2021 Fiscal Year Annual Research Report
三脚型トリプチセン機能団が誘起する特異な高分子自己集合化と機能発現
| Project/Area Number |
20J23317
|
|---|
| Research Institution | Tokyo Institute of Technology |
|---|
Principal Investigator |
CHEN YUGEN 東京工業大学, 物質理工学院, 特別研究員(DC1)
|
|---|
| Project Period (FY) |
2020-04-24 – 2023-03-31
|
| Keywords | Tripodal triptycene / Self-assembly / Polydimethylsiloxane / Polyethylene glycol / Telechelic polymer / Poly(butyl acrylate) / Di-block copolymer |
|---|
| Outline of Annual Research Achievements |
I conducted the following three research subjects.
(1) I have investigated the structure and mechanical properties of telechelic PDMSs with 1,8,13-substituted triptycene termini (1,8,13-TripPDMS). Interestingly, due to the excellent self-assembly ability of the triptycene termini, 1,8,13-TripPDMS can form a free-standing film without any chemical crosslinking. This behavior is remarkable considering the fact that the PDMS molecule before terminal functionalization with the triptycene is liquid, and usually solid PDMS materials can only be obtained by chemical crosslinking. Furthermore, I also found that the free-standing film shows self-healing properties at the temperature range below its melting point, as well as thermoplastic properties, and thus I investigated in detail the surface structure and recyclability of the new PDMS materials.
(2) To extend the above finding to other polymer systems, I introduced 1,8-disubstituted triptycene to the termini of a widely used water-soluble polyethylene glycol (1,8-TripPEG). As reference, I also synthesized a telechelic PEG with 1,4-disubstituted triptycene termini (1,4-TripPEG). 1,8-TripPEG and 1,4-TripPEG were found to exhibit different LCST behaviors in an aqueous solution, and further study for understanding the difference is underway.
(3) I also designed new AB diblock copolymers with a triptycene-containing segment to examine whether the specific self-assembly ability of triptycene can cause microphase separation to form a particular structure. I have completed the synthesis and characterization of the target diblock copolymers.
|
| Current Status of Research Progress |
Current Status of Research Progress
3: Progress in research has been slightly delayed.
Reason
The research progress was deemed to be slow for the following reasons.
For the topic "The structure and mechanical properties of telechelic PDMSs with 1,8,13-substituted triptycene termini (1,8,13-TripPDMS)": In the original plan, I intended to visualize the self-assembly structure of 1,8,13-TripPDMS using atomic force microscopy (AFM). However, acquiring the skill for such AFM measurements took a longer time than I planned initially. It took a long time, but eventually, the self-assembly structure of 1,8,13-TripPDMS was successfully visualized by AFM measurements.
|
| Strategy for Future Research Activity |
In 2022, I will focus on the following two research topics. I will also publish papers regarding the telechelic PDMSs and PEGs.
(i) Self-assembly and properties of TripPEGs: I plan to investigate the self-assembly of TripPEGs to unveil the origin of different LCST behaviors between the 1,8-substituted and 1,4-substituted triptycene termini. To understand the detail, the concentration dependence of the LCST behavior will be evaluated.
(ii) Self-assembly and properties of triptycene-appended diblock copolymers: To investigate the influence of the self-assembly of triptycene units to the microphase separation behavior of the AB diblock copolymer systems, I synthesized triptycene-appended AB diblock copolymers with various ratios of the block segments. I have completed the characterization of the triptycene-appended diblock copolymers based on NMR and GPC measurements. In 2022, I will investigate the detail of self-assembly, rheological, and mechanical properties of the triptycene-appended diblock copolymers. Additionally, I will conduct computational calculations to understand the dynamics and structures of these copolymers.
|
Research Products
(2 results)
