Synthesis and characterization of hyperbranched cationic polyelectrolytes via aqueous self‐condensing atom transfer radical polymerization

The hyperbranched cationic polyelectrolytes (PDMEAB) were directly prepared via the CuBr/ligand‐catalyzed (ligand = 2,2′‐bipyridine or pentamethyldiethylenetriamine) aqueous self‐condensing atom transfer radical polymerization (SCATRP) of a novel inimer, N,N‐dimethyl‐N‐(2‐methacryloyloxy)ethyl‐N‐(2‐bromoisobutyryloxy)ethyl ammonium bromide (DMEAB). Elemental analysis and nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopy confirmed the structure of DMEAB. The hyperbranched architecture and number‐average degree of polymerization (DP_n) of the PDMEAB was studied by ¹H‐ and ¹³C‐NMR. The kinetic results suggested that the DP_n of the hyperbranched PDMEAB grew gradually in the initial stage and exponentially in the later stage. The differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) showed that the glass transition temperature of the hyperbranched PDMEAB was much lower than that of the linear analogue. The solution rheometry showed that the aqueous PDMEAB solutions approximately underwent a Newtonian behavior and their shear viscosity maintained almost constant upon the addition of NaCl because of the spherical conformations of the hyperbranched cationic polyelectrolytes. © 2009 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci, 2009     

Polyacrylonitrile solution homogeneity study by dynamic shear rheology and the effect on the carbon fiber tensile strength

Poly(acrylonitrile‐co‐methacrylic acid) (PAN‐co‐MAA)/N,N‐dimethylformamide (DMF) solutions were prepared and dynamic shear rheology of these solutions were investigated. With increasing stirring time up to 72 h at 70°C, the polymer solution became less elastic (more liquid‐like) with a ～60% reduction in the zero‐shear viscosity. Relaxation spectra of the PAN‐co‐MAA/DMF solutions yield a decrease in relaxation time (disentanglement time, τ_d), corresponding to an about 8% decrease in viscosity average molecular weight. The log‐log plot of G′ (storage modulus) versus G″ (loss modulus) exhibited an increase in slope as a function of stirring time, suggesting that the molecular level solution homogeneity increased. In order to study the effect of solution homogeneity on the resulting carbon fiber tensile strength, multiple PAN‐co‐MAA/DMF solutions were prepared, and the precursor fibers were processed using gel‐spinning, followed by continuous stabilization and carbonization. The rheological properties of each solution were also measured and correlated with the tensile strength values of the carbon fibers. It was observed that with increasing the slope of the G′ versus G″ log‐log plot from 1.471 to 1.552, and reducing interfilament fiber friction during precursor fiber drawing through the addition of a fiber washing step prior to fiber drawing, the carbon fiber strength was improved (from 3.7 to 5.8 GPa). This suggests that along with precursor fiber manufacturing and carbonization, the solution homogeneity is also very important to obtain high strength carbon fiber. POLYM. ENG. SCI., 56:361–370, 2016. © 2016 Society of Plastics Engineers     

Rheology of concentrated solutions of hyperbranched polyesters

The solution rheology of different generations of hyperbranched polyesters in N‐methyl‐2‐pyrrolidinone (NMP) solvent was examined in this study. The solutions exhibited Newtonian behavior over a wide range of polyester concentrations. Also, the relative viscosities of poly(amidoamine) (PAMAM) dendrimers in ethylenediamine were compared with those of the hyperbranched polyesters in NMP. Both types of dendritic polymers have relative viscosities that are exponential functions of their molar fraction in solution. The slopes of these relative viscosity curves show a linear relationship with respect to the generation number. PAMAM dendrimers have the greater slopes for each generation, reflecting their relatively larger intrinsic viscosity values.     

不同代数端羟基超支化聚酯及其二元共混物的流变行为

系统研究了消除热历史后的G1~G5端羟基超支化聚酯熔体及组分质量比为1∶1的二元共混物的流变行为。结果表明,无论是稳态剪切测试还是振荡测试,消除热历史后的G2~G5端羟基超支化聚酯熔体均表现为牛顿流体的流变行为。G3~G5端羟基超支化聚酯的流变行为均遵循Cox-Merz方程。G2端羟基超支化聚酯在振荡测试的高频区出现了剪切增稠现象。对于组分质量比为1∶1的低代/高代端羟基超支化聚酯二元共混物,无论是稳态剪切还是振荡剪切,只要一种组分是牛顿流体,那么二元共混体系也是牛顿流体。高代数组分决定了二元共混物的流变特性,而低代数组分主要影响二元共混物的黏度。     

Electrospinning of aqueous lignin/poly(ethylene oxide) complexes

Microfibers of kraft lignin blended with poly(ethylene oxide) (PEO) were produced by electrospinning of the solution of lignin and high molecular weight poly(ethylene oxide) (PEO) in alkaline water. Interactions between lignin and PEO in alkaline aqueous solutions create association complexes, which increases the viscosity of the solution. The effect of polymer concentration, PEO molecular weight, and storage time of solution before spinning on the morphology of the fibers was studied. It showed that after one day the viscosity dropped and fiber diameter decreased. Results from the solutions in alkaline water and N,N‐dimethylformamide (DMF) with different polymer concentrations were compared. The 7 wt % of (Lignin/PEO: 95/5 wt/wt) in alkaline aqueous solution was successfully spun and the ratio of PEO in lignin/PEO mixture could be further reduced. In comparison, higher concentrations were needed to prepare a spinning solution in DMF and fiber diameters were in a much smaller range. The final target of spinning lignin is to produce carbonized fibers. Fibers spun from aqueous solutions had lower PEO content, which is a big advantage for the carbonization process as it reduces the challenges regarding melting of the fibers or void creation during carbonization. Furthermore, the larger diameter of these fibers inhibits disintegration of the carbonized fibers, which happens due to the mass loss during the process. © 2014 The Authors Journal of Applied Polymer Science Published by Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Appl. Polym. Sci. 2015 , 132, 41260.     

Sea‐island polyurethane/polycarbonate composite nanofiber fabricated through electrospinning

Sea‐island polyurethane (PU)/polycarbonate (PC) composite nanofibers were obtained through electrospinning of partially miscible PU and PC in 3 : 7 (v/v) N,N‐dimethylformamide (DMF) and tetrahydrofuran (THF) mixture solvent. Their structures, mechanical, and thermal properties were characterized by scanning electron microscopy (SEM), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy, thermogravimetric (TG), and differential scanning calorimetry (DSC). The structures and morphologies of the nanofibers were influenced by composition ratio in the binary mixtures. The pure PC nanofiber was brittle and easy to break. With increasing the PU content in the PU/PC composite nanofibers, PU component not only facilitated the electrospinning of PC but improved the mechanical properties of PU/PC nanofibrous mats. In a series of nanofibrous mats with varied PU/PC composition ratios, PU/PC 70/30 showed excellent tensile strength of 9.60 Mpa and Young's modulus of 55 Mpa. After selective removal of PC component in PU/PC composite nanofibers by washing with acetone, the residual PU maintained fiber morphology. However, the residual PU nanofiber became irregular and contained elongated indents and ridges along the fiber surface. PU/PC composite fibers showed sea‐island nanofiber structure due to phase separation in the spinning solution and in the course of electrospinning. At PC content below 30%, the PC domains were small and evenly dispersed in the composite nanofibers. As PC content was over 50%, the PC phases became large elongated aggregates dispersed in the composite nanofibers. © 2009 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci, 2010     

Influence of processing conditions on polymorphic behavior,crystallinity, and morphology of electrospun poly(VInylidene fluoride) nanofibers

The polymorphism and crystallinity of poly(vinylidene fluoride) (PVDF) membranes, made from electrospinning of the PVDF in pure N,N‐dimethylformamide (DMF) and DMF/acetone mixture solutions are studied. Influence of the processing and solution parameters such as flow rate, applied voltage, solvent system, and mixture ratio, on nanofiber morphology, total crystallinity, and crystal phase content of the nanofibers are investigated using scanning electron microscopy, wide‐angle X‐ray scattering, differential scanning calorimetric, and Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy. The results show that solutions of 20% w/w PVDF in two solvent systems of DMF and DMF/acetone (with volume ratios of 3/1 and 1/1) are electrospinnable; however, using DMF/acetone volume ratio of 1/3 led to blockage of the needle and spinning process was stopped. Very high fraction of β‐phase (～79%–85%) was obtained for investigated nanofiber, while degree of crystallinity increased to 59% which is quite high due to the strong influence of electrospinning on ordering the microstructure. Interestingly, ultrafine fibers with the diameter of 12 and 15 nm were obtained in this work. Uniform and bead free nanofiber was formed when a certain amount of acetone was added in to the electrospinning solution. © 2015 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Appl. Polym. Sci. 2015 , 132, 42304.     

Rheological characteristics of hyperbranched polyesters

Summary When the effects of physical aging below T _g are erased, the rheological response of a series of aliphatic hyperbranched polyesters is Newtonian and the melt viscosity scales roughly linearly with M _w at high M _w, indicating entanglement to be absent. The rheological behavior is also highly sensitive to the nature of the terminal groups, suggesting the overall behavior to be close to that of an assembly of compact coreshell "particles". There are therefore strong parallels between the physical behavior of the hyperbranched polyesters in question and that of their ideal dendrimer analogues. Received: 14 April 2002 /Revised: 1 July 2002 / Accepted: 1 July 2002     

Solution properties of ionic hydrophobically associating polyacrylamide with an arylalkyl group

Copolymers of acrylamide, 2‐acrylamide‐2‐methylpropanesulfate (AMPS), and hydrophobic monomer N‐arylalkylacrylamide (BAAM) were synthesized by free‐radical micellar copolymerization. The effects of the copolymer, BAAM, AMPS, and NaCl concentrations and the pH value on the apparent viscosity of the copolymers were studied. The solution viscosities increased sharply when the copolymer concentration was higher than the critical associating concentration. The apparent viscosities of aqueous solutions of poly(N‐arylalkylacrylamide‐co‐acrylamide‐co‐2‐acrylamide‐2‐methylpropanesulfate) (PBAMS) increased with increasing BAAM and AMPS concentrations. PBAMS exhibited good salt resistance. With increasing pH, the apparent viscosities first increased and then decreased. Dilute PBAMS solutions exhibited Newtonian behavior, whereas semidilute aqueous and salt solutions exhibited shear‐thickening behavior at a lower shear rate and pseudoplastic behavior at a higher rate. Upon the removal of shear, the aqueous solution viscosities recovered and became even greater than the original viscosity, but the salt solution viscosities could not recover instantaneously. The elastic properties of PBAMS solutions were more dominant than the viscous properties, and this suggested a significant buildup of a network structure. © 2005 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci 97: 316–321, 2005     

Nonlinear rheological behavior of a novel oil displacing agent

In this work, the shear and elongational rheologies have been investigated for a newly developed oil displacing agent, polymeric surfactant‐PSf. It was found that the PSf solutions exhibited Newtonian, shear‐thinning, and shear‐thickening behavior, respectively, depending on the polymer concentration and shear rate, and Cox–Merz rule was not applicable to these systems. The first normal stress difference (N₁) versus shear rate plots for PSf were complicated, which varied with the composition of the solutions. The uniaxial elongation in capillary breakup experimental results indicated that Exponential model could be used to fit the experimental data of the PSf solutions at lower polymer concentrations. In addition, it was found that PSf was more effective in improving shear viscosity than partially hydrolyzed polyacrylamide, but not in the case of elongational viscosity. The experimental results indicated that the microstructural mechanisms are responsible for the rheological behavior of the polymers. © 2014 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Appl. Polym. Sci. 2014 , 131, 40813.     

Rheological behavior in the molten state and solution of hyperbranched polyester of fourth and fifth generation

The rheological behavior in the molten state and solution of hyperbranched polyol polyesters (HBPs) obtained by one step (HBP4, HBP5), step by step (HBP4P, HBP5P), and combination of both (HBP1‐4, HBP1‐5) was studied. Under conditions of dynamic oscillatory shear, all HBPs presented a shear‐thinning behavior and under steady shear they showed a Newtonian behavior. Also, the steady shear viscosities decreased with increasing temperature. The behavior of HBPs was mainly viscous, except for the HBP4P that showed higher storage modulus and reduction of complex viscosity when increasing the angular frequency. The HBPs presented higher complex viscosity than steady shear and they did not follow the Cox‐Merz rule. The HBPs in solution presented a plateau region at shear rate lower than 40 s⁻¹ but a shear‐thickening behavior at shear rate higher than 40 s⁻¹. The viscosities of HBPs in solution (in the plateau region) and molten state increase in the following order: HBP5P > HBP1‐5 > HBP4P > HBP1‐4 > HBP4 > HBP5. These results are not in agreement with the values of the number average molar mass obtained by vapor pressure osmometry due to different interaction between HBPs molecules. © 2010 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci, 2011     

Investigation into the solution properties of hyperbranched polymer

The solution properties of hydroxyl terminated hyperbranched aliphatic polyesters and their acetyl derivatives have been studied by measuring viscosity parameters. The polarity of terminated groups of molecules is the most important factor affecting their properties. The intrinsic viscosity [η] cannot reflect the real monomolecular hydrodynamic volume of hydroxyl group-terminated hyperbranched polymer due to the strong intermolecular forces which lead to the formation of stable clusters. The intermolecular association constant K_M depends not only on molecular weight, but also on the polarity of end-groups. However, the dynamic contact concentration C_S can be determined accurately from reduced viscosity versus concentration plots. The reason why the intrinsic viscosity does not change linearly with the generation of the hyperbranched aliphatic polyesters is explained using ‘free-draining’ and ‘non-draining’ models. © 2001 Society of Chemical Industry     

聚酰胺酸纺丝溶液的流变性能研究

由均苯四酸二酐(PMDA)和4,4'-二氨基二苯醚(ODA)在N,N-二甲基乙酰胺(DMAc)中共聚合制得聚酰亚胺前驱体——聚酰胺酸的纺丝溶液,采用哈克流变仪研究了溶液的流变性能。结果表明:聚酰胺酸溶液属于切力变稀的非牛顿流体;溶液的表观黏度随溶液温度的升高而降低,随溶液浓度的升高或聚合物特性黏度的增大而增大。溶液温度的升高、浓度的降低或聚合物特性黏度的减小均使得聚酰胺酸溶液呈现切力变稀行为的临界剪切速率变大,使得溶液的非牛顿指数增大,同时使得溶液的结构黏度指数减小。溶液的黏流活化能随剪切速率的增加或随溶液浓度的增高而下降。     

Hydrophobically modified poly(sodium 2‐acrylamido‐2‐methylpropanesulfonate): synthesis and viscosity of aqueous solution

BACKGROUND: Hydrophobically modified polyelectrolytes are widely used polymers due to their good water solubility, stretched configuration in water and strong hydrophobic association. The study reported here aimed at researching the double action of hydrophobic association and electrostatic effect of novel hydrophobically modified polyelectrolytes in solution. RESULTS: A series of novel hydrophobically modified polyelectrolytes were synthesized by micellar copolymerization with various feed ratios of sodium 2‐acrylamido‐2‐methylpropanesulfonate, N‐n‐dodecylamine and sodium dodecylsulfonate. Their structure was characterized using Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, nuclear magnetic resonance and gel permeation chromatography, and the viscosities of their aqueous and salt solutions were studied. CONCLUSION: The results show that the addition of the hydrophobic comonomer results in a decrease in molecular weight (M_w). The smaller the initial number of hydrophobes in one micelle, the higher is M_w of the resulting copolymer. The viscosity of PAD‐1.73 polyelectrolyte is less sensitive to salt than those of the others. According to the zero shear viscosity and corresponding concentration, the critical cluster‐forming concentration, critical overlap concentration and critical entanglement concentration of these polymer solutions were determined. Moreover, in the dilute regime the viscosity decreases with increasing salinity, while in the semi‐dilute regime the viscosity decreases first and then increases. It is suggested that in dilute and semi‐dilute regimes, hydrophobic intramolecular association and intermolecular association dominate, respectively. Copyright © 2009 Society of Chemical Industry     

Synthesis and characterization of novel organosoluble polyesters based on a DIOL with azaquinoxaline ring

A series of new polyesters were synthesized by polycondensation of aliphatic and aromatic dicarboxylic dichlorides with a novel quinoxaline diol, 2,3‐bis (4‐hydroxy phenyl)‐5‐azaquinoxaline (DIOL). The DIOL was synthesized by reacting 4,4′‐dihydroxy benzil with 2, 3‐diaminopyridine (yield: 85%), and characterized by FTIR and ¹H‐NMR spectra. All polyesters showed good solubility in most aprotic polar solvents such as NMP (N‐methylpyrrolidone), DMF (dimethylformamide), DMSO (dimethylsulfoxide), DMAc (dimethylacetamide), HMPA (hexamethylenephosphoramide), and Py (pyridine). The inherent viscosity of polyesters was obtained in the range of 1.1–1.22 dL/mg. The glass transition temperatures of the polyesters were in the range of 200–280°C, as determined by DSC. The initial decomposition temperatures of the polyesters were above 300°C and the char yield at 750°C ranged from 30 to 60% under nitrogen atmosphere. © 2009 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci, 2009     

Viscometric behavior of ternary concentrated solutions of hydroxypropyl cellulose and ethyl cellulose in m-cresol

The shear viscosity of blend solutions of hydroxypropyl cellulose (HPC) and ethyl cellulose (EC) in m-cresol (both HPC/m-cresol and EC/m-cresol systems form lyotropic liquid crystals) was determined by cone-plate-type and capillary-type viscometers. The textures for the same systems at rest and undergoing shear were also observed with a polarized microscope. At shear rate of 1 s^?1, viscosity exhibited a maximum and a minimum with respect to temperature, and this suggested that the phase of the matrix dominated the viscometric behavior of the ternary systems; the blend composition dependence of the viscosity was not additive, and this suggested that HPC and EC were immiscible. At relatively high shear stress, the blend composition dependence of the viscosity greatly depended on the total polymer concentration of the solutions and was quite different from that at low shear rate; the texture of the anisotropic solutions was also different from that at low shear rate. Our findings suggested that the dependence of viscosity on shear and concentration for pure HPC solution was different from that for pure EC solution.     

Synthesis and characterization of a novel hyperbranched polyether

A hyperbranched polyether has been synthesized by a single‐step nucleophilic displacement polymerization technique between cyanuric chloride and the sodium salt of bisphenol‐A. The effects of various reaction parameters on the yield, and molecular weight, as measured by the intrinsic viscosity of the polymer, have been studied. The synthesized polymer has been characterized by FT‐IR, UV and ¹H NMR spectroscopies, elemental analysis, solubility and viscosity measurements. The polymer is soluble in highly polar solvents such as N,N‐dimethylacetamide, N,N‐dimethylformamide and dimethyl sulfoxide, partially soluble in dilute aqueous NaOH solution, methanol, ethanol, chloroform, etc., but insoluble in water and non‐polar hydrocarbon solvents. The solubility parameter of the hyperbranched polymer has also been measured experimentally. Copyright © 2004 Society of Chemical Industry     

Characterization of hyperbranched polyol polyesters based on 2,2‐bis (methylol propionic acid) and pentaerythritol

Hyperbranched polyesters (HBPs) of fourth and fifth generation were synthesized by procedures involving one step (HBP4, HBP5), step by step (HBP4P, HBP5P), and combination of both of them (HBP1‐4, HBP1‐5) using 2,2‐bis(methylol)propionic acid (DMPA), pentaerythritol (PE), and acid catalysis. The characterization of the polyesters was done by nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR), rheology on solution, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), and acid and hydroxyl values. The degree of branching of polyesters (DB) and the average molecular mass and polymerization degree _NMR were calculated by Frey and Fréchet methods and (DP)_NMR, respectively, being higher for HBP4P sample. The molecular structure of polyesters depends mainly on of the synthesis method. The hydroxyl values were larger than 430 mg/g KOH for all HBPs, and the conversion was controlled between 90 and 93% to avoid excessive cyclization reactions. The steady shear viscosities at different temperatures and at 41.77 s^?1 shear rate were measured for all HBPs solutions in dimethyl formamide (DMF) showing a shear thickening behavior. The flow activation energies (E_a) were calculated by Arrhenius equation. © 2008 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci, 2009     

Spinning and drawing properties of ultrahigh‐molecular‐weight polyethylene fibers prepared at varying concentrations and temperatures

The concentrations and temperatures of ultrahigh‐molecular‐weight polyethylene (UHMWPE) gel solutions exhibited a significant influence on their rheological and spinning properties. The shear viscosities of UHMWPE solutions increased consistently with increasing concentrations at a constant temperature above 80°C. Tremendously high shear viscosities of UHMWPE gel solutions were found as the temperatures reached 120–140°C, at which their shear viscosity values approached the maximum. The spinnable solutions are those gel solutions with optimum shear viscosities and relatively good homogeneity in nature. Moreover, the gel solution concentrations and spinning temperatures exhibited a significant influence on the drawability and microstructure of the as‐spun fibers. At each spinning temperature, the achievable draw ratios obtained for as‐spun fibers prepared near the optimum concentration are significantly higher than those of as‐spun fibers prepared at other concentrations. The critical draw ratio of the as‐spun fiber prepared at the optimum concentration approached a maximum value, as the spinning temperature reached the optimum value of 150°C. Further investigations indicated that the best orientation of the precursors of shish‐kebab‐like entities, birefringence, crystallinity, thermal and tensile properties were always accompanied with the as‐spun fiber prepared at the optimum concentration and temperature. Similar to those found for the as‐spun fibers, the birefringence and tensile properties of the draw fibers prepared at the optimum condition were always higher than those of drawn fibers prepared at other conditions but stretched to the same draw ratio. Possible mechanisms accounting for these interesting phenomena are proposed.     

Rheological behavior of semidilute solutions of ultrahigh-molecular-weight polyethylene

The rheological behavior of spinning solutions of ultrahigh-molecular-weight polyethylene was investigated in stationary and dynamic conditions of shear flow. It was shown that at the shear rates characteristic of real spinning conditions, the elastic reaction of the solution is much higher than the viscous reaction. In conditions of constant shear stress that ensure non-Newtonian flow of the solution, the uniform decrease in the viscosity is replaced by an increase in time due to gradual formation of a cross-linked layer adjacent to the rotating disk of the working unit of the rheometer.