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Tailoring block copolymer nanoporous thin films with acetic acid as a small guest molecule

Alvarez-Fernandez, A; Valdes-Vango, F; Ignacio Martin, J; Velez, M; Quiros, C; Hermida-Merino, D; Portale, G; ... Garcia Alonso, FJ; + view all (2019) Tailoring block copolymer nanoporous thin films with acetic acid as a small guest molecule. Polymer International , 68 (11) pp. 1914-1920. 10.1002/pi.5901. Green open access

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Abstract

Block copolymers offer the fabrication of mesoporous thin films with distinct nanoscale structural features. In this contribution, we present the use of acetic acid (CH3COOH) as a low‐molecular‐weight guest molecule to tune the supramolecular assembly of poly[styrene‐block‐(4‐vinylpyridine)] (PS‐b‐P4VP), offering a versatile and straightforward method to obtain tailored nanostructured films with controlled topography and pore size. Spin‐coating toluene solutions of PS‐b‐P4VP, with a variable amount of CH3COOH, leads to micellar thin films, where the micelles contain the carboxylic acid as a guest molecule. The size can be conveniently modified in these films (from 48 to 75 nm) by varying the amount of organic acid in the starting solutions. Subsequent surface reconstruction of micellar films using ethanol leads to ring‐shaped copolymer nanoporous films with modulated diameter. Controlling the micelle reconstruction process, cylindrical porous films are also obtained. Interestingly, changing the type of aliphatic carboxylic acid leads to a modification of the observed film morphology from micelles to out‐of‐plane P4VP cylinders (or lamellae) in a PS matrix.

Type: Article
Title: Tailoring block copolymer nanoporous thin films with acetic acid as a small guest molecule
Open access status: An open access version is available from UCL Discovery
DOI: 10.1002/pi.5901
Publisher version: https://doi.org/10.1002/pi.5901
Language: English
Additional information: This version is the author accepted manuscript. For information on re-use, please refer to the publisher’s terms and conditions.
Keywords: block copolymers, mesoporous materials, supramolecular assembly, small molecules
UCL classification: UCL
UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > UCL BEAMS
UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > UCL BEAMS > Faculty of Engineering Science
UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > UCL BEAMS > Faculty of Engineering Science > Dept of Chemical Engineering
URI: https://discovery.ucl.ac.uk/id/eprint/10084016
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