Surface-attached micropattemed polyelectrolyte brushes on planar solid surfaces are generated using free radical polymerization photo-initiated by self-assembled initiator monolayers. It is shown that the formed patte...Surface-attached micropattemed polyelectrolyte brushes on planar solid surfaces are generated using free radical polymerization photo-initiated by self-assembled initiator monolayers. It is shown that the formed patterns can be either negative or positive with different patterning processes.展开更多
It is commonly realized that polydispersity may significantly affect the surface modification properties of polymer brush systems. In light of this, we systematically study morphologies of bidisperse polyelectrolyte b...It is commonly realized that polydispersity may significantly affect the surface modification properties of polymer brush systems. In light of this, we systematically study morphologies of bidisperse polyelectrolyte brush grafted onto a spherical nanocolloid in the presence of trivalent counterions using molecular dynamics simulations. Via varying polydispersity, grafting density, and solvent selectivity, the effects of electrostatic correlation and excluded volume are focused, and rich phase behaviors of binary mixed polyelectrolyte brush are predicted, including a variety of pinned-patch morphologies at low grafting density and micelle-like structures at high grafting density. To pinpoint the mechanism of surface structure formation, the shape factor of two species of polyelectrolyte chains and the pair correlation function between monomers from different polyelectrolyte ligands are analyzed carefully. Also, electrostatic correlations, manifested as the bridging through trivalent counterions, are examined by identifying four states of trivalent counterions. Our simulation results may be useful for designing smart stimuli-responsive materials based on mixed polyelectrolyte coated surfaces.展开更多
Langevin dynamics simulations have been performed to investigate the response of bi-disperse and strong polyacid chains grafted on an electrode to electric fields generated by opposite surface charges on the polyelect...Langevin dynamics simulations have been performed to investigate the response of bi-disperse and strong polyacid chains grafted on an electrode to electric fields generated by opposite surface charges on the polyelectrolyte （PE）-grafted electrode and a second parallel electrode. Simulation results clearly show that, under a negative external electric field, the longer grafted PE chains are more strongly stretched than the shorter ones in terms of the relative change in their respective brush heights. Whereas under a positive external electric field, the grafted shorter chains collapse more significantly than the longer ones. It was found that, under a positive external electric field, the magnitude of the total electric force acting on one shorter PE chain is larger than that on one longer PE chain, or vice versa. The effects of smeared and discrete charge distributions of grafted PE chains on the response of PE brushes to external electric fields were also examined.展开更多
The authors have investigated the pH and ionic strength response of self-assembled layers formed by adsorption of amphiphilic weak polyelectrolytes. Using the SFA （Surface Forces Apparatus） the authors measured forc...The authors have investigated the pH and ionic strength response of self-assembled layers formed by adsorption of amphiphilic weak polyelectrolytes. Using the SFA （Surface Forces Apparatus） the authors measured force-distance profiles of poly （isoprene）-poly （acrylic acid） block copolymers adsorbed on mica. Also by Atomic Force Microscopy the authors captured single polyelectrolyte molecule adsorbed on a surface. The effect of salt concentration （Cs） and pH upon the height of the brush layers was explored mainly by measuring the forces between two adsorbed polyelectrolyte brushes. At pH = 4 our results are in good agreement with the scaling prediction L0 ∝Cs-1/3 Changing the pH from 4 to 10 causes a remarkable swelling of the polymer layer, but only a weak dependence on salt concentration was detected at the higher pH. This can be attributed to the degree of dissociation, which depends on the local pH value. At low pH the polyelectrolyte chains have a low charge density, while on increasing the pH the degree of dissociation rises, and the increased charge density is followed by swelling of the adsorbed layer. The local concentration of ions in the brush is now greater than that of pH = 4 and approximately equivalent to 0.3 M. So the swelling is only weakly dependent on salt concentration in the range 0.01-1.0 M. The results demonstrate the tunable nature of such self-assembled polyelectroiyte brushes whose height and range of interactions, can be systematically controlled by adjusting the pH and ionic strength of the medium.展开更多
Polyelectrolyte brushes(PEBs)are commonly used to modify surface that have attracted great research interest.The dielectric permittivity of the grafted surface is typically significantly different from that of solutio...Polyelectrolyte brushes(PEBs)are commonly used to modify surface that have attracted great research interest.The dielectric permittivity of the grafted surface is typically significantly different from that of solution,which results in surface polarization(SP)effect with a jump of electric field.It is thus important to study how SP alters the PEB’s structure and properties.In this work,the SP effects on PEB structure was studied using a statistical thermodynamic theory.The free energy functional to describe SP effect was constructed by using the image-charge method.Meanwhile,the electrostatic potential was solved from a modified Poisson-Boltzmann equation taking the ion solvation effect into consideration.In the absence of SP,the thickness of PEB exhibited a continuous collapse transition when decreasing the solvent quality.In the presence of SP,the collapse became a jump-like transition.Free energy analysis showed that the long-range Coulombic interaction dominated the transition because of the enhanced counterion condensation in the presence of SP.The theory provides an effective tool to study SP effect on PEBs,and the results explain the underlying physics in PEB collapse transition.展开更多
Titanium dioxide(TiO_(2))hollow nanoparticles present significant potential for photocatalytic applications while their straightforward preparation with precise structure control is still challenging.This work reports...Titanium dioxide(TiO_(2))hollow nanoparticles present significant potential for photocatalytic applications while their straightforward preparation with precise structure control is still challenging.This work reports the approach to preparing tunable hollow TiO_(2) nanospheres by utilization of spherical polyelectrolyte brushes(SPB)as nanoreactors and templates.During the preparation,the evolution of the structure was characterized by small angle X-ray scattering(SAXS),and in combination with dynamic light scattering and transmission electron microscopy.The formation of TiO_(2) shell within the brush(SPB@TiO_(2))is confirmed by the significant increase of the electron density,and its internal structure has been analyzed by fitting SAXS data,which can be influenced by Titanium precursors and ammonia concentration.After calcining SPB@TiO_(2) in a muffle furnace,hollow TiO_(2) nanospheres are produced,and their transition to the anatase crystal form is triggered,as confirmed by X-ray diffraction analysis.Utilizing the advantages of their hollow structure,these TiO_(2) nanospheres exhibit exceptional catalytic degradation efficiency of methylene blue(MB),tetracycline(TC),and 2,4-dichlorophenoxyacetic acid(2,4-D),and also demonstrate excellent recyclability.展开更多
Synovial fluid is made up of various biomacromolecules,including hyaluronic acid,aggrecans,lubricins,and phosphatidylcholine lipid,which are assembled onto the surface of articular cartilage in a gel state.Among them,...Synovial fluid is made up of various biomacromolecules,including hyaluronic acid,aggrecans,lubricins,and phosphatidylcholine lipid,which are assembled onto the surface of articular cartilage in a gel state.Among them,brush-like biomacromolecules or assemblies have a vital effect on human joint lubrication.Inspired by this,the combination of brush-like molecular structures and gel-like assembly may be an efficient approach for the synthesis of biomimetic lubricating matters.Learning from the lubrication system of human joints,poly(2-methacryloyloxyethyl phosphorylcholine)(PMPC)brushes grafted poly(N-isopropylacrylamide-co-acrylic acid)(poly(NIPAAm-co-AA))microgels,abbreviated as MBs-g-MGs,were synthesized as one kind of biomimetic lubricating additives.It is worth noting that this bionic strategy considered both molecular structure and assembled form,which enabled this hairy microgel to achieve low friction in aqueous medium.Meanwhile,the effective lubrication was still achieved when using MBs-g-MGs at high temperature,indicating that this microgel maintains a good lubricating effect over a wide range of temperature.In addition,this kind of microgel possessed good biocompatibility,which laid the foundation for potential biomedical applications.Looking beyond,these biomimetic microgels may provide an effective lubricating effect for water-based sliding interfaces,especially in biomedical systems.展开更多
A theoretical investigation on the pH-induced switching of mixed polyelectrolyte brushes was performed by using a molecular theory. The results indicate that the switching properties of mixed polyelectrolyte brushes a...A theoretical investigation on the pH-induced switching of mixed polyelectrolyte brushes was performed by using a molecular theory. The results indicate that the switching properties of mixed polyelectrolyte brushes are dependent on the pH values. At low pH, negatively charged chains adopt a compact conformation on the bottom of the brush while positively charged chains are highly stretched away from the surface. At high pH values, the inverse transformation takes place. The role of pH determining the polymer chains conformation and charge behavior of mixed polyelectrolyte brushes was analyzed. It is found that there exists a mechanism for reducing strong electrostatic repulsions： stretching of the chains. The H＋ and OH- units play a more important role as counterions of the charged polymers do. The collapse of the polyelectrolyte chains for different pH values could be attributed to the screening of the electrostatic interactions and the counterion-mediated attractive interaction along the chains.展开更多
Spherical polyelectrolyte brushes （SPBs） consisting of polystyrene （PS） core and poly（2-aminoethyl methacrylate hydrochloride） （PAEMH） shell were prepared by photo-emulsion polymerization. Au nanoparticles （A...Spherical polyelectrolyte brushes （SPBs） consisting of polystyrene （PS） core and poly（2-aminoethyl methacrylate hydrochloride） （PAEMH） shell were prepared by photo-emulsion polymerization. Au nanoparticles （Au-NPs） with controlled size and size distribution were synthesized in situ using SPBs as nanoreactors. Via layer-by-layer deposition technique on the surface of SPBs, nano-composite particles with Au/Ag-NPs bilayer and Au/Ag/Au-NPs trilayer were prepared. The structures of the as-prepared Au/Ag multilayer SPBs were characterized by UV-Vis spectroscopy, TEM, ICP-AES and DLS. The charge reversal of the nano-composite particles observed by zeta potential confirmed the success of layer-by-layer assembly. The Au/Ag-NPs bilayer nano-composite particles showed high catalytic efficiency with an apparent activation energy of about 41.2 kJ/mol in the reduction reaction of 4-nitrophenol to 4-aminophenol in the existence of sodium borohydride monitored. The catalytic activity ofAu/Ag-NPs multilayer SPBs close to that of Au-NPs SPBs and much higher than that of Ag-NPs SPBs reveals its potential applications in cost-effective catalysts with high-performance.展开更多
We directly monitor the absolute separation profiles that function as film thickness between a single glass disk and the charged polyelectrolyte brushes decorated steel slider in water using a home-made slider-on-disk...We directly monitor the absolute separation profiles that function as film thickness between a single glass disk and the charged polyelectrolyte brushes decorated steel slider in water using a home-made slider-on-disk apparatus, which reflects the structural conformation variations and interactions of polymer brushes under externally applied pressure, in addition to probing the relative variation of friction forces under different applied loads and sliding velocities. We find that the polyelectrolyte brushes modified surfaces can sustain high pressure and have extremely low friction coefficients（around 0.006 at pressures of 0.13 MPa; 0.5-0.6 without brushes）. The water-lubrication characteristics are correlated to the structural conformation changes of the polyelectrolyte brushes that are mainly governed by electrostatic interactions and the osmotic pressure of counterions inside the polymer chains, which can be used to support and distribute the normal pressure. The apparent thickness of the brush decreases with the increase of loading forces, an increase in the ionic strength causes the polymer chains collapse, and the friction forces increase. This fundamental research is of great importance to understand the mechanical and structural properties of polyelectrolyte brushes and their influences on the tribological behaviors, and helps to design friction/lubrication-controlled surface/interface by taking advantage of polyelectrolyte brushes.展开更多
Bifunctional spherical polyelectrolyte brushes （SPBs） with tunable thermo-and pH-sensitivity are synthesized by combining therrno-controlled emulsion polymerization and photo-emulsion polymerization. They consist of...Bifunctional spherical polyelectrolyte brushes （SPBs） with tunable thermo-and pH-sensitivity are synthesized by combining therrno-controlled emulsion polymerization and photo-emulsion polymerization. They consist of a spherical polystyrene core and a shell of mixed brushes of poly（N-isopropylacrylamide） （PNIPAM） and poly（acrylic acid） （PAA） whose composition can be easily modulated by the dose of monomers. The kinetics of SPB synthesis as well as their size change with temperature and pH is determined by dynamic light scattering （DLS）. The scanning electron microscopy （SEM） images show that the bifunctional SPBs have a defined spherical morphology with a narrow size distribution.展开更多
A tetrahedral polyelectrolyte brush in the presence of trivalent counterions is researched under the condition of good solution by mea ns of molecular dynamics simulati ons.Grafting density and charge fraction are var...A tetrahedral polyelectrolyte brush in the presence of trivalent counterions is researched under the condition of good solution by mea ns of molecular dynamics simulati ons.Grafting density and charge fraction are varied to gen erate a series of surface patter ns.Lateral microphase separation happens and various interesting pinned patches appear at appropriate charge fraction and grafting density.Through a careful analysis on the brush thickness,the pair correlation functions,the distributions of net charge,and the four states of trivalent counterions in the brush,we find that the ordered surface patterns and special properties are induced by the pure electrostatic correlation effect of trivalent ions even in the good solvent.Furthermore,the dependences of electrostatic correlation on the charge fraction of tethered chains are evaluated for fixed grafting den sity.Also,our results can serve as a guide for precise control over the stimuli-responsive materials rational and self-assembly of nanoparticles.展开更多
The self-consistent field theory has been employed to numerically study the response of bi-disperse flexible polyelectrolyte （PE） brushes grafted on an electrode to electric fields generated by opposite surface char...The self-consistent field theory has been employed to numerically study the response of bi-disperse flexible polyelectrolyte （PE） brushes grafted on an electrode to electric fields generated by opposite surface charges on the PE-grafted electrode and a second parallel electrode. The numerical study reveals that, under a positive external electric field, the shorter and negatively charged PE chains are more responsive than the longer PE chains in terms of the relative changes in their respective brush heights. Whereas under a negative external electric field, the opposite was observed. The total electric force on the grafted PE chains was calculated and it was found that, under a positive external electric field, the magnitude of the total electric force acting on one shorter PE chain is larger than that on one longer PE chain, or vice versa. The underlying mechanism was unraveled through analyzing the total electric field across the two oppositely charged electrodes.展开更多
As an example of a very low friction system,Monte Carlo Brownian dynamics simulations have been used to calculate equilibrium structures of a polyelectrolyte brush grafted onto planes.The polymers were calculated in a...As an example of a very low friction system,Monte Carlo Brownian dynamics simulations have been used to calculate equilibrium structures of a polyelectrolyte brush grafted onto planes.The polymers were calculated in a semi-flexible coarse-grain model that is appropriate to treat the charge density of the polyion.The effect of linear charge density on the polyionx,the surface negative charge,and added salts were studied.In salt-free solution,scaling theories predicted the structure well in the lowxregion.In the highxregion,additional shrinkage was found from the theories due to counterion condensation.The effect of surface charge showed not only the repulsion of the polyion from the surface but also the shrinkage in the highxregion due to the additional counterions required for electrical neutrality.The addition of salts led to the shrinkage of the brush heights,and in the highxregion,additional extension was found.The computational strategy for calculating the friction dynamics of the system is also discussed.展开更多
Scaling theory of charged cylindrical polyelectrolyte brushes is developed. The dependence of brush thickness on the grafting density, charge fraction, and chain length is analyzed. A full phase diagram is established...Scaling theory of charged cylindrical polyelectrolyte brushes is developed. The dependence of brush thickness on the grafting density, charge fraction, and chain length is analyzed. A full phase diagram is established. Characteristics and boundaries between different regimes of cylindrical polyelectrolyte brushes are summarized. Special attentions are paid to electrostatic interaction induced stiffening and counterion condensation effects. If the Bjerrum length of the solution is larger than the Kuhn length of the polyelectrolyte chains, counterion condensation occurs in the strongly charged polyeleetrolyte brushes. On the contrary, the electrostatic interaction stretches the strongly charged grafted polyelectrolyte chains to their contour length.展开更多
Polyelectrolyte solutions are more variable than uncharged macromolecule due to electrical interaction between charged molecules and surrounding counterions.Therefore,the subject of polyelectrolyte solutions has attra...Polyelectrolyte solutions are more variable than uncharged macromolecule due to electrical interaction between charged molecules and surrounding counterions.Therefore,the subject of polyelectrolyte solutions has attracted a wide range of interests in both basic and applied research,and has also been extensively explored.However,the understanding of the molecular dynamics and conformation of polyelectrolytes in solution remains to be deepened,and universal consensus on some key issues have not been reached.Many methods have contributed to solving the above problems in different ways,including dielectric relaxation spectroscopy(DRS).In this perspective,we briefly reviewed the history of dielectric spectroscopic research on polyelectrolyte solution,with emphasis on summarizing our efforts.In particular,we expound the characteristics of DRS and its ability to obtain the internal information of the system of interest.Finally,we evaluate the advantages and limitations of the dielectric method and discussed future prospects of this field.展开更多
The counterion-mediated hydrogen bonding(CMHB)is related to the hydrogen bonding between bound counterions and polyelectrolyte chains in polyelectrolyte systems,where the counterions can both electrostatically bind to...The counterion-mediated hydrogen bonding(CMHB)is related to the hydrogen bonding between bound counterions and polyelectrolyte chains in polyelectrolyte systems,where the counterions can both electrostatically bind to the charged groups of polyelectrolyte chains and act as hydrogen bond donors or acceptors to form hydrogen bonds with the hydrogen bond sites associated with polyelectrolyte chains simultaneously.A large number of literatures illustrate that strong polyelectrolytes(SPs)are insensitive to pH,which severely limmits the applications of SPs as smart materials.However,our studies have demonstrated that the CMHB makes SPs pH-responsive.This perspective discusses the mechanism of pH responsiveness of SPs and the pH-tunable properties of SPs,based on the pH-controlled CMHB effect.The future research directions on the pH responsiveness of SPs are also discussed here.It is anticipated that the study of the pH responsiveness of SPs not only will provide a new understanding of the fundamental properties of SPs,but also will greatly expand the applications of SPs in the field of smart materials.展开更多
Brownian dynamics simulations are employed to explore the effects of chain stiffness and trivalent salt concentration on the conformational behavior of spherical polyelectrolyte brush. The rigid brush adopts bundle-li...Brownian dynamics simulations are employed to explore the effects of chain stiffness and trivalent salt concentration on the conformational behavior of spherical polyelectrolyte brush. The rigid brush adopts bundle-like morphology at a wide range of trivalent salt concentration. The number variation of bundles pinned on the colloid surface shows a non-monotonic profile as a function of the chain stiffness. The radial distributions of monomers and ions and the charge ratio between condensed ions and monomers are calculated. The charge inversion is observed for the high salt concentration regardless of chain rigidity. Furthermore, the pair correlation functions of monomer-monomer and monomer-salt cation are used to elucidate the aggregated mechanism of the bundle-like structure.展开更多
Nanopore detection is a hot issue in current research.One of the challenges is how to slow down the transport velocity of nanoparticles in nanopores.In this paper,we propose a functional group modified nanopore.That m...Nanopore detection is a hot issue in current research.One of the challenges is how to slow down the transport velocity of nanoparticles in nanopores.In this paper,we propose a functional group modified nanopore.That means a polyelectrolyte brush layer is grafted on the surface of the nanopore to change the surface charge properties.The existing studies generally set the charge density of the brush layer to a fixed value.On the contrary,in this paper,we consider an essential property of the brush layer:the volume charge density is adjustable with pH.Thus,the charge property of the brush layer will change with the local H+concentration.Based on this,we established a mathematical model to study the transport of nanoparticles in polyelectrolyte brush layer modified nanopores.We found that pH can effectively adjust the charge density and even the polarity of the brush layer.A larger pH can reduce the transport velocity of nanoparticles and improve the blockade degree of ion current.The grafting density does not change the polarity of the brush charge.The larger the grafting density,the greater the charge density of the brush layer,and the blockade degree of ion current is also more obvious.The polyelectrolyte brush layer modified nanopores in this paper can effectively reduce the nanoparticle transport velocity and retain the essential ion current characteristics,such as ion current blockade and enhancement.展开更多
文摘Surface-attached micropattemed polyelectrolyte brushes on planar solid surfaces are generated using free radical polymerization photo-initiated by self-assembled initiator monolayers. It is shown that the formed patterns can be either negative or positive with different patterning processes.
基金supported by the Fundamental Research Funds for the Central Universities of China (Grant No. 3122020080)。
文摘It is commonly realized that polydispersity may significantly affect the surface modification properties of polymer brush systems. In light of this, we systematically study morphologies of bidisperse polyelectrolyte brush grafted onto a spherical nanocolloid in the presence of trivalent counterions using molecular dynamics simulations. Via varying polydispersity, grafting density, and solvent selectivity, the effects of electrostatic correlation and excluded volume are focused, and rich phase behaviors of binary mixed polyelectrolyte brush are predicted, including a variety of pinned-patch morphologies at low grafting density and micelle-like structures at high grafting density. To pinpoint the mechanism of surface structure formation, the shape factor of two species of polyelectrolyte chains and the pair correlation function between monomers from different polyelectrolyte ligands are analyzed carefully. Also, electrostatic correlations, manifested as the bridging through trivalent counterions, are examined by identifying four states of trivalent counterions. Our simulation results may be useful for designing smart stimuli-responsive materials based on mixed polyelectrolyte coated surfaces.
基金supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China(Grant No.21374052)
文摘Langevin dynamics simulations have been performed to investigate the response of bi-disperse and strong polyacid chains grafted on an electrode to electric fields generated by opposite surface charges on the polyelectrolyte （PE）-grafted electrode and a second parallel electrode. Simulation results clearly show that, under a negative external electric field, the longer grafted PE chains are more strongly stretched than the shorter ones in terms of the relative change in their respective brush heights. Whereas under a positive external electric field, the grafted shorter chains collapse more significantly than the longer ones. It was found that, under a positive external electric field, the magnitude of the total electric force acting on one shorter PE chain is larger than that on one longer PE chain, or vice versa. The effects of smeared and discrete charge distributions of grafted PE chains on the response of PE brushes to external electric fields were also examined.
文摘The authors have investigated the pH and ionic strength response of self-assembled layers formed by adsorption of amphiphilic weak polyelectrolytes. Using the SFA （Surface Forces Apparatus） the authors measured force-distance profiles of poly （isoprene）-poly （acrylic acid） block copolymers adsorbed on mica. Also by Atomic Force Microscopy the authors captured single polyelectrolyte molecule adsorbed on a surface. The effect of salt concentration （Cs） and pH upon the height of the brush layers was explored mainly by measuring the forces between two adsorbed polyelectrolyte brushes. At pH = 4 our results are in good agreement with the scaling prediction L0 ∝Cs-1/3 Changing the pH from 4 to 10 causes a remarkable swelling of the polymer layer, but only a weak dependence on salt concentration was detected at the higher pH. This can be attributed to the degree of dissociation, which depends on the local pH value. At low pH the polyelectrolyte chains have a low charge density, while on increasing the pH the degree of dissociation rises, and the increased charge density is followed by swelling of the adsorbed layer. The local concentration of ions in the brush is now greater than that of pH = 4 and approximately equivalent to 0.3 M. So the swelling is only weakly dependent on salt concentration in the range 0.01-1.0 M. The results demonstrate the tunable nature of such self-assembled polyelectroiyte brushes whose height and range of interactions, can be systematically controlled by adjusting the pH and ionic strength of the medium.
基金supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China(No.21978079).
文摘Polyelectrolyte brushes(PEBs)are commonly used to modify surface that have attracted great research interest.The dielectric permittivity of the grafted surface is typically significantly different from that of solution,which results in surface polarization(SP)effect with a jump of electric field.It is thus important to study how SP alters the PEB’s structure and properties.In this work,the SP effects on PEB structure was studied using a statistical thermodynamic theory.The free energy functional to describe SP effect was constructed by using the image-charge method.Meanwhile,the electrostatic potential was solved from a modified Poisson-Boltzmann equation taking the ion solvation effect into consideration.In the absence of SP,the thickness of PEB exhibited a continuous collapse transition when decreasing the solvent quality.In the presence of SP,the collapse became a jump-like transition.Free energy analysis showed that the long-range Coulombic interaction dominated the transition because of the enhanced counterion condensation in the presence of SP.The theory provides an effective tool to study SP effect on PEBs,and the results explain the underlying physics in PEB collapse transition.
基金funded by the National Key Research and Development Program of China,grant number 2023YFD1700303.
文摘Titanium dioxide(TiO_(2))hollow nanoparticles present significant potential for photocatalytic applications while their straightforward preparation with precise structure control is still challenging.This work reports the approach to preparing tunable hollow TiO_(2) nanospheres by utilization of spherical polyelectrolyte brushes(SPB)as nanoreactors and templates.During the preparation,the evolution of the structure was characterized by small angle X-ray scattering(SAXS),and in combination with dynamic light scattering and transmission electron microscopy.The formation of TiO_(2) shell within the brush(SPB@TiO_(2))is confirmed by the significant increase of the electron density,and its internal structure has been analyzed by fitting SAXS data,which can be influenced by Titanium precursors and ammonia concentration.After calcining SPB@TiO_(2) in a muffle furnace,hollow TiO_(2) nanospheres are produced,and their transition to the anatase crystal form is triggered,as confirmed by X-ray diffraction analysis.Utilizing the advantages of their hollow structure,these TiO_(2) nanospheres exhibit exceptional catalytic degradation efficiency of methylene blue(MB),tetracycline(TC),and 2,4-dichlorophenoxyacetic acid(2,4-D),and also demonstrate excellent recyclability.
基金financial support from the National Natural Science Foundation of China(Nos.51905433 and 52175187)the China Postdoctoral Science Foundation(No.2021M692625)the Fundamental Research Funds for the Central Universities(No.3102019JC001).
文摘Synovial fluid is made up of various biomacromolecules,including hyaluronic acid,aggrecans,lubricins,and phosphatidylcholine lipid,which are assembled onto the surface of articular cartilage in a gel state.Among them,brush-like biomacromolecules or assemblies have a vital effect on human joint lubrication.Inspired by this,the combination of brush-like molecular structures and gel-like assembly may be an efficient approach for the synthesis of biomimetic lubricating matters.Learning from the lubrication system of human joints,poly(2-methacryloyloxyethyl phosphorylcholine)(PMPC)brushes grafted poly(N-isopropylacrylamide-co-acrylic acid)(poly(NIPAAm-co-AA))microgels,abbreviated as MBs-g-MGs,were synthesized as one kind of biomimetic lubricating additives.It is worth noting that this bionic strategy considered both molecular structure and assembled form,which enabled this hairy microgel to achieve low friction in aqueous medium.Meanwhile,the effective lubrication was still achieved when using MBs-g-MGs at high temperature,indicating that this microgel maintains a good lubricating effect over a wide range of temperature.In addition,this kind of microgel possessed good biocompatibility,which laid the foundation for potential biomedical applications.Looking beyond,these biomimetic microgels may provide an effective lubricating effect for water-based sliding interfaces,especially in biomedical systems.
基金financially supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China(Nos.21264016 and 11265015)the General Foundation of Yi Li Normal University(No.2013YSYB17)
文摘A theoretical investigation on the pH-induced switching of mixed polyelectrolyte brushes was performed by using a molecular theory. The results indicate that the switching properties of mixed polyelectrolyte brushes are dependent on the pH values. At low pH, negatively charged chains adopt a compact conformation on the bottom of the brush while positively charged chains are highly stretched away from the surface. At high pH values, the inverse transformation takes place. The role of pH determining the polymer chains conformation and charge behavior of mixed polyelectrolyte brushes was analyzed. It is found that there exists a mechanism for reducing strong electrostatic repulsions： stretching of the chains. The H＋ and OH- units play a more important role as counterions of the charged polymers do. The collapse of the polyelectrolyte chains for different pH values could be attributed to the screening of the electrostatic interactions and the counterion-mediated attractive interaction along the chains.
基金financially supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China(No.51273063 and 51003028)the Fundamental Research Funds for the Central Universities+1 种基金the Higher School Specialized Research Fund for the Doctoral Program(No.20110074110003)111 Project Grant(No.B08021)
文摘Spherical polyelectrolyte brushes （SPBs） consisting of polystyrene （PS） core and poly（2-aminoethyl methacrylate hydrochloride） （PAEMH） shell were prepared by photo-emulsion polymerization. Au nanoparticles （Au-NPs） with controlled size and size distribution were synthesized in situ using SPBs as nanoreactors. Via layer-by-layer deposition technique on the surface of SPBs, nano-composite particles with Au/Ag-NPs bilayer and Au/Ag/Au-NPs trilayer were prepared. The structures of the as-prepared Au/Ag multilayer SPBs were characterized by UV-Vis spectroscopy, TEM, ICP-AES and DLS. The charge reversal of the nano-composite particles observed by zeta potential confirmed the success of layer-by-layer assembly. The Au/Ag-NPs bilayer nano-composite particles showed high catalytic efficiency with an apparent activation energy of about 41.2 kJ/mol in the reduction reaction of 4-nitrophenol to 4-aminophenol in the existence of sodium borohydride monitored. The catalytic activity ofAu/Ag-NPs multilayer SPBs close to that of Au-NPs SPBs and much higher than that of Ag-NPs SPBs reveals its potential applications in cost-effective catalysts with high-performance.
基金financially supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China(Nos.21125316,51305428 and 51335010)Key Research Program of CAS(KJZD-EW-M01)
文摘We directly monitor the absolute separation profiles that function as film thickness between a single glass disk and the charged polyelectrolyte brushes decorated steel slider in water using a home-made slider-on-disk apparatus, which reflects the structural conformation variations and interactions of polymer brushes under externally applied pressure, in addition to probing the relative variation of friction forces under different applied loads and sliding velocities. We find that the polyelectrolyte brushes modified surfaces can sustain high pressure and have extremely low friction coefficients（around 0.006 at pressures of 0.13 MPa; 0.5-0.6 without brushes）. The water-lubrication characteristics are correlated to the structural conformation changes of the polyelectrolyte brushes that are mainly governed by electrostatic interactions and the osmotic pressure of counterions inside the polymer chains, which can be used to support and distribute the normal pressure. The apparent thickness of the brush decreases with the increase of loading forces, an increase in the ionic strength causes the polymer chains collapse, and the friction forces increase. This fundamental research is of great importance to understand the mechanical and structural properties of polyelectrolyte brushes and their influences on the tribological behaviors, and helps to design friction/lubrication-controlled surface/interface by taking advantage of polyelectrolyte brushes.
基金supported by the National Natural Foundation of China(Nos.20644003,20774028)Shanghai Pujiang Talent Project(08PJ14036)the Fundamental Research Funds for the central Universities
文摘Bifunctional spherical polyelectrolyte brushes （SPBs） with tunable thermo-and pH-sensitivity are synthesized by combining therrno-controlled emulsion polymerization and photo-emulsion polymerization. They consist of a spherical polystyrene core and a shell of mixed brushes of poly（N-isopropylacrylamide） （PNIPAM） and poly（acrylic acid） （PAA） whose composition can be easily modulated by the dose of monomers. The kinetics of SPB synthesis as well as their size change with temperature and pH is determined by dynamic light scattering （DLS）. The scanning electron microscopy （SEM） images show that the bifunctional SPBs have a defined spherical morphology with a narrow size distribution.
基金supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China(Nos.21474005 and 21674005)the Fun dame ntal Research Funds for the Central Universities(No.3122018L007)and Quality Course Construction.
文摘A tetrahedral polyelectrolyte brush in the presence of trivalent counterions is researched under the condition of good solution by mea ns of molecular dynamics simulati ons.Grafting density and charge fraction are varied to gen erate a series of surface patter ns.Lateral microphase separation happens and various interesting pinned patches appear at appropriate charge fraction and grafting density.Through a careful analysis on the brush thickness,the pair correlation functions,the distributions of net charge,and the four states of trivalent counterions in the brush,we find that the ordered surface patterns and special properties are induced by the pure electrostatic correlation effect of trivalent ions even in the good solvent.Furthermore,the dependences of electrostatic correlation on the charge fraction of tethered chains are evaluated for fixed grafting den sity.Also,our results can serve as a guide for precise control over the stimuli-responsive materials rational and self-assembly of nanoparticles.
基金financially supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China(No.21374052)the support from K.C.Wong Magna Fund in Ningbo University
文摘The self-consistent field theory has been employed to numerically study the response of bi-disperse flexible polyelectrolyte （PE） brushes grafted on an electrode to electric fields generated by opposite surface charges on the PE-grafted electrode and a second parallel electrode. The numerical study reveals that, under a positive external electric field, the shorter and negatively charged PE chains are more responsive than the longer PE chains in terms of the relative changes in their respective brush heights. Whereas under a negative external electric field, the opposite was observed. The total electric force on the grafted PE chains was calculated and it was found that, under a positive external electric field, the magnitude of the total electric force acting on one shorter PE chain is larger than that on one longer PE chain, or vice versa. The underlying mechanism was unraveled through analyzing the total electric field across the two oppositely charged electrodes.
基金supported by the MEXT program“Elements Strategy Initiative to Form Core Research Center”(since 2012),MEXTMinistry of Education Culture,Sports,Science and Technology,Japan.
文摘As an example of a very low friction system,Monte Carlo Brownian dynamics simulations have been used to calculate equilibrium structures of a polyelectrolyte brush grafted onto planes.The polymers were calculated in a semi-flexible coarse-grain model that is appropriate to treat the charge density of the polyion.The effect of linear charge density on the polyionx,the surface negative charge,and added salts were studied.In salt-free solution,scaling theories predicted the structure well in the lowxregion.In the highxregion,additional shrinkage was found from the theories due to counterion condensation.The effect of surface charge showed not only the repulsion of the polyion from the surface but also the shrinkage in the highxregion due to the additional counterions required for electrical neutrality.The addition of salts led to the shrinkage of the brush heights,and in the highxregion,additional extension was found.The computational strategy for calculating the friction dynamics of the system is also discussed.
基金Supported by National Natural Science Foundation of China under Grant Nos. 20973176,20990234,20874111973 Program of the Ministry of Science and Technology (MOST) 2011CB808502
文摘Scaling theory of charged cylindrical polyelectrolyte brushes is developed. The dependence of brush thickness on the grafting density, charge fraction, and chain length is analyzed. A full phase diagram is established. Characteristics and boundaries between different regimes of cylindrical polyelectrolyte brushes are summarized. Special attentions are paid to electrostatic interaction induced stiffening and counterion condensation effects. If the Bjerrum length of the solution is larger than the Kuhn length of the polyelectrolyte chains, counterion condensation occurs in the strongly charged polyeleetrolyte brushes. On the contrary, the electrostatic interaction stretches the strongly charged grafted polyelectrolyte chains to their contour length.
基金supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China(Nos.21673002,21473012 and 21173025).
文摘Polyelectrolyte solutions are more variable than uncharged macromolecule due to electrical interaction between charged molecules and surrounding counterions.Therefore,the subject of polyelectrolyte solutions has attracted a wide range of interests in both basic and applied research,and has also been extensively explored.However,the understanding of the molecular dynamics and conformation of polyelectrolytes in solution remains to be deepened,and universal consensus on some key issues have not been reached.Many methods have contributed to solving the above problems in different ways,including dielectric relaxation spectroscopy(DRS).In this perspective,we briefly reviewed the history of dielectric spectroscopic research on polyelectrolyte solution,with emphasis on summarizing our efforts.In particular,we expound the characteristics of DRS and its ability to obtain the internal information of the system of interest.Finally,we evaluate the advantages and limitations of the dielectric method and discussed future prospects of this field.
基金supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China(Nos.22273098,52033001,22373003 and 22103002)the Fundamental Research Funds for the Central Universities(No.WK2480000007).
文摘The counterion-mediated hydrogen bonding(CMHB)is related to the hydrogen bonding between bound counterions and polyelectrolyte chains in polyelectrolyte systems,where the counterions can both electrostatically bind to the charged groups of polyelectrolyte chains and act as hydrogen bond donors or acceptors to form hydrogen bonds with the hydrogen bond sites associated with polyelectrolyte chains simultaneously.A large number of literatures illustrate that strong polyelectrolytes(SPs)are insensitive to pH,which severely limmits the applications of SPs as smart materials.However,our studies have demonstrated that the CMHB makes SPs pH-responsive.This perspective discusses the mechanism of pH responsiveness of SPs and the pH-tunable properties of SPs,based on the pH-controlled CMHB effect.The future research directions on the pH responsiveness of SPs are also discussed here.It is anticipated that the study of the pH responsiveness of SPs not only will provide a new understanding of the fundamental properties of SPs,but also will greatly expand the applications of SPs in the field of smart materials.
基金financially supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (No. 21474005)the Fundamental Research Funds for the Central Universities (No. 3122016L011)
文摘Brownian dynamics simulations are employed to explore the effects of chain stiffness and trivalent salt concentration on the conformational behavior of spherical polyelectrolyte brush. The rigid brush adopts bundle-like morphology at a wide range of trivalent salt concentration. The number variation of bundles pinned on the colloid surface shows a non-monotonic profile as a function of the chain stiffness. The radial distributions of monomers and ions and the charge ratio between condensed ions and monomers are calculated. The charge inversion is observed for the high salt concentration regardless of chain rigidity. Furthermore, the pair correlation functions of monomer-monomer and monomer-salt cation are used to elucidate the aggregated mechanism of the bundle-like structure.
基金funded by National Natural Science Foundation of China(Nos.52075138 and 61964006)Hainan Provincial Natural Science Foundation(No.2019RC032)Hainan Province Science and Technology Special Fund(No.ZDYF2022SHFZ033)。
文摘Nanopore detection is a hot issue in current research.One of the challenges is how to slow down the transport velocity of nanoparticles in nanopores.In this paper,we propose a functional group modified nanopore.That means a polyelectrolyte brush layer is grafted on the surface of the nanopore to change the surface charge properties.The existing studies generally set the charge density of the brush layer to a fixed value.On the contrary,in this paper,we consider an essential property of the brush layer:the volume charge density is adjustable with pH.Thus,the charge property of the brush layer will change with the local H+concentration.Based on this,we established a mathematical model to study the transport of nanoparticles in polyelectrolyte brush layer modified nanopores.We found that pH can effectively adjust the charge density and even the polarity of the brush layer.A larger pH can reduce the transport velocity of nanoparticles and improve the blockade degree of ion current.The grafting density does not change the polarity of the brush charge.The larger the grafting density,the greater the charge density of the brush layer,and the blockade degree of ion current is also more obvious.The polyelectrolyte brush layer modified nanopores in this paper can effectively reduce the nanoparticle transport velocity and retain the essential ion current characteristics,such as ion current blockade and enhancement.
