The use of weak polyelectrolytes in multilayer polymer systems provides a means of altering the physicochemical properties of these thin films. We have examined the limits of the polyanions by incorporating the pseudo-polyelectrolytes (pPE's): poly(4-vinylphenol) (PVPh), poly(norbornenylhexafluoroisopropylmethyl alchol) (HFIPA), and recently poly(4-vinylbenzeneboronic acid) (PVBBA). These pPE's have pKa values in the basic versus acidic pH range. We are using zeta potentials to accurately determine the pKa values of these polymers once multilayered with the weak polyelectrolyte, poly(allylamine hydrochloride) (PAH). For example, with PAH there is an increase in pKa(app) as layer number increases with a plateauing nearing 11.0 for a PAH/PVPh system assembled at pH 11.0. For PVPh assembled under the same conditions, there is also an increase in pKa(app) as layer number increases with a plateauing nearing 11.4.

Zeta potential for determination of pKa values of multilayered pseudo-polyelectrolytes

248th National Meeting (2014)

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