. ekumache@chem.utoronto.ca.|Institute of Biomaterials and Biomedical Engineering, University of Toronto, 4 Taddle Creek Road, Toronto, Ontario, M5S 3G9, Canada. ekumache@chem.utoronto.ca.
authors.forename: Eugenia
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Kumacheva
keywords: cellulose nanocrystals; cholesteric microgels; microreactors; nanoparticles; responsive materials